Betrayal sliced through him, piercing his heart. When had she talked to his father?
While he was in the shower? When he’d gone for a walk on the beach?
How could she do this to him? Didn’t she understand how dangerous Travis was? That he would expect something from her in return? People were paying five hundred dollars a head to get in. Did she think Travis would just waive her entrance fee out of the goodness of his heart?
Sebastian stormed out of the house, her betrayal sinking deep. She had no idea how much danger she’d just put herself in. And if he got his ass kicked in tonight’s fight, he wouldn’t be able to protect her.
“Don’t mind him.” Travis’s voice came from behind Sebastian as Travis and Emily followed him to the waiting vehicle. “He’s always been overly sensitive. He’ll get over it.”
Sebastian couldn’t look at her on the drive through the dark city to the warehouse where the fight was to take place. It hurt too much. He wanted to shake some sense into her, but it was too late. Tonight she would dance with his father, the devil. And she’d have to do it on her own, because Sebastian would be in the ring, fighting for his life.
Marty pulled the vehicle into their reserved spot behind the warehouse where the parking lot was already nearly full. Travis had informed Sebastian yesterday that they’d paid off a couple of cops to let them conduct the fight here, run security detail, and keep the authorities away. Sebastian had no disillusions about the world. Cops could be bought. In this case, he was glad. It meant he was less likely to be arrested and hauled back to prison.
“Leave your phones here. They’re not allowed.” Marty opened his door and exited the vehicle. Travis came around the back and opened Emily’s door for her while Marty yanked open Sebastian’s door. Sebastian pulled the hoodie of the sweatshirt he wore over his head to help conceal his face. With the hired cops escorting them to the building, they went inside.
The crowd spied Sebastian and went wild. Someone shouted, “Look! It’s the Raccoon!” Then a loud chorus, “Raccoon, Raccoon, Raccoon!”
The security guys escorted them back to Sebastian’s waiting room and closed the door.
Travis immediately talked about the fight and what Sebastian was supposed to do in order to win. Sebastian tuned him out, instead focusing on Emily.
The traitor.
She looked nervous. Scared.
She should be. If she had any idea what Travis would expect from her after the fight, she’d be terrified.
Foolish girl. Was she willing to risk herself for him?
Why won’t you just give up on me?
Because I love you.
Her words from last night came back to him. His heart constricted. Could she truly love him?
He’d have to find a way to get her away from his father as soon as the fight was over. Because he had no doubt the rape and torture she’d gone through as a teenager would be nothing compared to what his father might do to her after the fight. His father was a sick, twisted man who thrived on torturing others. There was no way in hell Sebastian would let his father hurt Emily.
Focus on the fight right now. You won’t be able to protect her if you’re dead.
Sebastian drew in a long, deep breath, slowly exhaled. Forcing Emily from his mind, he pushed his emotions aside, focused on the coldness, the demons that always lurked close by, waiting for release.
Ignoring Emily completely, he closed his eyes and let the darkness consume him.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
Her betrayal had hurt Sebastian. Deeply.
Emily tried not to focus on that fact as she sat in the front row next to Marty, waiting for the fight to begin. Travis was at Sebastian’s side of the octagon, prepping Sebastian for the fight. The other opponent, a big, hulking man named Cockroach, was at the opposite end of the cage, eyeing Sebastian with an evil glint in his eye. A long black braid fell halfway down the man’s back. His dark complexion and high, prominent cheekbones hinted at a Native American heritage. The Cockroach scared the crap out of Emily. She felt his meanness even at this distance. She had no doubt the man would show no mercy. That he would hurt—or kill—Sebastian if given the chance.
She shivered.
The referee had introduced the fighters a few minutes ago as each man entered the ring. The crowd had gone wild, the roar deafening. Everyone was excited for this fight. Everyone except Emily.
She pulled her gaze back to Sebastian. He bounced up and down, alternating from left foot to right foot, while listening to whatever Travis was telling him. He jerked his head in a nod.
