Page 54 of Wanting the Fight

The TV paused with my dad standing tall over Camden. He always told me those were dark times; I could see it on his face. Martin whistled, catching my attention.

“Quite the fight, huh? It was pretty epic to watch. Although it would’ve been more poetic to see one of them kill the other.”

“So, is that what you’re doing?” I snarled, facing him head-on. “Do those guys out there know you’re going to film them killing each other?”

Martin smiled. “As a matter of fact, they do. That’s why they’re here. It’s whyyou’rehere. However,” he said, drawing out the word, “I have to rewrite the script just a bit. I didn’t anticipate you and Peyton together.” He pursed his lips. “It makes things more complicated. Originally, I was going to have you play the part of your father, but that doesn’t work with the dynamics.”

Eyes gleaming, he smiled.

“Youare now going to play Paxton’s role. Yes, he won against Rage, but things will be a little different this time around. Who knows who the winner will be? Guess we’ll find out tomorrow night.” What I did know was that he didn’t want the winner to be me. “Do you want to know how this all got started?” Martin was the type of man who enjoyed listening to himself talk.

“I’m sure you’re going to tell me anyway,” I hissed.

He chuckled, the sound sinister and dark. The man was a fucking lunatic. “Many years ago, when I was young, I wanted to film movies. It was my passion. I made some short indie films, but nothing ever took off. Then, it just so happened that I became friends with the right people. They wanted me to film at the Dark Side, and I agreed.” It wouldn’t surprise me if it was the Michelson family. Martin’s eyes lit up. “It was exhilarating being able to catch all that violence on film. The energy was real, raw . . . dark. I became fascinated with the whole process, especially when Peyton’s mother was forced to fight. She was a goddess in the ring.”

I scoffed. “You wouldn’t think that if she were here. She’d kill you, and so would Paxton.”

Martin waved me off. “No one’s going to find us.”

That’s what I feared more than anything. I could fight my way to Peyton, but if we were untraceable, I had no clue if we could get out alive.

“Anyway, back to my story,” Martin continued. “When I completed the video, I was given an obscene amount of money. It was what I needed to work my way up in Hollywood.” He walked over to the window, his gaze distant. “Over the years, I kept tabs on Gabriella and Peyton. I knew one day I’d need Peyton to star in the sequel. I just had to wait for the right time.”

It was almost as if he was in a trance. I’d been around all sorts of people in my life, and he was severely fucked up in the head. He moved away from the window and started for the door.

“But to answer your question on whether I’m putting Peyton in the ring, the answer is no. Will she be in the film? Yes. But I have other plans for her.”

“What?” I thundered. “What are you going to do with her?”

Stopping at the door, he glanced at me over his shoulder. “If you’re dead, it’s not going to matter. But if you survive . . . well, we’ll figure that out when the time comes.” He nodded toward his men. “Blindfold him and bring him to the house. I don’t want him here with the others.”

I turned to the window and looked at all the guys willing to put their lives on the line for fame. What was worse was that they were ready to kill for fame. One of them would be my opponent, and I had a good idea of who it would be.

And tomorrow night, one of us would be dead.

CHAPTER25

PEYTON

Luckily, I wasn’t alone with Caden long before a phone call had him stepping outside. Being alone with him terrified me. There was a promise in his eyes every time he looked at me which indicated he was going to get what he wanted very soon. I didn’t want to imagine or think what it would be like if he succeeded. So I had to stay strong.

About thirty minutes passed before Caden came waltzing back through the door. His phone rang again, and I tried to listen in on the conversation, but it was too muffled. As soon as he hung up, his eyes landed on me.

“It’s time to go.” He grabbed my arm, pulling me to the door.

I jerked out of his hold, and he turned his lethal gaze my way. “You seem to have a problem with putting your hands on me,” I snapped. “If you don’t stop, you’ll be wearing your balls as a necklace.”

My threats didn’t work on him. He snatched my arm again, and I hissed as his grip tightened harder. Caden’s icy blue eyes pierced into mine, his mouth just inches away.

“And you have a problem with following orders. Sooner or later, youwillsubmit to me.”

Never, I wanted to say, but I didn’t want to fuel the fire. Instead, I followed him out the door and was surprised he didn’t blindfold me since it was such a big deal earlier. I quickly scanned the area, but there was nothing but a dirt road leading away from the swamp. We were at a warehouse in the middle of nowhere. Caden kept me close, and as soon as we were down the stairs, he led me to another door that opened to a hallway of the warehouse. It was dark and smelled both moldy and earthy. There was no one around, just us.

But then, once Caden opened another door and nudged me inside, we weren’t alone anymore. It was a small room, only big enough for a small table and four chairs. Martin stood by the window, which I assumed was a two-way mirror, just like the one in the previous room we were in.

He waved me over, and I joined him while Caden stood on my other side, his body too close for comfort. When I looked out the window, a group of ten women was sparring on the blue mats.

Mouth gaping, I stared at them in confusion but also fear. What was going to happen to them? But what was even scarier was that they all looked like me.

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