Chapter 38

It was my worst nightmare. Josh was injured and Tucker was attacking his weaknesses, kneeling on Josh's sprained ankle, and pounding into Josh's recovering shoulder while he choked Josh from behind.

 



Jacob held me firm, refusing to let me interfere in the fight, despite having leapt into the arena. Never in the history of the fight ring had anyone leapt into the pit to support a fighter. My presence, combined with Jacob leaping into the pit to stop me, sent the paying punters into a frenzy. This was no longer a battle of honour between the two top fighters. It was a person vendetta that extended to the very core of the House of Jacob.

I screamed Josh's name but couldn't budge from Jacob's bear hug that pinned my arms to my side from behind.

"Stop!" he snarled, squeezing me tight, his coarse chest scratching my back as he held me.

Josh started dry reaching from the pain Tucker was inflicting. His violent spasms bowed him over despite any hold. Tucker released his choke and pounded his forearm into Josh's back.

Josh splayed out on the ground.  Tucker locked a hand across the back of Josh's neck and pounded fist after fist between Josh's shoulder blades. It was a done deal, as Josh lay there unable to do anything but take the abuse.

Tucker twisted Josh's hands behind his back and straddled him triumphantly. From my vantage point on the ground, I could see the tears welling in Josh's eyes from both the damage and the defeat.

"No!" I choked and my speech morphed into sobs. Jacob held me firmly in his arms and I could feel his excitement as he awaited the submission.

Josh lay beneath Tucker, beaten and trapped, the assault on his injuries leaving no strength left to fight back. I could see the colour drain from Josh's face. I saw the tension in his shoulder's dissipate as he gave up struggling. I saw the rigidity in his legs disappear as they sagged to the ground and stopped kicking.

Tears streamed down my face. I never thought Josh could be defeated. He was my champion. My hero. He was always going to make me safe and return me to my old life. Even against the cruelty of Tucker, I always thought deep down that he would win.

Josh lay there unmoving. Tucker slid up his back, using his thighs to hold Josh's arms in place, then flexed. The appreciative audience roared. Their undefeated champion had won yet again, and his biggest contender was reduced to nothing more than a rug beneath him.

I sagged in Jacob's bear hug, my gut wrenching sobs enough to make Jacob at least allow me the freedom to double over in misery.

Tucker knew how to please his fans. His smooth massive biceps bulged in all their glory, eliciting cheers and accolades. It was the hardest fight he'd fought and while the bloodlust of the crowd lapped up the battle, it was their own hero that they wanted to win. Their money had counted on it.

Having satisfied his fans, Tucker pounded Josh between the shoulder blades again. The torture of his victims was as much a part of the show as his subjugation of them.

At least seven fists later, Tucker slid his body down Josh's back, releasing his trapped arms. He spread Josh's arms out 90 degrees from his body and lay on top of him, humping him mockingly.
Josh lay there taking it, submitting to the abuse like a rag doll. At length, Tucker rolled Josh over, pinning his wrists together above his head while he abused Josh's pecs with a series of punches.

I could see the drool dripping from Josh's mouth as his half-closed eyes struggled to focus. Any other time I'd seen Josh pinned, his legs worked to free himself, but this time they lay as still as his arms. His injuries had left him vulnerable and Tucker had known how to work them. Tucker was the champion for a reason. He had the strength, the experience, and the callousness to play on his opponents' weaknesses.

At length, he paused in his abuse, letting Josh lie underneath him. He let go of Josh's wrists but they stayed in place. It seemed that even the ability to lift his arms was beyond him.

Satisfied at his victory, Tucker twisted Josh's nipples. Josh arched up, his eyes popping open but his arms stayed helplessly flopping above his head while he gasped and squirmed, too weak to even try to stop Tucker's torment.

Tucker grinned and relinquished the hold. He pounded Josh in the pecs a few more times to cement his dominance then stood up. He lifted Josh into his arms and squeezed him in a bearhug. Josh hung in the grip, arms flopping beside him as Tucker muscled the life out of Josh.