His gaze darted to hers. The coldness in his eyes made her breath catch.
Oh Sebastian. I’m sorry. I had to do this. Please forgive me.
Sebastian looked way.
Her heart pinched. She’d seen the shock on Sebastian’s face, the hurt, when he realized she’d contacted Travis without his knowledge. Would he understand she’d only done it for him?
When Sebastian had gone for a walk on the beach, Emily had called Travis. She’d told him she wanted to go to the fight, but Sebastian wouldn’t let her. Would Travis help her?
The man had readily agreed. “No problem, Sweet Cheeks. I’ll get you front row seating.”
She wasn’t a fool. Travis would expect something from her in return for getting her into the fight. Though her stomach churned at the thought of what he might want in exchange, she would do what she must to help Sebastian. She wasn’t a scared, weak girl anymore. She was no longer a victim and hadn’t been for eight years. If she’d survived the hell she’d gone through as a teenager, then she could make this one small sacrifice for Sebastian. It would be a small price to pay for freeing Sebastian from the hold his father had on him.
Emily planned to outsmart Travis, to get away before he put his filthy hands on her. It would require acting skills like Sebastian had. Emily wasn’t an actor. But she’d seen Sebastian in acting mode. If she tried hard enough, she might be able to do it.
She glanced around at the crowd, but didn’t see Sebastian’s friend Craig anywhere. Was he here somewhere, hiding, waiting for the right moment to take the place down? Or had he not been able to make arrangements for a takedown on such short notice?
She was counting on Craig being here to help her. If Craig didn’t show up, if Emily’s plan failed, things could go south real fast.
If her plan failed, then coming here might well be the worst mistake of her life.
* * *
The model strutted her stuff, prancing around in a skimpy bikini, holding the “round one” sign, while the crowd hooted and hollered, whistled and shouted. Sebastian kept his gaze on the Cockroach, sizing the guy up. The man was a giant, at least six and a half feet and two-hundred-fifty pounds or more. If this were a licensed fight, he wouldn’t be fighting this brute. There was a reason why they had weight divisions in legalized fighting. The fights had to be fair. But this wasn’t legal. Trying to take down a man who was nearly twice his size wasn’t going to be easy. He’d have to move fast, in and out, making strikes to sensitive areas. If he somehow managed to get the brute in a chokehold, it would take all his strength to stay on, keeping his arms locked tight around the Cockroach’s throat, until the man passed out. A submission hold might be easier.
The model finished waving her sign and returned to her seat.
The bell dinged.
Sebastian stepped forward, eyeing his opponent.
Wear him out, then take him down.
Travis had shouted a few pointers at him before the fight started, but Sebastian barely heard. It would take more than just skill, timing, or stamina to win this fight. He’d need a lot of luck.
Emily was in the first row, sitting next to Marty. Sebastian had noticed her as soon as he stepped into the ring.
Don’t look at her. You don’t need the distraction.
Focus, man. Focus.
Sebastian tuned the crowd out, ignoring the shouts from the spectators. He tuned Emily out, not letting h
imself look at her.
He shut it all out and focused all his attention on his opponent.
The Cockroach danced closer, his fists raised, watching for a moment to strike.
He leapt at Sebastian, his arm flying out.
Sebastian darted out of the way and swung back around, landing a hard strike to the side of the man’s neck.
The Cockroach grunted, his eyes darkening with rage. He turned on Sebastian, arms flailing, and attacked.
Sebastian managed to ward off a hard fist to the face by blocking the blow with his forearm.
Pain screamed up his arm, jarring his bones. Damn, the man hit hard.
Sebastian bounced out of the way, his arm throbbing from the blow. He would have a nasty bruise there later.
Wear him out, then take him down.
Sebastian managed to elude the Cockroach for the entire first round, dancing around the man, moving in to land a few strikes here and there, but he wasn’t able to inflict much, if any, damage on the beast.
Ding! Ding!
The first round ended.
