Vertigo

Chapter Fifteen - Resolve

"It was all a lie, wasn't it?" Haylee asked as the wind cut around her, wrapping as tightly as a serpent who spewed its venom into her words. Her eyes told a fifteen tale – they were pinpricks and quivered slightly as if she was afraid. Afraid of what? I asked myself. Was she still shook by what just happened, or had I scared her? I nearly stumbled over the gun at my feet as I stepped forward. "That night when you showed up at my apartment all beaten up, it wasn't your boyfriend who did it, was it?"

"No," I admitted, remembering how we met – it was a few months ago when I showed up near her apartment with my face bloody. At the time, I hadn't known Big Boy and the gang, leaving me to fend for myself. I made my way to a low-end fight club where I managed to get beat up just enough to feed myself. The rest had been a blur. I simply remembered waking up in her room terrified as hell with her telling me it was okay. I told her the story about my supposed boyfriend, unsure if I could trust her at first. Thinking back, I should have told her the truth then. Perhaps none of this would have happened if I had.

"And those nightmares," she continued, looking at me with sorrow filled eyes. "I did my research. They were about your friends, weren't they?"

"Yeah," I trailed off, folding my arms while biting onto the insides of my cheeks. "Look, I didn't mean for any of this to-"

"I'm Haylee. You?"

"I... " I frowned before dropping my hand. "Dawn. Dawn Grace."

"If you two love birds are done with introductions, we need to get out of here!" Arti yelled at us through the window as she tried getting the car to start again. Smoke spewed from the engine before it finally reeved to life with an exhausted sigh. We rushed to it, diving into the back seat before she road off.

"Rich girl, did you manage to see who that was?" Arti spoke as she road towards the gym, taking sharp turns as curtains of rain washed across the windows. The wipers squealed like a dying animal as it was dragged across the cold windshield; the last working headlight flickered to a stop, leaving her to drive in darkness. "It seems you got a look at the gunman?"

"I didn't," I lied, putting up my best sincere tone. Haylee frowned but stayed quiet as she ran her fingers through her hair, tucking it behind her ears. Tristan had been more than just my coach back when I fought in the arena – he had been one of Big Boy's men. Part of the same gang as Arti. Who can you even trust at this point? I asked myself before gripping tightly onto Haylee's hand. It was cold, yet comforting. "Arti, where did you say Big Boy and your brother was tonight?"

"I don't know," she admitted while struggling to switch into fourth gear. "All they told me was out. It's all they ever tell me."

"I see," I spoke as we pulled up to the entrance of the gym and stepped out. Arti walked around her brother's car to access the damages. Yet, in the mess of twisted metal, I couldn't tell what had been recent and what hadn't. I walked with Haylee to the inside of the gym before turning on the lights and slipping out my phone.

"So, you're a gangster?" Haylee asked, looking around the place. I cringed at the visual image of me being some thug who carried a gun around and walked strangely.

"We're all addicted to something, init?" I quoted an old friend before scrolling through my contacts, looking for Cassidy's number. I pressed the dial button and she picked up almost instantly.

"Where in Sam hell are you?" She yelled through the line – the sound of her voice was filled with static and the distant pelting of rain.

"Something came up, I'm sorry. Look, I need a favour," I said before explaining the situation to her, making sure to stay out of earshot of Arti as I walked to the back corner of the gym.

"I see," She answered with a sigh before the engine of her car lit up, sending a gentle hum through the line that drowned out the noise of the storm. "Just stay where you are. I'm on my way."

"Trust me. I have no intention of getting any wetter then I am," I spoke before hanging up and slipping the phone into my pocket. "So Haylee, why the hell was you there dressed up in my old clothes? Do you have any idea how dangerous it is?"

"Wasn't my first time," she spoke, looking at one of the punching backs. I frowned in confusion. "It's a long story. Look, the point is, I know better than most people how dangerous that place can be. Better than you do."

"Then why?" I asked, placing my hand onto her shoulder.

"I wanted to pull you out of the competition," She spoke, tugging onto her hair. The blonde look slightly unnatural on her. But perhaps that had been because I so used to the brown. "Wasn't expecting Valerio to notice I wasn't you. Or... What happened after..."

I sighed. "Look, I can't just pull out of this. This is something I need to do."

"For your friends?" She asked, placing her hand onto mine. "I heard about Shi."

"How did you-"

"Another long story," she brushed off my question. "I know why you're fighting. You think that facing her is going to be the only way you can bring justice to what happened to them, don't you? To have the justice of what happened to you."

"Yeah," I said, walking over to the punching bags before lightly laying my fist against it.

"But what happens when you do get her, Ali-" She paused, correcting herself before continuing. "Dawn. Do you just kill her or what?"

"I don't know yet," I admitted, trying to lay a punch onto the bag. It hit softly, yet stung because of the cold.

"Please pull out of this, Dawn. It's madness," she spoke, tearing up as I turned around – her bottom lip quivering. I smiled, placing my hand onto her cheek. "I get that you want justice but what about your friends! The ones that are still alive? Arti? That woman on the phone? Me?"

"You really grew up, kid," I said before hugging her tightly, pressing my cheeks against the warmth of her as she sniffled on my shoulder. I could feel her hands grip tightly onto me as if asking me not to let go. I smiled, placing the hand onto the small of her back.

"Rich girl, there's some posh car pulling up outside. One of yours?"

"Yeah, it's my ride home," I responded as we unravelled. I held onto Haylee's hand before looking into her eyes. She smiled through her tears. "Let's go."

There was no way I could stop fighting. Not after tonight.