The only one who can possibly match me is that tiger. If I was one-on-one with any of the others, it wouldn’t even be a competition. They can only threaten me because they’re in a group.
He knew that as soon as he jumped in, they were going to tear him apart. The guys on the ground were beginning to recover. His muscles tightened all over his body as he prepared to take out as many of them as he could on his way down.
Maybe Dana will get away. There are lots of people at the party now. If she goes to them for help, she might even save Dennis. I’ll signal to her … get her to run.
The sand was so fine under his paw that it was as if he could feel each individual grain. His eyes picked out tiny details on his opponents’ coats, their eyes glinting in the scarce light. He could hear their breathing as they pumped themselves full of adrenaline…he could even smell the heat in their blood.
The hypersensitivity of a predator in attack mode had never come upon him this strongly before. Rux knew it was because he had a mate now, and he’d do anything to protect her.
He roared and leapt. Just as he came down on the cheetah, he twisted, trying to swipe at the guy next to him. To his surprise, the guard tumbled to the ground with a look of complete shock on his face.
In the darkness, he saw a shadowy blur. When he heard the loud cry of effort, he realized it was Dana. His sharp eyes focused, and he saw her wildly swinging a shovel from the shed. Fear and pride surged in him in equal measure.
He was so proud that she would fight for him … but also terrified that she would get hurt in the fight.
There was no time to sort through the collision of emotions. He had to twist in midair to leap over the tiger and go for the cougar on its other side. He managed to dig his claws into its throat as he came down, ripping a huge gash along the jaw. The cougar staggered away.
Rux leapt again, one ear turned behind him to follow Dana’s movement. He could hear her dainty feet dancing nimbly across the sand as she spun and twirled, swinging the shovel around her head in a wide arc that protected her body.
She gave a wild, high-pitched cry, and he heard a sickening crunch that was unmistakably a skull coming apart under the sharp edge of the shovel. She let out a cry that was half triumph, half disgust, then brought her shovel down again.
Rux took on the two cats at the end of the line, dispatching them with ease. One was a lynx, the other a scruffy wild cat. They were far smaller than the others and had obviously kept themselves out of the main fight. Rux took them out with a hard charge and massive sweeps of his front paws.
Before he could turn and face the tiger and cheetah, he felt something huge land on his back. The steady heartbeat and the scent told him it was the tiger. He twisted under his opponent, trying to get a glimpse of Dana.
He saw the shovel glinting as she raised it high, then swung downward to sweep along the ground. She was fighting the cheetah. There were no other toughs left.
As he struggled to get out from underneath the tiger, he tried to cast his senses out to look for Griffin. He had to be nearby. Rux didn’t want to get shot in the back as he defeated his foes.
Where is Dennis? How the hell is Griffin hiding this commotion from the other guests? He must be a madman.
Rux snorted softly. That should be an obvious fact by now…Griffin was clearly unhinged.
Rux howled as the tiger sank his fangs into the back of his neck. The big cat shook him, trying to get a good enough grip to break his neck. Rux struggled, knowing that from this position, he was almost helpless.
The tiger’s claws advanced toward his throat. Rux twisted, getting ready to throw them both into the sand and roll. He could only hope to come out on top.
Suddenly, the tiger’s claws faltered. It was only slightly, but it was enough for Rux to slither away and gain the advantage. When he saw Dana dancing away on her tiptoes, the shovel held high, he realized she had given the tiger a hard hit on the back of the skull.
He knew that she was still defending herself against the cheetah, and she might not be able to hold out for much longer. He had to deal with the damn tiger, and he had to do it fast.
The tiger shook his head a little, growling low in his throat as he recovered from the hit. They prowled back and forth, eyeing each other. Rux was bleeding from a multitude of small wounds, his muscles sore from the fighting and from the blows he’d received.
He kept his eyes on the tiger’s face and waited for him to spring.
Rux saw the tiger gather himself and relaxed. He stood perfectly still as the big cat hurtled toward him. Triumph lit the tiger’s eyes. He thought Rux was too tired or hurt to get out of the way.
At the last moment, Rux stood on his hind legs, jaws open. The tiger couldn’t pull out of his dive and crashed into Rux, both of them roaring with fury. Rux closed his jaw, his massive, sharp fangs puncturing the tiger’s jugular.
With one swift movement, he tore out the tiger’s throat.
He spun around immediately, leaping at the cheetah. Dana was sweating and breathing hard as she backed away from the cheetah. She had no strength left, and he could see her arms sagging as she struggled with the weight of the shovel. She simply couldn’t keep it up any longer.
He jumped onto the cheetah’s back, wrapping his claws around its throat and digging in. With a savage roar, he ripped across the cheetah’s throat, sending blood splattering across the sand.
As the cheetah fell underneath him, Rux staggered. Breath heaved in and out of his chest, burning his throat. Even his vision flickered as if he simply didn’t have the strength to focus his eyes. Only one thing mattered, though.
I must get to Dana.