Meant for Me (A Second Chance standalone)

by L. P. Dover

  The room reminded me of a dungeon with more lit sconces on the outer walls. There were throne like seats placed in a circle around the ring, and to my surprise the ring was the same as the modern ones we used today. Given the style of the room one would assume everything would be medieval style. Above, there were stage lights that added a little bit more light to the room, but they only shone down on the ring, giving it an ominous glow.

  There was one other thing I noticed while I looked up at the ceiling; there were video cameras everywhere. I counted at least five of them with their red blinking lights.

  “What are the cameras for?” I asked, nodding toward the ceiling.

  Brody glanced up and answered, “Those are for the people who don’t come to the fights. They just watch it on a live feed when it starts. Most of them can’t risk being exposed or recognized. Any more questions?”

  Yeah, if you have Claire here, where the hell is she?

  Instead, I told him, “No, I think I’m good. Let’s get this going.”

  While Brody led me through another hallway with various doors on either side, I couldn’t help but wonder if Claire was in one of them. I thought maybe I would get a chance to explore once I changed clothes, but that hope was squashed when Brody put me in a room and locked the door behind him. There was no way out.

  “All right, my dear, it’s time. The cameras are live and connected to the respected parties. So here’s how it’s going to go. First, I’m going to have the guys come out, talk to them for a few minutes and then it’ll be your turn. You’ll walk in with Chase, got it?” Erick explained hurriedly.

  “Yeah,” I mumbled in reply.

  Erick dashed off quickly, but I watched his every move on the cameras in front of me. There had to be about fifteen of them in the control room I was in. I was brought early to the underground dungeon, or at least that was how I referred to it as, but while I was waiting around Erick directed me to the control room. I watched as both Mason and Wade arrived and went to their separate rooms.

  Wade wasn’t locked in his room like Mason was. After Mason changed into his shorts with the eagle on the side, he taped up his hands and put on his gloves. His movements were strong and precise when he warmed up, but the expression on his face was as cold as ice. He was angry, ready to kill, and what scared me most was that I knew he would kill just to save me.

  Wade, on the other hand, had a smug expression on his face as he warmed up. It made me want to smack it off his face. He wore a pair of royal blue fighting shorts with a red dragon emblem on the left leg. His dark hair wasn’t gelled like it was the past couple of times I’d seen him and it was the first time I’d seen his bare skin since being in town. His perfectly tanned skin had been marred by a large dragon tattoo that covered the whole expanse of his back. I didn’t like it because it was the same dragon tattoo Erick had on his neck.

  What got me the most was that judging by his appearance he didn’t appear to be unhinged by the whole fighting to the death thing. It made me wonder how many of the deceased fighters he was responsible for killing. I understood the concept of accidents in the sport since it was a very dangerous game, but what Erick was doing were not accidents. It was straight up murder.

  Erick went to Wade’s room and fetched him before going to Mason’s. Once Wade got into the main room with the ring, he jumped up in the cage and arrogantly strolled around it. It just confirmed that he had done this before. No wonder he had the money to pay for his expensive house. It was blood money.

  On another camera, Erick escorted Mason down the long, stone hallway until the double wooden doors came into view. Once he pushed through them, I had to look at another camera to watch him go in. Wade was all smiles, and honestly, I couldn’t wait to see that smile disappear. Mason was ready for this; I could see it in his gaze. He was always ready for a fight. Confidently, he climbed up the steps and entered into the ring, followed by Erick.

  Words were said, but I couldn’t hear them so I searched around the control board for a volume button and slowly turned it up so I could listen.

  “It was so nice of you to come, Mason,” Wade sneered. “I figured you’d be one of the flakes.”

  Mason’s lip tilted up slightly. “Sorry to disappoint you, but I don’t ever run away from a fight if it’s for something I want.”

  Wade’s gaze hardened when he replied, “Neither do I.”

  Erick stepped between them and held up his hands for them to be quiet. He then strutted to the middle of the ring and turned in a full circle so he could acknowledge every single camera.

  “Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. As you all know, tonight is going to be a fight of wills, to see who can outlast the other and survive. For five rounds they must fight until the allotted time is through, which means no matter what condition they are in, they have to fight.”

