Page 138 of Cavern of Silence

But I'm not.

Why is Miguel here?

"Fight him, Ryker,"Maureen says so loud and clear, I glance around the room, but she is nowhere.

Evandro's laugh is as sinister as Jonas's and echoes in my cell. He speaks in Spanish, and the two continue arguing.

I stand frozen, not sure what they say.

Is Miguel part of Jonas's cartel, or have they captured him, too?

Hours pass, and a tray is shoved through the slot of my door. I sit and eat the concoction of barely cooked food and drink every drop of water, thinking about anything Julieta told me about Miguel and wondering what she may have said to me that I didn't listen closely enough to.

"She didn't know,"Maureen says again, so real I look for her.

"Know what?" I ask out loud.

"He's coming after you."

"What am I missing?" I say out loud.

"He isn't a good person. Don't question anything when you see him."

The next few hours, I stretch my bruised limbs, trying to prepare for whoever I'm up against tonight.

Is it Miguel?

I try not to dwell on his giant frame and muscles bigger than any man's I've ever encountered before.

"You're trained to kill. He's not. Use what he doesn't have,"Maureen says.

I pace, trying to calm myself, but my mouth is dry, and my pulse beats hard when the door to my cell opens and the guard hands me a pair of shorts. I just stare at him.

"Ryker, now," he barks.

I undress and put the shorts on, and he motions for me to go in front of him.

Whenever I walk the hallway through the bunker, I tell myself this will not be the night I die. I will not let Julieta down.

Tonight, I work harder to convince myself.

When I step out of the bunker, I'm led to the top of the stairs. Evandro spins me and yells, "Fighter number one, Ryker McCarthy, property of Jonas Torres!"

The crowd loudly cheers then chants my name. Evandro holds up his hand. "Tonight, there will only be one fight."

The crowd boos.

Evandro quiets the crowd. "Tonight, we have David versus Goliath!"

The doors open and Miguel steps out. His hair is wild and eyes blaze with hatred. His hands are shackled behind him. Chains are around his ankles. One of Torres's thugs holds a gun to his head.

He's wearing a pair of shorts that match mine and nothing else. And I focus on his Liliana tattoo.

The crowd chants, "David," and Evandro holds his hand up again. He speaks in Spanish to Miguel and spits on him. In English, he yells, "No one will take down the Torres cartel! That includes the head of the Guatemalan cartel."

The men in the crowd yell obscenities at Miguel.

He's the head of the Guatemalan cartel?