Chapter 12
The tires squealed in the parking lot as Jaxine stopped the truck, immediately unbuckling her seatbelt and took the keys out of the ignition before sliding out of the truck. She looked up at the arena through those amber colored eyes, swallowing hard, and took a deep breath before walking toward it. She kept her eyes peeled, carrying a titanium metal baseball bat she'd started carrying with her, turning around to look behind her before facing the arena. She knew better and Undertaker could virtually be anywhere as she kept walking toward the door. Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted something and walked over, seeing it was Undertaker's motorcycle, her heart hammering in her chest. He was here and he was with Steve and Kane.
Paul Bearer's laughter echoed around the parking lot, high and whiny, shrill beyond belief. "The Undertaker is waiting for you, Jaxine!" He cried out gleefully from wherever he was. "He knows you're here and that bat will do you no good at all!"
Indeed he did know she was there, sitting comfortably in the security booth, watching her.
"Yeah I know he is and he's a damn coward for not facing me himself!" She shouted back, looking around, gripping the bat tighter in her hand. "He has to use mind games and manipulation!" She was trembling from head to toe as she entered the parking garage, knowing the door to the arena was there. She walked right by his bike and suddenly smirked, raising the bat and took out his headlight. If anything would get him to face her, it was that as the glass shattered, sprawling to the garage floor. "Come out here or I swear to god I'll destroy your precious bike, Undertaker!"
He gritted his teeth, nostrils flaring in anger and had to clench the sides of the chair to keep from destroying the screen before him. It took all of his considerable restraint to not go out to her right then and there, knowing that was what she wanted. Not like it would save Austin or Kane, they were in good hands with his Ministry. He chuckled darkly.
Paul Bearer was just hoping and praying 'Taker didn't blow up, especially when it appeared she really was going to destroy the motorcycle.
The next thing that went was the mirror followed by taking out a knife from her boot and slashed his tires. "SHOW YOURSELF YOU COWARD!" She shrieked, beginning to bash the living shit out of his bike, the paint job ruined and the icing on the cake was her tipping it over, causing it to crash hard to the pavement, stumbling back while still holding the bat. Sweat was slowly forming on her forehead as she kicked it with her steel toed boots for added measure before stalking toward the door, leaving the bike in a heap behind her. She had to find Steve and Kane as she kept her eyes peeled for any sudden movement, amber eyes narrowed.
Once she had entered the building, the game was on. He was FURIOUS over what she had done to his motorcycle, did she not realize it was a rare piece of equipment? He pressed a button, the entire building going on lock down. Doors mechanically closing, gates closing over them. He was sealed in the booth, knowing this was going to be very entertaining. Just to fuck with her, he turned off the main power, the red lights flashing on.
Jaxine swallowed hard as she slowly crept down the hallway, looking around and behind her. She felt someone grab her from behind and swung the bat, hitting them square in the head with it, knocking them out cold. When Jaxine peered down and moved the blonde hair, she seen it was Christian and snorted. She smirked as the blood trickled down his forehead and stood up, moving slower, pressing her back against the wall, a bat in one hand and her knife was securely in her boot. If necessary, she would use it.
Kane had been left slumped against the wall, his costume smelling like singed nylon, which was the case. He heard the back-up generator kick on, the room suddenly bathed in a red glow. He peered through it to find Austin laying on the cement floor, bleeding from his mouth, one hell of a lump on his forehead. The Ministry had vacated when they heard the automatic lock down, apparently they had other tasks to perform and he knew it involved Jaxine. Grunting, he began pulling his arms over his head, straining as the chains resisted, letting out a pained cry when he broke the chains, dropping his arms against his stomach, whimpering softly.
She proceeded to move down the hallway further and knocked out Edge and Gangrel with shots to the head, shaking her head. Honestly, did Undertaker really think she was that stupid and naive? "Steve, Kane where are you???" She called out and rounded a corner, keeping her back pressed against the wall, knowing now it was going to get tough. She'd taken out the weak Ministry members, now it was crunch time as her heart pounded a furious tattoo in her chest. If she was going down, she wasn't going down by herself as she put one foot in front of the other, swallowing hard. She'd never been so scared and alive in her life and knew the game had just begun.
The Brood had been the decoys. He watched in amusement as she took them out, wondering if she really thought this would be that easy. He enjoyed a good game and that was exactly what this was. He just wished he could check on Kane and Austin, but then again, they weren't going anywhere. They'd been beaten till they couldn't stand. He adjusted the ear-piece and stated, "Bradshaw, she's coming up on you. Be ready."
