Wolf Girl (Wolf Girl, #1)(45)

Sawyer was wearing a full black camouflage jumpsuit, knives and guns at his waist, and another held loosely in his hand.

The Ithaki held bows and arrows and spears, all aimed at him.

“Let. Her. Go.” Sawyer’s voice was barely human. Fur kept trying to erupt from his skin as his wolf tried to take control.

The man behind me laughed. “Finders keepers. You’re trespassing, and so was she when we found her. It was all legal, by the book.”

Sawyer clenched his jaw. “She fell. She didn’t wander. You will release her to me right now and I will pay you for the trouble.” Sawyer snapped his fingers and a young male wolf stepped forward with a suitcase, but the knife dug harder into my skin and I yelped.

“You think we want your money? Poisonous Werewolf City money?” The man spat behind me.

My eyes flicked to the female vampire-fey; she’d just joined us, holding her hopefully broken jaw and glaring at me.

Sawyer’s eyes flashed yellow. “I’m not leaving without her. Alive. The alpha has dispatched helicopters, and they will come shortly, laying waste to your entire encampment if you don’t release her to me. Now.”

The knife cut into my throat and I felt the trickle of blood rush down my chest as I gasped. “Not before I kill her.”

Sawyer put his hands up. “Okay, okay! I’ll call off the ‘copters, just tell me what you want.”

I suddenly felt ashamed. It was so stupid of me to fall. Now a Paladin man was killed and Sawyer had dispatched helicopters? What a mess. But I was grateful he was here, fighting for me. He seemed to always show up when I needed him, and that was something I’d grown to love. He was dependable.

“I want you, the alpha’s son,” the man behind me spat, and I flinched.

No.

“I want to fight, like the good old days. Wolf to wolf. Winner gets the money and the girl.”

So he did want the money, but he also wanted to kill Sawyer.

“No!” I growled at the same time that Sawyer started to unbutton his shirt.

“Agreed. Winner takes all.” Sawyer didn’t look at me, he just took off his shirt and leaned into Walsh, whispering something.

“Sawyer, no!” I shouted. “He’s not just a wolf!”

The man behind me laughed. Within a second he’d removed the blade from my throat and tossed me to the vampire-fey, who caught me, and then another blade was pressing against my jugular.

“I know what he is,” Sawyer responded, half man, half wolf.

Sawyer was jacked, like he looked like a prison convict minus the tattoos, but I seriously doubted his ability to fight for some reason. He was … too pretty to be a dirty fighter. He was the kind of guy who had bodyguards and could probably shoot someone, but rip their throat out? I just didn’t know and I didn’t want him getting killed.

“Don—” I tried to warn him off again and Vampire Bitch wrestled her hand around my mouth. All I could do was watch helplessly as the crowd surrounding us began to form a circle.

Eugene slowly broke away from the Wolf City pack and weaved his way over to where I was standing with a blade to my throat.

“That’s far enough, giant,” the woman said to Eugene without looking at him. He was about five feet away now and simply nodded, holding his hands behind his back. My gaze flicked to Eugene and I tried to read if he was worried for Sawyer or not, but he just stood stock still, glaring at the fight about to unfold before us.

The man in the middle of the fight ring had a giant tattoo across his back.

Butcher, it read.

A name … a name after a profession? I prayed I would never find out.

“Do you want to be able to end this fight by forfeit or death only?” Butcher asked Sawyer, sweat gleaming off of his back tattoo.

I tried to glean information from that. Maybe they would be allowed to forfeit and keep their life? That was a nice option and I was glad he was giving Sawyer—

“Death is the only way out of this fight, you sick motherfucker,” Sawyer growled and then beat his chest twice like a maniac, before shifting instantly.

Holy fuck.

The nice rich boy with polite manners that I’d met was gone. In his place was some bloodthirsty maniac who I was extremely attracted to right now. I probably needed therapy for these thoughts, but seeing Sawyer turn into a bloodthirsty wolf, lips curled back in a snarl, it … pulled my heart back in his direction. Any anger I’d had at him for locking these cuffs on me was gone. I could see now that he was just being protective of me, that in his mind these cuffs at the time made me safe, even if now they would get me killed. He would do anything to protect me, that was clear now.

Butcher shifted as well, and I was pleased to see his wolf was much smaller than Sawyer’s, but I had no idea what fey powers he might have in his wolf form. Hybrids were not talked about. The two wolves stalked each other in a slow circle, hackles of each wolf rising as they bared their teeth at each other, saliva glistening off of the white sharp points.

Butcher’s wolf dove and I sucked in a breath, but Sawyer rolled out of the way.

He was fast.

Really fast.

Sawyer popped up onto his feet and shook the dirt from his fur as Butcher lunged again. Sawyer’s wolf kicked off the ground and soared over Butcher’s head, landing on the other side and avoiding being bitten.

I internally cheered, afraid that if I spoke, the Ithaki with the knife to my throat would kill me.