Reveille (The Hybrid Disasters, Book One)

Chapter 20: Bad Bad Leroy Brown

When Lolly and Trap were out of earshot, I became visible and hopped the fence. I followed their silhouettes as they wound through piles and rows of scrap metal and dismantled vehicles. I caught up to my two friends just as they broke through the endless mass of junk into a well-lit clearing outlined by a horseshoe of compacted vehicles stacked eight feet high. Two industrial stadium light poles stood on opposite sides of the clearing lighting the entire area magnificently. There were countless people sitting, standing, and crouching on and along the stacks of crushed vehicles roaring at whatever was going on inside the ring. Kegs and personal coolers were scattered among the crowd. It was official; we were going to be partying in a salvage yard.

"Hey, guys," I murmured as I stepped up beside Lolly without taking my eyes away from the scene laid out before me.

I felt Lolly jump. "You made it!" she exclaimed after the initial shock of my unexpected presence wore off. Lolly's short arms wrapped around my waist as Trap reached for my hand. "I'm glad you're here," Trap said after he placed a gentle kiss on the back of my hand. "You look lovely."

"Thanks," I murmured as I pulled away from them both. "I promised I'd show, so here I am. Although, this wasn't what I was expecting," I said as I looked around once more.

"Our pack owns this salvage yard," Trap explained as he started walking toward the crowd. "The pack comes out once a month on the last Saturday night before the full moon to let loose and celebrate another successful moon phase."

Lolly and I followed him. "That's.... neat," I finished carefully. "What are all those people yelling at?" I asked as we crept closer.

"It's part of the celebration. We call it Match Night. Basically, everyone sits around, drinks, and watches the fights."

"The fights?" I asked with too much inflection. My interest was piqued. Trap grinned in response. "You'll see." I looked at Lolly, and she too was enjoying my sense of anonymity. I followed them through the crowd. Trap leaped over eight feet high and landed soundlessly on top of the nearest compacted stack of cars. Lolly and I followed suit just as effortlessly.

Match Night was nothing like I expected. The view from where we stood was breathtaking. In the distance, we could see Tulsa's city lights burning brightly in the night sky. It was a cloudless night, so the stars were shining in full force. I wanted nothing more than to dim the stadium lights and live in this moment for a while longer. I hadn't realized how much I missed being outdoors until now. If I didn't have to go back to DPO, I would stay outside and soak in the scenery as much as possible. I shifted my gaze from the city view to what was going on in the pit below me. The steady beat of music had been turned down a few notches, and a man in blue jeans and a flannel shirt was standing in the center of the pit speaking into a microphone about the next contestants. He called for bets to be placed, and the music cranked back up. A few dozen men appeared with clipboards and buckets stuffed with cash to claim a few last second gambles. When a short, balding man with grubby fingers reached us, Trap pulled out a ten.

"Addy, who should we bet on?" he asked me.

"I don't even know who's participating," I explained. Trap pointed across the pit to two figures standing stiffly next to one another. My eyes almost bulged out of my head when I took in a woman roughly Lolly's height standing next to what had to have been the largest man I've ever seen. He was even bigger than the security guard that checked our entrance bands that night at Club Dread.

"Seriously!" I exclaimed. "His bicep is larger than she is!" It was basically the truth. His arm was almost as large as her waist.

"So, you want to bet on him?" Trap assumed. He nodded to the man who began to scribble on his clipboard.