Jaxine was about ready to walk in their trap when something stopped her. She pulled something out of her pocket and stared at it, touching the back of her neck before staring down the reddened hallway. "Kane, Steve..." She whispered, closing her eyes and kept going, knowing she had no choice. She would never admit she had feelings for Undertaker, had from the moment she laid eyes on him, and pushed those thoughts firmly aside. She wanted to destroy the necklace, but couldn't. It was as if it was a good luck charm in an eerie way and she'd carried it with her since he gave it to her that night in her hotel room. "Come on where are you?" She whispered out pleadingly, keeping her eyes peeled.
"Boo." Came a deep whisper from behind her, hands grabbing her by the waist. Bradshaw ducked the bat when it came swinging for his head, admitting she had good aim and one hell of a swing. He pulled it away from her, tossing it over his shoulder. In the empty building, it echoed like a gunshot. Laughing, he slipped back into the darkness, leaving her there to freak out.
Jaxine's amber eyes widened as she pressed herself against the wall, tears in her eyes, and closed them as she coached herself to keep going. 'Steve, Kane…' She kept thinking and took her knife out, flipping the blade up, deciding if these boys wanted to play dirty than so could she. She wasn't going to be fooled again and kept looking back and forth, hearing muffled sounds. Damn it where were they? Undertaker was messing with her mind, messing with her psychology and suddenly felt a hand grab her arm, swinging the blade as it slashed Farooq's chest before bolting down the hallway.
He snorted, seeing the glint of silver in the darkness, hearing Farooq curse and knew she was playing the game finally, realizing she either defended herself to the point of killing to survive or suffer the consequences of cowardice. His eyebrow arched in amusement when she swung again, a smirk forming on his lips.
Kane grunted, unable to see much in the red light, but he sure as hell felt the knife embedded in his forearm. His other arm was holding Steve up. "Jaxine..." He hissed, looking down at his arm.
Jaxine dropped the knife, tears rushing down her face, and immediately holding a hand over his arm as she pressed her face to Kane's chest. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry!" She whispered frantically, her eyes going to Steve and immediately cupped his face in her hands, pressing her forehead to his. "Steve please, you have to get up!" She bit her bottom lip when he didn't move, though he was breathing, and finally kissed his lips softly, knowing Undertaker was watching this. She knew this would wake him up if anything, not releasing his face, ignoring the blood caked on his forehead.
It woke him up sure enough. He even forgot where they were and the pain coursing through him, pulling away from Kane to wrap an arm around her waist, pulling Jaxine to him and returning the kiss. "Damn woman..." He grunted when he pulled away, wiping blood off her face. "I like your first aid methods."
He was fuming and had set loose the Ministry. This game was over. Vacating his chair, 'Taker went out to join the party.
Jaxine laughed in spite of everything that was happening around them, pressing her forehead to his, and smiled. "I had to find someway to wake you up." She looked up at Kane, who was just tilting his head down at them, and pressed her hand against his chest. "I couldn't let him hurt you guys." She explained, sighing when he shook his head at her, feeling Steve's arms protectively wrap around her waist, pulling her closer to him. "He's locked us in here, there's no way out."
Kane held his hand over his bleeding arm, nodding. "Ring." He said, seeing Steve's head snap towards him.
"That sumbitch was in the security booth?" Steve groaned, shaking his head. "That's where we'll have to go then, it'll be the only way out of here." He looked around, trying to get his bearings, holding Jaxine close to him. "Kane, can you get her to the doors while I unlock this place?"
After a moment, Kane nodded.
"I'm not leaving without either of you." She stated emphatically, staring into his blue eyes before moving onto Kane's, wanting to make that clear. She felt terrible for stabbing him and ripped part of her shirt off, wrapping it around the wound, smiling up at him. "I'll take care of that when we get out of here." She gasped when Steve pulled her against him again, passionately kissing her lips, and instantly wrapped her arms around his neck before slowly pulling back. "Later." She promised as they made their way down the halls, trying to find the ring.
Providing they got out of there in one piece and together, he thought, taking the lead. He forced back the pain he felt, forced himself to be strong, for all their sakes, knowing Kane was doing the same thing. Though he couldn't be sure either, Kane was known for ignoring pain, as if he truly didn't feel it. He glanced at Jaxine as they walked into the dome of the arena, it looked so different without the ring there, just an empty space amid the bleachers. "Shit..." He muttered when the lights flooded on.
