31. Veronica

Chapter 31

Veronica

I t might be hard to believe, but my social calendar was pretty abysmal, which was why I’d fought hard to be allowed to come tonight. I wanted to experience so many things in life, and an underground fight club? Well, that seemed like it should be a bucket list item.

Reed and I had been torn between excited and nervous all day while we got ready. Eli had tried to talk me out of it, but I’d held firm that I wanted to go. He’d had to go earlier in the day to the venue to finalize set up with Luther, but we had a limo and a contingent of bodyguards that made me laugh.

Then, we had a very excited group voice party call with Arabella and Calia. They made us promise to text, but I was pretty sure phones weren’t allowed. Still, Reed and I obliged with photos of us and Natasha, all dressed up, before the event.

Reed borrowed a dress from Natasha, a green dress that looked great with her eyes and red hair. Luckily, they were just about the same size, and she’d been able to tape it a little in the boob area. I chose black leather pants and a sparkly white top with strappy heels.

Granted, I’d been to a high society party event once or twice for Maxim, but nothing quite like this. An intense, electric energy buzzed through the room, mingling with the smoke and the low thrum of the music. I recognized a few of the Brotherhood MC members doing security at the front, asking for some virtual code that must have been sent in advance. I made a note to ask Eli about it later because it was pretty slick. They were checking bags and frisking people, but we were waved through.

People crowded around the large makeshift cage in the center, their faces hidden in shadows and the occasional flash of neon lights that cut through the darkness.

This was exclusive—the people who knew how to make things happen in dark corners and back rooms. The crowd dressed accordingly: designer suits, gold chains, and luxury watches sparkled in the dim light. Money exchanged hands in whispers, eager glances locking on the ring. Hanging on one wall were screens, as you’d see at a stock exchange, with all sorts of numbers moving at a lightning pace, along with live video monitors of what looked like locker rooms in the back.

“What do those mean?” Reed asked. She looked beautiful in a flowing emerald green organza that shimmered when it caught the light. It was fitted around the bodice with delicate straps and an off-the-shoulder neckline that allowed glimpses of skin beneath the semi-translucent fabric. Natasha had us go through her closet earlier, and Reed had fallen in love with it. Thank goodness for a sister who loved high fashion.

Natasha leaned forward to listen. She had dressed in a pantsuit I wished I could pull off, which looked elegant, with towering heels and her hair braided and pinned up. She was Pike’s perfect counterpoint, who I had already clocked against the far wall.

“Those are bets coming in from around the world,” Eli answered from behind us, his hand settling on the small of my back. He looked devasting tonight, dressed in an actual suit. “Those are the fighters in the back. The bettors can see them and bet accordingly throughout the matches. Let me show you ladies to your seats. ”

Steering us through the crowd, he pivoted towards a section close enough to see the cage but far enough to protect us against one of the walls. We settled into the couches arranged there, and Eli directed the men assigned to us, his voice too low for me to hear.

“You look beautiful,” Eli whispered. “Like a dream. I know Luther wants to come over and meet you sometime tonight. He’s been giving me all sorts of shit about it.”

“You look great too.” I winked and then said saucily, “Good enough to eat.” He leaned forward to steal a kiss.

“You have your inhaler?” He looked worriedly around the room. I knew he was clocking the crowd, the noise, and the smoke.

“Yeah, I patted my purse.” We’d had this discussion at length with my sister and Maxim already. Being around smoke wasn’t great for my lungs, and it put me at risk for an attack, but I felt strongly about coming. Experiences didn’t come along very often, and I wanted to take advantage of the opportunities I could.

“I’ve set up HEPA filters over here for you to see if they’ll help, and I’ve restricted smoking to those sections over there.” His face had creased with worry, and I reached up to smooth the lines from his face.

