Raven Investigation 04 - Electric Legend (14 page)

A
bell dinged to start the match, the sound
like a death toll echoing in her head, and Raven swallowed past her dry throat.

Goliath charged, his bulk moving incredibly fast, the earth
rumbling at his approach.

Jackson narrowed his eyes and stood his ground, giving
nothing away as the man bore down on him like a speeding truck.

Her whole body tightened, braced for impact when Jackson
dove out of the way at the last second. But instead of getting to safety, he kicked
out and smashed his foot into Goliath’s knee.

The big gorilla bellowed in surprise, lost his balance and
began to tip like a felled tree.

The crowd gasped, the cheers dying down as the interest in
the fight picked up. Probably the first real competition Goliath had ever had
in the ring.

Jackson whirled and brought the side of his fist down on the
back of Goliath’s skull.

The man toppled, the ground shaking under the massive thump.

Raven breathed a sigh of relief at the quick win, unable to
tear her eyes away from the fascinating way Jackson’s muscles rippled with
every movement. Her fingertips tingled to touch, wanting to run her hands
possessively over him.

The perfect fighting machine.

The gorilla pushed himself to his feet and gave a massive
roar, his incisors lengthening two inches. Her skin iced over as the crowd
cheered, and the circus folks stopped casing the audience to watch the fight.

Jackson darted in, landing two quick blows before dashing
out of range.

Goliath swung those tree trunks he called arms, and her
breath caught.

One hit.

With one hit, he could put Jackson out of commission
permanently.

Jackson dodged the first swing, then spun away from the
second aimed to cave in his chest. He dropped to the ground, kicked out, his
foot a blur slicing out to thump into Goliath’s ribs and unprotected side.

Even over the roar of the crowd, she heard bones snap.

Jackson rolled to put distance between them, but Goliath lunged
forward and grabbed his leg. He spun, picking Jackson off the ground and
slammed him face-first into the pole at the perimeter of the ring.

The brutal impact shot a jagged foot-long crack into the
wooden pole.

Bile rose in the back of her throat, muscles tensed to dash
into the ring, expecting Jackson to collapse. Instead, he grabbed the pole and
wrenched himself out of the gorilla’s grip. He hit the ring with a thud that
kicked up a plume of dust before he slowly rose to his feet.

Her pulse raced, and her body shook as too much adrenaline
flooded her system. Watching the battle was much more devastating than being
forced to fight for her life.

She couldn’t stand being pretending to be human and
helpless.

Blood ran down Jackson’s face, his brow and jaw already
swelling from the impact.

His usual sharpness appeared lacking, and he stumbled for a
nanosecond. Her heart withered and cracked when he didn’t seem to snap out of
it. “Something’s wrong.”

Greggory grunted. “Concussion. He’ll need to push through it
fast or he’ll only grow weaker.”

Raven wasn’t sure how much more she could watch, how much longer
she could contain the simmering rage before the last thread of her control
snapped.

Goliath came at him like a freight train, raining blows down
on Jackson, his swings wild, but his aim true. Jackson dodged most of them,
blocked a couple more, but not all of them.

A single blow grazed his ribs.

Even at the distance, she heard his lung wheeze as his
breath rushed out, a bruise already forming.

Raven wrapped her arm around her waist, her own body aching with
phantom pain. She wanted to charge in to help, but Greggory was right … any move
on her part would only be a distraction. “He won’t be able to keep it up
forever. He needs to go on the offensive.”

When a fist flew past his head, Jackson grabbed Goliath’s
wrists and yanked, throwing the man off balance. Jackson took advantage of the
weakness and hammered Goliath repeatedly in the ribs, one strike after another.

The dragon enjoyed watching the vicious battle, reveling in
Jackson’s fighting prowess, and Raven forced herself to watch closer,
grudgingly admitting that Jackson was good.

More than good.

As much as she hated watching, she trusted him to know what
he was doing.

She was a wimp, more than willing to take a beating rather than
watch him being thrashed.

