Fight for Me (2 page)

“Knox, my boy, I’ve been building you up for just this moment. Don’t be a fool and let all this preparation go to waste. I need you on board so I can make the deal tonight. Just think of the money. It’s time you got your payday. ”

It all made sense now—why X hadn’t been putting him up against better fighters. He’d been setting him up this whole time.

Anger clawed at his gut—a hungry monster that demanded to be fed. He had to get out of there before he did something he couldn’t take back.

Knox stood. “We’re done here.”

“We’re done when I say we’re done,” X sneered.

Knox slowly turned, clenching his fists so hard his arms shook.

“That’s right, son. You stay when I tell you to stay. You fight when I tell you to fight. And you lose when I tell you to lose. You’re nothing without me. I made you. You got that?
I . . . made . . . you.
”

Fuck.
Knox closed his eyes for a brief second, his blood pounding in his ears. He was done. So fucking
done.

Before X could see it coming, Knox swung with his right hand, clocking X in the temple and sending him sprawling across the bench.

“What the—” X didn’t have time to complete his sentence.

Knox picked him up and slammed him into the wall of lockers. X threw one arm up to try to protect his ribs while reaching down with the other one to pull out a knife tucked behind his belt. The blade wasn’t long, only about five inches, but that made it easier to handle in close combat. The knife flashed across Knox’s arm before he shoved X away, causing him to crash into the sink. A stunned expression graced his face as if he couldn’t believe his number-one fighter was turning on him.

X had no idea how long Knox had been waiting to shed his blood. He’d barely been able to contain his rage in the last few months, though it had been building for years. Now that he was giving in to it, an odd sense of freedom washed over him.

It was something he hadn’t felt in a long time.

Knox held his arms out in an imitation of X’s earlier stance when he first entered the gym. “Still wanna tell me what to do?”

In his hand, X rotated the knife already streaked with Knox’s blood. Knox glanced down at the gash in his arm, but he didn’t even feel it. All he felt was the fury running through his blood.

X’s lips curled in a snarl, and he charged at Knox with the knife. Knox grabbed his wrist and pounded it against the wall until the knife clattered to the floor. He grabbed X’s leg as he tried to execute a roundhouse and yanked it straight up in the air, taking X completely off his feet and causing him to hit his head on the bench before landing on his back.

Knox straddled X and grabbed hold of his shirt with one hand, slamming his fist into X’s face. He continued to pummel X with both fists, heard a crack, and felt his teeth give. His hands were covered in blood.

X’s one eye rolled back, and Knox’s punches slowed.

“
Fuck.
” Knox stood and paced beside X’s unconscious form before slamming his fist into the locker, leaving a dent.

He grabbed a towel to wipe his hands. He hadn’t fully processed what just went down, but he knew one thing—he had to get out of there. Now.

He threw the soiled towel on top of X. Was he even alive? Knox watched as his chest moved up and down. He was for now, but Knox didn’t know the extent of the injuries he’d just inflicted. And he didn’t care. X could rot in fucking hell.

But not with his money. He reached into X’s jacket and pulled out the envelope full of the cash Knox saw him get after his fight. Knox had earned that damn money. It was about fucking time he got his due.

He quickly changed into his street clothes and stuffed everything into his duffel bag. At the last minute, he knelt next to X to pat him down, coming up with a Glock. A search of X’s pockets found two full clips. He pocketed both and tucked the gun into his waistband at the small of his back.

Knox picked up his bag and strode out the door, not looking back.

Natalie’s fingers hovered over the alarm system buttons. Was she actually ready for this? Could she really leave behind everything she’d ever known?

Yes.
It was past time she freed herself of her father’s tyranny. She punched in the five-digit code that turned off the exterior alarm system. Earlier today, she’d unscrewed the faceplates of the units in both her father’s bedroom and office to disable the mini LED bulbs on the off chance that he might notice the lights were blinking red instead of green. She figured the absence would be less noticeable than the change in color.

