Fighting for her Life

Chapter 8 - Skye

This week has flown by, training with Johnny has been hard and he pushed me all week and I’m ready for my re-match tonight.  Jess has been in meetings all week and I have hardly seen him at all.  I know today is the big presentation with the motorcycle company and I hope we land the project because I know how hard he is worked.  My head is deep in thought while I work on the quarterly projection for Monday's meeting. I told Johnny that I would meet him at the gym at 7:00 tonight since the match is set for 9:00. He wants to make sure I eat, and that I am in the right frame of mind beforehand.  I look at the time on my computer and notice that I am running behind, which means it is a good thing I brought my bike today, I will just let Johnny know that I will meet him at the warehouse.  As I grab my stuff and turn off my computer, I notice that Jess has not come back from his meeting, but I really cannot wait any longer, as I turn, I feel arms wrap around me and start spinning me around.

Jess is now speaking in my ear "I am so f*****g happy you're still here."

"Jess... Mr. Royal please put me down."

"No Skye don't do that, we had this talk last week and you using my first name sounds perfect." Jess still has me in his arms, and he is looking at me as if the sun rises and sets with me. I hate to be the one to set him straight because what I would not give for that look to be true, but we know that will never happen.

"Mr. Royal please let me go!" I can tell that I hurt him by calling him that, but this is what we are nothing more.  "You are my boss, and this is our place of business, so I will call you by the same name everyone else in this company calls you which is Mr. Royal."

"Skye, you are a frustrating woman, but I cannot fight you on that logic.  Ms. Anderson you just helped the company land an excessively big client with all your brilliance, and by the way Tyler Williams, the CEO of Customz motorcycle is a female.  She thought that our concept on targeting the females was brilliant, she also wanted to know how we found out that she was a female, since nothing on their site had any pictures of her and every other company, we were up against were shocked when they met her.  So, Ms. Anderson if you give me a moment I will grab my stuff and take you out for a celebratory dinner and by the way if you want,  you can be lead on this account."

"I am so happy that all your hard work paid off I am very proud of you, but unfortunately I can't do dinner tonight I actually have plans and if I don't leave right now, I am going to be extremely late. You know me never late, always early." Again, I see something cross his eyes and it looks like disappointment, God why does he have this effect on me I hate that look in his eyes.

"Oh... Of course, I should have asked if you were available instead of assuming you were available, sorry Ms. Anderson I completely understand."

I can't take this anymore I feel like I just kicked a kid's puppy. "Jess stop, please. I have an important meeting to get to, nothing fun and if you want to still celebrate with me, I am open any other day, just name it, but right now I have to go."  Jess closes the distance between us in seconds and his hands are holding me in place so I can look him in the eyes.

"I need you to listen to me very carefully Skye, because I am not going to repeat myself.  I love hearing my name coming from your mouth and this is not the first time I have told you this.  I understand you have plans tonight, and I will respect that because I can tell this is important to you so I will let it go. Tomorrow at 6:00 sharp I will be at your apartment and I am going to take you out for that dinner.  You will call me Jess and not Mr. Royal because this will not be a work meeting, this will be Jess and Skye, UNDERSTAND?" Before I can answer my phone rings and I know it's Johnny, and I will have to thank him later for his timing because I was two seconds away from melting right there on the floor in front of Jess, as I reach for my phone Jess stops me.

"Do we have any understanding Ms. Anderson?"

"Yes, I will be ready at 6:00 sharp tomorrow, but I really have to take this call."

"Okay take the call in one second.."  The next thing I know Jess' mouth is on mine and he is kissing me so hard I think he is bruising my lips, but I cannot push him away.  I have dreamt about these lips and as quick as they were on mine there gone and my fingers automatically go to my mouth and Jess is heading to his office.

"Are you going to answer your phone Ms. Anderson?  It will not stop ringing and don't forget 6:00 sharp," Jess says as he closes his office door.

