Cat and Mouse [Beast Games 1] (Siren Publishing Everlasting Classic ManLove) Read online

  Beast Games 1

  Cat and Mouse

  Tobias Luch is a mouse shifter who has had little interaction with the predatory beasts who fight in a no-holds-barred contest of strength. But when a wealthy investor drops by for an unexpected visit, Tobias is charged with delivering an important message to the beasts’ trainer. He doesn't realize that the errand will bring him face-to-face with a tiger shifter who is destined to be his mate.

  Cassisus Alferrik the Vain is legendary in the arena and lives at the adjacent training compound where Tobias works. When his mate wanders into his domain during practice, Cassisus is immediately and absolutely drawn to the man fate has given him. He doesn't care that they come from two different worlds. However, his indifference is not shared by others. He will have to fight internal and external enemies in order to convince his mate of the joy of their union and carve out a new normal within the confines of their world.

  Genre:Alternative (M/M or F/F), Paranormal, Shape-shifters

  Length:58,617 words

  CAT AND MOUSE

  Beast Games 1

  Jana Downs

  EVERLASTING CLASSIC

  MANLOVE

  Siren Publishing, Inc.

  www.SirenPublishing.com

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  A SIREN PUBLISHING BOOK

  IMPRINT: Everlasting Classic ManLove

  CAT AND MOUSE

  Copyright © 2013 by Jana Downs

  E-book ISBN: 978-1-62242-104-6

  First E-book Publication: January 2013

  Cover design by Harris Channing

  All art and logo copyright © 2013 by Siren Publishing, Inc.

  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED:This literary work may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic or photographic reproduction, in whole or in part, without express written permission.

  All characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead is strictly coincidental.

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  www.SirenPublishing.com

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  CAT AND MOUSE

  Beast Games 1

  JANA DOWNS

  Copyright © 2013

  Chapter One

  An excerpt from the multipublished book Origin of the Species Reclassified: the role of shifters in a modern society by S.G. Brentwell, Professor at Stanford University. (103)

  Diagram of the Human Hierarchy

  I)The following diagram outlines the fundamental differences and uses of Homo sapiens (humans) and Homo mutatio (shape-shifters).

  Number Six glared at his captor with his ice-blue eyes and tiny claws extended. If they came near him, they were going to get it.

  “That one looks like he has spunk,” the human said as he circled the inside of the cage, picking up kits and examining them while they cried before casting them aside.

  “Ah yes,” the breeder agreed. Master Marin Simon always favored him. “That is number six of this particular litter. Should be a hell of a fighter. Has the same build as his father, even so young. You have good taste, Flavius.”

  The human, Flavius, stepped toward him. Number Six hissed and swiped at the man. The human smiled, revealing straight white teeth. “He’ll do. I want that one.”

  Master Marin grinned and patted his pronounced paunch. “Very good, sir. He’ll be a fine addition to your school.”

  Number Six hissed again. He didn’t want to go to school. He didn’t want to go anywhere. His brothers needed protecting. Number Four mewed pitifully from his place in the corner. He was smaller than all the others. Six made a dash for his brother.

  He growled as strong human hands picked him up by the scruff of his neck. He made a very feline sound of displeasure. He needed to get to Four.

  “He’s really excited. What’s he trying to run to the corner for?” Flavius asked.

  Master Marin made that clucking sound he usually made when he was displeased about something. “It’s Number Four. Six is particularly fond of Four. I don’t know why. Four is the runt of the litter.”

  “He’s a got a tender side then.” Flavius didn’t look displeased at the notion. “I’ll take number Four as well.”

  “Two kits? You are a generous man for a trainer of Beasts.” Master Marin clucked. “It will triple the price. They have very similar markings, almost twins. They will draw a crowd of epic proportions if fought together.”

  “Done,” Flavius said, scooping up Four and tucking him under his other arm. It made Six feel a lot better now that Four was coming with him. He could look after Four wherever they went.

  Master Marin sputtered. “No negotiation?”

  “Negotiations are for people with little money and lots of time. I am a man of neither problem. Settle up with my man, I’m taking the kits on to my car.” Flavius cradled them both in his arms, and Six took a deep breath. He smelled like human but also, underneath it all, was Beast. A male Beast. Six made a sound of question and pawed at the man’s buttons.

  Flavius chuckled. “Now, now, none of that, little one. I shall call you Cassisus because you are a vain little thing, and I shall call your smaller brother Faustus, because it means ‘lucky.’ How do you feel about that?” Six made a sound of agreement and gnawed on Flavius’s buttons. Maybe their new master wouldn’t be so bad after all.

