Chapter 3 - Alyssa

The place was packed, which wasn’t strange. People tended to be attracted to the blood and gore. After the first two or three rounds, Jones came waddling over. He stood beside me as the announcer joined us.

She was a pretty little thing, as Jones called her. The woman had sleek, long, wavy black hair. She had piercing green eyes and a fairly light skin tone. All these features made her unique, and she always attracted the attention of most men. The spotlight came on and shone down on us. She spoke up in her high-pitched voice, calling for the crowd’s attention.

I kept my head down, not feeling comfortable with the attention focused in our direction. Jones blasted over the mic, announcing I would be the prize for the evening's fight. My body was numb as shock vibrated through me.

How could he do this? He had no right. I wasn’t his property, even though he thought so. Looking at the crowd, I noticed the men storming to sign up. My heart sank to my feet. I was sure it couldn’t get any worse. But maybe I could escape at night, seeing that Jones wouldn’t be around to watch me like a hawk.

But what would happen to me before I could get away? If one of the regulars got their hands on me… I sighed deeply, just thinking of it. My emotions were raging a war within me.

Glancing up at Jones, I noticed his grin. His face filled with pride. He surely felt he had accomplished something great. Maybe things could work out for me after all. Feeling my chest tightening at the thought of what the winner would expect, I took a deep breath.

It would be worth it if I got away, I assured myself. The men were lined up, and the first fight was well on its way. Most of the first rounds went quite quickly. The men who had signed up were mostly amateurs. Out of the first ten rounds, two men appeared to stand out from the rest.

The one was a regular known only as the ‘Fist.’ I had never seen him without the mask he wore. He was reasonably tall and decently built. But he wasn’t an attractive man if you asked me. The other had only been here a couple of times. He was much shorter than most fighters. His build seemed overly muscular. This wasn’t something I looked for in a man.

After taking out their competition, they fought next. It was a longer fight as they appeared to be well met. With each sweep of their fists, blood splattered left and right. After about six rounds, the taller one, Fist, knocked out the shorter one.

Many of the people standing around were solidly wasted. Some hung on each other while others appeared to be lounging in their seats. It has always fascinated me how people change when drinking.

I wasn’t really into watching, but I was intrigued by the announcement of a new fighter. I saw the stranger in the line as it thinned out. There were only a couple of fighters left. The new guy stood out like a sore toe.

Over the last five years, we have not seen a newcomer. This was exciting, and the crowd cheered more than usual. I could see this man didn’t come here to fight. He wasn’t dressed like the others. Stepping into the ring, he removed his shirt, exposing his sleek, muscular upper body.

His skin shone golden in the bright lights of the ring and his longish dark hair was tied at the back. He was well-proportioned, not like most other men. His upper body displayed strength, and the way he moved spoke to me. He was a warrior, a resilient man filled with honor.

Down his one arm was a tattoo of a snake. The head of the snake rested on his hand, and between the snake's curves were skulls and bones. It was quite captivating and made him look slightly savage.

He was up against Fist. Julie spoke over the microphone as he stepped in. She announced him as the ‘Skull Crusher’. The name sounded familiar, as if I had heard it before.

“I knew it,” Jones said to another man. He looked like one of the investors, but I wasn’t sure. They were standing a couple of feet away. “I thought he looked familiar. That guy, he is a fighter you want on your books.” He added, grinning.

Suddenly, I remembered where I had heard the name. It was years back. Jones had been looking for this fighter. Jones was an evil man and he had something up his sleeve. I couldn’t be sure, but something was wrong.

Not only did he put me up as the prize, but he got this man to fight. This fighter had not been heard of for years, and now suddenly he was here.

Watching him, I could see why Jones would want him. He was very skilled. He ducked most of Fist’s blows and moved like a smooth wave over the ground. Like a rocket, he lunged from the floor up and hit Fist in the throat. He laid down a hard blow to Fist’s face using his elbow. This was quickly followed by what looked like a round-house kick.

Fist staggered back but found his footing and leaped at the newcomer. They went down with a mighty thumping sound as Fist landed on top of the new fighter. His blows to the man's sides and head were lightning-fast. Yet, it didn’t appear to be doing much, as the man blocked most.

With incredible swiftness, Skull Crusher smacked Fist on the side of the head. The hit echoed through the building, and the onlookers went wild. Fist fell sideways, but before he could even touch the ground, Skull Crusher delivered a deafening blow as he came to his feet.

The crowd went silent for a second as Julie stepped in and checked on Fist. Swinging her arm through the air, she indicated the match was over. Skull Crusher had won.

Jones slapped the man standing next to him on the back as he spoke. “See, I told you,” he spat. Glancing at him, I recognized the wicked look displayed across his face. “I’ll get him on the books, you watch, he will become family tonight!”

I shivered as my body turned to ice. “No,” I screamed at Jones.

He glanced at me, smirking, and walked closer to the ring. I felt stunned, my mouth hung open, but no more words seemed to come out. The last three opponents turned into one as two of the men turned and left. The final fight wasn’t even much of a match. Skull Crusher knocked the guy out in the first round.

Then came the big announcement. Jones shook the man’s hand vigorously and brought him to where I sat. While Jones went to get him from the ring, the guard had untied me with a warning that he was told to shoot if I tried to run.

Once they were standing by my side, Jones made the announcement. “I give you the winner, and as promised,” he said, pointing to me. “This lovely woman is yours.”

There was a slight feeling of relief that it wasn’t one of the regulars. I started planning my escape. I would run away once we were far enough from this place. If I didn’t get that chance, I would do so in the morning hours before he woke. Pleased with myself, I stood and smiled at the man.

“Now then, bring in the priest,” Jones said, grinning at us. “At least she’ll be worth more to you that way, don’t you think,” he added, glaring at the winner.

“Wait, wait, I thought it was only for a night?” the man said.

Fear crept up my spine and entered my mind as I looked at Jones. He was a sinister man with evil plans. For now, I would go along. I knew his plans, but he didn’t know mine.

“No,” the man said, his tone speaking of great authority. “This is not how it’s supposed to be.”

“Well then,” Jones replied. “If you don’t want her, I’m sure others would want her.”

The man looked at me. There was something in his appearance I couldn’t place. Turning back to Jones, he agreed as the priest was ushered towards us.

“Then it’s final,” Jones said, stepping to the side.

The man took my hand and placed it on his forearm, pulling me closer. My mind was foggy. I seemed to be living a dream. I heard the priest talking and Jones and the man. Yet, it felt like I was looking at the events from a distance. I couldn’t even make out what they were saying.

“There you go, Piotr,” Jones stated, shaking the man’s hand again. “She is now all yours, my friend.”

Looking at Piotr as he squeezed my hand, I had the urge to run. But I knew there was nowhere to go at the moment. I would wait for the perfect time.