Page 160 of Hunt Me

David’s eyes narrowed at the spectacle.

Matilda grinned. “They are wagering on you.”

“FOUR TO ONE HE NEVER REACHES LYKAON!”

“I heard him.”

“Should we place a bet?”

David glared at her.

“Perhaps not.”

Another voice rose from the crowd.

“Ten gold says David takes all four!”

Others joined.

“Five on David!”

“Seven!”

“Ten!”

David settled back against his seat, and by the time their carriage passed through the gates, his name was already traveling through the crowd.

“David!”

“The former beta!”

“He lives!”

David’s jaw tightened.

Matilda studied him, then asked, “Are you nervous?”

He hesitated to answer, glancing down to the bundle in the crook of her arm.

“No.”

She raised a skeptical brow. David lasted all of three seconds.

“I am terrified.”

Matilda nodded. “Good.”

He frowned. “Good?”

“You would be a fool not to be.”

David turned his attention toward the distant castle that he once called home.

“The match is brutal: four fights one after another.”

“I’m aware.”

“What if what Dr. Blackwood did isn’t enough?”