Shaking his head, the man tried to get to his feet. “Please, please. No. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to.”
Angered by his denial, the crowd booed louder. My head swiveled to meet Spencer’s own disgusted face, booing along with the rest of the crowd.
My sweet Spencer… howling for this man’s demise.
The announcer quieted the crowd with a wave of her hand. “Should you fail, you’ll be sent to your maker for your final judgement.”
“No…” I muttered. They wouldn’t kill him. No. They couldn’t. I’d go straight to the cops, blow this whole nonsense open.
They have to know they can’t get away with this.
Lifting her arms, the announcer smiled. “Let The Gauntlet begin!” She left the arena with the executioner, leaving the man and the Bull.
As the crowd leapt to their feet, Leo wedged her hand in my armpit to lift me.
Spencer grabbed my hand. “No need for you to watch this, Bunny.”
“Stop.” Shaking my head, I couldn’t tear my eyes from the center of the pit where the desperate man rose to his feet. He looked puny and pathetic from up here. It was hard to think him capable of any crime, let alone one deserving a punishment like this.
But there was a language here that I didn’t understand. This mob knew exactly what he’d done, and they wouldn’t be satisfied until they’d gotten their pound of flesh.
As soon as the bell dinged, the man rushed for the gate he’d come out of. But it was locked. Obviously.
He gripped the metal slats and shook it, praying something would knock loose.
As he desperately tried to pry it open, The Bull sauntered across the sand pit.
She grabbed the scruff of his shirt, hauling him off the gate and back to the center of the arena. The crowd roared its approval.
Once she’d hauled him back to his starting position, The Bull lifted her fists to her face with a hop in her step. Reluctantly, the man did the same.
They spun in a circle for just a moment before The Bull relaxed, presenting him with an opportunity to throw a punch.
His weak-wristed right hook bounced off her shoulder, thudding softly against the rounded muscle.
Smirking, Bull took her chance. She twisted her fist toward his face, planting a solid smack to his nose. An uproar from the crowd spurred her on.
Stumbling backwards, the man tried to get his balance.
The audience was full of wide smiles and hungry eyes. Veins popped in the spectators’ necks as they screamed with vindication.
Either this was mass hysteria… or this man was truly a monster.
And I couldn’t imagine my two saviors cheering this on if it wasn’t the latter.
As The Bull closed in on the man, sending him to the floor another gut-punch, my gaze locked back onto the fight.
On his back, the man tried to protect his face. But Bull didn’t care, she launched her booted foot into his crotch, crushing his dick with her heel.
I could hardly hear his screams through the ringing in my ears. Everything around me quieted, the cheering of the crowd fading as the spotlights grew brighter in my mind. I could see their mouths open, knew that they were applauding. But none of it could reach me.
All I could see was the blood each punch drew from the man’s face. All I could hear was the sound of breaking bones as The Bull pummeled his body with fists.
As she pinned him with a knee to his chest, I struggled to breathe.
As his face started to bleed, it morphed into Gabriel’s. The way the blood had trickled out of his mouth when Spencer and Leo had beaten the shit out of him.
But then his face aged too, morphing into wrinkles and sinister smiles. A version of Gabe I would’ve seen in fifteen years. Or maybe a man I’d seen before.
