Clearly not expecting me to answer, he straightens and shuts the car door. He doesn’t say anything when he gets in the driver’s side, or on the drive home.

  Ten minutes away from the house, I send a text to Adam.

  PAISLEY: I need you to find out where the fight is tonight and get to mine ASAP. Don’t try to stop me or ask questions, but we need to get to Landon. I’ll explain everything when you get to mine. Don’t let my brother see you.

  PAISLEY: Don’t let any of them see you.

  A few minutes later, Adam has texted back.

  ADAM: Give me fifteen. Need to get rid of my date. X

  I fall back against the seat, closing my eyes when all the lights whizzing by begin to give me a headache. Landon’s face comes to my mind, and a lone tear slips free. I’ve never believed in God, but if there’s any time to start praying, it’s now. I’ll do anything to make sure he’s okay and unharmed.

  Images of him bleeding out in the alley play in my mind, and my lips part on a gasp as my lids fly open. I swallow down bile as I look around the familiar surroundings. We’re home.

  “Paisley, please talk to me,” Jaxon pleads as he takes the lane turning into the bed and breakfast.

  “Why?” I ask hoarsely. “I can’t lose him.”

  He slams his fist against the steering wheel. “Fuck!” I jump, startled at the outburst. “I’ll go see if he’s okay, alright. Just please, stay here and don’t do anything stupid.”

  “How do you know where it is?” I ask warily.

  He pinches the bridge of his nose. “Because I got the alert message to say a fight was happening tonight. I’ve been to them before.”

  I make a sound in my throat. I’d been too busy looking at Landon and Liam. I hadn’t really noticed what Jaxon or his date were doing.

  “I’m going inside to try and ring him.”

  “Paisley, I am sorry,” he says, reaching for my arm.

  I turn to him, feeling like an idiot as more tears gather in my eyes. “I know.”

  He sighs, letting me go. I get out, shutting the door quietly before making my way up the steps. He waits in the car until I open the front door. And it isn’t until I’m inside that I realise I’m still clutching the monkey Landon won for me. A sob tears from my throat as I slide down the door, clutching it to my chest.

  “Please be okay. Please,” I beg.

  *** *** ***

  It’s not long before I hear another car pulling up outside the bed and breakfast. I get up from the floor, wiping my wet cheeks with the sleeve of my coat.

  Hearing a door slam, I quickly place the monkey onto the side table by the door and lock up behind me.

  The skies have opened up, the rain falling heavily. I pull my hood up, but the heavy wind just blows it back down.

  “Come on, we need to go. It’s starting any minute,” Adam yells.

  “Where is it?” I yell as I race to the car.

  He waits to answer me, getting us in the car and out of the rain. “He’s fighting in Larkhill tonight. I thought they stopped fighting outside when the weather was shit. I guess everywhere else is being watched or something.”

  I face Adam, noticing the seriousness in his expression. “What aren’t you telling me?”

  “I was near one of the factories that they normally fight in. I saw three police cars, the coppers obviously thinking they were out of sight. Something’s going down tonight. Something big.”

  Anxiety fills my chest. “He can’t get into trouble.”

  He reaches out as we pull out of the farm, placing his hand on my knee and squeezing. “I can’t speed there in case a cop pulls us over, but fingers crossed we get there in time.”

  “Someone died, Adam,” I tell him.

  Horror flashes across his expression when he shoots a quick glance to me. “You can’t be serious.”

  I nod, then proceed to fill him in on everything Liam had told us earlier tonight. He exhales, rubbing a hand across his jaw.

  “Fuck, this shit is messed up. We’re nearly there. Can you see the lights up ahead?”

  I squint through the windshield, finding it hard to see with the rain falling so heavily. It takes a few seconds for me to see it, but when I do, my lips part in surprise. There are tons of cars parked in a circle, more cars behind them, parked the same way. All their lights shining into the middle.