Goliath straightened and threw up his arms, lifting Jackson
clear off the floor.

Jackson released his hold on the gorilla’s wrist, dropped to
the ground and rolled.

Goliath stomped after Jackson, each foot landing with a
thud, just missing its target.

Until Jackson slowed, hitting the edges of the tiny ring.

A kick caught him in the ribs and his body flipped through
the air.

Jackson landed hard and rolled to his feet, his body not as
fast as normal. He had to be hurting, but he didn’t show it, no hint of
weakness giving him away.

The fight was fast and brutal.

She should be horrified by the viciousness, the need to
inflict pain and win, but the dragon hovered right under her skin and enjoyed
every second of it.

And though pleased that Jackson fought for her honor, he was
theirs to protect.

Energy gathered around her like an invisible wind and sank
painfully under her skin. Static built until it felt like a hundred bees stinging
her, a hum rising like the swarm was circling overhead.

She waited for the opportunity to strike.

Jackson met her gaze for the first time, and he shook his
head just once.

Wanted her to wait.

The split-second distraction cost him, allowed the gorilla
to get too close.

Jackson took a hit to his ribs that would’ve caved in a
normal human’s fragile chest.

Raven crept closer, ready to take action, when the doctor grabbed
her arm. Energy crackled as it jolted into him.

It had to feel like he’d touched a live wire, but despite the
pain, he didn’t release her. “Wait. Watch for a bit longer, little queen. See
what we see. Look with your eyes and not your heart.”

Jackson used his nearness to Goliath to bring up his knee,
clocking the man in the jaw and toppling him over.

Raven jerked out of Greggory’s grip, her skin prickling
painfully as the energy continued to build. “I see two grown men beating each
other to death for sport.”

Greggory shook his head. “Then you’re not looking deep
enough. Goliath can throw punches hard enough to kill a man, but he’s not used
to taking hits. If your man lands enough blows, he can take him out.”

Her temples pounded with dread, but she knew he was right. “If
he doesn’t get himself killed first.”

* * *

They’d been fighting for fifteen minutes, each man bloodied
and beaten.

Each man determined to win.

As if sensing that he was losing the battle, Goliath
charged, gathered Jackson into a bear hug, trying to kill him by squeezing him
to death.

Jackson worked his arms free and boxed Goliath over his ears.

She wasn’t sure which man would cave first.

Goliath flung Jackson to the ground hard enough for him to
bounce. While he lay stunned, Goliath grabbed his head and dragged him toward
the edge of the ring.

The crowd instantly retreated.

Dirt and rock gouging against the front of Jackson’s exposed
body as Goliath heaved Jackson over to the sensors and steadily fed him into
the current.

Jackson stiffened as electricity flooded his system. Every
muscle went taut. His jaw clenched so hard she expected his teeth to crack.

Her stomach turned liquid, knowing from experience that his
insides were slowly being cooked. “They’re killing him.”

Greggory’s face tightened, his eyes grim, and he glanced at
Clancy. “Only he has the ability to call the winner.”

Raven followed his gaze to see the victorious gleam in
Clancy’s eyes.

He didn’t take pleasure in the pain but reveled in showing
her that he had the control.

Waiting for her to break and submit to him.

A growl escaped her throat and for the first time, actually
contemplated challenging him.

Greggory ducked until their eyes met. “Now is not the time.
You’ll force him to change. They will kill him and claim it was a justified
shooting to protect the audience.”

Raven realized he wasn’t talking about rescuing Jackson, but
keeping her beast in check. If she moved, Jackson would do anything to protect
her.

A chill crept down her spine.

Greggory knew more than he should.

She’d kept her secret for so long she wasn’t sure how she
felt being exposed.

He wasn’t their friend or enemy.

Yet.

But he was right.

Until they were ready to move, she couldn’t take any action
against Clancy. To rescue Jackson would mean putting the others in her pack at
risk. There were too many circus people scattered about for her to watch them
all at one time.