As Josh's knees buckled and he sunk to the ground, Tucker let him fall, then stomped on Josh's gut, doubling Josh over. Tucker hauled him to his knees by the hair and reached around him to lay multiple punches in Josh's gut.

When Josh collapsed face-first to the ground, his hips raised as he dry reached. Tucker twisted an arm behind Josh's back and pulled him to his knees. He reached around with his spare hand and squeezed Josh's nipple.

"It's not good enough to pass out," I heard Tucker say. "I want to hear you submit. Are you ready to give?"

"No!" Josh cried, his face wracked with pain. Tucker punched Josh in the stomach then locked onto the nipple pinch again.

"You don't get it, do you?" Tucker said. "You can hold out as long as you want but ultimately, you're mine.  The longer you hold out, the more you suffer!"

He dropped Josh onto his side and pressed a fist into his cheek.

"I could smash your face right now," Tucker said. "What's more important? Pride or submission?"

"Fuck you!" Josh spluttered and I winced as Tucker's fist raised to shoulder height and came down on Josh's face…

 



Chapter 37

"You bastard!" I screamed at Tucker for striking Josh's injured shoulder. I rose from my seat but Jacob yanked my chain, pulling me back down.

"Don't!" I snarled and grabbed the leash, snatching it from Jacob's grip. I stood again and leaned over the safety wall to call out to the fighters.

  



Josh had rolled onto his side to protect his injured shoulder from another attack. Tucker dropped a knee onto the side of Josh's neck, pinning his head to the ground. He punched Josh in the ribs and barely gave him time to recover before repeating the blow.

Josh curled his knees protectively into his chest but before he could try anything defensive, Tucker grabbed Josh's upper leg and hauled it into the air, pulling him into a groin stretch. Head pinned, leg's stretched wide, Josh lay trapped.

I could see Josh panting, his breath short and sharp as he fought the pain. He swung a fist blindly behind him but there was no power in it. It tapped Tucker's upper arm without creating so much as a flinch.

Tucker pulled Josh's leg up higher, hugging it with both arms now now to maximise the stretch. My eyes watered at the sight of of the enforced leg split.

Josh brought his lower leg up, snapped his legs closed with a sideward arch befitting a gymnast. As his thighs snapped together over Tucker's arms, Tucker jerked back with surprise, allowing Josh to force his lower body down. Tucker unbalanced and Josh palmed Tucker's knee, lifting it off his neck. Tucker fell sidewards and Josh rolled in the opposite direction.

Rubbing his neck, he stumbled to his knees. Tucker rose too and struck out with a karate chop at Josh's throat. Josh ducked, barely escaping the killer blow. He landed a jab at Tucker's underarm in response and followed with a knee in Tucker's chest. Tucker went down and Josh straddled his chest, pinning Tucker's arms with his knees.

He placed his fingers on Tucker's throat and uttered a few unheard words. His face told of the threat he was issuing however. The moment Josh removed his hands from Tucker's throat, the muscleman head-butted his groin. Tucker freed his arms to lock a pec claw on Josh.

Josh stiffened unable to stop himself from being forced onto the ground. Tucker rolled on top, maintaining the hold and smirking as Josh writhed under him.

Releasing one hand from the claw, Tucker punched Josh's injured shoulder again, then resumed the double pec claw before punching the hurt shoulder again. He alternated the moves, determined to exhaust Josh completely.

Josh kneed Tucker's butt and thrashed until he managed to knock Tucker off. He crawled onto all fours, only to have Tucker grab him from behind, pulling him down to a sitting position. Tucker's legs wrapped around Josh's waist and squeezed while his arms were pulled behind him.

Josh's mouth hung open and I could see him trying to pull himself forward.  Tucker was leaning backwards though, using his body weight to force Josh's arms straight up and back. Tucker's thick legs squeezed against Josh's ribs crushing him over and above the shoulder-wrenching arm hold.