  Larkhill used to be a place where people walked their dogs. But ten years ago, the ground began to sink in places. The papers reported old tunnels were underground, causing the ground to sink. The council never had the money to restore it, and instead put a restricted sign on the gates around the property. Now it was overgrown grass, a few trees and lots of rubble where people have been fly-tipping. It’s a shame because I remember it from when I was a child, and it was beautiful.

  “Do you think there’s a code or pattern to the parking?” Adam asks, gulping.

  “Just leave it here,” I snap out, then grimace. “Sorry. Here is fine.”

  I don’t wait for him to get nervous about anything else. I can’t deal with his problems right now, not when Landon is out there. I step forward through the roaring crowd, my heart beating wildly against my chest.

  Men and women curse as I shove my way through the crowd. I ignore them, scanning the area for my target.

  I jump when a loud voice booms through the speakers. I’m nearing the front, and when I see a man step out between two cars with a mic in his hand that is connected to a speaker in the back of a car, I begin to shake.

  It’s happening.

  “You guys know why we’re here,” he yells, and everyone begins to scream. I almost cover my ears but refrain myself.

  “Don’t rush off like that,” Adam hisses in my ear, bumping into me when someone knocks him.

  I don’t take my eyes off the guy in the middle. He’s rough-looking, a lot older than I expected, and I wonder how Landon got mixed up with someone like him. I follow the guy’s line of sight, and my gaze narrows on a man in a black trench coat, glowering under his umbrella. Everything about him screams money. And I don’t mean because he has someone holding the umbrella above him while they get soaked, or that he has three men in suits surrounding him. It’s the way he stands; his back straight, his jaw clenched, and his gaze unwavering, uncaring and dead.

  I shiver, moving closer to Adam.

  “Who is that?” he whispers, but I ignore him, unable to tear my eyes away from the intimidating man off to the side.

  “Tonight, we are going to make money,” he screams, raring up the crowd. They go wild, screaming things I can’t hear over the loud buzzing in my ears. “Tonight, we right a fucking wrong.”

  He scans the crowd, and an unknown feeling runs up my spine. It’s like he’s looking everyone in the eye, making sure they understand that he means what he’s about to say next.

  “No one fucks with us. No one. You try, and these are the consequences. Remember that,” he tells them, his gaze once again reaching the man in the trench coat, hardening on him. The man glowers back, but other than that, seems unaffected.

  “New rules for tonight and tonight only,” he screams to the crowd, wiping rain from his face. “Anything goes.”

  “What does that mean?” I whisper, feeling hysteria rising in my throat.

  “First up, we have Rocco’s thugs,” he yells.

  I’m compelled to move forward, my feet having a mind of their own. My heart stops when three men I recognise from that night step out from between the cars near the man in the trench coat. The one I remember as Blaze leans down to listen to something the guy says, a smug smirk lifting at his lips as he nods. He turns back to the others, but my attention is pulled away when women begin to scream.

  “Fighting the three thugs who are left, I introduce you to… Demolition Man,” he screams.

  My breath catches in my throat as Landon steps out, his physique ripped and perfectly toned.

  Wearing only a pair of gym shorts, showcasing his obliques, and his trainers, he looks like a force to be reckoned with. His powerful build screams strength as he smacks his taped hands together.

  I take another step forward, my mouth opening to call out to him, but nothing comes out. I freeze, watching as the man I love becomes somebody else. It’s like he’s flicked a switch, and in his place is this dangerous machine, one that looks ready to snap his opponent’s neck. Just watching his movements as he nods to something Drew, his friend from the gym, whispers to him has me relaxing somewhat. One on one, he can do this. Everything about him right now suggests he could take them on.

  My eyebrows scrunch together when three of the four men from that night step further into the circle.

  “No,” I whisper when I realise what this means.

  “No fucking the cars up, dickheads,” the man with the mic yells. He steps back, looking between Landon and the group of men, shaking his head. “May the best man win.”

  “Wait! No!” I scream, horrified he’s going to fight all three at the same time.

  He must hear my voice, because for a split second, his eyes catch mine. Mine widen in horror when I notice one of them pick up a stick from the ground, swinging it around before going for Landon.

