BANE

CHAPTER TWO - BRAWL (Part 1)

"Run!" Corbin shouted to Holden, spinning around to face their would-be attacker.

"Whoa, settle down buddy," A large man with the physique of a bodybuilder and buzzed brown hair clapped his hands on both of Corbin's shoulders. "It's been taken care of. The cavalry has arrived."

"Vic! Thank God it's you!" Corbin laughed, giving him a one armed hug while peering around the other man's broad shoulders. "A one-man cavalry, is it?"

"Gordie is chasing down the last of the vultures, and the girls are on their way. They were across town when I called them. Is this the pet?"

"Stray, is more like it. But yeah, this is Holden. Holden, meet Victor."

"Call me Vic," He reached out, taking Holden's hand in a firm handshake. "Nice to meet ya."

"You too," The blond smiled back awkwardly.

The three men continued walking to the apartment, but this time, only Holden seemed to notice the footfalls of someone quickly closing in. He clenched his right hand into a heedful fist, and in one swift motion, turned and punched the approaching man as he reached them.

A pale man with dark hair landed with an audible thud on the sidewalk. "What the fuck?!"

"Holden! What the hell?" Corbin spun around, horrified at the sight of his friend on the ground. "That's Gordan--he's a friend!"

"How was I supposed to know?" Holden shouted back. "You're the one saying people are out to kill me!"

"Alright, everyone just take a deep breath and calm down," Victor helped Gordan to his feet and strategically placed himself between the three men. "Let's get to the apartment, have a drink, and talk like adults. Starting with... Where did you learn to hit like that, Stray?" Victor's laughter sounded especially loud on the quiet street.

"Five years of kickboxing. I was bullied a lot as a teenager; it got to the point that I was either going to kill myself, or find a way to fight back," He looked pointedly at Corbin. "Happy sunshine life, indeed."

Corbin looked down to break their eye contact, and once again Victor stepped in to diffuse the tension. "Well, I am definitely impressed. I was not expecting such a scrawny guy to hit that hard."

"Me neither," Gordan dabbed his bloody lip with his sleeve.

"Sorry," Holden meekly apologized. In the light of the apartment building's lobby, he could see the true colour of Gordan's dark hair. It had been dyed a deep purple, fading into a bright red at the tips. His auburn roots could be seen growing out along the part of his hair. His green eyes watched Holden warily, unsure what to make of this human stranger that had introduced himself with his fist. A few freckles dotted his otherwise pale cheeks and nose.

Layla greeted the four men at the apartment door with a damp cloth and an ice pack for Gordan's cut lip, having been made vaguely aware of the situation from her brother's text message. Corbin and Victor breezed by her and went straight to the fridge, and Holden filed in last, mindful to keep a respectful distance behind the man he had just attacked.

He watched as Layla gently dabbed the drying blood away from the violet-haired man's lip. She was hard to gauge at times like this. On the surface, Layla seemed so sweet and gentle, but there was a flicker of darkness in her usually soft grey eyes that gave Holden's stomach a twist.

"Now, just keep the ice on it for a bit to minimize the swelling," Layla suddenly excused herself from tending to the injured man, and poured herself a glass of water from the kitchen sink. Gordan joined the other men in the living room, so she focused her attention on Holden when she returned. "Are you okay, Holden?"