  He turned to Wade and Mason and said, “What I mean by that is if you’re knocked out on the mat the fight doesn’t end. You keep hitting until that buzzer stops. Do you understand?”

  Wade nodded with an evil leer on his face while Mason stood there, perfectly still, with a murderous look on his face. “I understand,” he growled low.

  Erick turned back around and walked back and forth on the mat while he finished his speech with the biggest grin on his face, “Tonight, however, is going to be a little different. Not only are these fighters competing for the extravagant amount of money you brought to the table, but they will also be competing for something else.”

  Holding my breath, I couldn’t take my eyes away from the video, especially from Mason when Erick revealed the final prize. “That something else is something both of these men treasure. I’d like to show what I’m talking about.”

  That was my cue.

  Chase was there, excitement written all over his face, as soon as I walked out the door. Wrapping his hand around my arm he pulled me the rest of the way and stopped just outside of the large, wooden doors. “It’s showtime, baby. I can’t wait to see the looks on Wade and Mason’s faces.”

  Yeah, me too.

  Chase pushed open the doors, and immediately Mason’s head snapped in my direction. Clenching his jaw, he closed his eyes and lowered his head, his voice going darkly low. “Why is she here, Erick?” Mason demanded furiously.

  Erick chuckled. “I would ask your opponent. He’s the one who came up with the idea, but don’t be too sore on him, Claire was the one who agreed to the terms. The terms are as follows: whoever wins this fight will leave with the young woman. She will belong to you for the night and you two can do as you wish.”

  Erick focused back on the cameras and extended a hand out toward Wade’s side of the ring and then to Mason’s. “Ladies and gentlemen, on one side we have the past and on the other we have the present. Both have loved her and both still do. Which one will be her future? I guess we will see.”

  I thought I’d be able to stay strong and defiant standing there, but my resolve slowly depleted. My eyes burned, chin trembling, as I watched Mason try to keep it together by a mere thread. With his gaze focused solely on me, he ignored everything else, including Chase, and marched to the edge of the ring so he could peer down at me.

  “Are you okay?” he asked in a low voice.

  “Of course she is,” Chase sneered. “She’s been with me all day.”

  Closing his eyes, Mason took a deep breath, his hands trembling with rage, and let it out slowly before glancing back down at me. “I’m fine, Mason,” I told him. “I think you know I can take care of myself.”

  He didn’t seem convinced with my answer, especially when he turned his lethal glare to Chase and pointed at him. “When this is all over … you’re dead. This is the last time you fuck with me.”

  Turning on his heel, he stalked back to his side of the ring, fuming. Erick watched on in amusement and roared in laughter. “Whoa, I think we might need to up the game here after witnessing that. There’s obviously some bad blood between these two fighters. Okay, so here’s the
new terms …”

  “New terms?” Wade hissed. “There are no new terms.”

  With the tension rising in the room, I wasn’t surprised that a group of four large men sauntered through the doors, and took up posts around the cage. I would assume they were Erick’s protection if Mason and Wade decided to attack him.

  “Oh yes there is, son,” Erick challenged, grinning devilishly. “I have to make it a little more interesting, don’t I? So, with that being said, if you both don’t hold up your end of the bargain and fight as hard as you can then your lovely little Claire will go to someone else for the night.”

  “Who?” Mason and Wade yelled at the same time.

  Erick looked down at Chase and he was the one who spoke up. “Me,” Chase said. “If you two pussy out, your girl belongs to me.”

  “Like hell she will,” Wade spat. “I’ll kill you myself before—”

  “Enough!” Erick shouted. “It’s time to get this party started. After each round, the people watching will be our stand in judges. They will decide which fighter won the round or if neither of you did. If the vote is neither, that point goes to Chase. It’s all up to you, gentlemen, on how you want to decide her future.”

  Erick pointed to me and then down to the mat of the ring. “Claire, if you wouldn’t mind coming up here and saying what could be your last words to your men. I’m sure they’d both enjoy one last kiss.”

