Chapter 7: Sandal-Fueled Frenzy
Ingrid saw the oiled sandal descending – not at her head this time, but a vicious, wide arc aimed at her ribs. She didn’t think. Survival screamed louder than pain. She threw herself sideways, a graceless, desperate lunge towards the cage wall. The air whistled where the greased leather passed. Momentum carried the swing. Brenda’s furious snarl twisted into shock as the sandal, slick and heavy, connected with a sickening, wet crack.
Not Ingrid’s ribs.
Valeria’s jaw.
Valeria had been stepping forward, fist cocked, eyes blazing at Ingrid. The sandal caught her flush on the left side of her face. Her head snapped sideways with brutal force. A spray of crimson – spit, blood, maybe something harder – arced through the harsh light. Valeria staggered back, crashing into the steel mesh, one hand flying to her ruined mouth. Her eyes, wide with disbelief and agony, locked onto Brenda. A guttural, choked sound escaped her swollen lips. She spat violently onto the canvas.
Something small and white glistened among the red.
"You dumb cow!" The words were mangled, wet, but the venom was unmistakable. Rage burned through the pain in Valeria's eyes, hotter than the lights. "You fucking hit me!"
Brenda froze, the sandal still raised. Her face paled beneath the sweat and fury. "Val! I-I didn't mean—"
The opening was microscopic. Violet Moreau saw it. She hadn’t retreated far, just hovering near the ropes like a vulture, her green eyes sharp. While Brenda gaped and Valeria choked on her own blood and rage, Violet moved. Fast. Silent. The beaded flip-flops made almost no sound as she darted forward. Not towards the stunned pair. Towards Ingrid, who was still sprawled against the cage, trying to push herself up, her ribs screaming.
Violet’s hand, the one with nails bloodied from Ingrid’s scalp, shot out. Not to scratch. To grab. She fisted a chunk of Ingrid’s sweat-plastered ice-blonde hair close to the roots, right where the scalp wounds were deepest. Fresh, blinding agony tore through Ingrid’s skull.
"Shoulda stayed down, Maiden," Violet hissed, voice tight with effort. She planted her feet, the fl