AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Go home,” my mom said to me today. “You stayed here all night yesterday, so you should go home now.”
I opened my mouth to protest, but she shook her head. There would be no convincing her, so I shut up and got up, following Zane out reluctantly. As soon as we got into the car, Zane wrapped his arms around me and drew me into his lap, where I cried some more.
When we got home, Zane went down to train some more, and Casey was upstairs doing homework. I was sitting alone and trying to focus on the TV when I got a call from an unknown number.
I was a bit apprehensive when I answered, “Hello?”
“Hey, this is Meech,” the person on the other line said. “I got your number from Zane’s phone when we were training.”
“Oh,” I said. I’d never seen Meech when they were training. He always seemed to be gone before I got here. “How are you?”
“Look, you need to stop Zane from going to that match,” Meech said without answering.
An alarm flashed through me. “Why?”
“It’s a death trap,” he explained. “I swore to Zane that I wouldn’t tell you, but I can’t watch my best friend get killed. And make no mistake. Viperisgoing to kill him. He’s been looking for every excuse to do it.”
The alarm going off inside me multiplied. “What do you mean?”
“Viper wants to pummel Zane into the ground until he kills him. That’s his MO. It’s what he did with the last contestant, and he killed the guy. He has the Bruners on his side, and they’re a powerful family who covered the whole thing up with the shit cops.” His voice was tense without its usual humor. “I’ve tried talking him out of it, but he won’t listen. He’s convinced the fucking bastard has Toby when it’s more likely that Viper’s messing with him. I’ve asked around the ring, and no one has ever seen Toby. Listen, Toby is dead. Everyone knows it, but Zane can’t accept it.”
Fear was spiraling in my chest now as I got to my feet and headed to the stairs leading to the basement. “Aren’t there rules to this thing?”
“No. In an underground match, there are no rules. Especially a cage match. And this isn’t just about the money for Viper. He was humiliated when Zane defeated him the last time. This is about revenge.”
I couldn’t listen anymore. I ran down to the basement and threw the door open.
“Is it true you’re going to throw the match?” I demanded, my heart racing. Anger and fear merged within me to create heart-pounding emotions.
Zane stopped punching the bag and stared at me. “Who told you that?”
“Just tell me the truth. You’re going to let that bastard kill you to save Toby, right?”
He didn’t answer me. His eyes flickered to the phone in my hand, and understanding dawned. But I knew I was right. That was why, lately, he’d been how he was, making love to me intensely and slowly like he wanted to savor every moment. Like it would be his last.
He knew he was going to die. Rage filled me. I knew he was never going to tell me and was just going to let himself be killed.
I was furious. “You’re not doing the match.”
“Charlotte—”
“I don’t give a fuck what you think!” I was yelling now, but I couldn’t stop it. “I’m not letting you die! He probably doesn’t even have Toby.”
“Yes, he does,” Zane insisted, walking out of the ring. “I have to do this. I’m sorry.”
Tears. I shed tears that I didn’t even know I had left as I stormed away. But I didn’t care. I wasn’t going to let him do this.
I dialed a familiar number. It was Eric, the police officer who had worked on Kelly’s case, ascertaining it was a suicide. He’d kept in touch a few weeks after because he became somewhat close to my family. Right now, he was the only one I could trust with this information.
The minute he picked up, I began pouring everything out.
“Please,” I begged him. “I need your help.”
“Charlie,” he mumbled, sighing tiredly. “I want to help you, I do, but that’s not within my jurisdiction.”
“Please. This man is the reason for my sister’s death, and he’s killed at least one more person. I’m sure of it.”
He was quiet for a few seconds. “Do you have proof of any of this?” he asked.
