The air magnetizes as Mickey forms from the shadows after the MC calls his name—Ares. This time, the crowd sees him for the threat he is. People roar as he walks onto the stage.
“Time to get rich.” Rico grins. Then the lunatic wraps his arm around my shoulders and whistles to get Roman’s attention. The cherry on top of this mess? When Roman looks our way, Rico kisses my cheek.
Rage blasts through the air. Roman twitches forward like he’s about to lunge across the ring and tear Rico’s head off. But I can’t let that happen. We need the money the fight will bring, and Roman needs to keep laying low—well, as low as he can.
Without thinking, I let my reflexes take over. I slam my elbow into Rico’s ribs. When he keels over—no hard feelings, Rico—I straighten my arm and ram my fist into his groin. It isn’t hard enough to do any real damage, but it’s enough for Roman’s eyes to brighten with pleasure.
Rico’s too busy cupping his manhood and groaning in pain to see Roman’s scathing glare, but I don’t miss the wink he throws my way. My cheeks heat like I’m back to being a teenage girl who doesn’t know how to handle being shown affection in public.
Oh God.
My entire body is on fire when he taps the tattoo of my name, blowing me a kiss.
Roman—Ares—blew me a kiss.
Not at home. Not at a game in high school. No, he did it in front of Chicago’s biggest mafia family, the freaking Bratva, a cartel, and Lord knows how many other criminals.
I think I might die from renewed nerves. From the looks of the people around, even they’re confused by the whole scene.
Surely, street fighting 101 is not to look weak in front of your opponent?
“Loverboy Ares won last night’s match against Copper,” the MC continues his introduction, and Rico hobbles off somewhere. To ice his balls is my guess.
Damien doesn’t look up from his phone once, not even when Ares and The Unseen Destroyer square off, and the MC trades places with the referee.
What even is the point of the referee anyway? I haven’t seen him step in once, and I don’t think there’s a single rule in this underground version of sport. Shit, I don’t think murder is off the table, for that matter.
I take another swig of my now empty bottle of beer, and my bladder reminds me that it exists and is in dire need of a reprieve.
Damien tucks his phone into his pocket when the Destroyer lands a blow to Roman’s face. I wince and scream Mickey’s stage name, which may as well be a magic trick or spell, because Roman lands three consecutive punches to the Destroyer’s stomach—which counts for something, even if it barely made the guy flinch.
“I need to pee,” I yell at Damien.
He nods, uncaring about my bodily needs, and I scurry off to where I saw the ladies' room. It’s down one of the creepy corridors, but it could be in the middle of the woods, and I wouldn’t care right now. I’m seconds away from combustion.
I breathe a sigh of relief to find the bathrooms blissfully empty—disgusting, but empty. I know I'm in trouble the second my behind hits the toilet seat.
How much did I drink? Like… four bottles? Or was it six?
I think I’m substantially drunker than I thought. The alternative to my inebriation is that the world is moving, and I’m the one that’s completely still…which seems unlikely.
I’m not sure how long I sit there. Maybe a minute, maybe twenty. I’m dead to the world, attempting to take deep breaths and ground myself physically, mentally, and metaphorically.
How the hell did I get here?
Not the bathroom, but here, in a goddamn underground fighting ring? I thought the wildest thing I’d do in my life is be an accomplice to an after school fight involving Roman or maybe break into a place or two because he convinced me to tag along. But now I’m hanging out in an arena filled with every shade of criminal in existence.
Mickey said this is the last time. I believe him.
I think.
As long as he comes out of this alive, I’m willing to move on from this criminal chapter of our lives and pretend to be Alice and Michael, not Bonnie and Clyde.
Taking one last steadying breath, I force myself to get up. I stumble a couple of times before I make it to the sink to wash my hands.
If Roman saw me like this, he’d probably kill me.
Actually, I’m pretty sure he’d love having a drunk Isabella to himself. But a drunk Isabella alone in the bathroom of an underground fighting ring?
Wait, not alone.
There’s… is that a man?
Am I imagining things? Did I accidentally go to the men’s bathroom?
The man narrows the space between us, taking up all the oxygen. He’s the size of a mountain, maybe bigger. With long black hair tied back into a ponytail at the nape of his neck, sides shaved to show a massive scar. He smells like danger and looks like he wouldn’t hesitate to turn my lights off. Permanently.
Oh God.
Oh God. Oh God. Oh God.
I broke my promise to Mickey.
Oh no. Oh no. Oh no.
“What’s your name?”
He creeps closer. Every cell in my body screams at me to get out of there. I need Damien. I shouldn’t have left his side.
My heart rattles in my chest. He was one of the men from the Vargas Cartel that Damien told me to look out for because of the stolen cocaine.
His words ring in my head.
People like us hide our weaknesses so someone else doesn’t hit us where it hurts.
I’m trying to rationalize my safety with myself. The bouncer would have taken his gun off him, right? So I won’t get shot. Not like any of that matters. He and I know he won’t need a weapon to kill me. He has to be at least triple my size.
I push myself against the sink and try to inch toward the door, but he reads my thoughts. The next thing I know, he’s standing in front of the exit and staring at me with an excited glint in his eyes that raises the hairs on my body.
“Isa,” I whisper.
I chant Damien’s name in my head, thinking—hoping—he’d be able to hear me and come to my rescue. Roman would be too busy, and the last thing I want is for him to start a fight with this guy.
“Isabella?”
My throat seizes. How does he know my name? What else does he know about me? Could he know about Jeremy?
I was wrong. I was so, so wrong. Mickey isn’t the one I should have been worried about. I am.
I’m the weakest link. I am Roman’s weakness.
He owes the cartel money. They want to make him pay.
To destroy him, they only need to look at me.
I shouldn’t have had anything to drink, shouldn’t have gone to the bathroom alone, shouldn’t have left Damien’s side.
“What do you want?” I squeak.
He takes a step toward me, and I match it back. “Our money. But we’ll settle for you.”
My heart stops for a split second.
Everything stills.
Then I open my mouth to scream.
Chapter 28
ROMAN
Sweat trickles down my back.
Every inch of my body burns.
I glance at the wall behind the big fucker’s head, where the time stares at me in big, red, blinking numbers.
Fourteen minutes and thirty-six seconds since the match started.