Page 85 of Hunt Me

“Huntress Matilda Helsing, do you understand these rules that have been given unto you?”

“Yes, King Alesi.”

“Please enter the circle,” he instructed before stepping away. He sat with Ezra, said one last prayer, and stared at the combat circle surrounded by torches. The women paced the circle while waiting for the official signal.

“Remember to believe in her, Luka,” Ezra reminded him.

Luka nodded stiffly. “I believe in her.”

The battle horn sounded, and the women descended upon each other. Matilda’s spear clashed against Alaria’s sword defensively. Lightning-fast, Alaria drew back and attempted to behead Matilda with a fearsome battle cry. Matilda ducked in the nick of time, losing a few strands of her coily hair.

Emotions crawled up Ezra’s throat and lodged there when Luka grabbed his hand for comfort. He could tell a war was not only battling in front of their eyes but also within the fearful king. He wanted to protect his betrothed and felt powerless, forced to be a spectator.

Luka’s chest seized when Matilda was pushed back with a kick to her chest. The crowd cheered when she dropped to her knee and clutched her chest.

“Get up,” Luka growled, leaning forward.

Matilda deflected another blow with the shaft of the spear. She spun on her knee out of Alaria’s direct line of vision and stabbed her in the leg, earning a pained howl from her opponent. Matilda used the opening to bounce back to her feet.

The women circled each other again, daring the other to make a move. Matilda knew Alaria was angry, possibly embarrassed that she could draw blood. The last thing the duchess wanted was to seem weak and, to a human, no less.

Luka watched nervously from the dais as the women battled. The sound of clashing steel filled the air as they traded blows. After a few minutes, he noticed that Matilda’s strikes became sluggish and were delivered less precisely.

“She’s tiring out,” he whispered nervously to Ezra.

“She is. Matilda should finish her as soon as possible.”

A scream pierced the air, prompting Luka to his feet. “No!”

Ezra grabbed him and dragged him down to the platform before he made a grave mistake.

Alaria grinned at Matilda and slowly retracted the tip of the blade from her shoulder. Blood flowed profusely from the huntress and spilled onto the dirt. Alaria moved to kick Matilda in the stomach but was blocked with the spear, as she knew she would. Swiftly, she swiped at Matilda’s neck with her blade.

Matilda jerked her head back and felt the sword’s tip slice the flesh of her neck. It was a minuscule cut, like one a man would receive from shaving, but that didn’t keep Alaria from celebrating her minor feat.

“I’ll be gracious. Do you wish to withdraw, huntress?” Alaria asked, gloating from above her.

Matilda panted, chest rising and falling from exertion. “No. I will not withdraw.”

“That’s too bad,” she said, raising the sword over her head. “For what it’s worth, you were a worthy opponent.” Matilda laughed. “Laugh all you want. I will have the last laugh when I sit on the throne and—”

Alaria cried out and dropped her sword when Matilda blew a red powdery substance into her face. Alaria clawed at her face. Her eyes felt like they were melting, and her skin bubbled. Matilda had her window and took it. She stood, swung her spear over her head, and decapitated her challenger.

The crowd fell silent as Alaria’s head bounced and rolled to the circle’s edge.

“It’s a shame what a little werewolf blood can do to you,” Matilda said to Alaria’s headless body before dropping to her knees and finally her back. She stared at the stars in the sky until her lover’s face filled her vision. She couldn’t hear what he said over the boisterous crowd, but she could read his lips.

You’re an idiot.

I love you.

Why didn’t you do that from the beginning?

I won’t let you die.

Matilda wasn’t dying. She could already feel their child bringing her strength back.

Luka leaned down and put his ear near Matilda’s lips when he noticed them moving softly. “Repeat that.”