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but Kade and Griffin. She wished she could find Ramos, but it was impossible.
    A ferocious growl began behind her and she spun around in time to watch Griffin throw himself at Kade. Kade rolled away and as he did, his front leg gave way, and his vulnerable underbelly was exposed.
    Griffin seemed to alter his course mid-jump, claws tearing at Kade’s flesh, his jaws clamped onto Kade’s throat. Kade snarled, the sound dissolving into a gurgle as Griffin bore down on him.
    Addison saw how deep the gashes were across Kade’s stomach, three deep rents exposing muscle and viscera. The wounds were fatal, no doubt, but he still struggled against Griffin.
    But the grip on his throat was suffocating him, and he began struggling uncontrollably, legs thrashing uselessly in the air. Griffin pushed Kade further onto his back. Kade’s struggles grew weaker, stiffening suddenly. With a final jerk, he went still.
    Griffin held on for a few minutes, gradually letting go of Kade’s limp body. He stepped back, panting, watching Kade. Then he turned, looked at Addison and let loose a cry that told the gathering he’d defeated his challenger.
    Xavier strode forward to the edge of the circle, glaring at the jaguars who had stopped fighting. Griffin advanced toward Xavier, tail held low, lips pulled back in a snarl.
    “You were banished. This ritual has been defiled. It does not stand.” He swept his arm over the gathering. “You will fight, until one emerges.”
    Griffin leapt to the platform, standing next to Addison. She reached down, stroking the back of his head. Xavier broke through the line of jaguars, coming to the edge of the platform.
    “You will die Griffin. Now. Either as jaguar or man, you will fight me.”
    Addison watched in horror as Xavier shifted, dropping to the ground as a large broad-shouldered jaguar. He leapt to the platform, knocking Addison aside, walking over her as she lay on the wood as if she weren’t even there.
    She struggled to sit up, reaching out. “Griffin!”
    But Griffin wasn’t looking at her either.
    She was, for the moment, totally forgotten. There was nothing she could do but watch.

Chapter Six
     
    Griffin’s wounds hurt, but he pushed the pain aside. Addison was safe, and she was his. Now only Xavier stood in his way. And he was ready to fight, to the death, if necessary. He was going to make sure it was Xavier’s death.
    The two powerful jaguars circled each other. The platform was narrow and Griffin was forced much closer to Xavier than he wanted to be. His foot slipped off the edge but he caught his balance. But in that instant he knew Xavier saw a weakness to exploit.
    Xavier pressed forward, crowding Griffin to the very edge. Griffin was limited to a narrow edge of the platform.
    He had two choices: he could jump off, risk giving Xavier the advantage of being above him. Or he could charge.
    Griffin dug his claws into the soft wood, tensed and threw himself at Xavier. For a moment he saw surprise in Xavier’s eyes, but then he was on top of the older jaguar, rolling him across the platform. From the corner of his eye he saw Addison scrambling backward, disappearing over the edge of the platform.
    Xavier was extremely powerful and Griffin struggled to gain some kind of control. They came apart with snarls and growls, Xavier taking a swipe at Griffin’s injured shoulder, tearing the flesh deeply.
    But they were in the center of the platform and Griffin had more room to move. He circled around Xavier, looking for any weakness. The old jaguar had been through many fights and Griffin knew he’d been severely injured, tendons and ligaments torn, but Griffin couldn’t remember which side the injury was on. He would favor that leg and Griffin watched him now, waiting for the weakness to show.
    Xavier moved to his right, then turned, circling back to his left. Griffin refused to change direction, forcing Xavier back in the other direction. Xavier snarled, displaying three sharp fangs. One was