Eight of Hearts: The Vision - Book 2

Chapter 7

Rhea Sydney stood in the atrium on the first floor of the coliseum with her team as they waited for everyone to gather. This was an exercise she had participated in a few times before, but it still made her anxious. This would be where Circé would go over the rules and regulations, as well as welcome any newcomers foolish enough to risk their freedom here. As participants straggled in, she felt a wave of deja vu as the memories of when she first joined came flooding back. The smell of sweat and grime emanating from the bodies of the employees who had labored to staff the carnival throughout the day had disgusted her at first. Five years later, she had grown used to it. It was simply part of her life.

Chad Rayner stood across the room, dressed in the same mercenary gear he had been wearing when he and Rhea had first met. Even though the Champion team had a uniform of gold and green, he still insisted on dressing in his old gear. He wore blue jeans and boots, paired with a leather vest over his bare chest. A long chain was wrapped around each arm; many assumed it was just a peculiar accessory, but Rhea had seen him use it in combat with deadly efficiency when he had betrayed her. She still hated him with every fiber in her being for that.

Chad had no interest in Rhea though; his own personal rival had shown up, just as she had hoped. Gilberto Tavros, the undefeated independent mercenary had shown up again. He was the only person in the history of the tournament allowed to participate without a full team, and he was the only person ever to have bested Chad Rayner. Judging by the way Chad was glowering at the tall Italian, they were setting up for another legendary clash between them.

There was one other exception to Tavros, and that was his reward. Normally, the tournament champion won ownership of the contracts of all participants to do with as they please, in addition to any other single contract under Circé's ownership. But Tavros had no interest in people; his desires were simple, which was one reason he was made an exception to the rules.

Circé herself stood at the center of the waiting participants, clad in a garish and provocative red sequined dress. Her dark hair was done up in an elaborate bun, crowned by a floral headpiece. She wore a minimal layer of makeup, with only the red of her lips giving away that she wore any at all. She was beautiful by many standards, but beyond her physical appearance was a personality that dominated the attention of all those around her. She walked with a graceful confidence that invited--no, commanded trust from those beneath her. Her smile was so genuine that whatever words accompanied it were taken as gospel, yet she knew how to ration that same smile so it was treasured whenever she gave it.

As much as Rhea hated Chad, she feared the power Circé held over her contracts; if she ever had a confrontation with the woman, she wasn't confident she could retain her own drive to escape this place. And that was what she was really after: freedom from this lifelong servitude to this system she hated. To that end she would make whatever sacrifice was necessary.

At that moment, the very person Rhea was sacrificing poked his head between the columns that lined the entrance to the coliseum. He looked remarkably less certain of himself now, which meant he may have learned of the truth behind her request. But it was too late for him now. As he walked cautiously into the room with eight others close behind, Circé flashed her best smile in his direction. Bryce appeared flustered by the sudden attention as he tried to force a confident smile back, but the rest of the group with him were less enthused by their circumstances. In particular, one dark skinned boy grabbed Bryce firmly by the ear as though to remind him of the gravity of their situation.

The general murmur that had been going on since they had first gathered died down as Chad Rayner stepped forward to stand beside Circé, indicating the meeting had begun. Circé waited until the last whispered conversation ended, her expression betraying no sign of impatience, and then she began to speak.