Josh planted his feet on the ground and pressed up with his heels, raising himself off the ground and kicking himself over Tucker. He dropped onto Tucker, his arms coming down by side. Twisting his wrists free, Josh attempted to break away but Tucker's legs were still firmly locked around his waist. He fell, face up, onto the ground with Tucker now side-on, squeezing his muscular legs into Josh's stomach and lower back.

Josh winced, his breath cut short by the leg lock around his midsection. Tucker leaned up and punched Josh in the gut. Josh reached out to attack him but Tucker forced his inner arm down, pinning it under his body. Tucker punched again then grabbed at Josh's outer arm, twisting it over Josh's head.  Josh bent sideways at an awkward angle, immobilised and exposed as Tucker went to work on his torso with a combination of pec claws, punches and sharp slaps to the chest with an open palm.

To add insult to injury, Tucker slapped Josh across the face a few times, then reached down and lifted one of Josh's legs into the air, giving Josh even less leverage than before.

Josh used the distraction of applying the new hold to yank his twisted arm free. He swung it over in one smooth movement, chopping Tucker in the side of the neck. Tucker dropped away, clutching his neck as Josh escaped to a safe distance.

Using his advantage, Josh planted a foot on Tucker's throat. Tucker gagged, grabbing it. Josh used his full weight but Tucker lifted more than that. He muscled free, lifting Josh's foot from his throat knocking him off balance with a twist.

Josh dropped to the ground and immediately jumped to his feet, but suddenly he was limping. Tucker had injured his ankle!

"Josh!" I gasped, not knowing if his ankle was broken or just sore. Either way, he hopped as they both circled each other again.

When Tucker launched himself at Josh, they smashed back into the wall of the ring. Tucker pinned Josh's arms to the wall and rammed a barrage of knees into Josh's ribs. With only one foot on the ground, Josh could barely respond, receiving every blow full-force.

Tucker threw him to the ground and Josh struggled to all fours, keeping his injured ankle off the ground. Tucker grabbed Josh by the shoulders, pulling him upright. He knelt on Josh's injured ankle and as Josh cried out, Tucker wrapped an arm around his throat while his other hand wrapped around his chest to begin pounding endlessly into Josh's injured shoulder. Josh screamed and this time it was heard over the crowd.

Without thinking, I dove over the safety barrier into the pit, latching onto Tucker with a barrage of fists to his head and arms. Tucker swung a fist back, hitting me in the cheek. I reeled backwards, stumbling to the ground, barely aware of the deafening shrieks of the excited onlookers. My face throbbed as I faltered to my feet but suddenly strong arms wrapped around me, pushing me down to the ground. Jacob was on top of me, holding me in place.

 

I struck out at him in desperation, hitting him in the face before he managed to pin my arms to my side with a bear hug from behind. He turned me to face the other battling couple, leaving me helpless while I watched Josh's unfolding demise…

  



Chapter 36

I couldn't tell how bruised Josh's shoulder still was under the flashing lights but even with the dancing shadows, I was thankful it looked much better than it had the last time I'd seen him. I knew it must still be sore though. It was his Achilles Heal and Tucker would know it. I only hoped Josh could find Tucker's weakness early in the fight.

Josh looked up at me and smiled but for the first time I could see he was genuinely worried. The smile lacked any warmth or humour. It was only there to appease me.  Tucker, on the hand, looked directly up at me too and, when he smiled, I could see the amusement in his eyes. This was a fight he'd been looking forward to and if he had been given carte blanche to wipe Josh out like I suspected, then he'd be chafing at the bits with enthusiasm.