Travis came through the small gate on Sebastian’s side of the fence. He dribbled water into Sebastian’s mouth and checked the mask to make sure it was still securely in place.
“I just heard someone whispering that the Cockroach was going to try to remove your mask, so watch yourself. Don’t let the fucker get too close to you.”
Sebastian didn’t want to contemplate what might happen if his true identity got out. Going back to prison was not an option.
Travis gave him a few more pointers, some ideas to take the Cockroach down.
The model pranced around with a “round two” sign, then regained her seat.
The bell dinged again.
Travis slapped Sebastian on the back. “Go get ‘em, boy.”
The Cockroach wasn’t wasting any time on this round. He barged forward before Sebastian had taken two steps, and leapt through the air.
Sebastian managed to jump aside before the brute slammed into him, but the Cockroach caught his ankle and twisted, knocking Sebastian off his feet.
Sebastian hit the mat with a thud and rolled away, lunging aside as the Cockroach charged again. The man stumbled into the fence. With a snarl of outrage, he spun around and rushed at Sebastian again.
Sebastian darted to the side. Out of reach.
The Cockroach let out a roar and lunged at Sebastian again. And again. And again. But Sebastian was quicker and kept eluding the brute’s attacks. Over and over.
Wear him out, then take him down.
It was working. The Cockroach was getting winded. As long as Sebastian could keep ahead out of the brute, he might win this fight.
Ding! Ding!
Round Two was over.
Sebastian went to his side of the octagon and sank back against the fence while Travis dribbled water into his mouth and congratulated him on keeping out of the Cockroach’s reach.
“You’re doing good, boy. He’s wearing down. But I gotta say this is a pretty boring fight. People are getting disappointed. They came to see some real action, but nothing’s happening. You gotta make contact. Take. Him. Down.”
Sebastian snorted. What did they expect? The guy was twice his size. If he “gave them some action,” he’d have to let the brute get a hold of him, and that could be a death sentence for him. He wasn’t that stupid. He didn’t care how much they’d paid to see this fight. He wasn’t about to die tonight.
“Like I said, the bigger they are, the harder they fall.” Sebastian shoved away from the fence just as the bell dinged again. “Don’t worry. I got this.”
The Cockroach had a mean glint in his eye as he approached Sebastian for the third round. His gaze never wavered from Sebastian. He didn’t come flying in and attack this time. He waited, watching, moving slowly around Sebastian. His gaze hard and unyielding.
Sebastian eyed him warily, keeping his distance, waiting for a moment to strike.
Around and around they went, circling each other, waiting.
“Come on!” someone shouted. “Fight already!”
Out of the corner of his eye, Sebastian caught movement near the front row where the spectators sat.
Emily.
He tried to ignore her, but she made a whimpering sound and he couldn’t resist jerking his gaze toward her to see what was wrong. He had no idea how his ears had singled her voice out of the crowd, but somehow his senses had tuned her in and tuned everything else out.
Marty, the bastard, had his big hand on her upper thigh beneath her sundress, sliding it higher. She tried to remove his hand, yanking on his huge wrist, but he was too strong.
Son-of-a-bitch! I’m going to kill you!
It was all the distraction the Cockroach needed.
He attacked during that split second when Sebastian looked away. Slamming his huge bulk into Sebastian’s legs, the Cockroach knocked him off his feet. They thundered to the mat in a tangle of limbs, each trying to gain the upper hand. Sebastian tried to wiggle free and roll away, but the Cockroach caged him beneath him, straddling his hips, resting his bulk on top of him.
A huge fist slammed into the side of Sebastian’s head.
Pain shot through his skull. His brain rattled. Stars danced before his eyes.
Get up, you fool. He’s going to kill you.
Sebastian kept trying to squirm out from beneath the brute, but the bastard was too heavy. There was no escape.
Another fist connected with the other side of his head.
More pain. More stars. The mask slid aside, obstructing his vision. He had the vague thought he needed to straighten it before someone recognized him.
Another strike to the face. Then another.
The mask slipped farther down, tangling around his neck.
