I threw my head into the pillow behind me and began to sob.  I could feel the bed shake underneath me as each heave of sorrow rippled through my body.  The fluffy pillow beneath my face muffled my cries but in my mind all I could hear was myself screaming.

 I cried for my life.  I cried for Cody who had perhaps lost his life because of me.  I cried for Aundrea who had lost her mother.  I cried for my mom and dad.  I let everything completely go, drowning myself in my tears.  So engulfed with myself, I didn't even hear Vivian stand up behind me.

"Be ready at seven o' clock," Vivian interrupted.  "Your wardrobe is in the closet and everything you might need will be in the bathroom."  I could feel her body heat as she leaned over the bed towards me.  "I've got a lot of money riding on this," She breathed quietly in my ear.  "Don't you dare mess this up for me."

My body quit shaking and my head slowly raised from the pillow.  Before Vivian could completely back away from the bed I spun around with my arm and smacked her across the face with the back of my hand. 

"I don't know who the hell you think you are," I said through my teeth.  "But I don't give a shit about you or your money."

Vivian brought her hand up to her face, her eyes widened in shock.  "And I don't give a shit about you, if you already couldn't tell."  Her lips turned up into a snarl.  "But I can hurt the people you do care about."

I brought myself to my knees on my bed, ready to attack her as she spoke again.  "Don't you remember dear sweet little Cody?"  She teased at me.

Before she could even get Cody's name out of her mouth I jumped off of the bed and grabbed Vivian by her hair, throwing her into the small coffee table next to the wall.  Her weight crushed the weak structure and I ran to her, slamming my knees into her stomach as I jumped down on top of her. 

"Guards!"  Vivian screamed as I wrung my hands around her neck.

I put all of my body into the pressure on her neck and I found myself smiling as her face began to turn red.  A guard burst through the doorway and pointed some kind of gun at me.

I let go of Vivian's neck and raised my hands into the air only to be too late.  A prong and wire shot out of the gun coming straight for me.  A taser gun, I thought to myself.  Oh shit.

A quick stab of pain in my left shoulder was followed by an extreme electric shock that overtook my body.  My muscles convulsed involuntarily and my body contorted as I fell to the floor.   I tried to scream but my throat swelled shut and let no voice escape.

Then it stopped, and I laid on the floor gasping for air with a fire searing through my insides.  My mind was rattled and my vision was foggy but I could see Vivian's outline and her red hair crouch down next to me.

"Be ready at seven and wear something nice,"  She said quietly and calmly next to me.  "You and I are going to watch a match tonight.  Be a good girl and do what I say or the little girl with the pigtails is the next one to die."

I tensed as my heart stopped thinking of poor Aundrea dying because of me.  Reluctantly, I nodded my head and reached behind me to pull the taser prong out of my shoulder.  I winced as it came out of my skin and threw the bloody piece onto the ground.

Vivian stood up and walked out of the room, shaking her hips as she went.  The guards that had entered followed behind her and shut the door leaving me alone. 

I rolled over onto my back and looked up at the cream ceiling.  "Damn it,"  I said knocking my head against the floor.   "God damn it!"  I yelled at slammed my head down, leaving the back of my head throbbing.  A silent tear made its way down my face as I stood up and walked to the bathroom.

I flicked the light on and saw myself in the mirror.  I was still wearing the light blue hospital gown and my blonde hair was a mess on my head.  Brushing my hair aside, my gaze fell onto my neck.  The white bandage that had been taped on me back in Springfield was still there covering my wound.

I brought my fingers to the edges of the tape and slowly peeled it away, revealing the gory bite mark on the crook of my neck.  Stitches lined the crescent mark on the front side of my neck.  Turning, my shoulder to the right I saw the crescent continued, forming a full set of teeth.

My fingers lightly brushed across the line with a sting chasing them.  Cody's teeth had dug quite far into my skin and probably almost down to the bone.  My blood had cured him and I will never forget the flood of relief that overcame my body when I saw his eyes change back to his silver gray.

I tore my gaze from the mirror and stepped towards the shower behind me, letting the gown fall to my feet.   The hot water felt sensational on my skin and I stayed in longer than I had planned relishing every drop of water that fell down my body.

When I was finally done I glanced at the alarm clock in the bedroom and saw that I only had fifteen minutes left to get ready.  With a towel wrapped around my body I hurried to the closet and pulled an innocent looking white dress from the hanger.  I slipped it on and pulled on a pair of white flats before returning to the bathroom. 

