Savage Mate

1. Trapped

Mark

All I know at the moment is pain and sadness. I never asked to be part of this. I just lost my mom, I just want to curl in a corner and cry, but I can't, not when there is a guy hitting me while a bunch of people I don't even know cheer him on. My step-father is watching, I know he is, but he won't do anything to stop them. "Earn your keep," he told me. I "owed" him for all the money he spent on me, and my mom, especially the last few months while she fought cancer.

Another hit ends with my eyesight going black for a moment, I almost fall, but I know that if I do fall, I won't be able to get up again. I see my opponent lifting his arms as if he already won, and it's like a flip is switched, I go after him, raining punches on him. I'm tired and hurt, but I'm more tired of being in pain, of this unjust world where I lost my mom, and instead of being able to grieve her death, I'm thrown into a world I don't understand. I'm tired of being hit, of being in pain, and all I can think about is how much I want others to feel pain, the same pain I feel.

I start hitting and hitting and I lose track of time, even the people cheering around me are no longer something to worry about. For once, I have the upper hand, but then, I get a hit that leaves my head ringing, and soon the world goes black for good. When I try to open my eyes again I'm being dragged by my feet, my back is bare, and getting friction burns from the rough flooring. I don't even try and think of how filthy the floors are. The man dragging me finally lets go of me in the cold concrete of a room that I know well. There are cages all around and the foul odor of animal feces. It's John's latest attraction, people are attracted to death, but killing people can eventually attract attention he doesn't want, so he is using animals instead. If the human dies, he can dump them in a forest and blame the animals, but too many and it might catch someone's attention. On the other hand, if the animal dies, then no one cares.

"He lost?" John asks, and I know he is asking about me. I try to open my eyes, but one is swollen shut and the other is not far behind, so there's not much I can actually see.

"He put a great fight, boss," a man says, "it was just about to win, but then Butcher got a second wind."

"He could become a good fighter with time and some training," another voice, one I recognize as Trevor, my step-father's best friend.

"He is just there to open the night, I don't really expect much of him, his mother spoiled him too much."

I hear a racket and a hissing animal. I want to turn and see what's going on, but it's like every one of my limbs weights a ton. I have to focus on not to whimper in pain, I don't want John coming and finishing what the fighter started.

"What do we have here?" John asks, and I can hear the hissing getting louder. "This looks like an overgrown cat."

"We went hunting for wild animals, like you asked, and found a few bobcats, but they were way too smart and avoided all our traps, this is the only one we caught. I think that we can feed it and wait for it to grow..."

"Or feed it to one of the bigger animals," John replies. I try to look at the animal they were talking about, but can't focus.

"Are you sure it's not a shifter?" Trevor asks. "If you say they were too smart, they might have a human mind driving them. And if that's the case, we could get in trouble if the parents come looking for it."

"That would be a good thing, shifters fighting for us? They said those animal brutes care about their offspring, if we hold the cub, we could make the parents work for us," John says, gleefully.

"Are you thinking of putting a woman to fight?"

"Not to fight, but you know women have better uses," John snickers, and I knew what he was talking about. One of his many businesses is human trafficking. I'm lucky I was already too old when my mom died, because I knew that he also uses kids, and it would have been even worse if he had decided to sell me to his sick clients instead of putting me to fight.

"And what if they don't come looking for it?" the guy asks.

"Then we train it to fight for us, either way, it will make us money. Good catch."

"What if it's just a cat?" Trevor asks.

"Hey! You are the one who suggested shifters!" the first guy complains

"Well, just giving options. You know we need to cover all our bases."

"Well, we will see, won't we? Leave it in the cage with some food just out of the reach of its paws, I'm sure human arms should be longer, and if it wants to eat, it will shift."

"Good idea, boss. I'll do what you say," I heard steps moving away, and I knew the minion was following orders.

"And what about your kid?" Trevor asks.

"That bastard was my wife's kid, not mine. Let him there, let this be a lesson, if he can't fight, then he will be in pain. Only winners get to enjoy a comfy bed and a good meal."

I lay there, not even bothering trying to open my eyes, since I know they are going to leave me in darkness. I am too old to be afraid of the dark, but I'm still afraid of what could be with me in that darkness. I start to feel cold, and hungry. It's not until they are gone that all the discomfort around the place really hits me. I must have fallen asleep at some point, but then I woke up, startled. I notice that it was silent, like, deadly silent. It took me a moment to realize that there was no electric buzz, no sound from the air ducts. It is likely power was off, but it's not the lack of sound that woke me, it was a scratching, and I notice that it's coming from the cage where the cat had been, then I hear a very human whimper.

I start dragging myself to where the sound is coming from, and the sound stops. "It's okay, I think I can help," I say, my voice sounds scratchy and it's making my throat hurt. I need water, but the sink was too far away and I'm not sure I would be able to get to it. "So you are a shifter after all, huh? You usually need a key to get out of those cages, but I know a trick, it's not something you can do from the inside, but it must work from here."

I go by tact, and find the lock. It was designed to keep animals inside, not humans, it needed a key, but just about anything could work as a key, it just needs a piece of metal, and I use the pin on my belt to work it. A few minutes later, that felt like an eternity, I'm able to open it. It's not until the door opens that it occurs to me that I haven't heard anything more from the cage, maybe I made a mistake and I'm about to get attacked by a very angry cat, then I hear movement.

"Thank you," a little girl's voice says. I knew she was younger than me, but I'm not sure how much, what I know is that she is just a girl.

"Don't thank me yet, you are still trapped down here. I can't take you outside, I can't get outside."

"At least I can move now, the cage was too small for my human form," she shyly explains.

"You need to find a way out, if they catch you here, you will be in trouble, believe me, you don't want to know what they will do with you. Maybe you are small enough to get into the vents, that should allow you to hide and find a way out. I tried it when I first came here, but I'm too big and didn't get far."

"And what about you? You also need to get out."

"Don't worry about me, really. Knowing you are out will make me feel better. No matter how much I would like a friend, I don't want anyone else going through the same as me, especially not a kitty like you," I start dragging myself to where I think the sink is, I need water, the few words I have spoken are making my throat ache. I hear movement behind me. "There's a vent on the wall to the right, it should already be loose from when I tried to get out. Go that way, and, no offense, but I hope I don't see you again."

"You will see me again, I'll come back for you, I promise," she says, and then I hear her moving away.

I get to the sink, but when I turn it open there is no water. I feel like crying for a moment, but then I think of Kitty, who will be able to get away. I'm happy that even if I have to stay trapped here, she is going to be free.