The Viper's Nest (Kit Davenport #4)(52)

“Sí, se?or. ?Cómo puedo ayudarlo?” Raul bobbed his head eagerly as he reached us once more, and I rolled my eyes. Vali must have over-tipped again.

“These fighters are shit,” Vali snapped to the man with all the arrogance expected of Romanul. “We were told you had something better. Unique.”

Raul’s eyes widened and flickered past us to someone else, telling me we had hit the mark. There was something more to this seemingly uninteresting cage-fighting ring after all. Whether it was werewolves, though... well, that remained to be seen.

“Ah, si. Pero, they are not fighting tonight. Lo siento, se?or.” He spread his hands as if to say there was nothing more he could do, but I wasn’t willing to let it go so easily. He was cagey as fuck, and that meant there was more he could tell us.

“Are they here tonight?” I asked him, not bothering to sugarcoat my tone like my brother had done. Fuck it. I was a killer, and these assholes might as well know who they were dealing with.

Raul froze like a deer in headlights, then flicked his gaze to that same person behind us. Turning, I tried to see who he might be looking at, but there were just too many people in the crowded room.

“What my brother means,” Vali corrected in his greasy smooth voice, “is that he himself is a fighter and would like to meet your best in order to see if this little setup is worth his time entering.”

“Little operation?” Raul spluttered, turning a bit red in the face. “This here—”

“Shut up,” I snapped, not caring for his boasting. I’d seen many, many cage fight setups in my time, and this was a little operation. But it was also one with possible supernatural creatures on the cards. “Introduce me to your unique fighters. I guarantee they won’t be worth my time, but Romanul here seems to think they’re something special.”

My words dripped with contempt, but it was just the motivation Raul needed. These small time criminals were all the same. Prideful. I’d just insulted the organization he worked for, and now he’d have to prove me wrong.

“This way, se?ores,” he sneered, his beady eyes narrowing at me before he spun on his heel and stalked around the ring.

Vali gave me a look of warning but said nothing as we followed the greasy little man past the cage where one of the bloodied fighters was being tapped out, then through the crowd to another room where several men sat playing poker.

“How clichéd,” I muttered, taking in the tough-looking men with tattoos on their knuckles, smoking cigars and drinking scotch while scantily clad women fawned over them.

How the hell do I keep ending up in company like this?

“Raul!” one of the men shouted, seeing us enter and pushing back from his seat. “What is the meaning of this?” He took just two steps closer to us, and I could instantly tell he was a shifter.

It wasn’t that I could smell him or anything; it was more just a sense of familiarity sparking within my magic. Like calling to like. The bald-headed man who had been advancing toward us paused mid-step, his nostrils flaring and his eyes wide.

“What...” he started, and as he stared at us, his eyes bled to a wolf-like yellow-gold, not totally unlike the color of River’s eyes.

“None of your concern,” Vali smoothly responded to the man’s unfinished question. “But we have questions. Clear the room of humans, please.”

One of the men still at the table chortled. “?Güey, qué pedo?” His friends all snickered, but I sure as shit wasn’t in the mood for funny business.

Vali and I needed no words passed between us; we both simply unleashed a little dragon magic. Not enough to shift fully, but enough to affect our eyes and fill the room with power to the point where not a single supernatural could mistake the threat we posed.

“Clear the fucking room,” I rumbled in a voice like thunder, and everyone seemed to burst into action all at once. Within seconds, the room was clear of everyone save four terrified-looking shifters.

“What is it that you want?” Baldy, the one who’d first spoken, demanded. His voice shook with fear, but I had to admire him for trying.

“Wolves, we presume?” Vali checked, and the man jerked his head in confirmation. “Why is it that I’m hearing rumors of werewolves in an underground Mexican fighting ring? You four are making no attempt to hide your species from the world. Why?”

The wolves exchanged nervous glances before another cocky little piece of shit spoke up. “Why should we? We’re the superior race. Humans aught to know that. Besides, a guy’s gotta earn a living, right?”

My knuckles cracked loudly in the now quiet room as I tightened my fist and tapped it into my other palm in a threatening manner. It was a move so overdone it was almost comical, but I really did want to pound this punk’s fucking face in.

“Don’t be a fucking idiot,” Vali sneered at the stupid asshole before turning back to baldy, who seemed to be in charge. “What do you know of the Ban Dia?”

Baldy frowned. “They’re myth. Nothing more than bedtime stories for children. Why?”

Vali glanced at me, and I nodded. This was good; they didn’t seem to be lying. Hell, they didn’t seem smart enough for that. Which meant this may not have anything to do with my Vixen after all.

“Why are you suddenly showing yourselves to the world?” Vali demanded, changing tact and ignoring baldy’s question.