Axel stares at Jester, his eyes about popping out of their sockets.
Jester’s sigh is so dramatic it’s downright comical. “Nod your fucking head if you understand, Axel.”
Axel nods frantically.
“Wonderful. Let’s begin.” Jester gives him a brilliant smile. Then he makes a grand sweeping gesture. “Malice, if you will.”
Malice strides forward. Axel whimpers, and a wet spot forms over the crotch of his pants. “Have some dignity.”
But I understand what Malice doesn’t. His blade makes evenmybladder clench. I was in Axel’s position. So, I get that right about now, he wants to shit, piss, and vomit all at the same time. If I close my eyes, I can almost sense Lyle behind me with that fucking whip in his hand. Can feel the drag of the leather across my back…
Jester’s watching me. I scowl at him, wordlessly letting him know I’m fine. Bullshit. I’m barely holding it together.
Malice swipes at the duct tape, cutting Axel free.
The guy starts right in with the apologies. “Come on, man, I didn’t mean none of the shit I said.”
“Yeah you did,” Malice says as he stalks back to the doorway, putting his body between Axel and freedom. “Say it now. Call me a pussy.”
Axel gives a frantic shake of his head. “I was messing around. I didn’t mean it.”
Malice’s grin is pure evil. “Coward.”
But the conversation is over because it’s time to get to work. Jester lands the first hit. He nails Axel in the face. The man’s head snaps to the side. He sputters, and blood spews from his mouth. Another well-placed jab swells an eye. Axel, desperate, makes a run for the exit.
Stupid move.
Takes all of Jester three long strides to catch him and knock him to the floor. Axel lands on his hands and knees. A kick to the guy’s face sends a tooth sailing out of his mouth.
“Now, my friend here is going to make it so your jaw stays wired for a while. Think of it as a reminder to keep your fucking mouth shut.”
I shove away from the doorframe with a heavy sigh, outwardly indifferent. What’s going on in my head? That’s another story. The monster smells blood, and it’s banging at the bars. It demands freedom as it claws at my gray matter.
With six months of pain fueling me, I grip Axel by the shirt and haul him to his feet. “We’re going to start this right. Hit me, asshole.”
I need that first punch. But Axel stands there, blinking at me like a deer caught in headlights. He darts a confused glance to Jester, then to Malice.
“You heard the man, punch him,” Jester says.
Axel shakes his head. “I ain’t hitting you, Wraith.”
I snatch his trembling hand. Curl his fingers in a fist. “Fucking punch me. Give me everything you got. One shot.”
Again, he shakes his head. “You’ll kill me if I do.”
“I’ll kill you if you don’t.”
Axel swallows, his fist hanging in the air. But he finally draws it back. Then his arm flies forward and his knuckles connect with my jaw. Doesn’t do damage, but it wakes the nerves and twists my lips into an evil grin.
Perfect.
Axel sees the malevolence etched on my face, and he backs away. For every step he takes from me, I take one toward him. And then I’m whaling on him.No. Not on Axel. On the man with me in the cage, because in my mind, I’m back in Gomorrah. Back in the fucking Coliseum. With the crowd cheering all around me. I hammer on my opponent until my arms scream from exhaustion, and my hands are raw. I sweep his legs, and when he hits the mat, I straddle him, pressing my forearm to his chest and deliver a volley of elbows to his face.
I hold him down in a pool of blood as the monster’s maniacal laughter echoes in my skull. Someone grabs my arm to stop me from cracking the bones of my opponent’s face. Is the man dead? Did the bell ring? I tense in anticipation of the cattle prod and the pinch of the needle in my neck. Expect the exquisite agony of ket. But none of that happens, and I glance over my shoulder to see it’s Malice who has my arm.
What the fuck is he doing in Gomorrah?
I glance from Malice to the person I have pinned to the mat. Not the mat. A concrete floor. I’m not in Coliseum. This isn’t the octagon. I’m in the old mill, and it’s Axel beneath me whom I’ve beaten nearly to death.
