32. Briar
Briar
M y mouth is open as I watch Dove. She flails beside me, and a man staggers back with his hand over his pants as I wince.
She beams, her voice carrying over the music. “This is fun!”
It is fun. We’ve been dancing for over an hour, any shyness I might have felt helped along by one of Dove’s new creations. This one is a bright, sparkling pink.
I don’t give a shit.
It feels kind of appropriate. My head feels like it’s buzzing.
Maybe I won’t have any more.
I point to the bar, making my way through the crowd until I can ask for some bottled water. Shouting behind me has me turning my head. “What’s through that door?”
I don’t remember seeing it last time I was here. But there’s a steady flow of people streaming inside.
The guy serving me hands me my bottle, and I press it to my heated cheeks. “The fighting. You can go through if you want to.”
“Thanks.”
Frowning, I glance around. There’s no sign of Dove. I wait a few minutes before walking around the dance floor, in case she’s in the bathroom.
Maybe she’s next door. I join the stream of people, stepping through the small entrance and looking around. The walls are black, the room lit by electric sconces set at regular intervals around the four square walls. People are jostling for some of the small circular tables, but most are clustered around the large ring in the middle of the room. It’s raised, the gray-looking square floor surrounded by thick blue and red ropes.
Wide-eyed, I stare as one man throws himself into another. Their fists fly, neither of them wearing any protective equipment as they grapple. Nausea surges as I see a thick spray of scarlet fly out, spattering against the floor. The bigger man follows it down, his head banging against the solid floor with a thud that makes me feel ill.
I don’t like this. I glance around quickly for Dove, trying to spot her. This place feels more… dangerous. Edgy, maybe. As if a fight could break out at any moment, and not just in the ring.
Sighing, I’m about to head back into the club when my eyes lock on a blond head. River’s golden hair is back in his usual bun as he leans forward on a table, his blazer sleeves pushed up past his elbows and his expression intense. He gestures before spinning and walking up to the ring.
Jenson stares after him. I can’t read his expression, so I edge to the wall on my left, shifting down the room.
He’s watching the ring. My eyes follow, and—
Kai.
Kai is in the ring. Bouncing on bare feet, with River murmuring in his ear. I didn’t look too closely the first time, but he’s the one that was fighting.
And it’s clear that he’s about to fight again.
I stay where I am, my heart in my mouth. He moves like water. Sleek, fast and with an elegance that makes it look as if he’s almost dancing.
I didn’t know he could fight.
The people here love him, cheering for him, calling his name. But he doesn’t acknowledge them at all. He doesn’t smile, even as he wins this match too. His expression is blank, his mouth turned down slightly at the edges.
And his eyes look… empty .
My eyes travel down, and my heart stops. There are scars across his chest. Thick, raised scars that his tattoos don’t quite manage to hide.
Two women move into the small space next to me, clutching their drinks. One of them is giggling. “I don’t believe you.”
“It’s true! Last year.” The second woman, maybe a little older than me, has curly brown hair and slicked red lips that pull up into a smirk. I glance away before she sees me looking. “Try anything once, right? I mean, wouldn’t you?”
“What was he like? I bet he was great. I mean, look at him.”
“Oh, yeah.” Hair whips against the side of my face. “But he wanted me to stay with him afterwards. Like… why? What was I supposed to do? He doesn’t even talk . It was fucking awkward. Pretty, but nothing much there, you know? There’s a table over there.”
Anger tightens every part of my body, leaving me shaking as they push off the wall and past me. The way that woman spoke about him – like he was a thing , to be used and thrown aside—
The back of my eyes feel hot as I sweep the room again. It looks different, this time. As if Kai is a toy, to wind up and go again and again for the entertainment of the people in this room.
No good for anything real .
The man facing him is huge. Thick rings of muscle wrap around his middle, his arms, his wide neck. And Kai looks… tired. Drained.
He’s fighting again .
He wins the first round, retreating to where River is waiting in the corner. But he shakes his head, moving back out to the middle.
His movements are slower.
River is shaking his head as he climbs down. I watch as he moves through the crowd. He doesn’t see me pressed against the wall as he strides back through the door to Mystic, and I return to Kai.
The thick fist smashes into his cheek, sending his whole body twisting as he flies back and hits the floor.
No.
No more.