“Don’t worry so much. Thank you for thinking of me. I’ll be okay. I’ve got Natty and Reed here to help me, and I’ve got my inhaler. If it’s too much, I’ll go home,” I promised, and I meant it. “Tiny is watching over me too.” I indicated the big man behind me, who grinned back and gave me a little salute. Dimitri had assigned him to me for the evening. I’m sure he had very strict orders.

“Okay. Be good.” Then, louder, he said, “Ladies, I’m sure it has been mentioned, but these people aren’t exactly on the right side of the law. You aren’t to go anywhere—even the bathroom—without the bodyguard assigned. No exceptions. I’ll be back in a bit and send a waitress over to take drink orders. The fights will start soon.”

After giving him one last kiss, I sent him on his way, watching as he moved around the room, stopping to speak to each person. The other man with Eli seemed to animate the space—Luther Booth. Handsome in a tuxedo, he had everyone clapping his back and giving him wide grins. He made me think of a politician—one of those people who spoke in loud voices and gave fake smiles.

“Who’s that?” Natasha asked, indicating Luther with her chin. He had circled so close to our table that I could see the pattern of his pocket square.

“Pretty positive that’s Luther. He grew up with Eli on the streets. Him, Eli, and Victor,” I added, watching Luther as he laughed raucously at something a woman in a tight pink dress said to him as she pushed her boobs toward him.

"This is unreal," Reed said, looking around wide-eyed. "I thought I’d seen high-stakes poker in Vegas, but this..."

I nodded. "Different crowd, different stakes. This is where people get off betting for blood, not chips. Some of these people aren’t just here for the fights. It’s networking … business.”

I knew Luther was in on this with Eli, setting up this venue with a critical eye for detail. Eli had the fight scene running like a finely-tuned machine, with high-rollers gambling enough to buy small islands if they lost and bouncers from both the Iron Brotherhood and the Cobra MC keeping a close eye on every move.

Shouts erupted as the lights flickered and lit up the red carpet, running to the cage as the first round began. We watched, riveted, as the fighters came into sight with their hoods up, music soaring over the crowd. Each of them pumped their fists in mock punches as they jogged down the red carpets that led to the cage and then shrugged off their robes as they climbed in.

“No gloves?” Reed asked breathlessly next to me.

I shook my head. I didn’t see any gloves. Their hands were taped up, but it looked like this was bare knuckle. Luther was announcing the names, The Hammer and The Butcher, who made faces at each other from their corners before they squared off, muscles rippling and eyes hard with focus.

The bell sounded, and the fight began, with the fighters moving forward. The crowd’s roar rose like a tidal wave. The Hammer’s movements were sharp and controlled, his eyes never leaving his opponent. Each punch and dodge was precisely calculated as if he’d planned it all out in advance. It was easy to see right away that he was going to win. His blows were vicious, and his body-wielding power seemed greater than the other fighter, who was already breathing harder, their punches and kicks going wide. It didn’t seem like there was a referee or any rounds. The fighters just went at it. We watched in fascination.

“That was a haymaker.” Luther sat beside me, slinging an arm casually over the back of the sofa, startling me. Tiny shifted behind me, but I lifted a hand to indicate I was okay. “See that fighter there.” He pointed to The Butcher, who was struggling but had blood streaming down his face from an open cut and had stumbled back. “He’s about to lose big. “Watch.” His lips were parted with excitement.

Natasha glanced at me, sensing my discomfort, and then returned to the fight, but she knew I was uncomfortable.

The Hammer delivered a set of lightning-fast jabs to the other fighter’s abdomen and followed up with an uppercut that sent his body up into the air and down to the mat. People around us rose to their feet and then crowed, yelling and clapping as they celebrated the knockout.

“See,” Luther said, satisfied as he turned his attention to me. “So you’re the girl that has Havoc in knots.”

“I guess you’re Luther. He’s talked about you.” My eyes drifted over his face, the angles of it. He was handsome in a predatory way, but he looked cruel. I looked for Eli in the crowd, seeking him out — my safety net. He was standing over by a group of men on the far side. Seeing me with Luther, he raised a hand and smiled, but I could see that it didn’t reach his eyes .

