Chapter 12

Luna put her notebook back in her pocket and shuffled her way along the line until she reached the exit. Moving through the crowds, the feeling of claustrophobia tightened in her chest. She had to get out of here.

Every day, she’d been here. Every day, she’d watched him win, her gaze unwavering, focused, intent. Cameras weren’t allowed, so she had to rely on notes and sketches to record his moves.

After his first easy win over the minotaur, his eyes had somehow found her in the crowd. That had unnerved her. Since then, she’d made sure she left before his victory lap. Who needed to see that anyway?

On day four, Kai seemed to lose form. Until then, he’d handled the opposition no problem, taking them down within the first twenty minutes. Then a goblin, bigger than any she’d seen before, with massive biceps and shoulders, had obviously noticed that Kai held back two tentacles and went for them early in the match. Kai had clearly been in pain, retracting them into his body and then resorting to mainly hand combat after that.

He’d taken the goblin down, but only within minutes of the allotted match time.

A centaur had trampled him on day five. Again, Kai had been hurt, huddled into a tight ball in the mud while the ref stood over him counting. The only other way a kraken could lose was if they were floored for a full minute— it had never happened in the history of the games. Watching the count, Luna had felt a pull of alarm so strong she’d had to tether herself to the seat.

What if she didn’t get to compete?

She’d not even considered that possibility.

She walked into the arena every day with her heart pounding, her palms sweating, but not only because it would be her turn soon.

If she was honest, she’d admit it was from the intimacy they’d shared. The orgasms that had simultaneously racked their bodies as they held each other, and the stupid fact she’d allowed his name to spill from her lips. Shit, with other guys, she’d be lucky to even remember their names.

You got to see his damaged tentacles.

So why haven’t you shown the photos to Marrick?

Good fucking question.

This afternoon he’d been fighting a rangy wolf with a horrible howl. Luna hated wolves. Sometimes hungry wolf shifters from the nearby wastelands prowled the marshes at night, looking for easy prey. The wolf was mean and played dirty, but he was unskilled, and when Kai finally brought him up from the dungeon, his thick pelt wet and bedraggled and his snout twitching, that’s when she’d left. Fast.

Tomorrow it would be her turn. And the harsh reality was, she was at risk of losing her nerve.

The scowl screwing up her face almost hurt as she stomped out onto the quay. She walked until she reached the sea wall and sank down with her feet dangling over the water.

Maybe some visualizations would calm her. Composing herself, she imagined herself fighting, her muscles strong, her movements fluid. How long she stayed there she wasn’t sure, but it was nearly dark when she got up and made her way along the dusty streets and over the bridge to the marshes.

Back home, she ate, just to stay strong. The food tasted like sawdust, even though she knew Harper had gone to a lot of trouble to prepare meals for her this week. She swigged down the club’s energy drink and pulled a face at the sickly-sweet taste.

Afterward, she carefully washed her dishes and left the kitchen neat. Order helped. Then she went down to the water’s edge where she kept her dinghy. Climbing in, she cast off, started the outboard motor and wended her way through the marshes to Motham River. Now and then creatures plopped into the water from reeds in front of her, bright eyes watching her. Frogs or marsh toads, no doubt; they didn’t worry her.

As she headed out through the river mouth, the sea was flat and still, like a millpond. An almost full moon rose lazily in the sky, its reflection echoed perfectly in the calm water. Luna skirted close to the shoreline, until the flats gave way to higher cliffs and the air was cleaner. She was close to the celebrious side of Motham Hill, where the wealthy monsters lived and Motham Palace still stood—a reminder of their humble mothman leader, who two hundred years before had helped monsters save themselves from human tyranny.

Not all humans were against monsters. Her family for one. She knew little of her background, but she did know they lived in harmony with the sea, her parents rescuing injured creatures, hurt by pollution and illegal fishing lines. Living a life that was in tune with nature, occasionally trading fish and lobsters on the Motham docks in returns for vegetables and fruit. She remembered vaguely the strange hustle and bustle of monster species, wary, curious, but not unfriendly.

So no, her family had not been hostile to monsters. And they were certainly not friends of the high breed humans that resided out past Motham’s walls. She guessed her folks were probably sea gypsies, with no allegiance to anyone.

When she finally reached her destination, Luna tied her boat to a rocky outcrop and slipped off her clothes. The rock pools here were fed by a hot spring that flowed underground through Motham Hill and surfaced just shy of the pebbled beach. The water trickled, steaming and mineral-scented, into the string of pools, making them an enticing place to relax. Strangely, few bothered to frequent these pools—most monster species didn’t like the hot mineralized water. So they were nearly always deserted, except for the odd little crab or sea critter.

As she slid into the water, she let out a happy sigh and lay back, stretching out her body and letting it float, staring up at the velvet sky through the swirls of steam.

A sudden movement made her squeak.

A head surfaced from the water on the other side of the pool; two dark, mesmerizing eyes staring straight at her.

