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Taveon placed a hand on her shoulder and squeezed, lingering just a moment too long. Her breath caught as she looked up at him. His eyes held the same emotion Rafe’s had earlier, and she couldn’t help but wonder at his thoughts. They were partially hidden from her now. It was the only way she could focus on the task at hand. But she’d heard something. An emotion she swore seemed to come straight from hisheart.
“Good luck, Bree.” Taveon strode off, and Bree felt as though a piece of her moved away along with him. Had that been what had happened? When they’d bound their strength together, had she not only gotten a part of him, but had he gotten a part of her aswell?
She yearned to know more, desperate to know if he could see inside her soul. And scared that he knew every single one of herthoughts.
But she could not dwell on that now. Lord Dagen took up his place in the center of the arena, holding a horn high as he frowned in Bree’s direction. She narrowed her eyes at him and fisted her hands. This was all his fault, in a way. If he hadn’t gotten involved, then she never would have spilled Taveon’s secrets. She would still have to fight, yes, but not so many asnow.
“Are the champions ready?” Dagen shouted the words, and Bree swore she could hear his voiceshake.
She gave him a nod, and she saw Anken’s champion give his own. And then Lord Dagen placed his lips on the horn, blowing a loud, eerie sound that crept down Bree’s spine and settled into herbones.
Anken’s champion began to shift into his form. His body shook, his limbs expanding and twisting. Bones snapped as they changed shape, a horrible sound that made Bree squeeze her eyes as tight as she could. She couldn’t watch, and she couldn’t wait around to see what form he would take. So, she focused on herself instead. That horrible mangled fur. Those sharp claws that glinted underneath the moonlight. The fangs that made her jaw ache from the bloodlust that churned through herveins.
Slowly, Bree’s limps snapped. Her legs morphed into massive muscles covered in a thick dark fur that reeked of blood, sweat, and gore. It only took a few moments for her beastly body to stand tall on her mark. It was the fastest she’d ever changed shape, and it had left her body aching with the need tosleep.
But she couldn’t sleep. Not now. Because there was another creature standing before her. He looked like no animal she’d ever seen before, and certainly not from the human realm. He was half her size with reddish hair shot through with silver. Like Taveon had said, he looked a lot like a fox, one that had been twisted and deformed by the chaotic nature of thisplace.
And then he charged, his sharp fangs flashing in the night. Bree moved just in time, lurching out of the way before he could sink his teeth into her skin. With a deep breath, she forced her beast to focus on the creature before her and his quick, darting movements that were difficult tofollow.
He was fast, she’d give him that. Too fast for her enhanced speed to make much of a difference. But he was also small, at least compared to her own form. One swipe of her claws across his neck, and he’d bedead.
Bree felt herself hesitate, and her entire heart and mind felt torn in two. She wanted Taveon on the throne. She wanted to do whatever it took to end the Tithe. But she did not want to kill. And as she stood there staring at the fox fae before her, she knew she wouldn’t be able to doit.
So, she would have to win some otherway.
Bree dropped back her head and roared. And then she charged, her claws outstretched before her. The fox darted between her legs, but he wasn’t fast enough. Bree’s arm shot through, and her claws wrapped around his waist. Each pointed tip dug into his skin, just enough so that the fox was now screaming from the horrible viciouspain.
She dropped him on the ground as if he were nothing but a rag-doll, heaving as she stood over him. And then she took a claw to his throat, pinning him in place. Bree lifted her head to stare out at the crowd before her, and then slowly she began to change shape. She kept her claw as it was, the sharp point still digging into the flesh of the fox’sthroat.
“I have won,” she said, shouting loud enough for the entire arena to hear her voice. “He is gravely injured, and my claw is at his throat. Just a bit more pressure and he’d be dead within seconds. But I will not kill him. Because I do not need to. I am the victor of thisfight.”