  I scream at the top of my lungs, and without a thought, I step further into the circle, ready to run to his rescue.

  “No!” I cry out, when strong arms wrap around my waist, pulling me back. The last thing I see before being pulled into the crowd is Landon taking a hit to the side with the stick. Tears run down my face as struggle to get free. “Adam, put me down.”

  When I look up, blowing the hair out of my face, I notice Adam is in front of me, not behind me.

  “Adam?” I call out, tensing.

  Jaxon.

  When I’m suddenly spun around, I’m surprised to find Max standing in front of me.

  “You can’t distract him,” he tells me forcefully.

  “You’re going to let him fight?” I snap, glaring at him.

  He grins down at me, patting my head like I’m a little girl. “Little one, my boy has this. If he didn’t, I’d be next to him.”

  “He’s right. Landon isn’t alone,” Maverick says, coming to stand next to Max.

  I shake my head at them, blinking like I’m seeing things. “You could stop this!”

  Malik, his reserved uncle, steps up next, his lips twisting. “No, we can’t. He needs to do this whether you understand it or not. That night…they took something from him. Tonight, he is getting it back. You need to get yourself together, because one wrong move could get that boy killed.”

  I sigh, looking away. “Does he know you’re here?”

  Max looks at me like I’ve lost my mind. “You, cray-cray, lady. No, he doesn’t.”

  I look over my shoulder where I can hear the fight continuing, and anxiety bubbles in my stomach.

  “Come on, we need to get back on the other side. I don’t trust this side. I keep seeing his little minions running around,” Maverick says, warily scanning the crowd. I’m confused as to what he means.

  “Why am I picturing little yellow Minions running around?” Max asks.

  Maverick pinches the bridge of his nose. “Let’s go watch the kid knock these fuckers out.”

  I growl under my breath. “You really can’t be serious?” I ask, my voice shrill. “There are three of them. One of them is already dead. And it’s three against one.” I’m becoming angry, and Adam touching me is making things worse. He’s trying to be soothing, rubbing my shoulders, but all it’s doing is making me irritable.

  “I’ll tell you what, after Landon has won, I’ll buy you a cape. How does that sound?” Max asks softly. Again, speaking to me like a child. I guess I’m acting like one, but I have every right when the man I love is fighting right now.

  “A cape?” When I tilt my head in confusion, he places a hand on my shoulder, intentionally knocking Adam’s hand away with a gleam in his eye.

  “Yes, a cape. That way, you can be super mad at him.”

  A few groans echo around me, but for some reason, a laugh mixed with a sob bubbles up my throat.

  “Come on,” Max says, pulling me against his chest. “Let’s go watch the boy kick arse.”

  Too exhausted to argue, I cry silently into his chest, letting him half carry me to wherever they are taking me.

  When we stop, I look up, my eyes widening when I see Jaxon with Landon’s uncles, Mason and Myles. I gulp when he steps forward.

  “What did I fucking tell you?” he roars.

  “Jesus, quiet the fuck down,” Max snaps.

  Jaxon glares at him for a split second before moving away to stand next to Liam.

  “I think he’s mad at me,” I whisper.

  Max looks down on me with pity. “Yeah. Wait till Landon’s finished. He’s going to be so pissed.”

  My gaze turns to the fight, and my breath hitches. “He can be as mad at me as he likes as long as he walks out of that circle,” I tell him, feeling a coldness seep into my bones.

  I close my eyes when blood splatters out his mouth, his body unmoving. I cross my fingers, praying he makes it out of there.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE

  LANDON

  I’m beginning to think Liam isn’t going to show. Then I see him pushing through the crowd towards me, and he’s not on his own. Mark is with him, looking worried as fuck as he scans the people around us. Even pissing it down with rain, this fight has still drawn out a huge crowd. There has to be hundreds of people here.

  “You do what you needed to do?” I ask, watching him closely. I have no idea what was so important, but right now isn’t the time to question it. The fight is about to start.