“Oh, fuck! You.” She scrabbled madly to exit the pool, her hand catching on the rock, grazing her palm. Then, realizing she was stark naked in the moonlight, she sank into the water again with a growl of frustration. “Are you following me?”

“More like the other way round. You’ve just invaded my space.”

“Your space! It’s not your space.” Damn arrogant kraken.

“Whose is it then?”

“These are… my pools.” She jutted her chin as she sank low in the water.

“Yours, eh?”

“I’ve been coming here forever.”

“Hadn’t realized visiting a place gave you ownership rights.”

“In my books it does.”

He snorted, and water bubbled from his nostrils. His dark eyes narrowed, mere glittering slits surveying her. His hair was wet and pushed back from his broad brow. Something caught her eye, the swirl of a tentacle under the water. She realized with a frisson of excitement that he was in half shift, and seemingly not in a hurry to change that. Another tentacle flicked the surface, scattering the moon’s reflection.

Was he allowing her to see him like this on purpose?

Or was he in pain and needing to soothe his body in the warm healing waters?

She flicked her eyes away, imagining those tentacles reaching out to entwine her, imagining one sliding between her legs, along her seam, probing until it suctioned onto her clit, just as it had the other night. Arousal, warm and silky, pooled in her belly.

She squeezed her thighs together.

“Ready to fight me tomorrow?” His direct question surprised her.

“Yep.”

“Ah, Ms Monosyllabic is back.”

“Fuck off.”

“Happy to oblige.” He ducked his head under the water, then blew bubbles along the surface softly from his parted lips. Great, she’d come here to relax, to prepare, to visualize beating him and now her whole system was a mess, her pulse racing and her pussy screaming something she didn’t want to listen to.

Despite herself, Luna found her body language mirroring his, dipping her head lower, letting her mouth slide into the water. And there they stayed, blowing bubbles at each other, like a peace pipe.

Ha, not a peace pipe, a… a… She had no idea what to make of this encounter, except that she damn well wasn’t leaving after she’d just gotten here. Nor, it seemed, was Kai. He languorously stretched his tentacles, letting them float across the pool toward her, getting way too close for comfort.

He said after a moment, “You don’t need to be so aggro. This whole thing is just a game.”

She barked a laugh, shooting a volley of bubbles at him. She had to raise herself out of the water to reply. “I call bullshit on that.” His gazed dip, and looking swiftly down, she saw her nipples bobbing above the waterline.

She ducked back down quickly, accidentally inhaled water, and coughed violently.

His eyes glittered with amusement. “Want a back slap?”

“Fuck off!”

Now he laughed, a low, sexy sound that made her pussy thrum. The feeling of intimacy was overwhelming, like she only had to inch closer and those tentacles would encircle her, pleasure her… Gods, she had to break this spell.

She slapped at the water with her palms, spraying water into his face. He spluttered and did the same to her. Were they fighting—or flirting?

Suddenly he asked, “Why do you hate kraken?”

Luna found herself speechless, her mouth moving like a fish plucked out of water, unable to form coherent thoughts, let alone words.

Finally, she managed gruffly, “You know there’s no love lost between humans and krakens.”

“Yeah, with good cause. Humans have inflicted terrible crimes on kraken for centuries.”

“It goes both ways.”

“Guess we’re quits then. Besides, the Treaty has protected humans from kraken and krakens from humans for the past two decades.”

“Yeah. Sure it has,” she spat.

“Are you questioning the law?”

“No, I’m questioning your species’ integrity in following the law.”

She saw him stiffen. “My people’s integrity is beyond reproach.”

“Fuck that! You kraken rig the games, and you dare to say your people play fair?”

“The games are about showmanship and keeping up appearances. You know as well as I do, there’s been an agreement from the beginning that kraken win. Until your mate Marrick decided to change the rules.”

“You wanna know why? Because everyone got sick of your one-sided agreement. Acha was a prize dick, getting more dickish every year. He deserved to lose. The monsters here finally decided not to be pawns in your power games.”

“Power games? Gods, you’ve got a fucking cheek.” He shot higher and water ran off his magnificent shoulders and pecs. Luna looked away. “Kraken have saved monsters’ asses more times than you could count on your feeble human fingers. We rescued hundreds of orcs when they were forced off Orc Island after the war. Kept the whirlpool going to scare humans away from Motham Bay and ease the pollution so you could all swim and fish. Thanks a fucking bunch for acknowledging that.”

Luna fell silent. There was some truth in what he said.

“Well, I’m not a monster and not a valley human, so none of that applies to me.”

“What are you, then?”

“An anomaly.”

“Are you a spy?”

Luna blinked. “W-what?”

“A spy for the Tween Council of Towns.”

She burst out laughing. “Don’t be so fucking stupid. I hate Tween humans almost as much as I hate kraken. I have no allegiance to anyone.”

“So you’re not representing the East Quarter? Just yourself.”

“Yep, pretty much.”

His eyebrows rose. Why did the line of his brow, the sweep of his cheekbones have to look so… fucking noble? Why did kraken have to be so damn handsome, and this one in particular?

