Chapter 3

Elijah's POV

Everyone present stared at Sinead in shock and disbelief. Her decision had no doubt destroyed my last chance of survival.

"What are you waiting for? Do it," Sinead urged, her expression darkening.

The staff snapped out of their stupor. None of them dared to disobey her.

Sammie struggled to get up, but several men held her down firmly.

I was no pushover, though. Even when I was locked inside the cage, I was still too strong for them to get close enough to break my hands.

That was, until Sinead suddenly stepped forward grimly and brought her foot down on Sammie's knee without warning. The excruciating pain caused Sammie's body to arch as a broken cry of agony escaped her lips.

My pupils dilated. Instinctively, every muscle in my body tensed.

Sinead looked at me and said calmly, "I'll give you three seconds."

She raised her foot. The moment she uttered "One", she brought it down on Sammie's left knee. A sickening crack rang out.

At last, I understood what she meant. If I refused to obey, she would torture Sammie instead.

"Two…"

Just as Sinead was about to stomp on Sammie's arm, I grabbed my left wrist and snapped it with all my strength. In an instant, my whole body was drenched in cold sweat.

Sinead stopped and said, "That's more like it."

She gave me a miserly nod of approval. My heart sank into despair.

Seeing that I had given in, the arena staff immediately seized my right wrist and twisted it with force. A sharp crack sounded. Both my wrists swelled and hung limply at my sides.

"The match is about to begin. Send him out," Sinead ordered.

"Yes, Ms. Powell."

The staff shoved the wheeled cage forward, pushing me into the vast, blood-soaked arena.

As I passed Sinead, I heard her say softly, "Let this be a lesson. You need to know your place. If you want to stay by my side, you'll have to learn to bow your head to Wesley."

Pain seemed to coil around every bone and muscle in my body, but I didn't look back. Instead, I tensed every muscle I could and fixed my gaze on my opponent in the distance.

I couldn't die. I had to make it home alive.

The moment my cage was wheeled into the arena, the spectators started cheering in excitement. Their cries roused the starving lion, and its golden pupils locked onto me.

"The match begins now!"

As the referee blew on his whistle, both cages swung open. The lion lunged at me without hesitation.

I tried to dodge, but in the next second, a sudden rush of air cut past my ears. Before I could react, pain exploded through my arm.

Someone had shot me.

I looked up in stunned disbelief and saw Sinead in the VIP box, watching Wesley tenderly as she took the gun back from him.

That gun was a family heirloom left to her by her father. Even I had never been allowed to touch it.

As I stumbled desperately to evade the lion, I faintly heard Sinead speaking to Wesley with concern. "This gun has a very strong recoil. Look, your hand is all red."

The pain coursing through my body grew more unbearable by the second. Yet, Sinead lowered her head and kissed Wesley's reddened palm, cherishing it as if it were something precious beyond measure.

A loud roar rang out. The scent of blood drove the lion into an even greater frenzy. Seizing its chance, it pounced on me and sank its teeth into my shoulder.

For one terrifying moment, I truly believed I was going to die. However, I gritted my teeth and refused to give up. Using my arms, I forced the lion's jaws open and held them apart with all my strength.

Desperately, I slipped out from beneath its body and raced like a madman toward a spear lying nearby. Then, I fought back.

I had no idea how much time passed. I kept going until every inch of skin on my body was marred by injuries. Finally, the lion collapsed to the ground, defeated.

I had won, but I lost consciousness.