Just as I was pulling my hair up on the top of my head a guard knocked on the bedroom door.

"Desiree," The man's voice said through the crack of the door.  "Vivian would like you to meet her down in the lobby of the hotel."

Taking one last look at myself and the bite mark that I chose to let show, I walked out of the bathroom and to the bedroom door.  Opening it I looked the guard in the eyes. 

"It's Desi," I corrected him.  "Not Desiree."

"Desi,"  The guard said motioning towards the front door of the suite.  "I will be escorting you down there.  Vivian thinks you might plan an escape alone."

"Then she's smarter than she looks," I scoffed, following the guard out the door and into the hallway.  I swear I heard him chuckle in front of me.

The guard led me down the hallway to the elevators and down seven floors to the lobby.  The floors were marble white and the walls shined as if they were gold. 

"Fancy.."  I muttered as we made our way towards a flourish of red velvet couches and love seats.  Vivian perched on one, her hair almost blending in with the material.

"Desiree," Vivian said when she saw us coming.  "Glad you could make it,"  She said sounding sickeningly sweet.  She stood up off the couch, her high heels clicking with each step she took towards us. 

"I didn't really have a choice,"  I retorted when she came face to face with me.

Shaking off my remark, she laced her arm through mine and shooed the guard away.  My arm automatically went to smack her away but I remembered her threat to Aundrea and let my arm fall limp in hers. 

Vivian led me through a long aisle of slot machines, all with vacant seats.  Even though the people here supposedly all had money they sure weren't wasting it on gambling.  The longer we walked the louder the rumble of voices got until we were right in front of the source.  Along the golden wall stood two tall red doors with golden handles, guarded by a group of men dressed in black armor.  On both sides of the doors stood two tables with long lines of people holding bundles of money. 

"I put three hundred down on Ryder going forty-five minutes in the cage,"  An aging man in a black tuxedo said placing three bills down onto the table.  A woman behind the table took his money, typed something on her laptop, and gave him a ticket.

"Forty-five minutes?"  A different man laughed.  "I put six hundred down on an hour and a half."  He laid down money on the table.  "And four hundred that the infected loses a limb."

A smile spread across the woman's face as she took his money.  My eyes trailed down the stream of people all dressed in suits and dazzling dresses.

"Are they betting on the match we're about to watch?"  I couldn't help but ask Vivian.

"Yes they are," A smile sat on her lips as she spoke.  "And they're all betting on Ryder who is one of my fighters, so all proceeds go to yours truly."  She threw her head back and laughed in greed.

My face went cold and my eyes narrowed at all of the sick people in front of me betting on people's lives.  I need to say something, I thought.  This is inhumane.  This has to stop.  I started to pull my arm out of Vivian's grasp when she tightened her grip.

"Just the man I was looking for,"  Vivian said admiringly, drawing my attention to her.  Her eyes were fixed in front of her and I followed her gaze to see someone walking towards us.

He stood taller than six feet and the first thing I saw was how built he was.  The black shirt he wore showed off his sculpted arms and torso as it clung to his skin.  I tilted my head up to look at his face.  Eyes the color of the ocean shone back at me with dark brows twisting in confusion as he looked down at me.  He almost looked sad to see me standing there.

"Vivian," He spoke her name, but didn't take his gaze away from me.

"Ryder,"  Vivian announced his name.  "This is Desiree.  Desiree this is Ryder."

Ryder held his hand out to me and I noticed for the first time the bite marks that trailed up both of his arms.  "It's Desi," I said shaking his hand.

"It's nice to meet you Desi," Ryder smiled, but his voice was detached.

"Desiree," Vivian put emphasis on my full name.  "Ryder will be your trainer for the few weeks before your first match.  I brought you here to watch and learn from the best." I glanced over at her and saw her staring at Ryder flirtatiously.

"Ladies and gentleman,"  A voice boomed in the theater through the red doors.  "It is my pleasure to announce your contender for the night, Ryder!"

Ryder glanced behind him at the red doors and then back at me.

"Well,"  I said over my shoulder as Vivian began to drag me away. "Good luck," I smiled at him.  Ryder's sad blue eyes brightened and he gave me a wink before turning to walk towards the doors to the fight that was awaiting him.