Mafia Queen

Chapter Twenty Eight

Luca

Niko was more twisted than I ever could have imagined. This was fucking disgusting. I stood in the middle of a chain link ring, fiery lights blazing above me. Everything outside of the ring was dark. I could see several people sitting around but their faces were well hidden. There was a dull ache in my side from where Niko had beaten me, but aside from that, adrenaline pulsed through my body. This was my first time out of the cell since I'd been here, and I was determined to make it count. I wouldn't escape tonight, not until I could gather the intel I needed. Until then, I was stuck playing Niko's sick game.

Two guards brought another prisoner in and threw him through the gate, latching it tightly behind him. He fell to the ground, looking much worse off than I was. He was panicky and anxious, probably a junkie who couldn't pay his debt. This was the guy Niko expected me to fight? He was a quarter of my size. One blow in the right place would end it all. Now it was making sense why Niko wanted me roughed up, so he could even the playing field and make this shit show last a little longer.

I let out a sharp laugh, shaking my head. I had to hand it to Niko; this was entrepreneurship at its finest. It was bullshit, but it was making him a ton of money, and fast.

"Gentleman." Niko's gritty voice filled the arena, coming from some kind of loudspeaker or microphone. I didn't know where he was in this sea of disgusting men who were actually spending money on this kind of thing. "Welcome to our main event. Tonight, we have a very special match up for you. A friend of mine, Mr. Luca Catalano, is here with us. I hope you've all got your bets in. This is a fight you don't want to miss." I could almost hear the smirk in his voice. He truly was despicable.

Murmuring filled the crowd, and I could tell several of the attendees knew who I was. They had probably thought I was dead and were just as surprised as I was by this bullshit. By the looks of things, I didn't have their sympathy. Most of them were men I had run out of the business world or had taken territory from. I made several enemies as I built our empire and unfortunately, several of them were in this audience and eager to see me get my ass handed to me. I was probably generating a lot of money for Niko tonight.

Suddenly, the lights flicked up, and the entire room erupted into applause. A guard came into the cage as if he were some type of referee and blew a whistle. The man in front of me seemed to know what it meant and immediately tensed up into a fighting stance. Apparently, we were supposed to begin. The scrawny guy lunged himself at me and I shoved him away with a mere flick of my wrist. This wasn't even fair. Even with the broken ribs I had from earlier, this guy was way over-matched. Applause erupted again when he fell to the ground. I wasn't going to give Niko what he wanted. I would defend myself, but I wouldn't put on a show for these bastards. This was the disgusting part of our world that I spent my entire life trying to stay away from. It was a cruel twist of irony that I was now thrust right into the circus as Niko's main attraction.

Scrawny came at me again, this time with his shoulders low as if he was aiming for my knees. I dodged his attack and shoved him again, this time sending him flying in the chain link around the cage. Vicious laughter and cheering rumbled through the room. It only seemed to spur Scrawny on. He came at me again, swinging with all of his might. I didn't want to hurt him, but I wouldn't put myself at any risk. I had a family to get home to and this son of a bitch wouldn't stand in my way. Blood spurted from his jaw as I swung at him. More applause, more cheering. Scrawny just didn't know when to quit, or perhaps he actually thought he stood a chance against me. The fight didn't last long. A few more blows and I had knocked him flat on his back, motionless.

"Very nice, Luca." Niko chuckled, finally coming into view at the edge of the cage. "And now it's time for everyone's favorite part — finish him."

I let out a sharp laugh. "I've played along with your little game, Niko, but this is as far as I go. I won't kill him."