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Marissa shook her head, her face paler than ever as she stuffed clothes into her bag. “No, not Demetri. I saw Sidon. We have to leave.”
Oh…
Fuck.
Sidon was King Ateleíotes’s right-hand man and royal assassin. Ateleíotes, as in our father’s worst enemy and father to my betrothed. There was only one reason why the hunter would be here, not just on land but in Subliminal.
“Where did you see him?” My voice shook as I removed the towel covering Finley’s tank.
The little axolotl blinked sleepy eyes against the sudden light. While he much preferred staying in water all day every day, his kind could survive without it for a few days. One small blessing on a night like tonight.
“Out there.” She gestured toward the gym door before rushing past me into the bathroom. A moment later, she came back out with most of her toiletries gathered in her arms. “He was watching the fight and based on his expression, he knows it was you.” She shoved her toiletries into the bag with her clothes. “Or maybe he thought it was me. Whatever. It doesn’t matter. We gotta go.”
The blood drained from my face. Things were moving too quickly for me to process properly. I had just betrayed the man I had tumbled head over tail for to save his life, only to find out mine might be in jeopardy. Mine and Marissa’s.
I knew someone had been following me, but when I saw Demetrius, I stopped worrying. I had been so wrapped up in my own drama, I’d failed at my one purpose in life—keeping my sister safe.
How stupid and selfish could I be?
Apparently, very.
My sister’s face popped up in front of mine. “Move, damnit!”
And so I did.
CHAPTER 29
Dominic
Ileaned against the ropes of the ring, my chest heaving as I struggled to catch my breath. My knuckles stung and my muscles screamed in protest, but a surge of adrenaline still coursed through my veins, dulling the pain.
I wasn’t even sure what had just happened. One moment I was waiting for Bree to knock me out and claim the win, and the next I hated her with every fiber of my being for bewitching and deceiving me.
My world had flipped upside down with her song, and Jou and I had reacted on instinct. My conflicting emotions continued to wage war within me even as my fans went wild and my dragon disappeared beneath my skin.
“The Red Dragon is victorious once again!” Frankie’s voice boomed through the arena, nearly drowned out by the chants.
The accolades washed over me in a dull roar as my gaze searched the faces for Bree. There—her hunched figure paused at the back of the gym and turned to meet my gaze. A bittersweet smile graced her lips before the throng swallowed her whole.
Why was she leaving without a word?
And why did she look so damn pleased that I’d won?
I clenched my fists, my knuckles turning white. I wanted to chase after her, drag the truth from her lips once and for all, but the crowd hemmed me in, their jubilant celebration trapping me in place.
Gritting my teeth, I forced a smile and raised my hands in acknowledgment, soaking in their adulation. But beneath the clamor, beneath the triumph, my thoughts were consumed by the siren. She’d seemed so genuine, weaving herself into my life until I couldn’t imagine a day without her.
How could she do this to me? Deceive me like this?
Anger and something else—something far more dangerous—rose in my chest, mingling with the confusion and heartache.
Betrayal.
The cheers became a deafening soundtrack, helping to drown out the pain in my heart. I refused to let my turbulent emotions overtake me, refused to give into the darkness that whispered at the edges of my mind.
Tonight, I would celebrate, but after that?
After that, I would demand answers. I needed to know if she would tell Ichiro or anyone else my plans for shutting down the pyrocrystal trafficking.