She hoped. She only had one shot at this. If the guards found her before she escaped, she doubted she’d ever get another opportunity. Her father would make sure of that.

Her stockinged feet made little noise as she padded through the tiled kitchen to the pantry. There she pulled her black backpack out from where she’d hidden it. Inside was everything she was taking with her—enough essentials to get her by for a few days, including several thousand dollars and a selection of Farrington jewels she could sell if she needed to. She’d buy whatever else she needed once she was gone.

She slid her feet into black shoes, then slipped out the side door. The cameras might record her leaving, but there was nothing she could do about that. She’d managed to pick up quite a few skills from trolling the Internet, but scaling the roof to disable the cameras mounted there wasn’t one of them. The decaf coffee she’d so thoughtfully prepped for the control room guard was laced with Benadryl. If that didn’t knock him out, hopefully it would make him sleepy enough that he wouldn’t notice the figure in black exiting the gates.

In theory, all the security surrounding her house was supposed to keep intruders out, to keep the heiress to the Farrington fortune safe. But none realized it was to keep her prisoner. Even she hadn’t realized it at first. When her mother died, she’d sought her father in her grief, believing he felt as she did, that he was the only one who truly understood her loss.

But she’d learned her error, and now she finally had the courage to take control of her life.

She scanned the lawn one final time before starting across it. With every step that took her farther from the house, her heart pounded louder.
Thud, thud. THUD, THUD.
God, it was all she could hear. It was so loud. How could she be the only one hearing it?
Because no one is out here. The lawn is empty—as planned.
Still, her heart continued to beat louder and faster, not out of fear, but excitement. Freedom was just a few steps away.

If only she could’ve taken a car, she’d already be miles away. But she knew she’d made the right decision. It was slower to go on foot, but it was smarter.

The shiny silver Mercedes parked in the garage would stand out and once her father learned she was gone, the police would surely be on the lookout for it. Plus, her father could have her tracked using the car’s GPS features.

That was one of the reasons she also left her phone behind. She’d purchase a burner later. The important thing was staying under the radar for the next four years. Then when she turned thirty and could access her trust fund, she’d be set. She’d be damned if she’d let her father get his greedy hands on it. He’d already taken enough from her and her mother.

And if she had to pretend to be the happy daughter any longer, she might claw his eyes out.

The perfectly manicured grounds that looked so beautiful in the daylight became creepy in the darkness. When had the lawn gotten so big? She’d been out of the house less than a minute, but it felt like this walk was taking forever.

Brightness blasted across the lawn from a motion sensor light mounted in a tree, and she jumped, her hand grasping at her throat.

Stupid.
She knew that light was there and could have easily avoided it.
Focus.
Now was not the time to get careless.

The side gate the groundskeepers used was locked.
Damn.
She’d planned for this possibility, but she had hoped it would be open. No matter. She’d have it open soon enough.

She reached under the edge of the iron fence, feeling for the wire that connected the lock on the gate to the main security system. A quick snip with a pair of pliers and then she’d turn her attention to the lock on the gate. It was a standard lock and wouldn’t take long to pick.

She pulled her kit out of her pack and set to work, trying out several picks before hitting pay dirt. The lock gave with a slight click, and she pushed the gate open with a smile.

Thanks, Dad, for the tools.
She’d ordered them online from a generic sounding site using her credit card, and they’d arrived in an unlabeled box, complete with locks to practice on. Intercepting the box before the guards inspected it had been tricky, but worth it. How ironic that her father had paid for the tools she used to escape him.

No, that wasn’t exactly true. He paid that bill with her monthly allowance, the money that was hers.

She shoved her tools back into her backpack and stepped out onto the sidewalk, a satisfied smile stretched across her face. The hardest part was done, and it had gone perfectly.

The April air was cool, and the moonlight shone down as she quickly walked through the multimillion-dollar neighborhood. She scanned her surroundings, looking for any signs of movement, not to mention security cameras.