  Chapter Two

  Present day

  “Flavius, he’s grown into a hell of a gladiator. Your father made an excellent choice. He’s favored to take Rome and the Olympics this year,” one of Master Flavius’s human companions, Justi
n, said as he reclined on one of the blush-white leather couches that made up the sitting area in Master Flavius’s living room. The massive house had just finished construction six months ago, and Tobias was still getting used to moving through it. He knelt on the carpet at his master’s feet, ready to go fetch anything either of the men desired. As one of the house servants, it was his job to do so.

  “I was surprised that father gave the school to me when I reached majority. I mean, I knew he wanted to retire, but I expected him to sell off the shifters in the Ludus so he could move to Florida with Mom,” Flavius said, taking a sip from his glass of whiskey. He and Justin had been drinking steadily since early afternoon and showed no signs of stopping.

  “Well, he did always impress on you how important the Beast Games were. He was one of the first people to open a school to train them, wasn’t he?”

  Master Flavius nodded. “As he predicted, the Beast Games have become an international sensation since the shifters decided to reveal themselves to the human race. My compliments to your own profits, Justin,” Flavius said, raising his glass in a salute to his friend. “Cassisus has been difficult at times, but he’s grown into an extraordinary fighter. I hope we do take Rome. If that happens we’ll be a shoo-in for the Olympics.”

  Tobias perked up at the mention of the white-tiger shifter, Cassisus. He and his brother, Faustus, had become celebrities almost overnight when they’d hit the circuit back in July. Master Flavius had been more than thrilled with their accomplishments. They’d won every match put to them in New York, Denver, and Los Angeles. The master had spoken of bringing them into Europe for the Beast Games there if they won in New Orleans.

  “The Olympics. Can you imagine? It’s only the third time they’ve had the Beast Games there,” Justin said excitedly, his enthusiasm obvious in the gleam in his eyes. “I have to tell you I’m envious. I wish I had invested more heavily in shifters when this whole mess started.”

  The “whole mess” he spoke of had to be the Keepers Act of 2025, which lowered shifter status to that of chattel. The act required that a shifter be the property of a human to insure their good behavior and register in a national registry. It was a load of bullocks really. The humans had just wanted to enslave the shifters for their own purposes, the least of which was the Beast Games. Some said that shifters who were trained and made to participate in the modern version of the gladiatorial games were the lucky ones. Tobias wasn’t so sure. They were treated a hell of a lot like thoroughbreds at a horseracing circuit, which Tobias heard the humans were phasing out in favor of shifter horses as well. The gladiators were fed, groomed, and trained for the games often at the expense of their health or, in extreme cases, their lives. Though Flavius was the exception to that rule. There was no master who was kinder than the young human who ran their home.

  “I’ve adopted a nest of meerkats to handle my household chores, but there is something to be said for mice. They’re much quieter than the meerkats, who chatter constantly,” Justin said, reaching down and petting Tobias on the head. “Adopted” was a very cute way to phrase what Justin did. No doubt he bought a shifter family to look after his house. Master Flavius’s family had done the same, but Flavius wasn’t a bad master. He was kind for the most part and fair. Tobias had heard from the servants that Justin traveled with exactly what all his servants were used for. Master Flavius was many things, but a rapist wasn’t one of them.

  Flavius smiled and reached down to ruffle Tobias’s hair as well. As usual, the scent of soap and man wafted up to tease Tobias’s nose at the action. “I must say I’ve found favor with mice myself. Little Tobias here has been a part of my house since he was a pup. We practically grew up together.”

  “Do you keep the mice separate from the Ludus Beasts?” Justin asked. Tobias didn’t like the way Justin was looking at him, like he was a fascinating animal at the zoo. He shuddered internally. His mother spoke of a time when shifters were treated like anyone else, before they’d decided to trust humans to accept them.

  “Not at all. The gladiator school is no different than any other place in my house. The mice are sent in to care for my cats and the cats are told to behave or face punishment. It’s that simple.” Flavius sat back in his chair and pushed a stray bit of blond hair from his face. It was common knowledge that Master Flavius was the youngest Ludus master in the United States, no doubt due to the stable of gladiators he’d inherited from his father when the man had retired two years ago. Tobias definitely favored Master Flavius’s way of doing things. He wasn’t as harsh as his father had been.

