Reese

“I get it. You wanted me to realize that there is more to life than fighting just to stay alive. Vega, what I do, I don’t do for survival. Not anymore. I do what I do so girls like me never have to walk in the footsteps I laid before them. I’m happy. I love what I do, and I’m not trying to prove myself to anyone. Trust me when I tell you I found my freedom, and it has nothing to do with leaving or staying. You can pick me up and put me anywhere, and I will make a life for myself because I finally figured out the difference between surviving and thriving.”

He pulls me to his chest for a moment, and I feel him relax. A voice over the speaker system announces the five-minute warning.

“It’s time, Mal,” Graves says quietly from beside me.

I step back as Vega’s hands go to the zipper on my jacket. He slides it open before pulling my jacket from my arms, leaving me in a green and gold sports bra.

Blink reaches around him and tugs my tear-away pants. The snaps running up either side of my legs give way under the force.

Short black shorts cover my ass and not much else. Excess material is a hindrance I can’t afford in an anything-goes match.

“Hands.”

I turn to face Graves and let him wrap my hands and knuckles, already anticipating the throb I’ll feel in them later. Once he’s done, I reach up and make sure my hair is still tightly in place, not wanting someone to grab fistfuls of it. I braided it and wrapped it into a tight bun on top of my head, hoping it will stay put.

“They’re announcing the other fighter,” Vega says with a scowl.

“What? What’s wrong?”

Nobody is allowed to know who they are fighting until the fight begins, so we have no clue who my opponent might be.

“It’s Bruno. I thought they would pit you against another woman.”

I laugh and flex my hand to make sure the wraps are in place right.

“Everyone up there wants blood, but there are limits set today. They have to get their kicks where they can. Watching a woman, in theory, get her ass handed to her by a man is just fucked-up enough to placate the crowd. Nobody out there gives a fuck about who is in the ring or why. They just want to witness the carnage before they go home to their safe lives.”

“I’ve seen Bruno fight. He’s good, but you’re better.” Vega smirks, masking his worry. I know it’s still there, it’s ingrained in his DNA.

“He favors his left side,” Graves adds.

“And drops his guard when he’s pissed,” Blink states as I make my way to the cage with them hot on my heels.

“Anything personal you know about him? If he drops his guard when he’s angry, I need something to trigger him.

“His wife left him for his brother after they had a three-year affair. He now lives back home with his parents.”

I look at Vega, surprised.

“What? Men vent when they’re working out, and I listen. You’d be surprised at all the shit I’ve heard.”

“And fighting for the first time in seven years, ladies and gentlemen, I give you the undefeated, Malice.”

I move through the crowd as the song “Sweet but Psycho” blares from the speakers. Whoever the fuck chose this song clearly knows nothing about me, unless they consider rattlesnakes sweet too.

A gorgeous woman in a tiny bikini holds the door to the huge cage open for me before offering me a wide smile as she closes it and locks it behind her.

Blink, Vega, and Graves gather in my corner, but they can’t get to me if anything goes wrong. I know they are feeling that because the tension wafting from them is strong enough to make my stomach cramp.

Bruno eyes me as I jump on my feet to limber up. He’s not as big as any of my guys, but he’s not anyone to sneeze at either. He isn’t bulky, but he’s leaner than my guys, with tight muscles. In theory, he should be light on his feet, but that’s not always the case, and I’m at a disadvantage not knowing what his fighting style is like.

He looks me over and finds me lacking, if his smirk is anything to go by. He either has no clue who I am, or he does, but doesn’t believe the hype.

Not that it matters to me. It’s his funeral.

“Fighters, ready? First one to tap out loses and will not progress to the next round.

“In this fight, everything goes, so let’s see how these two measure up.