Kingdom of Rivals - The 100 [5]

Chapter 4

Venus's POV

"But I wanna see the fight!" Liv whined as she finally managed to pull her arm out of my grasp. It had loosened once we were out of the arena and into the hallways. Nearly everyone must have been watching the fight or on duty with their jobs, as the hallways were completely empty.

"Liv..." I felt all my energy was suddenly gone. Dad...in the pits...

"Why is grandpa in there?"

"I don't know..."

"Why not?"

"I just don't."

"Why?"

I felt my frustration rising as it always did whenever Liv played this little game of hers. She'd keep asking 'why', no matter what answer you gave her. All the other more experienced parents around me – Abby and my own father in particular – assured me it was only a phase all children go through, and that Liv would grow out of it in time. In that moment, I felt as though that time couldn't come soon enough.

"Why?" She asked again after I took too long to answer.

"I just don't, ok!" I shouted and my anger flew out of me. My anger now quickly gone, I looked down at my daughter and saw her little eyeballs begin to turn red with the tears she tried desperately to hide.

"Will Grandpa win?" I could hear the strength in her voice, masking over the fear I knew she felt about her grandfather's fate.

I knelt down so that I was at the same level as my daughter. She was so small and so young, I forgot that sometimes when she frustrated me with her rebellious and stubborn behavior. I placed my hands gently on her arms, but resisted the urge to pull her in for a hug. We were in the hallways, and I had learned from experience just how much the little girl standing in front of me hated being hugged outside our bunker room. It almost matched my old hate of being carried.

I looked into my daughter's eyes, a shimmering green like my own. What was I supposed to tell her? I knew I couldn't lie to her, but there were three other combatants in there with my father when we left. All of them Grounders, trained in combat, some of them I was sure were veterans of the pits. Although I didn't want to accept it, I didn't believe my father would make it out. But I couldn't tell her that, not yet.

"I hope so."

Behind us, back in the pits, a chorus of boos floated to us. I stood up and turned to look at the doorway to the pits, keeping a hand on Liv's shoulder to make sure she was still by my side without looking.

"Marcus Kane." Gaia's voice floated out into the hallway with ease as the crowd quieted down, her words only slightly muffled. "In stealing life-giving medicine from Wonkru, you have committed a crime against our people, but you are the last. Has he earned his freedom, Blodreina?"

He won, I thought, he actually won. But I knew that wasn't always enough. My heart sped up, and my ears listened intently for the response. I held Liv close to my side, every muscle tensed up, waiting.

"No." Octavia's voice was softer, but still audible. My heart dropped at the single word. "He fights again tomorrow." At the news, the crowd erupted into cheers once more.

"Momma..." I looked down at Liv by my side. "Can we go see him?"

I let out a brief sigh before replying. "I don't think that's a good idea, Liv. If he doesn't win-"

"I don't mean in the fight. Can we go see him, in the holding cells?" I looked at her a second longer, thinking it over. Finally, I nodded with a small smile. This might be the last chance for my daughter to see her only grandparent, a final goodbye might be good for her. And for me.