Chapter 28:
The Nail in the Coffin
In hindsight, it had been nothing short of a well-executed set-up.
Jory had arrived at the arena alone, uncomfortable in her own skin and hiding away in her oversized Blackcraft hoodie. It had been an awkward morning with Seth. Sure, she had her feeling that things were developing with him, but she had been burned too many times by misplacing her trust. When the fight was over, what would it mean for them? Was he only attracted to her because they were fighting the same battles? Seth had wanted to talk, but Roman had called, wanting to go for breakfast and a workout. She'd promised him they could talk later; she needed some time to think.
"Hey, Jory. Hold up."
Turning, she saw Renee, dressed in a black sequined romper and a denim jacket. "Hey, Renee. What's going on?"
"Mick wants to see you in his office. Seth's already there."
"Did he say what it was about?" she asked. Renee shook her head.
"No, but it's probably something to do with the show tonight." She gave Jory a once-over. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah, fine. Why wouldn't I be?"
"You look a little...off."
"Well, I'm good. I'll go put my bag in the locker room and head over to Mick's office." Renee nodded and went back to talking with Corey Graves. Jory went inside the arena, greeting everyone with a smile and an awkward wave on her way to the locker room. She opened the door to the locker room wide enough to put her bag against the wall and then she was off to Mick's office.
Mick and Seth were waiting for her, the two men turning to see her as she walked into the room. Seth smiled at her, feeling nervous when she didn't return it. "Hey," she said, stopping in place beside Seth. "Renee said that you wanted to see me."
"I did. I wanted to see both of you," Mick told them. "I got a text from Stephanie McMahon earlier today, and she wants to close the show with a mixed tag team match. I thought it sounded like a great idea, so I've signed off on it. So tonight, it is going to be you, Jordana, and you, Seth, against the team of Kevin Owens and Alexa Bliss. How does that sound?"
"Well..."
"It sounds great," Seth announced. Jory couldn't help but catch his enthusiasm. She smiled. When Mick looked at her, she quickly nodded in agreement.
"Great. Kill it out there tonight, you two."
"We will," Seth promised. Jory was already out of the office. He followed behind her quickly.
"Jory, hold up." She turned to Seth, crossing her arms over her chest. "Hey. Can we talk?"
"Seth..."
"Did I misread things last night? I thought..."
"Can we talk about this after the show?" she asked softly. Seth shot her a look. "I'm not trying to blow you off, okay? I promise. But Kevin Owens and Alexa Bliss are kind of tough on their own, never mind together. I just...I need to stay focused, okay? After this, we'll go and get some ice cream and we'll hash everything out."
"Just...tell me I haven't misread things. I only did this..."
"Seth. After the show. Please," she pleaded. He nodded.
"Okay. After the show." He held up his fist. "We got this."
"We totally got this," she told him with a grin, bumping fists. After that, they separated, Jory to get into her gear and get her hair and makeup done, while Seth was going to the trainer's room to stretch out.
Hunter rubbed his eyes with his free hand, incredibly chagrined. "I have been trying so hard not to be that guy anymore. I am trying so hard not to be that guy that ends careers and crushes dreams, and injures people and doesn't give a crap about anybody or what anybody thinks. I am trying so hard not to be that guy anymore, to be something more. So every day I put on this suit, and every day I tie this stupid tie, and I go to the office, and every day I try to put that behind me and I try to be a creator. I try to create something more for everybody here. And then a guy like Seth Rollins decides he wants to come to NXT.
"Seth Rollins wants to come to where I am trying to create, where quite honestly, I am trying to create the next Seth Friggin' Rollins.
"So I am done trying. I am so...done...trying." The chatter of the crowd turned into cheers as Hunter took off his dark grey business jacket. He tossed it to the canvas. "You want me so bad, Rollins? Then I'm right here. I'm not going anywhere."