It hit her just how alone she really was. Exhilaration shot through her as adrenaline ramped up her heart rate. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d been out in public without her bodyguard, Hugo, her silent shadow. She wasn’t even sure if Hugo was his first or last name.

There in the distance, she could see the line of towering luxury hotels. Once she crossed through them, she’d head to the bus station on the south side of town to hop on a five
A.M.
departure. She’d managed to trace her mother’s estranged and disowned aunt as far as Orlando, so that’s where she was heading.

As she approached the first hotel, Natalie tucked her long blond hair into her ball cap and pulled the brim down low over her eyes, hoping the employees wouldn’t recognize her from the events she’d attended there over the years.

The hair on her arms and the back of her neck came to attention, and she instinctively looked over her shoulder.

No, no, no, no, no!

A black Escalade, license plate reading
KENT 3,
barreled down the street.

How had they found her so quickly?

Panic, along with a side of anger, flooded her.

She had not gotten this far only to be returned right back to her father.

She would have to run for it. She tightened the straps on her backpack and ducked inside the revolving door of the hotel. There was another exit to the hotel that would put her out on a side street.

She walked quickly through the lobby, keeping her eyes down, but also watching for figures in black suits. She hung a left to go down a side hallway, but it led to a dead end.

Shit, shit, shit!
She didn’t have time to make stupid mistakes like that.

She backtracked and went down a different hallway, this one leading toward the rear of the building. Her heart raced, and she welcomed the rush of adrenaline.

She burst through a door marked with a red glowing exit sign, hoping to God this wasn’t one of those exits that set off an alarm. She looked left and then right, trying to decide which way to go.

The decision was easy—left was the way that took her away from her father’s guard in the black suit at the end of the alley.

She walked quietly, trying to keep her steps soundless. Every instinct told her to run, but her feet pounding on the pavement would surely draw attention.

A door several feet ahead of her swung open, and a teenager launched a black bag into the Dumpster across the alley before letting the door close behind him. It rattled before landing with a loud thud. What was in that bag—cans and rocks? Natalie closed her eyes for a brief moment, praying the guard hadn’t heard the racket.

“Stop! Miss Kent!”

She grabbed at the door handle the kid with the garbage had just closed, trying to pull it open, but it was locked.
No!
She took off at a sprint, angry at herself for wasting several precious seconds. The guard’s feet pounded on the pavement behind her. He was closing in on her.

She came to a side alley and briefly slowed, whipping her head back and forth.
No time! No time! Just go!

She hung a right and realized too late it was a dead end. She spun on her heel and nearly collided with the guard, who was breathing heavily. He grabbed her wrist.

She’d never met this particular guard, which surprised her because she thought she knew them all. She tried to jerk her arm away, but he only squeezed harder.

“Ow, you’re hurting me!” she screamed, hoping to play on his sympathies.

He merely chuckled. “You should have thought of that before you went running.”

She tried another tack. “My father is not going to be happy if you hurt me.”

“Your father gave orders to return you at all costs. As long as you’re alive, he doesn’t care what it takes to bring you home.”

The guard started to twist her arm behind her back, and she quickly stepped in and brought her knee up, connecting with his groin. A look of surprise crossed his face and his grip on her wrist loosened, though he didn’t give up her arm completely. She brought her knee up again, this time twisting her wrist free as the guard tried to dodge the blow.

She wasted no time and took off running again. The thought flitted through her mind that he might not be alone. Then what? She
had
to get away.

“You’re going to regret that!” The guard must have recovered enough to continue his pursuit.

She panted, frantically looking for a way out of the alley. Maybe if she got to a main street, she could dart across traffic. Or blend in with the crowds. That always worked in the movies. Too bad it was after midnight and there were no crowds.

God, this wasn’t part of the plan! This wasn’t supposed to happen! She needed time to think.