Shit I do not have time to figure out what just happened, so I shut down that side of my brain and get my head back in the game because if it's not, it could end very badly for me.   As I head to the elevator, I grab my phone as it starts to ring again and see Johnny's name.

"Hey Johnny, I am so sorry, I’m just leaving the office I will have to meet you there" I say right away as I answer the phone.  I can tell he is angry and is not feeling this underground fighting but, he will be there for me because he feels like he needs to protect me.  Now he is just laying into me because I will not have time to eat before and I’ll have minimal warm up time. I get it, this match needs to be my number one focus and I allowed Jess to mess with that.

"Johnny, you can bring me a meal replacement bar which will hold me over until the match ends and this will give us enough time to warm up.  I have my bike so I can be there in 15 minutes.  I promise Johnny I have this there’s nothing to worry about okay."

Once Johnny has vented, and I have confirmed I was on my way, he backs off a bit and lets me know he has the bar for me and will see me in 15 minutes.  Jumping on my bike I ride across town to meet him for the biggest match of my life. Not only is this a rematch, because my opponent will be looking for my blood, but there is a lot of money to be made if I win tonight.

Jess

As soon as Skye is gone, I call Johnny.

"What's up Jess?"

"What no hi Jess, just what is up?"

"Hi Jess, what going on? Are you feeling better than you were last Friday?"

"Yes, I just landed the largest account my company has seen in some time and I wanted to celebrate with my little brother. I also wanted to tell you that I let my assistant know where I stand when it comes to her by kissing her senseless before she left, so are you in for a drink in a half hour my treat?"

"Actually I have a client in 15 minutes so I can't meet until later tonight, let's say eleven and if I finish earlier I can let you know?"

"Come on Johnny it's not even eight o'clock how long is your client training for?"

"Listen Jess I have to go since my client just showed up, but as soon as I'm done I will call you and Jess, congrats on winning over that client you worked really hard on it and they gave the best marketing company their business, I’m proud of you big brother."

Skye

As I reach Johnny, I can tell he is super stressed out and seeing him so stressed is making me stress. Does he assume I am not ready for this rematch?  God, I hope he did not place a bet on me I will feel like an ass if I cost him money that I cannot afford to repay him for.

"Hey Johnny, told you I would make it are you ready to warm me up and win this match?"  I ask when I'm within talking distance.

"Yeah are you sure you are?  Is your head in the game Skye?  You were the one and only person to beat your opponent, and from what I hear she has been training hard and out for blood, which just happens to be your blood.  We can walk away from this if you're not ready, I will get you out of this no questions asked."

"Johnny, are you questioning your training abilities?  Come on, we have been training just as hard and I got this.  If this is not something you're comfortable with I completely understand and won’t hold anything against you if you want to leave and I will see you tomorrow morning at the gym."

"No, I am not leaving you here on your own and even if you had a gang of people here to support you, I would still be here to make sure you're safe no matter what.  So, eat this amazingly yummy dinner bar and Let's get you in and warmed up."

"You are an amazing guy Johnny, thank you for being here with me, you are like the big brother  I always wanted."  s**t I shouldn't have said that and as soon as I said it, I realize my mistake I can see the confusion in Johnny eyes.

"Is your brother coming to the match tonight?" Johnny asks and I know he would never had thought to ask until I said he is like a big brother.

"No, he won’t, and I wouldn't want him to be even if he learned about the fight, now are you going to tape me up or am I doing that on my own?" I reply trying to lighten the intense emotion in the air.  We warm up and wait for my name to be called, Johnny is entering with me since he does not need to hide to make sure I'm safe like the last time, I feel good with having him here.

My name is called, and I enter the man-made ring and look at my opponent waiting for me and WOW did she train. Her body is in top form and you can see the want for my blood in her eyes.  She is here to make sure she reclaims her spot in the underground world.

