Page 2 of Voracious

If any of the nosey neighbors who watched our family’s fighting see us, they’ll open their mouths only to gossip. She nods and I give her the teddy, hoping it keeps her quiet, before leaving the house and going back through the woods that are now filled with the noise of a struggle.

He’s going to fucking kill us all. He won’t stop with just our mother, not when he always said it would be all of us at the same time.

two months later

It’s late and I can feel Katya’s stomach rumbling against my back as she hides under my clothes while I lower to my knees. The old dirty prick in front of me is too focused on his sick fantasies to realize I picked up the knife that was dropped during the last fight.

Waiting until he’s distracted with undoing his belt, I aim for his side. I made a mistake the first time only hitting the man in the thigh. His scream is muffled so he doesn’t get caught, he knows what the brotherhood will do if they find out how he spends his nights. But he punches into my head.

I twist the knife, making sure I keep one arm behind me so Katya doesn’t move. When he falls back, I continue jabbing until his lungs are filled with enough blood that all he can do is gurgle. He has money, the watch on his wrist, and his clothes show he’s rich.Rich enough for us to eat for one more night, maybe a week if we’re lucky.

The wire of Katya’s earphones pulls due to the struggle and she slaps her hands over her ears. I have to bow as I stand so she doesn’t fall off my back, and I pull my hood over my headso she can’t see anything before I kill the dirty prick with one clean line across his throat. Taking his watch and rings, I nearly laugh at the sight of a wedding ring. Does his wife know he pays teenagers to suck his dick in an alley?

They’re all the same — rich and powerful. This one is different; he doesn’t have a picture of his family in his wallet. But the money is enough so I can get Katya something to eat and new clothes. I’ve learnt from the other kids getting caught and leave his cards untouched to prevent anything tracing back to us and drop his wallet on his chest.

I freeze, hearing at the faint sound of footsteps. If it’s the other kids, I’ll have to fucking share again. Katya lets go of her earphones to hold on to my t-shirt under my hoodie as I split the bills and hide most of it in my boxers.

But it isn’t the other kids who walk around the corner into the alleyway that smells like piss. It’s a man and he remains at the mouth with the glowing cherry of his cigarette slowly bringing into view his smile. He takes a step forward and I move back instinctually. I’ve never had anyone attempt to overpower me before, they usually think I’m agreeable before I kill them. His hand moves down as he lets out the smoke and the muted orange embers show the ink on his fingers. He only has domes, so he’s low ranking.

He takes another step, so do I. His voice is harsh as he stops advancing and remains in the shadows. “I’ve heard a lot about you, boy.”

I’ve never fucking seen him before. Stepping closer to me, we both look at the knife and he tilts his head as though he recognizes it. I stole it from a fight but he’s too old to be the person everyone was calling dyavol. He’s dressed like shit too. But my life changes for a second time with his offer.

“Fight for me, and you keep 50% if you win.”

I’ve seen the underground fights, and no one ever talks about who loses. My voice comes out strong with all the anger inside me. “If I don’t win?”

He laughs and shrugs. “You die.”

Death would be better than getting on my knees but then Katya will be alone. I’ve seen the way people look at her, sick bastards fantasizing about a little girl. I’ll win, the fights will bring in enough money for me to be able to get a place to stay and then she can have a bed again.

His eyes dip to my neck and he smiles, it’s sinister and twisted. But he looks away sooner than the others do when they notice my little monkey attached to my back. He doesn’t pressure me to join as he gives me the location of the fight.

“You have until tomorrow to decide, it will be held at the warehouse on the river.”

I don’t move, refusing to confirm I’ll be there. It’s not just my decision and I’ll need to find somewhere for Katya to stay. She’s the only good in our family and her weight drops under my hoodie, showing she’s close to falling asleep and unable to hang on any longer.

The smell of blood fills my nose even away from the crowd as I make my way through the warehouse. Katya holds her hand over her nose to block out the smell and I look down as she tugs on my hand. She shakes her head and moves her hand to show me she’s sticking her tongue out. Shaking her hand in mine, I stick my own out at her, so she smiles. It works but she quickly slaps her hand over her mouth again. I haven’t come across the man who invited me here, but my details had been left on the door. Ithelps that I don’t have a change of clothes, so it makes it easier to recognize me if I don’t spot him first.

Each abandoned office in the warehouse has been turned into a makeshift changing room and Katya holds my leg as I tilt my body to check if there’s anyone inside. They’re filled with grown men, men who have no reason to be around a little girl and the tattoos on their hands show they’re not to be fucking trusted. The next two rooms aren’t better and the third is a definite fucking no as I crack the door open to see a tattooed back, specifically a mermaid. Sick fucking bastards. The forced tattoos are a marker I’ve never been more thankful for, they brand the animals so I can at least gauge if she’ll be safe from a distance.

I keep walking through the hallway as Katya pulls on my hand again. Her eyelids are drooping, and she drags her feet. Picking her up, I sit her on my hip and go to the final door. There’s enough light from the streetlights shining through the dirty window for me to see the room that was once a bathroom. The wooden benches are set up against the back, but I can’t leave her there, she’ll be out in the open. The walled showers are separate from the other part of the room, and it has a large wall separating each side. Going to the furthest corner so she won’t be seen if anyone looks in, I set her on her feet. The lights flicker and hum as I take off my hoodie and push it over her head. Taking the knife I kept, I hold my finger over my lips telling her to be quiet. She’s started listening but it will only last until she gets bored.

She doesn’t stay still and shakes her arms to play with the excess sleeve of my hoodie covering her small body. She does the same with the hood as I go to the edge of the shower entrance to see who’s there. There’s an older boy or a man, with two little boys. He’s hiding them like I am when his back turns rigid and he slowly moves his head. I’ve witnessed murder countlesstimes, but this is like staring into hell and he straightens up, hiding the two younger boys. They look like they’re Katya’s age, twins. I’ve never seen twins before.He’s older than me, only by a few years, but his eyes are violent, and I can’t look at them.

There’s a twisted smile on his face like the man from the alley who told me to be here, and he crosses his arms over his chest as he asks, “How old are you?”

For some reason I don’t lie. “Fourteen.”

His brows come together, and he speaks slowly like I’m an idiot.

“This is an adult fight.”

He’s weird as fuck and stares into my eyes.Whatever he sees makes him change his mind on being angry and I get another offer to change my life. “I’m going to need someone with me when I leave, if I save your life tonight, will you pledge it to me?”

Oh fuck, he’s Bratva. I look at his hands to check the markings but there’s no forced tattoos and I rush out, “If my sister is kept safe you can have my life.”

I try to appeal to the human underneath the monster in front of me as I gesture to the children behind him. “She’s their age.”

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