Illicit

CHAPTER NINETEEN

That changes people.

My right hand moved the curtain as I stepped onto the biggest stage of them all, thousands of fans cheering for me at once as I smirked, never showing the emotion I held within.

"Queen Karma has entered WrestleMania!"

Benjamin Burnley stood off to the side as he and his band played the song live, him smiling as the instrumental portion played and he awaited his lyrics. I smiled back as I watched him send a wink my way.

The entire band wore 'K' shirts to represent the tattoo etched behind my ear, a small detail that had meant more to me than anyone could have imagined. The idea that my favorite band had wanted to preform just for me meant enough, but to do it for what we considered a friend meant even more.

Ben and I approached one another as he knelt at my feet, offering his hand as I took it. He brought the microphone so effortlessly to his lips.

"Now the dark begins to rise..."

The lights darkened under the night sky as the only spotlight shown was on me, following the lyrics. The singer stood up finally next to me as he motioned for me to walk towards the ring. I smirked at him as I mouthed a 'thank you'.

I started my stride to the ring and in no time, I was standing on the second turnbuckle, posing for everyone to see. The camera was positioned under me as I smirked down at it, showcasing my custom-made 'K' leather jacket. It had been a gift given to me from Drew after I was unable to relocate the stolen necklace Mark had taken, and I wasn't sure I would ever take it off.

It was interesting, as I awaited Ronda's presence, that I wasn't nervous. I had been terrified for my debut, but on the night when I had everything to gain I was finally ready.

A weight was lifted off of my shoulders.

And when that bell finally rung and Ronda and I stood eye-to-eye, I wasn't afraid. Even through her glare that held so much fire that I could have burned, I was confident.

Our match started off with a bang as Ronda sprinted towards me. Immediately, my psyche was thrown off because our match called for a lock-up followed by grappling—however it seemed that Ronda was already going off-script. Perhaps it was because it was her last match with the WWE; or, it was because of our last encounter. Either way, I had to be ready for the fight of my life in front of the biggest crowd I had ever preformed in front of.

Her speed caught me by surprise as she immediately focused on punches towards my head and torso. My body was backed into the corner as I held my hands up in self-defense. The referee could be heard in the background counting to five, trying to pry the former UFC fighter from me to avoid a disqualification.

"Ronda, what are you doing?" I whispered, careful to not let the cameras pick it up.

The blonde hadn't answered me as she backed away with her hands up, acting as if she was innocent. She gave the man in black and white a shrug before she gave me a slap on the chest, the cracking sound practically echoing through the arena as the crowd gasped. I winced at the stinging sensation as I kneeled on the ground to regain my composure, trying to maintain my growing anger at her unprofessionalism.

Trash-talking could be heard from the California native as she jumped back onto the offensive, grabbing my arm to preform an arm drag as I countered quickly by using my strength to pull her face-first into the turnbuckle. Her hand fell to her lip as she had to act this time, the two of us sharing an almost smirk in our eyes as it was like the old days: the days of judo, where we would try to out-do one another to win a match.