Once the match starts, she comes at me hard, but I'm quick and avoid her hooks and jabs for the first bit, then suddenly she pins me on the mat and starts wailing at my face like she is tenderizing meat for dinner.  I must get out of this, or else Johnny is calling the match, I can see it in his eyes, he's not liking what is happening, s**t this cannot happen.  I use all the strength in my lower body and throw her off, once that happens my head is back in the game and blood is flowing and the adrenaline in pouring through my body, time to change the outcome of this match.  She considers this her win, and as she shows off for these people I attack, and she didn't see me coming.  I hit her with a quick jab to the face and kidney before she regains momentum, I take her down to the mat for a rear-naked choke hold which will cause her submission and my win. Within seconds the match is called and not too soon because the beating I took is now taking its effect. I’m losing my vision as the blood from my upper eye runs down to my eye and with the adrenaline leaving my body, I can sense some internal damage.  The ref calls the match my arms are lifted to announce my victory and then I lose control of my body and hit the mat.

I wake up sometime later in my bed and Johnny is sitting on a chair next to me.

"Hey, why you look like you lost your savings? We won the match." I say with a smile since Johnny isn't looking too good right now.

"Do you know the extent of injuries you received tonight?  I had to call in a favor with a friend of mine that is a doctor at the hospital, to come over and check you out since you blacked out in the ring, and you probably wouldn’t have wanted to go to the hospital.  You have 2 broken ribs, and your face looks like it met a meat grinder. She was killing you in there Skye. I almost stop the match and just before I had the chance you turned the match around for the win. If I did not see it happen, I would have never believed it. They called the match, and you hit the mat face first.  f**k Skye, you cannot do that again, I cannot support this madness. I don't even know why you feel the need to do this, you have a good job, you have a nice place, a sweet ride and you work out with an amazing trainer.  You have to let me know why, please Skye”. I can see and hear the pain in Johnny's voice and eyes and it is making me a little uncomfortable, but before I can say anything his phone rings.

"Sorry I have to take this call I was supposed to meet my brother for drinks tonight."

"Yeah no worries take the call."

"Hey Big Brother, listen I am going to have to bail tonight my client end up staying later and I still need to close shop. Are you good for drinks tomorrow?"

"Yeah sounds good see you in the morning."

"Listen Johnny, go out with your brother and have drinks. You got me home made sure I was taken care of, which is more than you had to do. Don't get me wrong, I appreciate everything you did tonight and in case I haven’t said it Thank You." As I try to move around in bed the pain shoots through my upper body and Johnny notices right away and grabs me some pain meds that the doctor left for me.

"Skye, I'm not leaving you tonight what if something happens and you're alone? I cannot take that chance!  My brother will be fine, and I promised him that we would get together tomorrow for breakfast. Skye, you do realize that you have to be in bed all weekend, right?  If you get out of bed, you can injure your lungs with the broken ribs plus the pain meds, you just took are strong. Even though you should be out like a light, I still want to be here just in case. here is no point in arguing with me, I already cancelled so please just get some rest." As I lay there the meds are taking effect, and wow I feel high as a kite and the pain is now tolerable, but before I let them take me out I remember I have Jess coming tomorrow at 6:00.

"s**t Johnny can you grab me my phone, I was supposed to have a work dinner tomorrow and I need to message my boss and let him know that I won't be able to make it."

"Do you want me to message your boss for you?"

"NO! No that's okay I can do it but thank you."  Johnny doesn't know where I work, just that it's a marketing company and that is all he needs to know.  I do not mix the two which is the way I like things. Once I open my email, I message Jess.

Mr. Royal,

I know that we had plans to have a celebration dinner tomorrow, unfortunately something has come up and I will not be able to attend.  Once again congratulations on winning the new business and I will see you on Monday.

Regards,

Skye Anderson

Once I consider that the email is professional enough, I hit send, within seconds my email dings and I see it is an email from Jess.

Ms. Anderson,

I thought we spoke about calling me MR. ROYAL! I hope that whatever has come up is nothing too serious and yes you will see me on Monday and then after work we'll go out for that dinner.

Truly Yours,

Jess

Once I read the message over a couple of times and try to think if he has always signed off on his emails as Truly Yours, I turn off my phone the drugs are really starting to pull me under.