He said softly, “Why are you setting yourself up to fail?”

Luna scowled at him. What an arrogant shit. But… somehow that description didn’t fit. Because… damn it, the way he’d put her pleasure before his own in that seedy little hotel room, how he’d held back until she fell apart completely before claiming his own release… Yeah, that kind of threw the arrogant assessment out the window. She tossed her head.

“I won’t fail.”

“You’ve got no chance.” His voice dropped to a low purr, “But don’t worry, when I drag you down, I’ll be gentle…”

She snorted. “Looks are deceiving. I may be small, but I’m strong. And cunning as fuck. Besides, you’re not as macho as you pretend. You have weaknesses.”

For a moment he was silent. “Like what?”

“You’ve got scars.” She regretted saying it as soon as it was out of her mouth.

His face tightened. “And you don’t?”

“Nah, none.”

“You know what I think. I think inside that hard little shell, things are close to cracking up.”

That strike sure hit the mark. She hiccupped on a little mewl, swallowed it so hard, it hurt her throat. “Shut up.”

“Wow. More charming by the minute.”

Luna ground her molars together. Said nothing, just stared at the moon reflected in the water between them.

“Okay, you’re not a spy, but you hate kraken. What’s in it for you if you win?” Two blue arms rested along the back of the rock pool, biceps bulging. Luna’s eyes widened; those arms ended in tapered tentacles, not hands. But… he’d had hands when he… they… Obviously his shifting capacity was fluid, amorphic. She snapped her gaze away, adding that bit of information to her repertoire.

“So—why?” he persisted.

“Why what?”

“Stop evading the question. Why are you competing?”

“I like to fight.”

He shook his head. “That’s not it. There’s something else. When you told me you hated kraken, you really meant it—Oh, except for that one time you forgot and fucked yourself stupid with one.”

“Shut the fuck up,” she shouted at him.

His mouth kicked into a grin. “The insults are getting even more eloquent.”

She scowled, slid further away from him, backing up against the rocks. Hoping he couldn’t tell just how much her cunt wanted him, even as she tried to hate him.

“What makes you want to fight kraken so badly?” he persisted softly.

“Gods damn it, leave it alone, can’t you?” she muttered, but suddenly that hideous day was happening right in front of her; a thick blue tentacle rising out of churning water, a little cot tossed around in the debris of their boat and Tomas’s terrified eyes, his little hands stretching toward her, as that tentacle wound tight around his cot. “Krakens sank our boat out past Orc Island. Killed my mom and dad. Took my baby brother. I’ve never seen him since.”

Kai’s dark eyes widened. “When?”

“Fifteen years ago.”

“No, not possible. That was five years after the Treaty was signed.”

“Well, you better believe it, because I was there, and your kind left me for dead in the water. A little kid. So much for your stupid kraken integrity, eh?”

He shook his head. “I would have known.”

“Why? Why would you? Do kraken share with their kids when they murder innocent people?”

He passed a hand over his eyes, as if trying to commute, frowning. “Even if… there was an accident in the sea near Thedaka when you say it happened, you’re mistaken about seeing a kraken. Maybe it was sharks or killer whales.”

Luna clenched her fists under the water. “A bright blue kraken carried off my baby brother. Tomas’s cot was coiled in its tentacles and dragged under the waves. I watched my parents float away, face down. And then I was left clinging to a plank of wood, left to die too.”

He was sitting bolt upright now. “My people would never do that. Not to a child, whatever their species.”

“Gods, you are so na?ve! You really think that kraken are the good guys, the wise rulers of the sea. Well, have I got news for you. They’re not. They’re ship wreckers, murderers, child abductors.”

“You must have your dates wrong; we’ve always honored the Treaty.”

“Yeah, right. Protect your own, that’s what every species does, right?”

“So competing this year is some kind of warped act of revenge. Is that it? You want to kill me, huh? There are easier ways.” She saw one of his scarred tentacles twitch close to the surface. They were damaged enough to think someone or something had wanted to kill him. To hell with that, she didn’t care beyond how his weaknesses could help her win.

“You’re safe. I don’t stoop to murder. But when I beat your sorry blue ass tomorrow, I’m going to force your leaders to tell me the truth.”

His gaze bore into her. “Even if you won—which you won’t—our elders would never speak to a human.”

“Just watch this fucking space.”

They stared at each other for one more agonized moment. He opened his mouth as if to speak. Moved as if to reach for her or touch her or do something that might make her weaken, lessen her rage, her hatred. Make her want him. And she couldn’t let that happen. Jumping up, she scrabbled her way out of the pool, not caring that in her ungainly departure he’d get a freakin great view of her naked ass, not caring that the sharp rocks were cutting her fingers, or that the waft of her arousal would meet his kraken nostrils and betray the weakness of her flesh.

She grabbed the rope of her little boat. Frenziedly, she unhooked it from the rocky outcrop, jumped in and headed back toward the marshes.