Chapter 24

Shakily getting to her feet, Tahlia surveyed herself in the mirror and was thankful nobody else had walked in. She barely recognized the reflection staring back at her. How much would she have to give before this ended? What would she have to sacrifice in order to go back where she belonged? Before the Ministry abducted her, Tahlia was nobody on the roster and just had bra and panties matches occasionally. It was humiliating, degrading and she hated every single match she'd had…until she'd finally reached the top of the mountain and won the Women's championship.

Everything she'd gone through; all the humiliation and degradation had been worth it for that title.

Now…now she was stuck and had no idea what to do. Her career was sinking fast because of Undertaker's orders for her to get close to Shane McMahon and infiltrate the Corporation. Gritting her teeth, Tahlia hauled off and smashed the mirror with her fist, hating herself the more she stared into it. Now it was nothing more than shattered pieces of glass in the sink. Storming out, Tahlia didn't bother taking a shower or anything, heading straight to the hotel to be in the confines of her hotel room alone.

She didn't even make it out of the building. Taker couldn't leave, the show had just barely hit the halfway point and he was on at the end of it. Paul had come to him and, after clearing the Ministry locker room, told him in hushed whispers what he had learned. And because it was Paul, the only one who could ever get away with it, he had also received an earful. He had coldly told the older man to suck it up and get with the program in so many words. That didn't mean Paul's words hadn't hit home for him, or made him have a very unusual moment of doubt.

"Ssshhh…" She would recognize his rumble in the dark as he pulled her to him, ignoring her struggling.

The struggling ceased as soon as she heard his deep timbre, his large hand covering her mouth making it somewhat hard to breathe. In her rage, Tahlia didn't notice her hand was covered in blood from the bathroom incident, so when she reached up to push his hand away, he immediately grabbed it. She also didn't notice he pulled her into an empty dressing room, his warm chest burning her back. Just being this close to him did things to her body, but Tahlia was too disgusted with herself to go down that road. Her face was tear-streaked and honestly, she looked completely broken after having to lay down for Chyna in the ring.

"Damn!" Tahlia hissed, her anger diminished temporarily along with the adrenaline that had coursed through her body as pain zipped through her hand. She secretly hoped it was broken so she didn't have to endure anymore abuse at the hands of Vince McMahon and Sable.

Taker heard the pain in her hiss and reached over to flick on the lights. He wasn't worried about anyone coming in and had flipped the lock right after pulling her in here. This part of the building wasn't overly used anyway; it was a larger arena and they had no need to utilize the whole thing. It would have been a waste of time and resources trying. All Taker could do was stare down at her, taking in her face. He had never seen her like this, not on their worst days or during some more of his more… trying times. Tahlia had always made it through, but now…. now she looked broken and it bothered him. Taker had done this to her and he had to look away. Not because she was disgusting or anything, but because he wasn't sure what this feeling he was experiencing was. He just knew he didn't care for it.

He felt… bad.

"What'd you do to your hand?" He asked finally, holding it up and beginning to examine it.

Blood. Bruised. Swollen. Cuts. She had punched something.

"I took my anger out on the mirror in the bathroom."

Tahlia slowly flexed her fingers when Taker demanded it, obeying him like always. That was her problem. She obeyed and did what she was told. Her hip was branded with his symbol, she was his property. Is that all Tahlia would ever be? The more she thought about that possibility, the more it angered her.

"I'm going to make them pay." Using her body in order to get the job done was no longer off the table. Pure vengeance coursed through every vein in her body. "That whore Sable, Vince's brat and Vince HIMSELF are all going to pay."

Pulling her hand away from him, the gears in her brain were already starting to turn and walked into the nearby bathroom attached to the dressing room to rinse the blood off her hand. The cuts were too deep most had already stopped bleeding. The Corporation would regret bringing her into the fold when all was said and done.

Paul had been convinced that it was Taker she would be furious with and that seemed to be not the case. He was moderately confused with her reaction; her behavior was not exactly what he had been expecting. Honestly, Taker wasn't sure what he had been expecting, but this was definitely not it. While this sudden desire for vengeance was the preferable emotion, it wasn't the one he had thought she'd have. Hiding his confusion he followed Tahlia into the bathroom and perched himself on the closed lid of the toilet, pulling her towards him. Gently, Taker looked at her still wet hand, surveying the damage.

"Some of these might need stitches." He pointed out, perhaps a specialty bandage to hold the skin together. When she simply nodded, he sighed and cupped her chin with his free hand, forcing her to meet his steady gaze, searching her eyes intently. "Your time is coming, Tahlia. I promise you this."

Feelings for him couldn't get in the way, not with what she had in mind. This was business and vengeance, plain and simple. There was no grey area anymore. What happened to her tonight fueled a fire inside of her that would only be extinguished with the destruction and annihilation of the Corporation. Breaking it apart from the inside out was just one of her plans, specifically that punk son of Vince's who thought he'd charmed his way into her life. If only he could see past the lust he had for her, he'd realize just how screwed he was.

"I'm going to do whatever it takes – WHATEVER IT TAKES – to get the job done, to get you results. No matter if I have to go out there and lay down for every single woman on the roster, I'll do it. Because in the end, it's going to be ME who has the last laugh. It's going to be the Ministry who ultimately wins. So saddle up, cowboy, the fun is just about to begin!" Gripping his shoulders, Tahlia locked eyes with him to show how serious she was in the icy words she spoke. "I'll get my hand checked out. We shouldn't meet like this again, not until this is over with. We can't risk anyone discovering us talking to each other. Just let me know when the time comes to drop the ball on McMahon and I'll be ready."

