The Huntress

2. From the Beginning

...Sienna POV...

I could feel a rush of emotions as I continued to explain how I first met Hunter. Just talking about it made me relive it. While it wasn't your classic meet cute that most girls swoon over, it was perfect. Perfect for us. I could feel my cheeks begin to heat up with the recollection.

"Yes.. so anyways... I managed to get in the ring with him. He held back at first, thinking that I just wanted his attention or something. It turns out that girls don't frequent that club at all. So Hunter grew curious as to why I was there in the first place. Which was perfect, for me anyway. As it meant he stopped holding back. After years of training, I was finally fighting someone that wouldn't hesitate to give me their all. Though, admittedly, I think I may have been too cocky." I admit, looking away from Ash, unable to look him in the eyes from my confession.

I could sense the worry in him, as he reached out and pulled my attention back to him.

"What happened?" Ash asks.

"Hunter punched me directly in the chest. It felt as though my lungs were on fire. But I couldn't let it stop me. Hunter was there to win. If I didn't fight back, I would die. So I did my best to control the pain and keep going even though my lungs were making it difficult to bring air into my body." I confess. I didn't want to go into too many details. This would be forever a moment between Hunter and myself. And while I knew nothing bad would come from letting them know the details, part of me just didn't want to. I wanted this moment to remain special between Hunter and me for life.

"Being the ruthless man Hunter is, he used my injury against me, knowing that it was my weak spot. It was an advantage for him, as most people don't have that large of a weakness. So it wasn't long before he sent a debilitating punch to my chest, ending the fight immediately. However, when I didn't get back up, I think something in him changed. Only he can tell you what. But instead of walking away and leaving me to die on the mat. He brought me to see a doctor that helped to stabilize me." I say, omitting some of the more private details.

"Anyways, we stayed in contact after that. Hunter never once asked who I really was, which made me realize that he liked me for who I was and not who I was." I admit, with a soft smile.

"After Rylee died, I lost contact with him. I don't know if he tried to reach out or not. But we stayed away from each other. I only saw him for the first time after I was kidnapped. I didn't realize that it was his men that were after me until it was too late."

"What do you mean by that?" Jace asks, startling me slightly. Jace had remained so silent in the back corner, that I had temporarily forgotten he was here. As I look over, I see his posture has changed slightly, so his back is no longer straight in the chair, but hunched slightly, with his head towards me. It's not a big change, but for someone like him, it's massive and all too telling. Showing me that he's interested in what I have to say.

"Before I found you in the cafeteria, I decided to visit the top wing of the hospital." I admit, realizing now that Ash wasn't aware of this detail.

"You mean the private wing that was closed off to everyone, excluding a handful of people?" Ash remarks, raising a knowing brow at me. I choose to ignore his comment and continue with my story.

"I was curious as to why it was closed. I didn't think anyone would notice. I was careful to make sure I wasn't seen. But it felt as though something or someone was pulling me there." I admitted. I still remember how it felt like a massive magnet was pulling me to that part of the hospital.

"What was there?" Ash asks in curiosity.

"Not what, but who." I state, cryptically. Both Ash and Jace seemed to understand the gravity of my comment, as they remained silent in anticipation of my response.

"Tomás Velasco." I state, recalling how lifeless he looked in that hospital bed. I chance a glance in Jace's direction, to see recollection catch his gaze, making me nod my head in response. It's clear he knows who I'm talking about. Yet, at the same time, I can sense that Ash is clueless.

Ash seems to notice the exchange, turning to his boss for an explanation.

"You're sure it was him?" Jace asks me, ignoring Ash.

I nod my head in response as I continue.

"Yes. I met him when I was at Hunter's once." I confirm.

"Anyone care to explain?" Ash looks between Jace and myself in search of answers.

"Without going into details, Tomás is Hunter's brother. Tomás has a severe seizure disorder which is why no one really knows about him. Hunter wanted to keep him safe." I explain as Jace takes over.

"Hunter had reached out to Damian in hopes of getting his hands on Brio. However, Damian declined him. We thought that Hunter just wanted it for his own purposes. We couldn't just give him the tech. Hunter is a criminal after all. It's not like they normally have good intentions when it comes to these matters." Jace informs. I can see his point. At the time, Brio was still in beta mode. I pretty much had vanished at that time since I was in rehab. So of course Hunter had no choice but to appeal to my dad. Though our technology in the hands of the mafia has always been a sore subject to my family. My dad especially. So I can understand why my dad would deny Hunter's request without even attempting to hear him out.

"But why is seeing Tomás a bad thing?" Ash asks, seemingly lost.

"When I found him, he appeared to be in a coma. But that didn't make sense. Hunter always made sure nothing ever happened to Tomás. He had guards on him all the time. So there was no reason for him to be in the hospital. Especially for so long. When I met Tomás, he was awaiting a surgical implant to help with his seizures. With this implant, he should've returned to normal." I explain.

"Then why was he in the hospital?" Ash asks.

"I didn't know at first. I found his chart and tried to find out the answer to that very question. I was mystified to find him there. But what I found in his chart didn't make any sense. It was almost as though it was there for looks. There was a bunch of doctor mumble jumbo but nothing that went into an explanation as to why he was there. Rather claiming that Tomás had suffered a massive heart attack and was placed in a medically induced coma. However, something like that wasn't possible. Especially for someone like Tomás. He was both too young and rather fit. Which is when it started to make sense."

"What did?" Ash asks, looking at me annoyed.

"Tomás was being used against Hunter." Jace explains.

"Exactly. I performed my own tests, and it appeared as though his body was actually quite responsive, regardless of what the chart explained. I knew at that moment that someone was behind this, and it definitely wasn't Hunter."

Ash nods his head slowly, understanding what I'm getting at.

"I hid when I heard someone on their way to the room. The man that entered look familiar, but I couldn't place where I had seen him before. I watched as he took a needle from his jacket and plunged it into Tomás' IV." I explain. A small tear fell at the memory. I hate people that use the innocent against others. Tomás was a child. There was no reason for him to have been involved.

"I wasn't sure what had been injected at first. But after the man had disappeared I did a quick evaluation on Tomás. Whatever the man had injected him, was causing Tomás' pulse and breathing to weaken. Not in an attempt to kill him, but rather to make it appear as though he was in a coma." I explained, knowing that they wouldn't understand all of the doctor's lingo, so choosing to simplify it instead.

"What happened next?" Ash asks, sitting on the edge of his seat.

"Silvio found me."

"I tried to lie my way out of there, but Silvio knew too well that I wasn't supposed to be there. Which was made even more clear when he mentioned that he was in charge of who goes in and out of the room, and not Hunter."

"So Silvio was one of Hunter's men?" Jace asks.

"Yes. At the time he was Hunter's second in command." I state.

"So everything should've been going through Hunter, not Silvio. Which made me realize that Silvio must be a double agent. Playing Hunter. Silvio came closer to me, but I reacted quickly. Throwing a chair at him, and ran from the room. I made it to the garbage chute and jumped, not caring where it went at that moment. Silvio shot at me, but thankfully missed. I came out at the laundry shoot in the basement and ran up the stairs leading to the cafeteria which is where I found you. I could hear others coming down the chute, and knew we had limited time to get out. Which is why I grabbed you and ran." I explain. Ash nods his head in reply, as he knew what happened then.

"So it wasn't Hunter that kidnapped you." Jace comments.

"Not knowingly no. Silvio managed to spin it so that Hunter thought I was some sort of spy coming after Tomás to get to Hunter."

"So basically he accused you of doing the very same thing he was doing to Tomás." Ash commented, making me nod my head in reply.