Taking Greggory’s words to heart, Raven turned away from
Clancy and the vengeance she craved, resolved not to let him win.

She might not be able to bring Clancy down, but that didn’t
mean she still couldn’t help Jackson. Raven crouched right in front of Jackson,
taking care not to touch. She placed her hands on the ground, buried her
fingers in the dirt and stared right into the gorgeous green eyes of his wolf.

“Jackson.”

His name was a command.

Her voice snapped him out of the haze of pain consuming him.
The instant their gazes met, the pack connection snapped back into place.

Pleasure and pain rippled over her skin. She purged all the
current from him, gathering it into herself, her heart buoyant to discover that
he’d only cut their connection to shield her.

The idiot.

The connection only served to make them stronger.

They’d been trying to tell her that all along, but she’d
fought them every step of the way, not understanding what they meant until now.

She bled the energy from the circuit around the ring,
re-routing it through her. As the current built, she converted it into tiny
strands of pure energy, twirling it together into a rope. Her whole body hummed,
delighted at working with live current again and being able to do something.

She fed the energy toward Jackson using the pack link.

His eyes immediately blazed yellow, brimming with suppressed
power.

Without taking his gaze away from her, he pushed himself
away from the electrical fence, lifting both his weight and Goliath together.

The crowd cheered while the shifters inched forward, falling
silent.

Jackson brought his elbow back, slamming it into Goliath’s
face twice in rapid succession.

The gorilla roared, grabbed his face, and lost his hold.

Raven stood at the same time as Jackson. Without notice, he
took off running. The crowd gasped and collectively stepped back.

But Jackson wasn’t running to get away. He gained speed,
leapt off the ground, and defied gravity by running up the pole. His momentum
carried him twenty-foot high before he kicked off. He twisted mid-air, drew
back his arm and nailed Goliath in the face.

Goliath didn’t react at first, his hands clenched at his
sides, ready to finish the fight.

Jackson landed lightly on his feet, his attention focused solely
on her as if nothing else mattered.

The big man teetered, shook his head as if to clear it, then
gradually tipped backward. He landed flat, a ring of dirt kicking up around his
body, knocked out cold.

The crowd fell silent, then let out a victory cheer.

Clancy’s smile vanished, the shifters stood unmoving. They
glanced at Clancy in shock, waiting for his reaction, then peered at Jackson in
a sort of awe. It shook them to see their best fighter beaten by her man in
less than fifteen minutes. Doubt entered their eyes, wondering who was stronger
… their alpha or Jackson.

And if Jackson would be able to beat him in a challenge for
the pack.

Hope burned painfully in a few for a chance for a better
future.

Jackson didn’t wave or acknowledge the crowd, and Raven
couldn’t tell if he was pissed at her interference or not.

She refused to fidget under his uncompromising stare.

She would not apologize for protecting him.

“He’s waiting for you to recognize his win.” Then Greggory
left to kneel next to Goliath’s prone body, leaving her to stand all alone.

Raven cocked her head and observed Jackson.

Greggory was right.

Battered and bruised, he stood as a proud warrior victorious
in battle.

Waiting.

Every nerve ending in her body prickled painfully to life
under the intensity of his regard. Raven let instinct guide her and stepped
over the ring, the dragon rising from her bones to twine through her body. She
worried about discovery, the energy snapping and alive around her.

She almost stopped and turned around.

Her steps slowed.

Jackson would understand.

But to leave without touching him was impossible, a
compulsion she couldn’t resist.

The closer she drew, the more energy gathered, seeping from
her hold. She swallowed it down, fed it to the dragon, knowing the influx would
only make the beast stronger, more dominant. Sooner or later, it would come
down to a fight between them, and she wasn’t sure who would win.

Dragons were dangerous creatures at the best of times, but
the wild magic that infected her blood made her unpredictable. The combination had
nearly destroyed the world once. If she lost the fight for dominance and the
dragon took over, she feared she’d lose the last shred of her humanity. The
last time that happened, she woke up covered in blood and the labs holding her
had been destroyed.