Reese

Deity’s eyes widen at the sound of Titus’s words. They aren’t coming directly from him, but from the speakers around the arena.

“Oh, that asshole,” I mutter, unable to tear my eyes from Deity’s pale face.

“Harder. Punch that pussy.”

Glitch hisses from beside me. I look up and see he looks disgusted, his gaze boring into Titus. The man himself is watching the scene play out before him with glee on his face.

Vega and Blink step up beside me, dragging Kite’s unconscious body between them. He’s tossed unceremoniously next to Butcher.

I scan them, biting my lip when I see the scratches on Blink’s face, blood running down his neck and chest.

Vega’s nose is bleeding and at an angle that lets me know it’s broken. The jagged tear marks in his chest tell me that at least one of Vlad’s blows landed true.

“More. Give me more. Can you get your whole hand inside yourself?”

I turn at the sound of whimpering and see Deity watching the screen with horror etched across her face in stark contrast to the look of rapture Titus has caught onscreen.

“What the fuck is this?” Vlad yells at Deity, who is still frozen.

“Don’t worry. You won’t be penalized for having a tight pussy.”

The manic laughter that follows makes my stomach curdle as I take a step toward Deity, wishing I could stop this somehow.

“Come for me, you slut.”

“What the fuck is this, Deity? You whoring yourself out?” Vlad roars, reaching for her.

I move to intercept, but Graves grabs my arm and stops me.

“Dirty girls always taste so sweet.”

Vlad screams as he watches Titus suck Deity’s fingers into his mouth. He lifts his arm and holds the sword above his head, ready to bring it down on Deity. I crack out my whip and wrap it around his neck, yanking him backward. He drops the sword and falls to his knees, where he tugs at the leather digging into his skin.

I pull harder, ignoring Deity’s screams and the crowd chanting my name. I see Deity run for me, but Glitch intercepts her and holds her back as she scrambles to get to me.

I hold on to the struggling Vlad, even when I lose my footing. Vega grabs me and offers me his support until Vlad stops moving.

I drop the whip and shake out my arm. Blink stalks toward Deity and grabs her shoulders, pulling her from Glitch, who is now sporting a set of scratch marks down his cheek.

Blink shakes her and roars in her face. “He isn’t dead. For fuck’s sake, get a hold of yourself. She just saved your fucking life.”

He spins, turning his back on her to head back to me, and it’s as if everything slows down. I see the look of satisfaction cross Deity’s face a second before she moves. I scream Blink’s name at the same time his face goes blank. For a single second, everything stops. He falls to the ground, Deity’s remaining dagger sticking out of his back.

Glitch dives for Blink. I pull the dagger from my leg, purposefully left there to halt the bleeding. Using Glitch’s back as a springboard, I jump toward Deity and bring the knife across in a slashing movement, landing on my knees when my leg gives out.

Blood spills from her slashed throat as she grabs at it, eyes wide with terror as I stare at her with nothing but hate. Fuck her. Fuck them all.

I turn and drag myself toward my men hovering over Blink, trying to stop the bleeding.

Titus’s voice booms out over the screaming crowd. “Alas, the end is nigh, but team Deity has one last cravat. Their secret weapon.”

I hear chanting, but I ignore it as I crawl to my men.

Vega runs for me, scooping me up and carrying me to Blink, who is lying on his front while Glitch and Vega tend to him.

I lie beside him, my fingers linking with his, our faces so close I can feel his breath on my lips. Tears run down my face and drop to the sand beneath me as he tries to lift his hand to wipe them away, but he doesn’t have the strength.

“Love you,” he whispers as I move closer and kiss him, trying to push my life force into him as I will him to live.