  His last request wasn’t a suggestion, it was a demand, and I could hear it in the tone of his voice. Surprisingly, Chase let me go and I walked slowly over to the steps that led up to the gate. Hesitantly, I glanced at all the cameras, swallowing hard as I entered into the cage and pondered on who I wanted to talk to first. I chose Wade.

  Wade averted his gaze from me as I approached him. With the cameras being all around, I didn’t want the people seeing the anger on my face nor did I want them to hear me. Sidling up closer to Wade, I grabbed his arms and put them over my shoulders so my face would be hidden by his muscles.

  “Can you not look at me after what you did?” I hissed quietly.

  He bent his head toward my neck to conceal his face in my hair. “I’m so sorry, Claire. It wasn’t supposed to be like this. I thought once you saw me achieving something in life that you would think I was good enough for you. You loved me then, and I know you can again. That’s why tonight you’re coming home with me.”

  “Not like this, Wade. I only accepted the terms because Erick threatened me. Besides, you can’t fight for a heart that’s already been won.”

  Holding me tighter, he nuzzled his nose in my hair and kissed my neck. “Watch me,” he growled low. Cupping the back of my head, he tilted my face toward him and closed his lips over mine. I let him kiss me, but I didn’t give anything back … I couldn’t. When he pulled away, he sighed and whispered across my lips, “When this is over, you will kiss me back.”

  Looking into his corrupted hazel eyes, I couldn’t even see a tiny fraction of the old Wade inside them; he was gone. Slowly moving out of his arms, I wiped the lone tear away from my cheek, whispering, “Good-bye, Wade.”

  Mason wasn’t even looking at me or Wade when I turned around to make my way over to him. I had so much to say and I knew I only had a small amount of time. As soon as I got within reach, he pulled me to him, squeezing me to the point it actually hurt.

  “Mason,” I gasped, choking for air.

  Immediately, he loosened his hold and grumbled in my ear, “Sorry, I’m just a little pissed off right now. We need to do this quickly. How did they get you?”

  “At the airport. They threatened to hurt you if I didn’t come.”

  He sighed. “Fuck, I knew I should’ve walked you inside. Okay, listen baby, Ryan and his team should be here soon. I don’t know when, but whatever you see and whatever happens I want you to know that everything will be all right. We’ll get through this.”

  I nodded and finally let the tears fall down my cheeks. “I believe you. Now kick some ass for me so we can go home.”

  “It’ll be my pleasure, baby.”

  He wiped away my tears with his thumbs before slowly lowering his lips to mine. I opened myself up to him and kissed him as if it would be my last one. All too quickly, Erick was by my side, with a warning glare on his face.

  “Gentlemen, when the bell rings, begin.”

  Erick ushered me out of the cage and down the steps to our seats. Mason and Wade got into position, ready to strike, and both were almost unrecognizable with murderous scowls on their faces. You can do this, Mason, I chanted in my mind. All I could hear was the sound of my breathing and the beating of my heart in my ears; it was deafening. It was so loud I was afraid I wouldn’t hear the bell; I didn’t want to hear the bell. I didn’t want it to ring at all.

  Unfortunately, that didn’t happen. The bell rang and the guys went on the attack.

  Ryan, please hurry and get here.

  The first round was sickeningly brutal. There was so much anger … so much hate. Mason fought by the rules of the sport, except I noticed Wade sneaking elbows in where he shouldn’t have. Even after the fact, Mason still didn’t sway from his honor. I wanted to scream at him, to tell him this wasn’t the time to play by the rules, except I knew he wouldn’t do it.

  Both guys were on their side of the ring, drinking their water and wiping down their skin. Mason’s lip was busted, thanks to one of Wade’s elbows, and the gash he had above his left eye from the fight with Matt Reynolds reopened and bled down his face. Wade didn’t look any better, either. He had a busted nose that wouldn’t stop bleeding and an eye that started to swell shut. I had no clue how they were going to last all five rounds.

  “How do your people vote on who did the best? Where do you get the results?” I asked Erick. He had his tablet open on his lap, typing away, but I couldn’t tell what he was doing. When he finished typing, he handed me the tablet and showed me the answer.

