I couldn’t believe what I was looking at. It was an underground fight club, a place where criminals fought to the death. All the men cheered as they put their money on the line, gambling on life and death.
My heart was racing so fast. This was unreal.
Bosco walked up to The Butcher and kneeled down so they were eye level. They exchanged a few words, their eyes locked on one another. It was impossible to figure out how the conversation was going because it was so loud in the concrete room.
Bosco finished what he needed to say and stood up. He moved to the center of the ring, and once his right hand moved into the air, everyone turned dead silent.
If there were crickets, we would be able to hear them.
Bosco lowered his hand, his shoulders stiff with the power that ran through his veins. He surveyed the men in the room, the members of his casino. He was in charge of this building, of the entire city. He was the only one with the strength to organize a community of murderers, traitors, and thieves. “Bets are closed.” He indicated to the man in the corner, the one The Butcher would have to fight. “Mango is sentenced to the ring for stealing from a fellow member. Two and a half million dollars was swiped off the table and into his pocket. The punishment fits the crime.”
Everyone in the audience booed.
Bosco turned to The Butcher. “The Butcher is sentenced to the ring for his crimes against me.” The men had started to cheer, but once they understood the severity of the crime, they turned quiet once more. “He tried to steal something that belongs to me, something more valuable than all the cash on my casino floor, all the jewels in my vault, all the cars in my garage. For his crime, he will be sentenced to death.”
The crowd booed once more.
The Butcher stared at Bosco, and slowly, a grin spread across his face. It was more of a sneer than a smile, and his scars stretched across his face as his muscles pulled his skin tighter. Like this was all a game, he grinned at Bosco fearlessly.
I was fifty feet away, but the distance wasn’t enough. If The Butcher won The Brawl, I didn’t know what Bosco would do. Perhaps he would take him to the curb and shoot him on the sidewalk. Either way, I wouldn’t be able to sleep that night until he was dead.
Bosco raised his right hand again. “Let The Brawl begin.”
Thunderous cheers erupted, so loud I could barely hear myself think.
Bosco left the ring and moved back to the platform where I sat. The men were released from their handcuffs so the fight could begin. Bosco moved to the seat beside me, and like everything was normal, he crossed his ankle over his knee and rested his hands in his lap. His affection was absent, probably because he was so angry that touching me wasn’t appealing.
Ronan took the seat beside him, dressed in a gray suit.
I crossed my legs and appeared as indifferent as possible, even though it seemed like I was deep in the underworld. I wore a skintight black dress and the diamonds Bosco asked me to wear. My hair was pulled back, and I had on the tallest heels I’d ever worn in my life.
The men came loose from their holds, and that’s when the fight began.
It was bloody. It was intense. It was almost too much to watch.
The two men pounded their fists into each other’s faces. Since there were no rules, the men didn’t hesitate before they poked each other in the eye and slammed their heel into the other guy’s knee.
Blood smeared across their cheeks, and their muscles bulged with the adrenaline. Both of their lives were on the line, so they gave it everything they had.
Bosco was silent as he watched the fight, still as a statue and his eyes unblinking.
Ronan leaned forward with his elbows on his knees, watching every single kick and hit. “What did you say to him?”
Bosco didn’t look at his brother. “That he will die for coming too close to my woman.”
I heard what he said, and I was slightly touched by the way he referred to me.
“Let’s hope it works out that way.”
The fight kept going, and it seemed like they were both tiring out.
I just wanted it to end. The only reason I kept watching was because I wanted to be respected. If I looked away, people would think I was weak.
Things took a turn for the worse when The Butcher punched the guy so hard he flew down onto the concrete floor. Then he grabbed his leg, and with his bare hands, snapped his knee, breaking it with enough force that the crunch was audible in the entire room.