CHAPTER 2 — The Secret Hidden Behind Prison Walls
The crowd thought Mason was playing with his victim.
They cheered louder.
"Break him!"
"Rip his head off!"
Marcus smiled from above, believing the show was becoming even better.
Only Mason noticed Daniel's trembling hands.
This wasn't the shaking of fear.
It was exhaustion.
Someone had tortured him long before he entered the ring.
Mason lowered his fist.
"What did you just say?" he asked quietly.
Daniel coughed, blood running down his lips.
"They lied to you..."
Mason grabbed Daniel by the shirt, pretending to throw him to the ground.
Instead, he whispered,
"Talk."
Daniel struggled to breathe.
"Your brother didn't die in combat."
Mason's eyes widened.
"He was arrested."
"He was sent here."
"And someone made sure you never found him."
The words crashed into Mason harder than any punch.
Impossible.
He had attended the funeral.
He had carried the coffin himself.
Daniel slowly shook his head.
"Did you ever see the body?"
Mason couldn't answer.
Because he never had.
The military had sealed the coffin.
His commanding officer told him the injuries were too severe.
For the first time in years...
A terrifying possibility entered his mind.
The funeral had been fake.
Marcus suddenly stood from his seat.
His smile vanished.
He knew.
Somehow...
He knew exactly what Daniel was saying.
Marcus immediately barked into his radio.
"End the fight NOW!"
Armed guards rushed toward the ring.
The audience thought it was part of the entertainment.
They cheered even louder.
Daniel grabbed Mason's wrist with surprising strength.
"You have less than twenty-four hours."
"They're moving Prisoner 731 before sunrise."
Mason frowned.
"Who is Prisoner 731?"
Daniel stared directly into his eyes.
His voice almost disappeared.
"...your brother."
Before Mason could ask another question...
A sniper's bullet shattered the arena lights.
Darkness swallowed the prison.
Screams erupted.
Gunfire echoed from every direction.
When the emergency lights finally flickered back on...
Daniel Cross had vanished.
Only one thing remained in the center of the bloodstained ring.
A rusted military dog tag.
May you like
Engraved with a name Mason hadn't seen in twelve years.
His brother's.