  “I have a special program that I use that tallies all of the results within a minute of the votes. The minute is almost up, and their decision should come through right about … now,” he claimed excitedly.

  Round 1 winner: Mason Bradley

  “You see,” he said, taking the tablet back and setting it to the side. “The winner will be the one who had the most votes in their favor. In this case, it was Mason.” Standing up, he clapped his hands and approached the ring. “Good job, guys. The votes are in and Mason was the winner for the first round. Round two is about to begin.”

  Wade threw his water bottle angrily out of the cage in frustration while Mason kept it calm and cool, not even acknowledging Erick. I couldn’t tell if he even heard what Erick said. Chase grumbled beside me, but I ignored him as best as I could and tried to get the murderous thoughts of smashing Erick’s tablet over his head as hard as I could; the bell helped with that. Round two had come and Wade and Mason started at it again. Mason landed a hard punch to Wade’s midsection and I couldn’t tell if it was my imagination or if I actually heard a rib crack. It was different watching it as a sport, but watching it as a matter of life or death was too much to bear. I wanted to scream, yell, kick, fight … anything to let the pressure go. Now I knew why Summer went crazy, she was terrified, but I was … fiercely enraged.

  “How can anyone find this entertaining?” I spat vehemently. “You’re all nothing but a bunch of sick fucks. How many people have you watched die because of this sadistic crap?”

  Chase scooted over to me and put his arm around my shoulder with an evil grin on his face. “Oh, Claire, you disappoint me. If you can’t handle it maybe I should take you to another room so you don’t have to watch. I can take your mind off of it.”

  “Chase,” Erick growled, “I would appreciate it if you kept your hands to yourself and scampered off. I have half a mind to tie you up and throw you in the cage with Mason and Wade so they can finish you off.”

  Chase snorted and glowered at us both before leaving to take a seat on the other side of the ring. Round two w
as almost over and when I noticed Mason trying to get Wade into an armbar, I jumped to my feet, but then reality hit; there was no tapping out in this fight. Mason would end up breaking Wade’s arm or worse, except it didn’t matter because Wade wriggled out of it.

  One thing I noticed about Wade was that his movements were quick and choppy. He was faster than Mason, except not as efficient. I did regret, however, my decision to get to my feet. When I looked down at the mat there was blood smeared everywhere and if I breathed in deep enough I was sure I’d be able to smell the metallic scent of it. Putting my head in my hands, I sank to my chair, closed my eyes, and breathed in and out through my mouth. I had faith in Mason, that he could do this, except it didn’t make this any less easy.

  On the verge of hyperventilating, my reprieve came when the bell rang, signaling the end of round two. “Thank God,” I breathed.

  Erick went back to his tablet and fiddled around on it. Keeping his gaze on the screen, he said, “You know, at first I thought I liked Chase. He’s strong, ruthless, and an arrogant ass. I’m starting to think I should’ve put him up against Mason instead of Wade. That way I wouldn’t have to kill the bastard myself, not unless you want to take the honor and do it. Surely, you’d want to, because you and I both know what his intentions were when he tried to drag you off into the dark.”

  As much as the thought was appealing, I couldn’t kill someone in cold blood … I wasn’t like him. “Let me guess,” I began, facing off with him, “you’d televise it just like this and get your millions. Am I right?”

  Erick winked, an evil leer spreading across his face. “You’re damn right. Just think about the money we could make off of it. We could tie him up a bit to give you an advantage and put razors in the tip of your gloves while you fought him. It would be epic.”

  At the look of horror on my face, Erick bellowed and nonchalantly turned back to his tablet as if he didn’t just mention something so sadistically sick that it made my stomach turn. Was he actually being serious? The way he said it was all joking, but in his eyes I saw the glint of seriousness. Chills swept through my body and I trembled. I had never been more freaked out being around Erick than I was in that moment. Jumping out of my seat, I had to get some distance and I didn’t care if I was allowed to get up or not. Quickly, I went to Mason’s side of the ring and gasped when I saw the towel at his feet was drenched in blood and heard the sound of his hoarse breaths as he inhaled.