Page 26 of Unleash Hades
“You should try to talk to Alastair again,” I offered. “Suffering in silence… that way madness lies.”
She looked at me, and nodded. But I knew she would do nothing about it. Not yet. It was human nature not to confront anyone or anything until backed into a corner. That would happen sooner, rather than later.
She and I rose from the seat together, and in one motion, walked to the swinging door of the locker room.
“Are you ready?” she said, as she placed her calloused hand on the door, ready to push it open as soon as we heard the announcer scream my name.
I shrugged.
“Good enough,” she chuckled, as I heard my cue. She opened the door and smacked me on the behind as I walked through the door.
Let’s get this shit show on the road.
Chapter 7
Calissandra
“Don’t say I didn’twarn you.” Bellamy’s words sounded so ominous, it frightened me.
Like it was some kind of warning from a higher power.
You should always be afraid.Toujours! Always!
I wish my inner voice had a mute button.
“Defending her title is Olena ‘The She-Bear’ Savchenko!” The announcer yelled, holding on to the last syllable of her name until the crowd roared.
A massive woman walked out, her mouthguard already in her teeth, puckering her lips outward. Jesus, even her hands were gigantic.
She wore minimal clothing, which was typical of the fighters. Hers were designed to emphasize her wide shoulders, and every striation of her thick muscles. The tight-fitting, brown and silver bikini outfit emphasized her large size, the stripes of it patterned to be a caricature of Grecian armor. They were marketing her as a warrior woman, and it was effective.
“Holy fuck, she’s an Amazon!” I leaned forward with a gasp, watching the specimen of incredible athleticism walking down the aisle with a grimace on her frightening features.
“Indeed,” Bellamy said in that bland, flat voice. “The She-Bear is an incredible fighter. I’ve been observing her for quite some time.”
Savchenko was surrounded by an entourage of men – a few of them shorter than her.
Maybe they were guards, but they looked like the mini-villains in a video game that one has to defeat before making it to the main boss.
In the back was a girl. She wore a plain khaki dress, her head was covered in a tan scarf, tucked over her mouth and nose. Her face was further obscured by her long, black hair that fell overher eyes and features. Her bowed head was poised for complete subservience.
“Who’s the girl?” I asked.
“No clue,” Bellamy said coolly. “If I had to guess, she’s the whipping boy.”
“What does that mean?”
I knew, vaguely, what a whipping boy was, but I didn’t understand it within this context.
“If the She-Bear loses, then those four guards will beat the girl,” he said flatly. “It’s a practice from old monarchies. One could not beat a young prince, you see? His royal status would always exceed that of his tutor. Therefore, another, lesser, boy and friend would be educated beside him, and beaten for the prince’s transgressions.”
I blinked at his recitation of those facts.
Bruises. A battered lip. A broken arm. The hidden welts beneath a black maid’s uniform…
“It was proven quite effective,” Bellamy shrugged, his eyes were flat. Uncaring. Like so many of the people in the crowd, he acted like he was a world apart from the souls being forced to entertain us. Or maybe he didn’t think they had souls at all. “I’m guessing the She-Bear is too valuable as a fighter to injure, therefore, they brought the girl in to mitigate the damage and still make their point.”
“That’s horrific.” I gritted out.
