Page 57 of Undertow
I nodded. “Do what you can.”
He licked his lips. “I can make other bets for a cut. Thirty percent.”
This time I did snort. “Don’t play me. I’m new here, not new. Fifteen.”
“Twenty since I don’t know you and I want an intro to your Metcalf contact.”
“Twenty and I’ll see what you manage to pull off and pass it along,” I countered. “They can decide if you’re worth meeting to talk to or something else.”
He was smart enough to hear the implied threat that they might put them in the ground for messing with an associate of theirs.
Good, because I was bluffing.
Big time.
On all of it.
I had no idea what I was doing onanyof this.
He stopped me when I went to turn away. “They’re checking for magic since you’re a mystic. You have to know that, but don’t rock the boat too much. Play the game.”
I studied him and slowly nodded, muttering a thanks before focusing on where I needed to be.
Now I just had to get my dragon on board. She liked to be the best and probably wanted this over so she could do whatever she wanted.
Eloise, we can’t do this fast.
“I want to. Beat multiple and have fun.”
Only one for now. I’ll see if we can have more fun regularly but only if we make people happy now, okay?I hurried on when I felt her frustration.Enjoy your time out. There’s no rush. This is all we’re doing tonight, but we have to change back before we leave here.
That worked. That was what she needed to hear. The slower she took the fight, the longer she could be free.
I was glad because then it was time to fight. A dragon bigger than me stepped into the ring and it was all completely cliché. The trash talking from him and the stands. People trying to place last-minute bets and the announcers giving his stats and laughing at an unknown female challenger.
And apparently, since no one had any faith in me, they had another fighter lined up for after me.
I cooed at Eloise to block it all out and keep her temper, promising she could do the sassiest happy dance after to mockthem all. Also, I’d find a way to have her favorite lamb meal on the menu soon. I promised.
I promised alotbecause even if it wasn’t the original crazy amount gambling I’d been calculating in my head, even if Avior could bet a couple of million for me with his cut at 25:1 odds… That would be unreal on top of what the prize was.
And I could only pull this off once.
Sure, even if I fought again, people might not have faith in me, or the odds wouldn’t be great, but only once could I come in completely blind and pull this trick.
So I needed to make it good. Hell, I was thanking the gods my bluff worked and I’d met someone who would even take bets on credit.
The gong sounded and I snapped into focus. The guy came out strong and hard thinking he would just end this so he could focus on his real fight.
The shock on his face when I easily blocked his first hit was amusing. Then I slammed my tail into his side and danced away, probably surprising way more than him.
“You’ve got moves, girl, but you’ll still be mine tonight after you’re out,” he growled.
“No matter how this ends, if you ever take a woman like that, I’ll mount your head on the front door in warning so it never happens again,” I told him.
The fool simply laughed… Which pissed off Eloise a bit too much and she grabbed his arm and broke it. Then she kicked him in the stomach and sent him flying.
The crowd went dead silent as he landed against the fencing and sank in a heap.
