Page 104 of Barinov

“Now, now, Lexie,” Luca’s voice slithers back across the speakers. “You know the rules.”

The other brother sitting a few seats down suddenly stiffens. His hand shoots to his neck, fingers digging in uselessly at the collar as it glows brighter.

“You’re up,” one of the guards says to him.

The guy looks at his brother sitting next to him, then to the mat, and pushes to his feet. The guard stops him before entering and presses a knife into his hand.

The moment he steps inside, his collar stops glowing.

Lex’s too.

Lex reaches down and picks up the bat. The guy charges at him, but Lex swings too wide. The scream that rips from Lex’s throat when the blade connects with his flesh is pure animal.

“What the hell is happening?!” Tex screams into our ears.

Lex staggers, clutching at his bicep as crimson splatters to the mat.

Rez loosens his grip on me and I fall back onto the bleacher. My hands clamp around the metal so hard my knuckles whiten.

“Hello?!” Tex repeats.

“Second guy came at him with a knife,” Roman says into the comms. “Sliced Lex’s arm to hell.”

“Damn it,” Tex grits. “Should have let me take ‘em out from the start.”

“We couldn’t,” Rez spits. “The fucker would have blown Lex to bits, us included.”

“Knox,” Roman seethes. “Where are you with his damn collar?”

“I’m trying!” Knox answers, his voice way too unsteady for my liking. “Zeke did a number on this thing.”

Lex spins and slams the bat into the guy’s leg. The man falls, but somehow claws his way up the rusted cage.

“Ahh!” Lex wails again as the blade slices at his thigh.

“He got him again,” Roman adds. “Leg this time.”

“I can’t do this,” I whisper, ripping the comm from my ear and slamming it onto the bench. I barely make it past the cage before Roman steps in my way, steel eyes blaring into mine.

“Where the hell do you think you’re going?” he snaps, a little breathless.

“I can’t,” I whisper. “I-I can’t watch this.”

My eyes find the blood-soaked cage again as Lex dodges another hit from the knife. Thankfully this time the bat connects with Viktor’s brother’s shoulder.

“I can’t just sit there and watch him become—”

“A what?” Roman growls. “A killer? You don’t have a choice.”

I shake my head, eyes darting between Roman and the love of my life, bleeding in a rusted steel cage.

“You think this is hard for you?” he scoffs. “Just imagine how your boyfriend feels in there?”

I turn away, hands balled into fists. Roman grabs my arm and yanks me back around to face him.

“You have to stay.” His low voice thunders in my chest. “You’re scared shitless, I get it. But if you leave right now, you might as well take that knife and plunge it deep into Lex’s heart yourself, Cade.”

I flinch.