“Hmm,” he murmured non-committedly, eyeing me like I was nothing more than a smear on his shoe. “He’s never been interested in anyone before. Maybe we’ll all go out later.” Luther didn’t seem very impressed by me or very interested in going out later, so I wasn’t sure why he bothered.

“Maybe.” I shifted closer to Reed and Natasha, reaching a hand towards them. He nodded and got up without further comment. It wasn’t until he left that I realized I’d been holding my breath.

“Eli is friends with that guy?” Reed said. I thought the same thing but rose on unsteady legs, only thinking I needed to get some air.

The crowd was going wild, bills exchanging hands faster than I could count as they were lost in the thrill of the next match that was coming up. I caught sight of Maxim, weaving through the shadows on the far side of the ring, but he wasn’t my concern. He was probably on his way from or to killing Spato, but I’d done my part for the Bratva already and didn’t want to stick my nose where it didn’t belong. I averted my eyes.

“I’m just going to get a breath of air outside. Clear my head,” I told my sister and Reed, ignoring their concerned looks. “Tiny will go with me. Right?” I asked, looking over at my assigned guard .

“Absolutely,” Tiny immediately answered. Tiny was a giant man with ginger hair and an overly large head, which I know he had teased about as a teenager. He had to buy specially made helmets because of it. Hollis had told me about it only because he’d been her guard for a while. Tiny was huge and intimidating but also the biggest teddy bear ever. Of all of the MC members, if I couldn’t be with family, I’d pick Tiny every time.

Moving to the back of the building, Tiny and I edged our way through the corridors until we’d exited to a back alleyway. It wasn’t very glamorous, but at least we were out of the crowds and the smoke. This section was blocked off by fencing and another building, but we weren’t going anywhere other than to get a chance to get away from the crowd and Luther, so it was fine.

I leaned against the cool, graffiti-covered wall, breathing in the sharp night air. Tiny kept a few paces away, arms crossed, scanning the shadows with his vigilant, no-nonsense look. He had his foot in the door so we wouldn’t get locked out.

“I just needed a minute to breathe, and then we’ll go back.” He nodded as occasional voices from the inside spilled out, muffled but laced with excitement and urgency.

“You good?” Tiny’s voice was low, breaking through my thoughts. “Maybe we should find your man.”

“Yeah, just…taking it all in. This is something else.” I gave him a small smile, feeling more grounded in the quiet of the alley. “After the next fight, maybe I should head home.”

He grunted in agreement, his eyes flicking to the side as the back door creaked open, and he stumbled back at the sudden movement. I expected to see someone stepping out for a smoke or maybe even Eli. But before I could react, a man’s arm swung viciously, catching Tiny square in the temple. His head snapped to the side, and he staggered, blood already trailing down his face as he fell against the wall, dazed. I realized it was Luther in the split second that he plunged a knife into him once, twice, three times, grunting savagely each time as blood bloomed over Tiny’s dress shirt.

A woman came through the door just as I moved toward Tiny, my body torn between forward and backward momentum. Should I run, or should I help? Already, my chest burned, and my legs felt like jello, but I couldn’t leave him.

“Run,” he gasped as his feet scrabbled at the asphalt, trying to find purchase. Adrenaline spiked, but the woman was on me before I could scream.

“You must be Veronica.” Her voice was low and filled with venom as she grabbed my arm, her nails digging painfully into my skin. Her face was a sharp blend of anger and hatred. She had jet-black hair and a fierce glare that felt out of place. I’d never seen her before, and for her to look at me with such hate was startling.

My heart pounded, and I yanked back, struggling, but she was stronger than she looked and certainly stronger than me. She forced me back, pinning me against the wall, her face inches from mine. “You think you and your little hacker fingers can keep ruining things for us?” Her lips curled in a sneer. “I’ve been waiting for this.”

