“It’s me,” Blue said, finally pulling himself away from Chelsea. He handed her the phone and pulled her close. He gave her one last, chaste kiss on her forehead and then he was gone and the door closed behind him.
“Hello?” She heard a familiar voice speak into the phone. “Hello, Blue? Is anyone there?”
“Jamie?” Chelsea asked into the phone. “It’s me, Chelsea.” She was torn. On one hand she had her sister who she hadn’t spoken to or seen in days, the sister she had been worried sick over. But on the other side of that door was Blue who was about fight to the death for her sister’s safety.
“Chelsea, are you okay?”
“Am I okay?” Chelsea asked. “I’m fine, Jamie. You’re the one who’s been kidnapped, where are you? Are you hurt?”
“I don’t know where I am and I don’t have any idea what’s going on. I don’t know who took me or why, but I have an idea.”
“It was Terrance,” Chelsea answered. “He’s holding you as collateral. He’s using you to force Blue into a fight. But, Jamie, it’s a fight to the death.”
“Oh God,” Jamie said. “What is Blue going to do?”
“He’s going to fight. We looked for you everywhere, Jamie, but we couldn’t find you. We searched for days, but we didn’t have any leads. This is the only way to get you back. But maybe I can come and get you. Where are you?”
“I have no idea,” Jamie answered. “I’ve just been in this small room for days. It’s been awful, Chelsea. I have no idea what’s going on, where am I, or what time it is. It’s like I’m trapped in some other world with no way to contact home. But no one’s hurt me or anything.”
“Good, I’m glad. I was so worried.”
“I was so worried; I haven’t heard from anyone in days. I’m worried about Mom, Chelsea. She’s sharing a bed with this man. We have to get her out of there.”
“It’s already done,” Chelsea answered. “She’s actually out in the parking lot right now. I just showed her who Terrance really is. She’s pretty devastated.”
“She’s always recovered before.”
“Yeah, but kidnapping and illegal fighting pits are worse than anything she’s dealt with before. But it doesn’t matter. I’m getting her and you and Blue out of this. We’re all gonna move to LA and live in mansions and never have to deal with anything like this ever again.”
“That sounds fantastic,” Jamie said and Chelsea could hear her sister’s voice shaking as Jamie tried to hold back her tears.
“Now that Blue is in the fight, it’s been pushed back by three days-”
“Three more days?!” Jamie demanded and a sob broke through her voice.
“I know, I’m sorry. But Blue is doing the fight, so then it will be over and we will be gone forever.”
“But Blue is coming with us?” Jamie asked, clearing her throat and choking back her tears. Her voice took on a lightness as she tried to change the subject to something pleasant.
“Yeah, maybe,” Chelsea answered shaking her head and smiling at her sister. Jamie had always urged Chelsea to hook up with Blue. She had always said that there was no point in waiting for a man; if you wanted something you just had to reach out and grab it. But Chelsea had always been too shy to actually do it.
“I think he should come to California with us. I think you two are adorable together, and that maybe something good can come out of this mess.”
“God, Jamie. Are you really trying to push me and Blue together now? Now? You’re literally a hostage and Blue is about to fight to the death. Me and him should be the last thing on your mind.”
“I guess I’m just a hopeless romantic.” Chelsea could hear some sort of muffled whispering and then Jamie was back, “They’re saying I have to go now,” Jamie said. “I love you, Chelsea, and I’ll see you soon, okay?”
“Jamie, I love you and I’m going to get you out of there-” but then the call ended and line went dead. Chelsea looked helplessly at the phone in her hand. She was thinking about all of things she should have said. She wished her sister had told her something about where she was being held. But it had been good to just talk to her, to hear her voice and know she was okay somewhere.
Chelsea put the phone down on the small table in the room. She wanted to talk to Blue again, but he had left for her own safety. She hated Terrance. She hated how he was using other people to hurt Blue. It was so cruel and, what was worse, there was nothing Chelsea could do about it.
She opened the door and was surprised to see the shop was still in full operation. Men and women were staring into cars and lifting up on the hydroponic lifters. They were living their lives and had no idea what their bosses were doing behind the scenes. Did any of them have any idea what was happening? Did they know why Blue was here? Did they understand that his father, who wanted to use and exploit him, was watching him?
Chelsea left the store and walked out into the car. Her mother was sitting there staring off into space and Chelsea slipped into the driver’s seat.
“Did you see him?” Colleen asked.
“Yeah, but there was nothing to do; he’s going to do the fight. I talked to Jamie again, She’s okay and unhurt.”
“Jamie! You talked to Jamie? She’s okay. Where is she?”
“She doesn’t know, but in three days we’ll get her back.”
“Three days,” Colleen agreed as Chelsea pulled out and into the street.
She drove the familiar route back to her mother’s house. They pulled into the house and Chelsea collapsed into the couch and Colleen disappeared behind her bedroom door.
Chelsea couldn’t help but think about the fight, about what it would be like. She closed her eyes and put herself in Blue’s place. She would be nervous, her knuckles taped up, wearing nothing but a pair of boxers and a t-shirt. Her heart pounding, she would walk through a throng of men who had come solely to see one man kill another. These would be men who paid a lot of money to watch this fight. They would cheer and jeer at her as she passed.
Then there would be the ring with its packed down earth stained with blood. In there would be her opponent – someone she didn’t know and had no problem with. But this person she would have to fight to the death. The only reason they fought was because the men around her needed some form of entertainment.
She thought about the men who would go to this fight. They no doubt thought themselves rich and important. But they were really just animals. They thought themselves privileged for being able to watch two men try and kill each other, but the men who sold them tickets thought they were suckers with too much money. These were men who wore suits and ties to work. They spent all day in an office and needed something to make them feel like they were alive.
The attendees would never actually fight. They would never get dirt under their fingernails or a bruise on their face. They would watch and bet on other men who did it, but never themselves. Somehow they had convinced themselves that paying to watch the fight made them better than the men who actually fought. But they were wrong.
Chelsea wanted to watch them all burn. She wanted to see all of them arrested and thrown into the darkest hole of the worst prison. They had taken so much from her and she wanted to take everything from them. She had never felt so useless and weak in all of her life. She was filled with a righteous fury and no outlet for it.
Three more days. Somehow she needed to survive three more days of waiting and then it would be over. Unless it wasn’t unless Terrance kept pushing the date back forcing Blue to keep fighting. She hoped Paul was having luck with his FBI connection. They needed to do something about this. She needed to do something. But Chelsea didn’t have any connections in the FBI or the Federal Marshals. She knew models and designers and actors, but they were all people who had a lot of power in Hollywood and no power outside of it.
Chelsea flopped back on the couch, knowing it was going to be a long night. A very long and lonely night. She wondered where Blue was. Was he thinking about her as much as she was thinking about him?