Page 97 of Marks of Rebellion

"You never had to watch?"

"No."

She closes her eyes and bites her lip.

"You don't have to tell me if you don't want to." I assure her.

She slowly opens her eyes. "After I discovered what was happening, I tried to get out. Instead, they made me go watch. I had to dress up in an evening gown. Two men who they said were traitors were put into a ring. They made them fight to the death. After the first fight, another set of men were brought out. All night, it took place. When there were no more men left, the winners had to get back in the ring and fight each other. The last man standing could hardly breathe, and one of Torres's thugs would give him the final blow with a kick to the head."

"That must have been horrible."

"Five times I had to go. Every time seemed worse. I... I thought one of them was going to die tonight." Her tears fall onto the pillow.

"I know. It was so violent."

"How could they hurt each other like that?"

"I don't know," I admit. We talk a bit more, and after several yawns, I say, "It's late. Let's try to get some rest."

I close my eyes, and I try to fall asleep, but all I can think about is Hunter. His face was so mangled up when I last saw him, and all I see is that.

And I keep regurgitating the events of the evening.

After several hours of debating, I finally decided I would tell Hunter everything. I didn't want to lose him. If that is what he needed from me, I owed it to him. I would ask him one last time to drop it, but if he still insisted on me telling him my secrets, then I would.

I went to find Hunter, and that's when I heard it all.

Tinker thinks I'm a gold digger.

Hunter just got out of a relationship and didn't tell me?

He was living with her. That means it was serious.

But all of that doesn't even matter. Hunter told Tinker that he's done with me.

It's over. I'm too late.

I ran out of the room half embarrassed from being caught eavesdropping, even though I hadn't intentionally been, and the other half crushed from hearing him tell Tinker that we were over.

Then the fight happened.

For most of the night, I twist and turn, worrying about Hunter and if he is okay but holding myself back from checking on him.

He made it clear he doesn't want me.

I finally fall asleep and wake up some time later from the same recurring nightmare I told Hunter about. I'm back with Carlos, and I'm forced to marry him. It feels so real, and I wake up sweating and crying. It's morning, and Julieta is already gone.

I take a shower but realize I don't have any clean clothes.

Great. I'm going to have to ask Hunter for my clothes.

Why did I walk off the deck? I shouldn't have walked away from him. Everything that happened is my fault, including the fight.

Maybe I can sneak into his backpack and get my clothes.

I'm going to have to see him at some point.

I secure a towel around my body and cautiously go to the other spare bedroom and peek in. No one is there, but Hunter's backpack is on the bed, so I creep in and start rummaging through it.