Paul had been wrong. Tahlia hadn't been broken. She had been wavering between disgust and rage, and rage had won out. Taker was idly curious what the cost of her rage would be for her. That was one of the reasons he tried to remove emotions from play; they clouded judgment and hindered a person in doing what needed to be done. It seemed for her, it was only fueling her. Good for him, sure, but he was a bit concerned by what the damage would be to her long-term mental state. However, that was neither here nor there. Nodding, he stood up, his size alone forcing Tahlia to move away from him.

"So be it, Tahlia." He said darkly, wondering just what she had in mind for Shane because nowhere present was the woman he had seen earlier.

The one out there in the parking lot smiling up at the McMahon heir. This woman was someone who despised that boy and women were nothing if not vengeful. Not bothering to say anything else, Tahlia dismissed herself and unlocked the dressing room door to walk out, making sure to grab her gear in the process. Her feelings for Taker had to be pushed away for now. Hell, he didn't feel anything for her and only thought of her as a pawn in this game of chess he was playing with the McMahons. She was nothing more than a pawn. Well, this pawn was the Queen and she was about take the King -Vince McMahon- down along with his entire Corporation.

Just as she suspected, Shane was waiting for her outside of her hotel room when she arrived. She'd wrapped her hand in thick gauze, after sterilizing the wounds, with the first-aid kit she had in her bag. Without a word, she unlocked the door and pulled Shane inside by the hand, closing it behind her. Phase one of her revenge was about to commence…as long as the Boy Wonder was up to the task. Boy Wonder was a little bit confused. She had stormed off and he didn't blame her because what had gone had been messed up beyond belief. However… he had expected her to slam the door in his face, not drag him inside.

"Tahlia," Shane began, eyes dropping to her bandaged hand and frowning. "What happened?" He demanded, his apology getting shifted to the back burner as concern took over. Reaching for her hand, he noted the heavy gauze and really hoped she hadn't gotten into a fight or something. He knew she was pissed and she had that right more than anyone, but he also hadn't thought she'd be the type to go out and do something stupid either. "I'm sorry." He said quietly. "I didn't have anything to do with that, with Sable." Vince had passed it off as his own idea, along with the reasoning of it being, to show Tahlia was completely devoted to them now.

Pressing a finger to his lips, Tahlia shook her head and smiled softly, playing the part to perfection. "It's not your fault, so don't apologize. I know you didn't have anything to do with it." Lying sack of shit, her mind screamed, while her hands slid up and down his buttoned-up dress shirt affectionately. "My hand is fine. I…punched the mirror in the bathroom at the arena. Stupid, right?" Her fingers slid through his hair, all the while backing him up toward the bed until she sat straddled on his lap. "Let's not talk about business right now. I'm more focused on that kiss you gave me earlier at the arena." Her finger traced his bottom lip slowly, acting as though she admired his mouth. "Tell me something, Shane, why did you kiss me tonight? What do you want from me?"

He was a grown ass man and he had been in situations, sort of, like this before. Usually, however, he was the one doing the pursuing and questioning. She had totally taken the reigns on what he would've considered his spot.

"Because I like you, Tallie." He answered simply, staring down at her intently. "As more than a friend, I'm sure you've already picked up on that by now."

Generally, he was more focused on the hunt and getting what he wanted, but it hadn't been like this with her. Shane wasn't interested in just a fling, a harmless moment or two. He genuinely liked and admired her. So he had slowed down, gotten to know her as much as she'd allow him too and now here they were.

"And honestly, I didn't expect you to agree to join the Corporation-" He bet she was regretting that decision now after what Vince and Sable had pulled. "When you did, I was just so…. happy." He sounded like an idiot.

"Oh Shane, me too…" Tahlia congratulated herself from not vomiting all over him at those words and hugged him around the neck, rolling her eyes. "I like you too." Another lie. "You're the reason I joined the Corporation." And another lie. She pulled back after a few minutes of the embrace and chewed her bottom lip, looking sheepish. "Will you kiss me again? The way we both want?" The tone of her voice was pure innocence as she began to slowly unfasten one button after another on his shirt. "Stay with me tonight. I don't want to be alone…"

Shane was experiencing an issue. Not just the one in his pants either, but a mental problem. The majority of him wanted to show her just how much he wanted her, how much he was starting to care about her. Then there was that nagging voice in the back of his head telling him that this could all just be some type of emotional trauma on her part and she would royally hate him in the morning. He really did not want that.

"Tahlia…" He groaned, feeling his cock practically jumping when her hands skimmed his chest.

"Ssshhh…"

Tahlia had to fight the urge to go through with this and planted her mouth on his, his fingers instantly delving in her hair. He fell hook, line and sinker and now she had him right where she wanted. Pushing him down on the bed, Tahlia stood to remove her wrestling attire and then crawled on top of him, once again claiming his lips. Due to how tight her gear was, there was nothing on beneath, not even panties. It was all her beneath the outfit she wrestled in. His groans of satisfaction sickened her, but Tahlia had to do this if she wanted to sink her claws into him completely and make him fall in love with her.

A couple hours later, Tahlia stood under the hot sprays in her shower and let them wash away her tears down the drain along with Shane's fingerprints off her body.

She wasn't the only one having issues. Her patio door blinds had been wide open, leaving the view from across the angled way just as exposed. Taker had seen enough to last him several lifetimes and then some. He knew the original game plan had factored all of this in. He had told her to do whatever it would take. Tahlia had done nothing less than what he had commanded and he was livid. He was enraged. Taker was fighting down every instinct in him that demanded Shane's blood. He wanted nothing more than to crush Shane's head with his bare palms and then claim Tahlia on top of the punk's headless corpse.

"Son of a bitch!" He roared, turning and driving his fist straight through the nearest wall.

What his plan hadn't accounted for was the fact that Tahlia had somewhere along the lines become something more than his pawn.