Diego grabbed her arm and twisted it, yanking her off-balance. She hit the mat on her face, and a jolt of pain ran through her jaw. Diego moved like a snake, and he straddled her before she could react. She raised her hands, and Diego slapped them aside, wrapped an arm around her neck, and squeezed her in a side choke.
Surprise rippled through Val. No human had ever gotten her into a chokehold. She squirmed as darkness swarmed her vision. Fifteen seconds—that was how much time she had before the pressure on her carotid arteries would knock her out cold.
She grunted and hoisted her hips, trying to make Diego lose his balance. The roaring audience faded from her senses. Distant buzzing filled her ears instead.
Val gritted her teeth and tried again, and this time, she rolled onto one hip and dislodged Diego’s left foot from the mat. That was all the leverage she needed to flip and rip her arm out of the hold.
Diego lurched back, struggling to protect his advantage, his hands braced on her shoulders. Val grabbed one hand and yanked him forward. Off-balance, Diego collapsed against her neck, and Val pulled her legs free. She wrapped a thigh around his neck in a triangle choke and squeezed.
Diego spluttered. His hand sharply tapped her shoulder, and Val instantly released him.
“I don’t believe it!” the announcer shrieked. Breathless, Val rose to her hands and knees and panted as her vision and hearing swam back. “Newcomer Valerie Stonehold submitted Diego Lopez!”
Henry grabbed Val’s arm. “You okay?”
“Fine!” Val bounced to her feet, grinning despite the blood running over her lower lip. “One down, five to go.”
Henry handed her a towel. “I thought he had you for a minute.”
“So did I,” Val admitted.
Diego grinned at her from his side of the cage as a musclebound young man offered him water.
Round after round followed. Val’s muscles ached by the third. She’d never fought this much in a single day without using the scarlet fog’s power. Diego submitted her in the third round with a rear naked choke she couldn’t escape from and won the fourth with a painful kimura arm guard.
“Dude,” Val spluttered as Henry poured water over her head before the fifth round. “Don’t ruin my hair.”
“Sorry. You’re sweating,” Henry remarked.
“I’m exhausted,” Val admitted.
Henry grinned. “Better make this quick, then.”
“What are you talking about?” Val demanded.
“Quit trying to fight like him, Val,” Henry told her. “You’re using guards and holds when you know your strength lies in your punches.”
Val sipped water, glowering. “Who died and made you my coach?”
“Try it.” Henry slapped her on the back. “Let’s go!”
Val eyed Diego as they stumbled to the center of the ring. Well, Val stumbled. Diego skipped. He seemed impossibly fresh after four rounds of fighting, and he grinned as she staggered, panting.
“Last one, girl,” he yelled. “This will decide the championship!”
“I got that,” Val growled.
She touched her amulet. It blazed on her skin, but she held her power back. Kicking ass in the MMA ring by magic would be blatantly unfair, although it wasn’t against the rules. She’d beat Diego on a level playing field. Well, cage.
Their eyes met as the ref held out his hand.
Quit trying to fight like him, Val.
The ref’s hand dropped, and Val lunged. Diego went to block her punch, but Val didn’t punch. She slammed into him, and he grunted in shock as they both crashed to the mat in a movement that was more tackle than takedown.
Diego guarded his neck, arms tight over his face, but Val didn’t bother trying for a chokehold. His technique was too good. She flung herself back, grabbed his ankle, and dragged it over her shoulder. Before Diego could react, she’d pinned him in an Achilles lock.
Laughing, Diego slapped the mat, and it was over. Val bounded to her feet. Fresh energy surged through her like cold water as the announcer bellowed, “Diego Lopez has submitted! Ten seconds into the final round, Valerie Stonehold takes the fight!”
Henry leaped up and down, yelling. Her coach disappeared, leaving a deranged fan in his place. The tall Asian yanked his shirt off and ran around the cage like he would wear the belt. The bewildered ref just stared as Henry leaped up and down since he had a huge green heart painted on his chest.
“What in Merlin’s name is happening?” Val demanded.
More human flesh than she’d ever wanted to see appeared in the front row. Buck, Archibald, Liam, and Isabella yanked off their shirts. VAL, the boy’s chests spelled, and an exclamation mark bounced beneath Isabella’s sports bra.
“Tonight’s champion is Valerie Stonehold!” the announcer roared.
The ring card girl, whom Val instantly despised, arrived with the amateur championship belt. She buckled it around Val’s belly while fluttering her eyelashes, which made Val very uncomfortable. The ref raised Val’s tired arm over her head. Henry grabbed the other and did the same. The crowd’s roars threatened to pop her eardrums.
“You did it!” Henry bellowed.
Val grinned. She had.
Henry drove to the Iron Fist with Val. Genevieve was on her best behavior since Val was too sore to press the pedals.
“How’s the face?” Henry asked with sympathy as the Mustang trundled over the Brooklyn Bridge.
