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My eyes instantly found Braden, sitting with Seth’s guys. He watched me walk toward the ring, and I nodded to assure him I was okay. I dreaded his fight with Finn. They were both strong and built to be hard-core fighters. I’d trained with many men, and, despite what I told Seth, that altercation with Finn in the dressing room had me petrified. I couldn’t move in his grasp, not even a little; he was tough. I wanted to believe Braden would outmatch him, but I wasn’t so sure. If anything, they were evenly matched, which meant it could land in anyone’s favor.
I hopped into the ring just as Annika appeared from the hallway, dressed in a red sports bra and red shorts with her dark hair in a messy bun, flanked by Nikolai and Finn. I didn’t acknowledge her. Instead, I looked at Finn; his busted lip was the first thing I noticed.
Seth huffed and I glanced down at him. “Did you do that?” he asked.
I nodded. “That’s what happens when men try to manhandle me.”
His eyes moved toward Braden. “It’s a good thing we’re not sitting near the Sellingers.” As luck would have it, Finn’s guys were on the opposite side of the ring.
When I peered down at Braden, he glanced back and forth from me to Finn, piecing it all together. His eyes blazed and he shot up from his seat.
“Braden, no!” I shouted, jumping out of the ring and landing in front of him. I placed my hands on his chest, but his fiery gaze was on Finn, who I knew wasn’t far behind me. “It’s not your time. Save it for the fight.” The tension in the room spiked and several men around us reached for their guns, ready to take action. “Please,” I begged, cupping his face.
A few seconds later, his attention snapped to me. “What did he do?”
“It doesn’t matter. I gave him a good parting gift.”
“Yeah, well, he’s about to get more than that.” He glared over at Finn and let me back him away. Once he was in his seat, I climbed into the ring where Annika waited with Nikolai.
“Are you ready?” Nikolai asked us.
Bouncing on my feet, I focused on Annika. “I am.”
She smirked. “So am I.”
“You know the rules,” Nikolai announced. “Have fun, ladies.” He stopped beside Annika and leaned in close but still loud enough to where I could hear. “Remember what all I taught you,” he said to her.
Annika grinned. “I haven’t forgotten.”
Once Nikolai was out of the ring, the room fell silent, but it buzzed with electricity; it sizzled across my skin. I tried to think of all the illegal moves she could do that would put an opponent out quickly. I knew whatIwould do … I’d take out the knees. If your opponent couldn’t stand, they couldn’t fight. I had no doubt Nikolai had the same philosophy. He would’ve shown her the best techniques.
Annika strolled around the ring, waiting for her chance to strike. “I’ve wanted to get you in the ring for a long time. If my father wasn’t so against it,I’dbe the featherweight champion, not you.”
“So all the training we did wasn’t you sucking?” I fired back.
She laughed. “Definitely not. I’m a good actress, Reagan. I played you from the very beginning and it was fun.”
“Well, let’s see how much fun you have with this.” I charged toward her, pretending I was going to punch her, but instead, I swiped her legs out from under her. She landed hard while I stood there and laughed, hoping it’d fluster her. I didn’t want to end things quickly; she needed to suffer.
“Fucking bitch,” she snarled, jumping quickly back to her feet, her face blood red.
“That’s only the beginning.”
She came at me fast, throwing punches left and right. I blocked them all and whirled around, elbowing her in the back of the head. It was an illegal move, but I didn’t give a damn. There was no honor in this fight, only the determination to win at all costs.
Screaming with fury, Annika circled around, her eyes on my legs. She tried to kick at my left knee, but I jumped away, only for her to grab my braid and jerk my hair. She punched me in the ribs, and I not only heard the crack, I felt it.
“That didn’t sound good,” she trilled with a laugh.
Grabbing the hand holding my hair, I pried her fingers away, loving the sound of her torment. The second I was free, I hit her in the stomach. And when she doubled over, I kneed her in the face. Blood poured from her nose, but she righted herself and came after me hard. Her nails were like claws as she dug them into my arms, piercing my skin. It was then that I realized that was her weapon. She’d had them modified and sharpened like tiny knives.
With an evil grin, Annika dug them into me harder. “How do you like that?”
I headbutted her in the face and she fell back against the ropes. Tears filled her eyes and I had no doubt they were affecting her vision. “Just as much as I liked that.” It was time to end it.
What I was about to do wasn’t ethical, but I didn’t care. Annika lost any bit of remorse the moment she tried to have me killed. Everything moved in slow motion as she stood and wiped her eyes. I locked in on her legs and kicked her left knee from the front, shattering her knee cap. She crumpled to the mat, and I jumped on her, gripping her hair with my left fist as I punched her with my right. They weren’t hard enough to knock her out, but that was my goal; I wanted her to feel the pain.
Annika screamed and tried to fight back, but I didn’t stop. Her face was covered in blood, and so were my fists. I could feel the rage build through my body, desperate to be let free. I held it within me and reared back one last time. Annika’s eyes widened as my fist connected to her face, knocking her out cold. Her body fell limp beneath me, and I got to my feet.
