The Rejected True Heiress (Liora and Callum) novel Chapter 494

Zane’s POV 

Daisy entered the ring like she always did everything else: without expression, without hesitation, without any indication that she was even aware of the several hundred people screaming around her. 

She ducked under the ropes and straightened. 

Mia’s hand found mine. 

“Gods, she’s huge,” Mia said. 

“She’s always been huge.” 

“I know, but…” Mia shook her head. “Still.” 

Liora, for her part, looked steady and unafraid. I knew her well enough to know that she was just hiding it well, but it was convincing, and right now convincing was what mattered. 

The announcer said something about the rules, but I wasn’t paying attention. I looked at the dais, where Bianca was sitting with a smile on her face and that gaudy tiara on her head. My wolf snarled at the sight, and I gently released Mia’s hand just as the referee’s whistle blew. 

“I’ll be right back,” I said. 

Mia turned to look at me. “What? Where are you- 

“Just keep watching. I’ll be back before it’s over.” 

She grabbed my sleeve. “Zane.” 

“I’m not going far.” I covered her hand with mine briefly, then peeled it off my arm. “Cheer loud enough for both of us.” 

I slipped out of the row before she could argue, moving along the back edge of the stands toward the far side of the arena. The crowd was dense, everyone was on their feet, and it was easy enough to slide between people without drawing attention. The noise covered everything. Shouting, stomping, the periodic shriek of the referee’s whistle as the fight got underway behind me. 

I didn’t let myself look back at the ring. I knew if I looked, I would stop moving. 

No one around them was even paying attention, too busy focusing on the fight. 

I cursed under my breath, took one last look up at the dais, and in that moment, I knew I had to make a choice. 

I knew exactly which one Liora would want me to make. 

Liora’s POV 

The whistle blew. 

Daisy closed the distance between us in three strides and swung with an enormous fist. I barely got my arm up in time to deflect. The impact jolted up to my shoulder hard enough to make my back teeth click together. I stumbled back a step, reset my feet, and moved. 

She was faster than she looked. Most people her size weren’t as quick, but Daisy moved with efficiency and speed that was difficult to keep up with. 

Lateral, lateral, back, change direction. Marcus had drilled my footwork into me since before I was even old enough to hold a sword, and right now I was deeply grateful for it because it was the only thing keeping me out of her reach.