 



Josh and Tucker faced each other and to my surprise, Tucker extended a handshake. Josh accepted it, no doubt suspiciously, and as they shook, Tucker suddenly squeezed. His bicep bulged as he crushed Josh's hand. Josh bowed under the pressure and Tucker swung his other arm around Josh's head.
Josh dropped to the ground, flipping Tucker over, but Tucker used his momentum to flip Josh back to the ground, all the while keeping his forearm wrapped around Josh's head.

Josh kept the momentum up and reversed the move again, but this time Tucker reached up, pressing his palm into Josh's pec and squeezing hard, his other arm still pulling down on Josh's head.

The pec claw forced Josh to try to roll off. Tucker took the advantage to roll onto him.  Josh brought up a knee into Tucker's arse, knocking him off balance before he could gain control. The duo separated and turned to face each other on their knees.

They locked in a grapple and Tucker uppercut Josh in his injured shoulder.  Josh yelped and Tucker slammed him to the ground, sitting on his face and laying a round of punches to Josh's gut.
Josh's feet swung up, catching Tucker around the head and flipping him off.

Back on their feet, they circled. Tucker swung a kick at Josh's ribs but Josh caught it, holding fast. Belying his bulk, Tucker launched his other foot in the air, using Josh's hold as leverage. He kicked Josh in the side of the head, sending him staggering sideways as he hit the ground with grunt.

Tucker sprung to all fours and pounced like a leopard as Josh saw stars.  They crashed to the ground and Tucker squeezing hard on Josh's injured shoulder.  Josh cried out as Tucker pinned Josh's other arm above his head. Josh bucked and struggled, but Tucker maintained the hold and the overpowering, sharp pain.

Josh punched Tucker in the neck and threw him off, rolling away and rising, rubbing his shoulder. As Tucker rose, Josh leapt into the air, landing a foot square on Tucker's chest. Tucker reeled backwards and Josh leapt forward, landing on the muscleman's torso and pounding a fist in Tucker's chest.

Tucker raised his hands to defend himself but Josh fisted his pec again, then grabbed one of Tucker's hands by the wrist and bent his fingers back.  Tucker yelped and punched Josh in his explosed ribs, throwing him off again.

Tucker dropped on Josh's back and hooked him into a full nelson. He changed grip and lifted Josh's chest off the ground, hooking him into a camel clutch.

It was an impossible hold to escape from, and Tucker pulled back on Josh's neck more painfully than necessary.  Josh rode the wave of pain that consumed him as his back arced unnaturally. Tucker held him in place with one arm around his throat. The other flexing for the sake of the appreciative crowd who had already witnessed a fight more evenly balanced than they would ever have expected against Tucker.

Josh's face was discolouring from the strain. His body convulsed with a sharp jerk, arcing him back slightly further. It was enough to throw Tucker off balance where he crouched. Josh yanked an arm free with a twist, freed his other arm and pulled Tucker's forearm from his thoat, all in a matter of seconds.

Never slow on the uptake, Tucker responded. He grabbed Josh's wrists, pinning his arms to the ground. Tucker was still on top and Josh was face down, leaving him no power to push up against Tucker's hold.

Josh forced his arms forward instead, sliding them along the ground above his head. Tucker fell on top of him, his grip still firmly around Josh's wrists.

Josh bucked, and pulled an arm free from Tucker's grip, but as he tried to roll over, Tucker hooked an arm into a half nelson. They rolled over but Josh was face up, leaving Tucker to maintain control behind him.

Josh rammed an elbow into Tucker's side. He pulled his arm free from the nelson and spun off Tucker and into a crouch. Tucker sprung to his knees but Josh was on him before he could gain his balance.
As their chests collided, Josh twisted an arm behind Tucker's back. They hit the ground and Josh grabbed Tucker's pec, squeezing hard, returning the favour of Tucker's earlier torture. Tucker yelped and squirmed, his powerful torso trusting out over the arm pinned behind his back.

He reached up and clawed Josh's face. Josh released him and fell away, clutching his eyes. Tucker threw himself onto Josh, wrapping one arm around the back of Josh's neck and the other reaching down to hook his leg. Tucker folded Josh's head and leg together in a cradle.