  Justin chuckled. “I’m surprised you’re able to keep the Beasts in line, but then again, you always did have a way with the animals.” Tobias was really beginning to dislike this guy. “I’m thinking of going into breeding myself. I mean, the games are good, and the prestige is great if you can make it to the top. But it requires so much travel and advertisement and big investments in training that I just don’t know if I want to deal with all of it. I’ve had the two gladiators in my house that have won things here and there, but it is exhausting taking care of everything that goes into the games. Hugh was telling me that breeding the Beasts is the way to go. I’m thinking wolves would be a good investment. They’re an up-and-coming shifter class. The Pack Games are pretty fascinating.”

  Flavius frowned for a second before his expression blanked. Tobias knew that his master wasn’t happy about something. “Breeding is so inhumane though, Justin. I mean, they may be animals, but they have a higher sentient intelligence. They can love.”

  Justin snorted. “Oh please. They’re no different from breed mares. I’ve never seen you get upset over a well-bred pony. Every shifter in your stable has come from a well-known breeder and has pedigrees that go back to the beginning. It’s rather hypocritical for you to say that it’s wrong, don’t you think?”

  Flavius waved his hand and made a noncommittal sound. “It’s almost 2:00 a.m., my friend. I think I will go on to bed to sleep off this whiskey.” He tapped Tobias on the shoulder twice, the signal for him to stand. Tobias did so and hovered just behind his master. He was really happy to be getting the hell away from Justin. The guy really creeped Tobias out.

  “All right, Mr. Bleeding Heart. Be that way. G’night.”

  “Good night, Justin. I’ll have a servant rouse you in the morning, and I’ll give you a tour of the Ludus.” Master Flavius motioned for Tobias to gather up his laptop and three notebooks. Tobias scurried to do as he was told.

  They went out into the hallway through the tall white door that was the entrance into the study and down the wood-floor hall toward Master Flavius’s bedroom. One of Tobias’s cousins, Corey, opened the door to Flavius’s bedroom and gave a half bow before closing it shut behind them.

  “Justin has become a bigoted ass since going away to school,” Flavius said, his irritation finally showing itself. “If I didn’t need his financial backing on this next match, I would toss him out right now.” He made a noise of frustration and began to strip. Tobias looked away and blushed, the heat stealing over his cheeks at the sight of bare human flesh. “Fetch me a shirt and a clean pair of boxers, Tobias.” Tobias did as he was told and placed the clothing carefully on the bed before going back to his corner. There was a small notch there where he would leave through when he was dismissed.

  “Tobias?”

  “Yes, Master?” Tobias asked, his soft voice making an appearance for the first time the entire night.

  “Were you offended by what Justin said?”

  Tobias blinked. “I’m not sure I understand the question, Master.” He did understand the question. He just refused to answer it. What would his offense garner? Nothing. And in the morning, if Master Flavius decided to hold his words against him, he would have no defense. Servants were to be rarely seen and rarely heard, and that had been the way of things his entire life. It wasn’t that he had no opinion. It was that he had no power.

  Flavius looked at him for a good ten seconds befo
re nodding. “Never mind then. Go on to bed, Tobias. I’m sure you’re tired.”

  Tobias nodded and gave a little bow. “Thank you, Master. I’ll come with breakfast in the morning.” He took off his shirt and shorts and stood in his underwear before carefully folding his clothing by the wall and crouching beside the hole. The change came over him like a whisper. His bones and muscles constricted, his frame shrinking in extraordinary degrees. Within seconds he was in his animal skin. He stretched his tiny paws and smoothed them over his face before climbing out of his underwear and giving a little squeak of good night.

  “Tobias, tell the other servants to please keep it down in the walls tonight. I get woken up by scratching and squeaking, and it annoys the hell out of me,” Flavius said, already tucked into his massive four-poster bed. Tobias gave a little squeak of acknowledgment before going into the servants’ entrance via the hole in the wall.

  * * * *

  “Oh for Christ sake’s, Cassisus. It’s a freaking mirror,” Faustus said, crossing his arms over his well-muscled chest and tapping his foot impatiently.

  “It wasmymirror, andsomeonebroke it,” Cassisus snapped. He held up the broken silver mirror that one of his fans had given him. “I am not coming out until my damn mirror is replaced.”

  Faustus sighed and leaned against the bars of Cassisus’s quarters. “I’m sure the master will get you a bloody mirror, Cassisus. But he won’t be inclined to grant any requests if you continue to act like a Grade-A diva.”