  I tune out Benny has he begins to give me a run-down on what’s happening and focus on Liam.

  “Yeah. Are you ready?”

  I nod, shaking out my arms and legs. “I am.”

  “You know this isn’t going to be the same as before? I’ve heard they’ve been training. Nowhere near your level, but it still might be a challenge with all three fighting you.”

  I shrug, not caring. I’ve got this, and when they see me out there, they’ll get that too. “I’m not worried. I want this over and done with. It’s all three or nothing, Liam. I don’t want to risk something happening and then have to go through all of this again.”

  He nods in understanding. “All right but be careful.”

  “Fighting the three thugs who are left, I introduce you to… Demolition Man,” Benny screams.

  I roll my shoulders, giving Liam and Mark one last look before facing the circle. I walk down the path lined between cars and feel my blood pumping through my body. The day of reckoning is finally here. Today, they get to meet their judge, jury and executioner. Me.

  Drew blocks my path, surprising me. I didn’t know he was here.

  “They have something planned, mate. Take them at the knees. Don’t let them get back up.”

  I don’t say anything and instead nod in acknowledgement.

  Stepping into the ring, I raise my chin at Benny in greeting. We spoke when I arrived, and although he wants the money that tonight will bring in, he did warn me something didn’t feel right. I shrugged it off, ready for anything.

  My resolve hardens when I step into the circle. I ignore the screaming men and women and concentrate on the three motherfuckers with a death wish walking towards me. Blaze’s stance is cocky, knowing, like he has something up his sleeve. I don’t take my eyes off him, but in my peripheral vision, I see the other two get ready. My gaze quickly flashes over them, and I notice when Flash’s hands begin to shake.

  A small smirk tugs at my lips.

  “No fucking the cars up, dickheads,” Benny spits into the mic. He steps back, looking between me and those dickheads, shaking his head. His gaze reaches mine briefly, and a look that says, ‘They’re so dead’, is shared between us. “May the best man win.”

  Lifting my leg, I get ready to attack, but a voice echoes over the crowd and rain. I’d know that voice anywhere.

  Paisley.

  Our eyes meet through the rain, and hers widen in horror. What the fuck was her brother thinking in bringing her here? And why the fuck is that twat with her?

  I watch as she steps forward, screaming. I’m about to change course, go to her, but then I see my dad step up behind her, holding her back.

  She’s safe. He won’t let anything happen to her.

  I sigh in relief just as I see movement in front of me. It happens in seconds, enough time for me to jump back and miss Terry’s hit. I look down at the thick sticks his hand and growl under my breath. There is no way they were randomly found on the floor. They were left purposely.

  I grunt when something sharp whacks me in my side. I grunt, and look down at the piece of wood imbedded in my side, the rusty nails attached to it ripping through my skin.

  A guttural growl erupts from my lips as I look up, staring dead into Blaze’s eyes. His grin is smug, like he’s won, but I smile, tilting my head. In a flash, the stick is in my hand, and with a spin, I smack it around his head. He goes down, falling to the ground, clutching his bleeding wound.

  Terry and Flash take that moment to come at me from both sides. I grab the stick Terry is holding whilst kicking my leg out, hitting Flash in the centre of his chest, winding him and hopefully breaking a rib or two. He goes down, sliding onto the ground. I pull hard on the stick for a few moments. It catches Terry off guard when I push it forward suddenly, smacking him in the chin and knocking his teeth together.

  He grunts, staggering backwards, and drops the stick to the floor.

  “You think you can win this?” Blaze growls.

  I bare my teeth as I clench my fists together. “I know I can, you silly fucking cunt. Not so big without ya bat, are you.”

  “You think tonight will be the end?” he asks, circling me. I know he’s trying to get me to turn away from the other two, who are getting back to their feet.

  A smirk tugs at my lips as I spread my legs a part, ready for the assault. “I know it fucking is.”

  All three fly at me, and the crowd begins to scream. I grab Flash first, swinging him into Blaze and knocking them both to the ground.