Josh's mouth hung open as he tried to press his leg down against Tucker's hold, but Tucker had locked him up firmly, clasping both hands together to hold the position. With one hand trapped under Tucker's body, Josh swung his other fist over, striking Tucker's pec.  Tucker grunted but held on until Josh punched at him again, loosening the hold just enough for Josh to power out of it.

They staggered to their feet and Tucker lunged at Jacob, only to have Jacob side step him and pull their bodies together from behind. Josh forced one of Tucker's arms under his own armpit and locked Tucker into an abdominal stretch. Tucker's free arm grasped at Josh's knee fruitlessly as Josh pounded his exposed chest and stomach.

Tucker's free arm swung up, punching Josh square in the face. It broke all rules of engagement and sent Josh reeling backward, clutching his face. Tucker grabbed him around the waist from behind and lifted Josh off his feet and over the shoulder into a break breaker. Josh cried out as he arched backwards over Tucker's shoulder. His arms flailed in the air while Tucker's arms wrapped tightly around his legs and he bounced up and down.

The debilitating hold left Josh contorted in pain as Tucker finally dropped him to the ground.  Rolling Josh onto his back, Tucker pounded a fist into Josh's injured shoulder, and I saw Josh's mouth open in a powerful scream that was only drowned out by the onlooking crowd's bloodlust.

Satisfied by the reaction, Tucker landed another fist in Josh's shoulder and this time Josh rolled onto his shoulder, keeping it out of reach. It left him side on to Tucker. Such a fatal move could only be a sign of how much pain he was in, and it was exactly what Tucker needed to go in for the kill...

 



Chapter 35

I sagged into my seat, my face full of despair as I watched Miguel crumble.  He opened his eyes looking straight at me and I saw the sadness in his face as he saw my reaction. 

He gasped again then, to my shock, he set his jaw firm and strained against the hold.  Colby held him firm but Miguel was suddenly trying to fight back! His face went red with the effort until his body stopped the struggle and he fell back into the full force of the pin.

  



"Ohhh!" I moaned out loud, my hopes dashed for his salvation. Then Miguel rammed his head back, butting Colby's chin. It wasn't much, but the surprise was all he needed to yank himself free. Miguel untangled himself from Colby's legs and rolled away.

I rose to my feet hooting and hollering, and the nastiness of the crowd turned to a cheer.  Miguel and Colby circled each other in a crouch and lunged. They grappled low and Colby snapped on a headlock, dropping Miguel face down on the ground. Colby swung his legs on top but Miguel rolled under him, faster than I'd every seen him move. He swung up a fist, hitting Colby in the ribs and throwing the burly fighter off him. Anyone with more experience would have nabbed Colby in a hold, but my cheers were genuine just at the sight of seeing Miguel fight back.

Colby rolled and ended on his feet as smoothly as if it had been planned, but what he hadn't planned was for Miguel to swing a leg around, kicking Colby's out from under him.  Miguel was on top the same moment Colby hit the ground on his side. Miguel's elbow landed in Colby's upper arm and Miguel rolled him face down, twisting Colby's arm behind his back.

Colby raised his other shoulder, reaching back with his free hand to grab the back of Miguel's neck. It was a stupid mistake for Miguel to be in reach, but Colby knew his opponent wasn't as experienced. He pulled Miguel's head down and head butted him awkwardly. Colby bucked, knocking Miguel over and immediately dropped on top of him, crossing Miguel's arms across his own throat, trapping him on the ground again.

Miguel thrashed, having lost all power in his arms now. He arced and bucked but Colby held him down and smiled, saying something to which Miguel shook his head.

The determination in Miguel's jaw was something I never thought I'd see. More than that, it changed his look completely, from the soft, warm features I adored to a hard, mean fighting machine. Even without the skills or experience, he looked like a force to be reckoned with and as his impossibly ripped abs rippled with effort, my hopes stayed high for him to last the distance. Even losing this fight, he was putting up a challenge now that Jacob had to find acceptable.

