Chapter 25 #2
Her scent hits my nose and my heartbeat picks up, a light growl ringing at the back of my head as she slightly leans in toward me.
All too sudden she pulls back, a small sigh leaving her lips before her eyes meet mine.
“Do you have a death wish? Or do you just enjoy pain?” Her blue eyes narrow, searching my face for something. She shakes her head and sighs, turning back toward Creed and Ezra as they pull into the parking lot.
I clench my fist, stopping the hand that wanted to reach out and drag her back to me. To have those deep blue eyes gazing at me with that strange look of hers.
Was it worry? Did she think I would hurt myself? Why would she even care?
And why did the thought of whether she did matter to me?
We had barely talked. I had barely talked to her. Only watching and listening from a distance as she ate and glared at Annex, or gave some sort of snappy or funny line to shut him down.
She didn’t seem to be afraid of us like the others, or care about our families or power. She didn’t drool over my brothers or try to cling to them like other girls.
I could tell she knew there was something different about us, but unlike everyone else, it didn’t seem to faze her. She stares us down, stands her ground against Creed, keeps up with Annex’s crazy and gives Ezra some peace.
My brothers didn’t realise that even in the few encounters we’ve had with her, they’ve changed. There's a calm and comfort in her presence that seems to soothe some of the darkness in them without them even knowing it.
But I was different.
The darkness in me would never yield.
Only my brothers could handle me, understand it to some extent, what moved inside me. A nd why I had to be this way.
Anyone else that got too close would only get hurt.
I clench my fist, pulling it to my side. She would be no exception.
No-one could truly understand or accept what I was.
“Mallyn.” Ezra pulls me from my thoughts as he and the others make their way to the entrance.
The old slaughterhouse was our domain, the old factory having been abandoned a couple of decades before, and rotting until we found it.
We had claimed it not long after entering the academy as a form of amusement and to gather information and easy cash.
It also helped being able to jump into the ring and vent our frustrations from time to time.
The beast rolls under my skin with the thought, before her voice catches my ear and he calms again. The newest member of our group tonight stands just feet from me.
I don’t think she would be able to handle seeing me let loose in the ring. I never left my opponent without a few broken bones and bloodied up beyond recognition.
I shake my head. Why did I even care about what she thought?
We head into the large open warehouse, making our way through the crowds as people move out of our way. This was our territory, our operation, and everyone here knew who we were.
Cheers and shouts ring out from the crowd circled around the centre of the room. They watch on around the makeshift fighting cage as one large shifter knocks his opponent to the ground. The crowd cheers again, shouting ‘ Kill him’, ‘Go for his eyes’ or ‘Take him out’.
The larger shifter partially shifts his hand, large claws extending from the tips of his fingers before he lunges forward and thrusts them into his opponents chest. Blood splatters from the smaller shifter as laughter rings out around the cage.
The smaller guy sags to the ground as the final bell rings, calling an end to the fight. The bigger guy grins maniacally as the crowd cheers around him.
These fights had no rules, but we did try to minimise the deaths as much as possible though. It wasn’t good for business or having to constantly clean up dead bodies.
I narrow my eyes at the large idiot in the cage. None of us liked to be disrespected. Here our word was law, and if you mess with that, you mess with us.
The large shifter raises his fists, shouting into the crowd, “Anyone else?” while laughing.
I take a step forward but before I can get any further, I notice Annex already making his way to the cage. He stops before pulling off his black leather jacket and top, and throwing it toward Micai. And the dark grin on his face tells me it's gonna be a really bloody fight.
He then pushes open the cage door and heads in, closing it shut behind him.
The large idiot begins laughing as he looks at my brother. He must be from out of town, because everyone here knows Annex’s face.
“You? This tiny thing?” Fuck, he really wanted a painful death, didn’t he?
No matter how built he was, or whether he stood a foot taller than my brother, he would fall and bleed like the rest of them. And Annex would make it as painful as possible.
My brother found joy in watching other people in agony, more so if he was the one inflicting it.
The crowd falls quiet as the shifter chuckles, some of their faces even going pale as they watch Annex begin to make his way toward the shifter.
I glance back toward the small blue-eyed girl holding Annex’s favourite jacket, her eyes narrowed but focused fully on him.
Another growl rings in my ears.
I shake it away and look back towards the cage.
Lets see how she does with a taste of what our darkness looks like unleashed.