Page 1 of Wrath's Flame
Chapter One
Flame
With one final dodge followed by an uppercut, my opponent hits the mat hard, blood gushing from his mouth. Okay, that hit may have been a little harder than I intended. I hold my hand out to help the guy up; it's the right thing to do after the damage I just caused. Taking it, he pulls himself to his feet, sweeping his black, sweaty hair out of his face as he does.
“Sorry, man, I didn't mean to hit you that hard.”I apologize.
“Don't worry about it; no harm done; it's just a little blood.”He replies genuinely as he shakes my hand.
“Go get yourself cleaned up. If you ever wanna train with me again, just ask for Flame at reception.”
“I just might do that; I haven't fought that hard in a long time; you're fucking lethal in the cage.”
“Thanks, man. Maybe next time I won't hold back as much,”I tell him smirking before walking away.
I can hear him laughing behind me. Little does he know, I was barely even trying.
I’ve been training myself to fight since I was thirteen years old, in every type of fighting style I could find. From Krav Maga, which is mainly self-defense techniques designed to quickly and efficiently inflict as much pain as possible, to bare-knuckle boxing, which involves punching without any padding on the hands to cause the most damage you can to your opponent.
I started learning as much as I could after what happened to me when I was growing up. My older brother thought I was an easy target because of my smaller size and the fact that my mother didn’t hide how much she hated me. He beat me for years, until one day I was so badly hurt that I confided in my best friend, Jackson. Seeing my injuries, Jackson immediately called for his father; he knew I needed more help than he could give me. His father wasn’t just some random person's father though; he was Blaze, the President of Devil’s Inferno MC, and he wasn’t going to stand for what was happening to me.
Back then, even though I’d been best friends with Jackson since I was four, I didn’t spend a lot of time around Devil’s Inferno because my mother, like most other people in town, believed that just because they were bikers, they must all be criminals and bad apples. That couldn’t have been further from the truth; every member was and still is a law-abiding citizen. Well, for the most part, sometimes things need to be done to help those who need it most. What we end up doing in those situations might be against the law, but it's always the right thing to do. Sometimes the law fails those who need it most. The multiple businesses Devil’s Inferno owns are totally legit, though. We don't make any money through anything criminal. That's not who we are. We're the protectors of those who need it most.
Anyway, I needed a way to take my power back after what I’d experienced in my home life up until that point, and learningeverything I could about fighting was my way of doing just that. I trained myself until I couldn't move anymore, but it paid off. I felt more confident knowing that I’d never be in that position again, and I was right; I still haven’t found anyone who can beat me, and I’m fucking thirty now.
It also worked out great for me after I became a Prospect for Devil’s Inferno at eighteen, then a patched member by the time I turned nineteen. Members saw how much skill I had and just how lethal I could be with just my own body. Before I knew it, I was an Enforcer whose main role within the club was to protect all patched members and the club's reputation in any form of conflict, which certainly put my skills to good use.
After quickly showering up in the locker room, I make my way back to The Clubhouse on my customized Harley Dyna that I’ve had since I was a Prospect. The Clubhouse is located on The Compound, on the outskirts of Devil’s Point. It’s an old converted mansion near the front gates of The Compound; it contains offices for most of the club's officers on the ground floor, the room where we hold Church, and then a massive open space known as The Common Room that contains the bar, kitchen, and main hangout space for us all. The upper floors are rooms for all the members and bunnies who choose to live in The Clubhouse. Then there's the basement we recently converted into a games room with gaming systems, pool tables, and lots more. It’s especially popular with the younger members.
Entering The Clubhouse, I see Blade’s distinctive red hair through the doors to the Common Room. He’s the other Enforcer for Devil’s Inferno. While I’m an expert in hand-to-hand combat, he’s an expert in weapons. Especially blades if his road name didn’t give it away.
“Hey Blade,”I say in greeting as I approach.
“Hey Flame, what’s up?”He replies, kicking out the chair next to him for me to sit down.
"Wanted to talk to you about the Prospects' training,''I mention, taking my seat.
Both of us work with all the Prospects to make sure they’re up to scratch. There’s no point in them becoming patched members if they can't hold their own; you never know when you're going to need to defend yourself or defend someone else.
“Ah, yeah. They’re all doing pretty well with me. Jake seems like he has the most determination, though. Fuck, that guy puts in 110% every session we have. He has the potential to be a great brother. Eric, on the other hand, is an overconfident little fucker. If he gets the votes to become a patched member, I'll be seriously fucking surprised; he thinks he's god's gift at absolutely everything, and he really fucking isn't.”
His voice is filled with pride as he talks about Jake, which is pretty fucking telling. Blade is not an easy person to impress, but is filled with utter distaste when he mentions Eric.
“So I'm okay to start hand-to-hand training then?”
“Oh yeah, they’re definitely ready, and I’ve got a feeling you’re going to enjoy it.”He says laughing, his green eyes twinkling with mirth.
“You know me so well. Gotta love knocking them down to size. They all think they’re so fucking tough until they step into the ring with me.”I say through laughter, which sets Blade off too. Tears are streaming down his face from laughing so hard.
I watch on as he regains his composure. I’d say his reaction is over the top, but it's not. I think every Prospect we've had since I've been an Enforcer thought they were something special until they went up against me.
“Let me know when you’re going to start; I could do with some entertainment.”
He’s smirking now. I know for a fact that everyone loves it when I start my training with The Prospects; they turn it into an event.No joke, they get chairs set up, and we always have a massive audience.
“I’ll go speak with Wrath now and let you know when it's happening. Wouldn't want you to miss out.”I smirk as I stand up, clapping him on the shoulder.
Walking down the corridor towards Wrath's office, I catch sight of Ella walking towards me, and I know she's going to be heading towards the same office as me. My blood starts to boil at the sight of her, but I’m an expert at hiding how I feel now, so nothing shows on my face. She speeds up when she sees me, beating me to the door. Looking over her shoulder, she smirks at me before entering the office and closing the door behind her. Hearing the lock click. I take a long, deep breath as I stop outside, trying not to let her affect me. It's not that easy, though.
