ManBeast - Book 1: A Kingdom of Predators

Chapter 21

CHAPTER 21

Todd, the gruff Beast-Man who allowed Frankie and Jules inside of the den at Al's fight, was once again working the door. Didn't matter though; Mr. Thames, Judge Shams, or Mrs. Famorelli, hell, just about any Committee Representative would pay him well for information on who made appearances tonight. Nothing unusual thus far, however: some politicians, a few cops, famous Brothers that Todd knew well, fancy ladies and escorts; the typical crowd for a major match, especially considering this was the "executive entrance."

As Todd mulled over who would win tonight's fight, a violent series of knocks hit the door. Thrown off for a moment, Todd slid the eye latch open, only to see a single, slick-looking human woman standing in front. She was gaudily dressed in a full-length fur coat, open-toed stilletos, and had huge gold chain around her neck with earrings to match. The sound of her snapping gum in her mouth echoed down the hall Todd was standing in. Todd had never seen this woman before; who could she be? No matter; "Password" Todd spoke gruffly from behind the door. "Black Paw" the woman sneered.

Todd turned pale; "oh no," he his mind screamed. Instantly, a blast of bloodlust and overwhelming force gushed through the eye-slot, spooking Todd backwards onto the ground. Frozen still, Todd watched as a long, dreadful, and disfigured hand reached into the eye-latch slowly, bending at an awkward angle to undo each lock and latch on the door. Once each one was undone, the door slowly creaked open, showing only the gaudy woman at first; Todd remained on the floor, stiff in shock as the woman laughed: "You scared him, Daddy! It's not nice to scare people like that you know!"

As the woman remained in the doorway, a booming and deep wheezy voice with a slight Cajun twang spoke back from behind her: "Seems like you're right, my love. Boys, how about you help our friend to his feet? We're not here to cause trouble tonight...well, no promises." Three thuggish Beast-men rushed into the hall, raising the big-bodied Todd effortlessly; one of the Beast-Men, covered in bandages and scarred across his visible skin dusted Todd off: "Why didn't you open the door, chief? My arm is all fucked up now!" He raised his contorted arm and laughed, showing it to be the same one that opened the door a moment ago, much to Todd's horror.

As the woman entered behind the Beast-Men, she turned her body partly towards the door and extended her arm outward in anticipation. But a second later, the biggest Beast-Man Todd had seen thus far stooped to enter the doorway. His colossal mammoth frame was impeccably well-dressed in a dark three-piece suit, complete with dress hat and a walking cane. A cloud of weed smoke covered his face as his took the woman's hand, with him acting as her escort.

"Daddy, are you going straight to the VIP box?" she asked. "Of course, cher. That's where our business is," he responded with smooth immeasurable bravado. The Beast-Man and the woman walked past Todd, seemingly forgetting that he was even there. As the troupe disappeared from view into the venue, Todd snapped back into the present and grabbed his walkie-talkie: "ULRIC! HE'S HERE! BLACK PAW IS HERE!!!"

The venue was old, but massive inside; in appearance, it looked as though an underground storage facility had been converted into a fight venue. Instead of a center ring with stands and seating encircling the ring, there were several huge movie-theater style screens hanging from the ceiling, formed in an octagonal pattern. Each row of seating was placed in direct view of the screens, many of which already had ample amounts of spectators present. Same with the night of Al's match, all kinds of persons were in attendance, from business men and high rollers to trainers and fighters, all engaged in their own affairs. Unlike Al's match however, there was only one white-suited man at a booth taking bets; the line for the booth was long enough to suggest that payouts from this fight would be substantial. As the group continued to enter the venue, Jules recognized a few of the fighters present from the Gauntlet; several of them recognized Jules back, and either nodded in acknowledgement or bore fangs or claws in disgust. Doug flipped his middle finger at several of them: "Ignore 'em kid. We're not here for 'em today." A Pride Lands guard led the group over to a seating area, marked off with tape for reservation. As the group sat down in their seats, Agatha and Kyle both stood off to the side. "We are going to the press box to watch the fight with the other Representatives. We will contact you guys once the fight is over," said Kyle.