Deadly Desire

Chapter Four- My Big Fight

Rachel pov:

I was still exhausted when I woke up on Sunday morning. We partied until late on Friday night and arrived home inebriated. On Saturday, I suffered a severe hangover while working the lunch-to-evening shift. At least I'm off today. Yawing, I stretch out and stand up. I go to the restroom to wash my face and brush my teeth. When I'm finished, I put on some shorts and a tank top and head downstairs to the kitchen.

I turn on the coffee maker and begin preparing breakfast. I prepare toast, eggs, sausage, bacon, fried tomatoes, and mushrooms. After eating the food, I set the table. I go to my brother's room and summon him and my father for breakfast. Mom works the morning shift at the restaurant, which she has already left. On weekends, Ryan's father helps with his physiotherapy.

My mother and I take turns cooking dinner and breakfast. Ryan's rehabilitation has fluctuated throughout the last six months. For the first three months, he was hospitalized owing to serious spinal cord damage, shattered bones, and brain hemorrhaging. After being discharged, he continued with physiotherapy and trauma counseling.

That went smoothly until he had to have another surgery because doctors discovered a tumor in his spine. Some days are wonderful for him, and he can move and even stand throughout most walks, but other days he is confined to bed and unable to move. Ryan notices me first and greets me with a grin. "Morning sis." I smile and return the greeting.

"Morning bro, morning dad, breakfast is ready." My father glances up and smiles at me. "Morning, sweetie, we will be right there." I return to the kitchen and pour three cups of coffee; I prefer mine with two sugars and milk. My father and Ryan enter the kitchen and take seats at the breakfast table. I prepare their meals and serve them coffee. I look at my brother and ask. "How's things going?" Swallowing his food, he glances up at me.

"It's going okay for now; as long as I can exercise and keep my body from buildups, it won't cause problems again." My heart aches for my brother. I wish I could do something for him. For the remainder of breakfast, we have a small chat. When I get back to my room, I look at my work schedule and plan out a training routine for the following two weeks to prepare for my forthcoming fight.

Two weeks later, today I worked the morning shift at work. After work, I went grocery shopping, and Mom requested that I get a few things. Back at home, I just relaxed in front of the TV and then went to take a nap to save energy. I arrive at Club Craving soon after eleven p.m. and make my way below to the underworld.

I check for Rex and see him talking with other people at the bar. He takes my breath away when I look at him. His blond hair reflected the light. Hand-to-hand combat takes place on the first floor of the underworld. The second underground floor battle is split into two matches. The one who is the last one standing with weapons will not die. The final type is a death match. Rex notices me and waves me over.

"Are you ready for your fight?" He asks me when I visit him. "Yes, I prepared for it. "Who am I fighting?" I ask him. He looks at his tablet. "You are fighting Sandy; be careful; she is very good." I put my hand on his shoulder, and it feels warm. "Thank you for the heads-up. "I'll be careful." Leaving Rex, I head to the small area in the back with a few lockers where you can store your belongings. I wore a black sports bra, tank top, red shorts, red sneakers, and black half gloves.

I take a few deep breaths to relax my mind and stretch to loosen up. When I'm mentally prepared, I leave for the ring. People are observing from the various cages. Okay, Rachel, you can do it even if your opponent is tough; I need to do everything I can to win. With the latest batch of invoices we received, we really need this money.

Fighting here is not the same as a professional bout. Anything will do to knock out your opponent. There's no referee and only one round. I get into the ring to face Sandy. She has a toned athletic form, blue eyes, and blonde hair. She had a threatening expression in her eyes. We seize each other up. Rex yelled out at the opening of the match. We circle each other when she launches at me first. I parry her fist with my arm and kick her in the stomach; she collapses over and stumbles backward.

I advance on her, swinging my fist, and she grabs my wrist, pulling me forward before kneeing me hard in the stomach. I gasp in pain, falling over; this is going to be a bitch of a fight. In the corner of my eye, I see her approaching, so I duck out of the path and deliver a roundhouse kick that lands on her back and sends her flying into the cage. When she stands up, her stare is filled with fury, and I can only assume that I irritated her.

She charges at me, landing several hits, one of which catches me in the ribs. I block and try to land strikes when she kicks my leg out and grabs me in a headlock; crap, not good. I pound her stomach and belly with my fist, but she holds firm. I try to wiggle out of her hands, but she grabs my neck and pushes me face-first into the cage.

As I feel a cut on the side of my temple and blood running down, I struggle to regain my bearings. The bitch is straddling me and showering punches on me; I keep my arms up to deflect them. She manages to land a punch by catching my left cheek. Fuck this woman; I'm extremely pissed off right now! Grabbing her shoulders, I push myself up with my lower body and legs, flipping us over and straddling her.

I rain punches down on her left and right, breaking through her defense. I punched her nose so hard that I heard a shattering sound. Lifting my knee, I slammed it into her stomach. Ending the fight with her passing out and breathing heavily, I lay over on my back, my arm across my eyes. That was a fierce fight. Rex rushes to my side.

"Hey, reach you, ok?" I adore the sound of his voice as I stare up at him. "Oh, I'm just peachy." He laughs and offers his hand to help me up. "Glad to see your sarcasm is still intact." Grinning, I grab his hand and scramble to my feet, pain pouring everywhere. I am going to go take a shower and get dressed. Rex helps me get to the dressing room. After showering, I dress in a loose t-shirt and pants, but the procedure is slow because my head, ribs, and stomach hurt.

I move over to the mirror. I grumble in frustration when I see the damage to my face. My mother will definitely be upset about this! My left eye is swollen and getting purple, and I have a cut on the right temple. I look like trash right now, so I take my belongings and head to locate Rex. When he sees me approaching the bar while on his phone, he beckons me in. When I reach him, he bids farewell to whoever is on the phone. He says this while maintaining his fixed gaze on me.

"My boss is requesting to meet you. Please come with me." I look at him, feeling my heart pound with disbelief. Dante Voss wants to meet me?! "Why does he want to meet me?" I ask him. "Rex mentions that Dante Voss will explain everything once we meet him, providing insight. " Nodding, I follow Rex. No need to stress; I got this. Although Dante has met fighters before, I didn't realize I had caught his attention in this way.