I Should Have Stayed

Chapter 26

The two men threw us both into the Ring. The one holding Ava grabbed her and dragged her to the side so she wouldn't be in the middle of the fight. The other man untied me and pushed me towards the center. I fell into the dirt and filth on the ground, but quickly got up as I noticed a few pools of blood scattered here and there.

I turned around and took in my surroundings. There were two entrances: the one we came from and one on the other side of the Ring. The one my opponent would emerge from. There were fences on all sides of the Ring except for the doors and behind them all were people cheering and yelling. My eyes spotted a familiar face in the crowd and my facade stared "blankly" at him... heh. He was sitting right at the edge of the fence so if I want to shoot at him or attack him I could easily do so, but I couldn't try this little stunt right now. They turned the warehouse into the Fighting Ring. That was why it seemed so small earlier.

My eyes found Ava on her knees still being held by the one guy and she looked completely terrified. I felt a twinge of emotion cross my eyes, but it was quickly swept away by the moment as I turned slowly to face the other doors as they opened. Out stepped a girl a little tougher looking than me. She had blood all over her body and there was murder written on her face, but I knew that she wouldn't live this match. I never lost. Blank was wrong to bet against me even in my weak state. But Blank was stupid all together for even crossing me.

Blank held up his hand and the girl stopped advancing towards me. "Place your bets ladies and gentlemen. This will be one hell of a fight!" Blank said sitting back down. The crowd went wild and I could tell the girl was enjoying the attention. My heart stayed calm and my body and mind were in attack mode.

She stepped towards me and I took every second analyzing her. Judging her capabilities. She swung at my face but I easily parried the blow. I knocked her in the stomach before stepping back and getting ready. My hands were up guarding my face and she swung again hitting my arm. There would be a bruise there later.

I stayed on the defensive still watching her. She was slow, but she was considerably stronger than me. She seemed to have a pattern of moving and so I easily followed her openings and avoided most of the blows. I landed a few on her myself but not before being punched in the jaw. I was sent back onto the dirty floor and then quickly got back up again.

We danced around each other for another few minutes before I could tell the crowd was growing impatient. They wanted a winner. I tried going on the offensive but it got me nowhere. My eyes were analyzing every position she took, every move she made, and every swing she tried to hit me with. I kicked her legs but she didn't budge. I tried punching her face and I hit her but not before being kicked in the side.

I fell again to the ground but easily made it up again. Her nose bled and flowed down her face but she refused to wipe it away and leave herself open to attack. The crowd was getting angry when they noticed that no one was really winning. We had been fighting for a solid 15 minutes by now and neither of us were tired yet.

I watched something glisten as it flew through the air and land right in between us. We both took a moment to look at the object and I realized it was a knife. This was supposed to be a fist fight but the crowd does what they want, and they want some action. I watched as a pair of hands push me to the ground and I sort of crawled away and stood back up facing my opponent. This time she held the knife and an ugly smirk crossed her face. I wanted her dead.

I lunged avoiding the knife by a hair and tackled her to the ground. We wrestled for a minute or two until both of us were growing tired. She still held the knife but I was managing to keep it away from me. The crowd was definitely enjoying this. I got distracted for a second when I heard someone scream. Ava.

I felt something sink into my right thigh and I was put into a head lock. I started gasping for air but then a sudden calmness washed over me far bigger than the one that called itself The Murderer. I reached up and scratched at her eyes and she immediately let go. I turned us over so that I was on top of her straddling her hips and she faced towards me still holding her eyes. She was temporarily blinded.

My hands found their way around her neck and I pushed down as hard as I could manage. I watched the blood rush to her face and heard her strangled gasps. This wasn't me. I hadn't murdered someone this badly since a few months ago. It didn't feel right, but then again, nothing ever did. I let go after the girl stopped wrestling with me. I knew she was dead. There was no longer a pulse to be found.

I got up and looked around. I saw disappointment in those who had bet against me and victory in the others'. But the longer I stood there the more my leg hurt. I looked down to see the knife lodged in my thigh. My blood boiled with anger at the injury and the only thought that crossed my mind was to take it out. I slowly pulled out the knife feeling it rip my skin, but I no longer cared about my own safety.

I looked to Ava to see her terrified. Her skin was pale as she watched the blood flow down my leg. My eyes turned me around and I saw Blank sitting there looking quite interested with the situation. I was done messing with him. I limped closer to where he sat in his throne surrounded by hookers and I took a deep breath.

Slowly, I lifted the knife in my hand and aimed. I let go on the first swing and watched carefully as it soared through the air landing right in his heart. My eyes were glued to him as he reached down to examine his chest. All the girls ran away screaming and that seemed to disperse the crowd a little. I never thought in a million years that I'd kill Blank, but yet here I was, studying the way his life slowly got drained from his face and body.

I told him that I would kill him. But he didn't listen. I just hoped that the crowd would. "As many of you know," I said loudly, "My name is Jessica Greenwick and I'm in charge of this gang, not Blank. If anyone chooses to oppose me you'll end up like these two. And I'll kill you myself in cold blood. Also, any bets placed are now mine to keep. Any questions?" The crowd was silent. "Good! Now get the hell out and someone get me a doctor!" I screamed. The crowd ran away faster than I even thought possible. They all left their bets in a box by the set of doors I had come out of so long ago.

I stepped over the dead girl on the ground and approached Ava and the two men at a limp. "Let her go and get back to work." They both nodded and ran away like the others. My breath started to come back once it was just the two of us. My adrenaline started showing and I almost collapsed on the ground with the pain.

I went to touch Ava but she pulled away. "Don't touch me. I don't want you to hurt me."

I backed away carefully as she stood up on her own. "I'm sorry Ava. I told you that when we went in. Please don't be like this right now. I had to do that in order to survive. Did you want to go into the Ring knowing I was dead? Or having to go in at all?"

"No..." She whispered quietly. I sighed at her and approached her carefully. Slowly I wrapped my arms around her careful not to hurt her or get blood on her. I felt bad that she had to see me in my murderous state, but there was nothing I could do to change what had just happened. "C'mon. I need to get to the doctor. Apparently no one called for a doctor."

She nodded and backed away from me and I was worried that she left me to walk there alone, but I felt hands snake around my waist holding me up. I sighed as I turned around and inspected the lifeless Blank still sitting in his bloody throne. That was it. He was gone, and I was done playing games. We had been through a lot. Ava had been through a lot, because I dragged her into this. "I'm sorry Ava, for even getting you involved in this." I said.

"Shut up. I chose to come with you. This was inevitable. Now be quiet and focus on walking to the infirmary. You'll bleed out at this rate if we don't get a doctor." I chuckled at her a little. She still cared for me even after all that had happened and I loved her for that. Even if she no longer loved me after the monster she had just witnessed.