Get up! Get up! He’s going to kill you.
The blood roared in his ears, pounded through his battered skull.
“Hey!” someone shouted. “That looks like Sebastian Wolfe!”
Shit!
Get up, you idiot! Get up!
The blows kept coming. Again and again. He lifted his arms to try to block them, but the Cockroach was in a rage and kept pummeling Sebastian’s face with his meaty fists.
Another blow and his nose shattered. Blood spurted out, dripped down his chin, puddling into the mat beneath him.
“Sebastian!” Emily’s voice. “Get up! He’s going to kill you!”
“See, I told you, it is Sebastian Wolfe.”
Sebastian managed to wrap an arm around the Cockroach’s neck, but the man flung him off.
His fists kept coming. Over and over.
Sebastian’s vision blurred. Blood splattered his face, his eyes. He couldn’t breathe through his nose.
The crowd went into a frenzy, screaming and shouting, jumping up and down.
“Sebastian!” Emily’s voice again. “Sebastian!”
He blinked, then spied her clinging to the fence, her eyes wide with terror.
Marty yanked her back from the fence.
Get your hands off her, you bastard!
Another fist struck his face, wrenching his head to the side.
The loud roaring in his ears increased several decibels, shrilling painfully.
The referee knelt beside them, watching Sebastian, waiting for a sign that Sebastian had had enough.
Tap out, you moron. Just do it.
No, I can beat him. I just need a little more time.
Travis entered Sebastian’s peripheral vision, his face contorted with horror as he leaned against the fence. “Get up, boy!” he shouted. “He’s going to kill you!”
Sebastian’s vision blurred again, turning hazy with the pain throbbing in his skull. The roaring in his ears grew louder, shriller.
Then a sound he’d never wanted to hear: “Everybody freeze! FBI!”
The referee lunged to his feet, leaving Sebastian at the mercy of his opponent.
The next blow knocked Sebastian out cold.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
“…In other news today, Sebastian Wolfe was arrested in Los Angeles Saturday night for his alleged involvement in underground fighting. It is rumored, though a spokesperson for Wolfe wouldn’t confirm, that the big-screen actor is the formerly undefeated fighter ‘the Raccoon.’ Saturday night’s fight ended the Raccoon’s reign, as he was taken down in a brutal bout by the Cockroach. Wolfe is rumored to have been seriously injured in the fight. An FBI spokesperson would say only that several individuals were arrested, but refused to comment on the status of Wolfe’s whereabouts or his current condition. Sebastian Wolfe is famous for his roles in several blockbuster hits and even received an Academy Award last year…”
Sebastian pushed the “mute” button on the television remote and dropped the remote in his lap. His head throbbed. His left ear shrilled, a loud ringing that had been screaming through his brain the moment he awoke. A ruptured eardrum, the doctor had told him earlier that day. It would take a good three to four weeks before it healed. Since his left hand was handcuffed to the rail on the hospital bed, he could only assume he was headed off to jail once he was recovered enough to leave the hospital.
A sharp knock sounded at his door. Then the door swung inward.
Craig entered, his shaggy hair mussed and standing out in disarray. His face was haggard, his eyes tired as he glanced at Sebastian. He noticed the muted television, his gaze darting to the screen, then back to Sebastian.
Shit.
“So you’ve seen the news. They’re trashing you in the media. It’s not good, Sebastian. You’re in a shit load of trouble. Do you realize you could be facing another five years in prison? The D.A. wants to give you more than that to make an example out of you since you’re a celebrity. What the fuck were you thinking?”
Sebastian didn’t answer. How could he? How could he tell Craig his father was holding his son hostage and he had no choice in the matter?
“You think this is some kind of joke?” Craig dragged a folding chair up to the side of Sebastian’s bed, spinning it around backward. He slid onto it, leaning his arms over the back of the chair as he faced Sebastian. “I suggest you tell me what’s going on. I can’t help you if you don’t talk to me.”
Scarred (Unlikely Heroes Book 5) Page 24