Jaxine's eyes widened as the Ministry stood before them where the ring usually would be, feeling both Kane and Steve push her behind them, knowing there had to be doors around here somewhere. "No!" She whispered, grabbing their arms to stop them, shaking her head and pointing. Undertaker and Paul Bearer joined the crew, her amber eyes instantly narrowing. "What do we do?" She whispered, knowing now wasn't the time to get scared, especially after what she did to Undertaker's motorcycle. She wasn't going to tell Steve or Kane that though as they slowly made their way toward them.
The game was over and now the fight was on.
"Okay 'Taker, what do you want?" Steve demanded, knowing this was a fight they couldn't win. They were heavily outnumbered and he wasn't about to risk Jaxine getting hurt. Not to mention Kane's arm wasn't going to be any good to them since he'd been accidentally impaired.
'Taker seemed to consider that, raising his hand to halt his Ministry. "Her." He said finally, a cruel smirk spreading across his lips. "Then you two are free to go."
"No." Kane growled, stepping in front of her protectively, alongside Steve. He knew she could give herself up and 'Taker would go back on his word that was his way.
Jaxine closed her eyes when she heard that, knowing what she would have to do. She'd screwed him out of the title and destroyed his motorcycle. He had some serious payback on his mind, that much she was certain. "Wait." She spoke up when his Ministry started coming toward her, swallowing hard, and slowly slid between Steve and Kane, staring back at them with tears in her eyes. "How do I know once I surrender you won't attack them anyway, Undertaker?" She suddenly turned to face him, feeling Steve's hand on her shoulder. She covered it with hers, giving it a gentle squeeze.
"I give you my word." He purred, maliciousness in his glistening green eyes. His feral grin grew wider when the Ministry chuckled around him. Everyone present knew what the reality was. Either way she would be going with him and either way, she wouldn't like what happened in the process. "Come, pet." He held out his hand to her, snarling when Kane lunged forward.
Her eyes closed as the tears rushed down her face, knowing she had no choice. She would sacrifice herself to save Steve and Kane from possible death. "Kane stop!" She ordered, pressing her hand against his chest, shaking her head slowly. "I have to do this. This isn't over. Don't worry about me. Just promise me you'll get Steve out of here." When he started forward again, she suddenly got angry. "Damn it Kane PROMISE!" She smiled softly when he nodded and kissed his cheek. "Sorry about the knife." She then stood in front of Steve, cupping his face in her hands. "This isn't over. I promise." She kissed his lips softly, her tears brushing against his cheeks, and slowly pulled back, pressing her forehead to his. "Get out of here and get to safety. Live to fight another day." She felt him slowly release her and turned back to face Undertaker, knowing her fate was sealed.
The Ministry congregated around her instantly, hands pushing her into the waiting arms of the Undertaker. He held her still, allowing Farooq to pat her down for anymore weapons, knowing it would torture her even more to be touched by a strange man, given her past.
"Finish them." He said, dragging her away from the crowd, heading towards one of the fire exits, snorting. If only they had thought of that, one push on the door would have sent the sprinklers off and the doors open, even a locked-down building had it's weaknesses. Hearing her cry out, he arched an eyebrow, knowing behind them Kane and Steve were getting their asses handed to them. "I lied." He said simply.
"NO!!!!" She shrieked out, twisting and torque to get away from him, tears flowing down her cheeks as she was dragged out of the arena. "You heartless bastard!!" She cried out, not believing she'd actually fell for it, shaking her head. "LET GO OF ME!!" She shrieked against him, refusing to go with him because he hadn't kept his word. She screamed and started hitting his back with her tiny fists as he carried her over to the waiting car, kicking her legs, doing whatever she could to get away from him. "KANE!!!" She screamed out, her voice echoing throughout the night air, her vocal cords straining and knew she was hurting Undertaker's ears. She didn't care.
Kane reached for her from under the body of Viscera, having been slammed onto the cement floor, his hand trembling for a moment before falling limp.
"JAXINE!" Steve roared, spitting out mouthful after mouthful of blood, fighting the rest of the Ministry, though he was fighting a losing battle. It was becoming nothing more then a matter of survival. He called her name out one last time before everything went black.