Backstage, Seth was gone in a flash. Dressed in her ring gear with a cut up and modified version of Seth's T-shirt for her match, Jory shot a quick look at Renee before she followed after him. "Seth, this is what he wants! What are you doing?" she shouted after him. He was far faster than she was, already up the stairs and heading towards the curtain by the time she made it to Gorilla. His music played through the arena speakers and she burst through the curtain, rushing after him. She touched his arm. "Don't fall for it, Seth. He has you right where he wants you. You don't think he doesn't have a plan? He always has a Plan B."
"You should listen to her, Seth," Hunter mocked. "Go back there and remember your place."
Rage flickered in Seth's eyes, and he was moving down the ramp quickly. Jory followed slowly behind him, a bemused expression on her face. At the bottom of the ramp, Seth stopped, staring at Hunter in the ring. Turning his head to the left, he had no time to brace for the man who ran at him, clubbing him in the side of the head with his forearm and taking Seth down to the ground.
It was almost in slow motion for Jory, who froze just over halfway down the ramp. Right away she realized that Kevin Owens had been nothing but a red herring in The Authority's master plan. The real man Hunter planned to throw his weight behind was Joe, and it was a chilling realization. While Kevin was resourceful, he was still a bit of a chicken at heart. Joe was cutthroat and ruthless. He didn't care about the well-being of anyone but himself. His main goal was to incapacitate and destroy. With Seth down on the ground, Joe stood over him, dressed in a dark T-shirt and jeans, grinning down at Seth's prone body. From where she stood, Jory could see nothing but bad intentions in his beady brown eyes.
Hunter got out of the ring on the right side and walked towards the ramp. Locking eyes with Joe, he pointed to the ring. "Get his ass in there," Hunter barked. He turned his attention to Jory, who felt every nerve vibrate under his glare. "I'll deal with her."
Jory wanted to move, but she was frozen in place. Joe was throwing Seth into the ring when Hunter grabbed her. She tried to break out of his grip, but he was too strong. He ended up dragging her down the ramp, pulling her into him so he could wrap both arms around her. He was impressed; she had a lot of fight in her. But it wasn't going to do her a lick of good, and they both knew it. There was nothing Jory could do to help Seth or herself, and it hit her like a ton of bricks. She knew that nothing good was going to come out of the situation; the only question was going to be how bad was it really going to get.
Hunter lifted her awkwardly and shoved her underneath the bottom rope. Joe had Seth in a sleeper hold. Seth struggled, but Joe outweighed him. Moving into the ring quick, Hunter grabbed Jory, holding her against him tightly. He looked at Joe and gave him a curt nod. Joe locked in the Coquina Clutch.
Right away Jory could see the way Seth's knee bent on the way down. The second his scream hit her ears, she knew that his knee was hurt once again. She could see the pain in his eyes. His face was getting red from lack of oxygen. She struggled more against Hunter - she wanted to help Seth so badly - but Hunter held her in place.
Hunter looked down at his fallen protege and smirked at the redness on his face. The more Seth struggled, the more he cut off his own air supply. "Once again you make everything so much worse for yourself, Rollins!" Hunter shouted with a laugh. His fingers dug into the crooks of Jory's elbows, and she winced, biting back a cry. Right away, Hunter could see the change in Seth's eyes; the contempt, disgust, fear, and concern that flickered all at once. He cocked his head to Jory, unable to keep the surprise off his face.
Is that...Could they be...Oh, how sweet. Hunter snorted derisively. He let go of one of Jory's arms. He looked down at Seth. "I want you to watch this," he told him.
With that, he spun Jory and kicked her in the stomach.
She hit the canvas on all fours, sputtering and struggling to breathe. It had knocked the wind completely out of her. Before she could even catch her breath, she felt her arms get pulled behind her, hooked. His thighs were like a vice around her head. She struggled, but she knew it was no good. She was about to be on the receiving end of a Pedigree while Seth watched, helpless.
The last thing Seth Rollins saw before his world faded to black was Jory hitting the canvas face-first.