"Hey Johnny I'm just going to close my eyes for a bit, if you need anything please help yourself." and before I know it I am swept away into darkness.

As soon as I am fully asleep my recurring nightmare starts. "Come on Skye, we have been together for a month now and you know I want you so badly" Tommy says as he pins me to the car seat.  I try to push him off without upsetting him, he is my brother's best friend and has been around since I can remember, but I am only 15 and not ready to have s*x.  I have told him this before, but he’s become more aggressive over the past couple of days.  "Tommy get off me please you know I'm not ready" I plead with him but he's just not having it.  "What do you expect from me Skye? I need s*x and you are being a c**k tease and tonight you're going to give me what I want." As Tommy looks me in my eyes, he reaches up my skirt, rips my panties and the tears are streaming down my face.  Once he is fully satisfied, he takes me home, and I have not stopped crying he tells me I'm too much work and to get out.  I run straight to my brother and tell him what happened, and he looks me in the face and says, "I'm sure he didn't do anything you didn't want at the time Skye, and now that he said you're too much work you’re changing the story. Don't be one of those girls Skye." I stand there looking at my brother the one person in my world I thought would always protect me the one I can trust with all my heart and in one sentence he takes that all away. I wake up with a jump and the pain just shoots through my body, the tears are streaming down my face and Johnny is holding me saying something to me, but all I see is the concern in his eyes.  s**t no one has ever been in my space especially at night and for this reason s**t!

"Skye you're okay, I'm here" Johnny whispers, I must think quick.

"Sorry Johnny, I'm okay just a bad dream I guess that match scared me a little." I hate lying to him, he has become important to me and even though my feelings for him will never be more, will never fully let him in. Trusting people closest to me will always let me down and that is not something I am willing to go through again.

"Are you sure it was the match Skye?  You were talking and crying in your sleep and even though I couldn't make it out, it didn't seem like the match is what you were dreaming about." He has always been one to tell it like it is and right now I wish he wasn't.

"Can you get me another pill?  The pain in my ribs is killing me, did the doctor say when I'll be able to get out of bed?" Avoidance is better than lying to him again so that is the route I decide to go.

"Yeah sure let me get you a glass of water okay."

"Thanks."

Johnny doesn't say much once he comes back in the room and gives me the meds and the water.  He just takes his seat by the bed and waits, the pills start to work immediately, and I let the darkness take me over and pray the dream stays away.

I wake up the next morning and the sun is bright and, in my face,, I can hear movement in the kitchen which I can only assume is Johnny.  Since I have a moment alone, I make my way to the bathroom to get ready for the day.  As I shift off the bed, my ribs are letting me know that I am stupid for thinking this was going to be easy, and within seconds Johnny is at my side.

"What are you doing getting out of bed?" I can tell he’s not mad but concerned by his voice, and I can't hold back my smile.

"Well I'm not sure how you wake up in the morning, but this girl needs to use the washroom." I laugh and the look on his face, I think he never thought about this until right now.

"Why Johnny are you blushing? You do know girls use the washroom, right?" I can't hold back and laugh but it's ends quickly since that apparently will cause you some serious pain.

"Ha, ha funny girl, yes I know girls use the washroom let me help you to the door."

Once I'm done in the bathroom, Johnny helps me to my bed and has a peppermint tea waiting for me on my side table, no one has ever taken such good care of me before and I feel the need to let him know.

"Thanks again for everything Johnny, you're a great friend."

"No problem, I would do anything for you, you're like a fierce little sister I always wanted,  but instead I got a pain in the ass of a big brother who I have to meet this morning before he becomes a girl and whines about me not wanting to spend quality time with him.  If you need anything you have my cell, call me and I will be right over."

"Go, be a good brother and let him know I am sorry for having you cancel your plans last night.  You should always have each other's back no matter what," I say with a sad smile and wish I had a brother like Johnny.

"Before I do go, I need to tape up your ribs, this will allow them to heal and ease the pain when you need to you know... use the washroom."