Tiny tried to push himself up, but Luther pressed his boot to his head, forcing him back down. “Stay down, big guy,” he growled.

“Let him go,” I snapped, struggling in the woman’s grip. My mind raced. Eli would come looking for me soon if I didn’t return, but I couldn’t rely on that. I had to figure out a way out of this on my own.

The woman leaned in closer, a glint of malice in her eyes. “Do you know who I am?” Her voice was a low hiss .

She smiled—a cold, deadly smile. “I’m Jade. I worked with Victor. Did you know that?”

I didn’t know anything about her. How did I know know anything about her? I’d been all over the web looking into Victor, Eli, and Luther … where had this woman been?

“I loved him,” she said fiercely, her lips twisting as she gripped me painfully. I tried to look at Luther to see if there was any compassion there, but his face was full of loathing. “Havoc took him away from me. This is a win-win in my book. He cares about you, so this is justice. Not to mention, you’ve been snooping into our business with Spato.”

My blood ran cold.

Jade twisted my arm, forcing me down onto my knees with a sharp jerk. Luther crouched down next to her, his gaze icy and appraising. “You’ve ruined things, you and your little interference with our business.” He sneered. “Victor should have killed you and your sister. He was supposed to clean this whole mess up instead of fucking around.”

Jade pulled out a knife, the blade glinting dangerously under the dim alley light. She ran it down my cheek, not quite cutting but close enough that the cold metal sent shivers down my spine. “This is going to hurt, sweetheart,” she whispered. “But not as much as it’s going to hurt him.”

My mind raced, and as I heard the thud of Tiny struggling to his feet, I knew we had only seconds. I twisted sharply, wrenching my arm free just as Tiny tackled Luther, sending them both sprawling to the ground. Luther cursed, his voice filled with rage as he tried to throw Tiny off, but Tiny’s bulk pinned him down.

Jade’s grip on me tightened as she tried to yank me back, but adrenaline had kicked in. I threw my weight forward, breaking free of her hold and stumbling back a few steps. I needed to get to Eli or at least find help.

But Jade was relentless. She lunged at me again, the knife gleaming. I dodged to the side, my heart racing, and then, with a burst of energy I didn't know I had, I kicked out, my foot connecting with her wrist. The knife clattered to the ground, and I scrambled to grab it, hands shaking just as the door burst open and Eli filled the space.

Sinking to my knees, I prayed to my guardian angel as he took in the scene. “They were going to kill… us,” I heaved, my breaths coming in pants as he pulled me to my feet and pushed me to wards the door. Maxim came through, looked at Tiny and me, and began dialing.

“Back alley now,” he told someone in Russian. I was guessing my cousin Dimitri.

Eli’s face had gone cold, devoid of emotion, as Jade began to spew her diatribe of hate. “You killed Victor. That bitch deserves to die as payment.” He didn’t pause as he stepped towards her; even as she struggled and attempted to fight back, it was inconsequential. She was dead before she hit the ground. Her neck snapped like it was nothing more than a dry twig in winter.

Luther sneered at him and back to me. “Victor was supposed to do a job when he came here, but you distracted him. Apparently, that was more important than business. You fucked everything up. We could have had it all.” He looked over his shoulder to the fencing.

With my hands on my knees, I was already coughing and reaching for my purse on the ground, and my inhaler as Dimitri and Maddox came through the door to check Tiny’s pulse. I knew he was dead as sure as I knew that the last of his efforts had been given in trying to help me get away. Poor Tiny .

“Alright, Ronnie. I’m taking you home,” Maxim said. “Let’s get Nat. Eli, we’ll see you there.”

“I’ll be right behind you,” he said, giving me one last searching look.

My last view of him before Maxim swept me into his arms was of Eli circling forward toward Luther in that classic fighter pose. I remembered what Eli had told me. Victor and he had been the fighters, and Luther had been the promotor, but I couldn’t find it in me to care that it wasn’t a fair fight.