Perverse Riches

Chapter1

Soundtrack: Inside Of Me - VAMPS / Half God Half Devil - In This Moment

Me? Bloodthirsty? Never! But the big tough man passed out in front of me might beg to differ though. The three dozen men and their handful of girlfriends around the fighting ring jeered or cheered according to their bets.

"The winner is the First Demon of heeeeeeell Lilith!" The MC came to my side and held my arm well up in celebration.

"Yeah! Lilith!" The shouts of support dragged the jeers three to one.

"You played well, but enough. Get home for tonight. There's something shifty in the air." The MC whispered loud enough for me to hear. I nodded discreetly and he let go. There wasn't anything unusual in the old barn that I could see. The walls were still grey with age, there where still tall stacks of hay higher than the tallest man and organized into stacked benches for the viewers. The ground was considerably more blood stained though and the faces around us had several changes but that wasn't anything new. Free for all fighting wasn't for everybody, viewers or participants, but I liked it despite the horse shit smell from the nearby stalls.

Jonathan caught my eye as I slipped out from the ring. The thirty year old glasses wearing man in an accountant suit was waiting for me next to the entrance of the barn. He wiped the sweat from his bald spot, looking everywhere with shifty eyes. Strange. Never once, in my three months as a fighter did he look anything but steely calm and poised.

"Jonathan? What's wrong?" He kept shifting worriedly, but handed me a thick wad of money.

"You won three thousand today, now leave." His eyes suddenly focused and he grabbed my hand as I reached for the money. "Don't come back. There's a cop around somewhere, sniffing us out. This is our last night here." His hand tightened so much it started hurting.

"I hear you, but I have no intention of getting off the ring. I'll be waiting for the message in two weeks as always." Jonathan released the money but didn't answer. Fucker. Who cared if the police was closing in? What was I guilty of, fighting someone consensually? Pff. Still, Jonathan and Wesley were sure acting antsy...

The outside of the barn was empty except two neat rows of cars and bikes on either side of the door. The smell of freshly cut grass still lingered in the midnight air, along with the mid spring's last traces of unusually warm day. I breathed in deeply and promptly shivered. The barn was hot with the crowd, therefore the cold outside air chilled the red spandex catsuit soaked with sweat from today's three fights. It brought out my aches and pains to the forefront and I knew I'd be sore tomorrow. My bike was the first one in the line, all shiny chrome and dark red leather gleaming in the light. I grabbed my knee length coat from the trunk and slipped it on for the ride. My hotel room was nearby in case tonight had gone wrong. Three minutes of dirt road and fifteen on the highway brought me to the outskirts of the city and The Sunrise motel.

The three dozen room joint was actually quite nice. The outside was painted a bright yellow with orange trimmings and blue casings on the doors and windows. The main door was glass, but all the others were solid wood. My ankle failed slightly as I got off the bike. Damn, must've been when fighter number two rammed his shoulder against my chest and I slipped lightly on a stray piece of straw. Oh well. I limped my way to the last ground floor bedroom on the right and slipped in. I shivered. Something like a pair of glasses glinted from the dark spot across the parking lot. Was I followed? Nah, must be my imagination. Still, closing the curtains wasn't a bad precaution to take. Or so it would seem. The bathroom window was big enough for me to slip through with my bags. I hid in the shadows of the trees on the back until I got to the reception. There wasn't anyone around except a bored teenaged girl filing her nails. I went a little further until I reached the side of the building and the corner. Nothing strange moved in the parking lot, but I still couldn't shake the feeling... I returned to the back entrance and skulked to the girl.