Miguel spread his legs wide and planted his feet flat on the ground, lifting his hips and knees. Like a crab, his feet pushed him backwards. He slid out from under Colby's legs, forcing Colby to waddle forward on his knees to keep on Miguel's chest.

"C'mon Miguel!" I yelled, just as Colby finally lost his balance and had to release the arm lock and fall onto his hands.

Miguel grabbed Colby's ribs and squeezed.  Colby jerked upright and Miguel's legs swung up, catching his head and pulling Colby to the ground.  Still on his knees, Colby arched backwards, grabbing at Miguel's thick thighs. He left himself exposed and Miguel landed several punches in the gut before Colby's arms came down to fight him off.

Colby freed his trapped legs, but Miguel threw them off and twisted around so he was at a 90 degree angle; his leg lock now choking Colby.  Colby reached between Miguel's thighs and squeezed the tender flesh.

Miguel cried out and punched the ground but refused to loosen the hold. He came in from behind, grabbing Colby's fingers and pulling his arm all the way between his thighs.  Colby swore, his arm well and truly trapped by his head in the leg lock.

With only one arm free, Colby clawed at Miguel's feet, seeking a weak spot to force them apart, but Miguel caught him by the wrist and bent Colby's forearm over his shins. Colby's back left the ground as his arm bowed unnaturally over Miguel's leg.  He kicked up and tried to backflip over Miguel but was stopped with a blow to the stomach as he began the flip.

Colby tried again with the same result, then tried crab walking sideways to kick Miguel in the head. Miguel added pressure to the bend arm, seesawing it harder over his shins. Colby cried out and slid back into place.  Still he wouldn't give, suffering beautifully against Miguel's unexpected retaliation. He squirmed and tried moving his lower half in all directions, but Miguel forced him back in place with each attempt.

At length, Miguel rolled himself into a sitting position, arcing Colby up even more. He punched Colby in the stomach, then reached down and grabbed an ankle. Colby kicked away but Miguel grabbed it again and this time held fast, his massive bicep threatening to explode as it fought against Colby's strong leg muscles. Colby was doing all the work up to this point though, wearing himself out while Miguel simply held him in place.  Because of that, Miguel managed to twist Colby's leg under the butt and force it hard up Colby's own back. 

Colby cried out, both arms, his head, and now a leg trapped with no chance of escape. With the slightest change of pressure, pain would shoot through his body from either end. There was nothing he could do and he bellowed his submission after several long, tense minutes of suffering.

Miguel released Colby and stood to an explosion of applause and cheers. No one had expected a fight, let alone the win!  Miguel turned and looked up at me leaping in the air, punching a victory fist above my head. He laughed, looking every bit as surprised as Colby did rising from the ground.  The two men shook and hugged and Colby took Miguel's hand, rising it high in the air. They circled to face the crowd on all sides, and as they began leaving the ring, Miguel took one last look my way, his face beaming as he pointed forcibly at me and then clenched his fist in a show of solidarity and strength.

I fell back in my chair, exhausted from the excitement.

"Did you see that?!" I laughed, turning to Jacob. "That was awesome. Did you see him?! I knew he could do it! I knew it!"

"He did well," Jacob said, obviously pleased but trying to look nonchalant. "It's the next fight I most want to see though."

"The next…?" And then it dawned on me.

In the excitement of the moment, I had completely forgotten about Josh. The announcer was already booming out their stage names as Josh and Tucker entered the pit one by one. The blood drained from my face and the excitement evaporated in the ether. This was Jacob's revenge; his way of ending my 'obsession' with Josh. Tucker, the brutal, undefeated champion and Jacob's bully on the inside... I had no doubt he'd been briefed on exactly what Jacob wanted - the complete annihilation of my would-be saviour…