THIS LOATHSOME REPRIEVE NEEDS TO COME TO AN END. MEET ME AT THE YELLOW SIGN TONIGHT AT 3am & WE’LL GO ABOUT SETTLING THIS ONCE AND FOR ALL.
~KK

Neve crumpled the paper up and stuffed it back in her pocket. Opening the door to the club, Neve stepped inside and said quietly to herself, “I swear to God, Kristin, if this is another one of your mind-games, I’m going to beat the living shit out of you, security, fines and Fannin be damned!”

Letting her eyes adjust to the gloom, Neve looked around and soon realized that the room wasn’t totally dark. Way in the back, towards the far left corner, a single lamp was burning over one of the Tavern’s comfortably furnished booths. Ever alert to the possibility of an ambush, Neve held her place for a few more seconds and then walked slowly towards the circle of light, easily navigating around chairs, tables and other booths during the journey to her destination. Reaching the U shaped booth, Neve sat down and scooted into the middle, giving herself a good view of the deep shadows that held court over the rest of the Yellow Sign. Waiting for the inevitable arrival of her foe, Neve glanced at the table and saw that it wasn’t empty. A closed bottle of wine and two fluted glasses sat center stage, an obvious place setting that wasn’t an oversight of the Tavern’s cleaning crew.

Looking around warily, Neve picked up the bottle and perused the label. Realizing it was one of (if not the most) expensive bottles in Fannin’s cellar, Neve popped the cork and slowly poured two glasses, taking special care not to spill any of the dark red liquid on the battered table. Setting the bottle aside, Neve closed her eyes for a moment and then looked out into the shadows. Turning her head from left to right, Neve made several sweeps of the room before her eyes landed on a spot along the opposite wall almost directly in front of her.

Running a finger along the edge of her glass, Neve said calmly, “You’re pretty good at being quiet Kristin, but Ashley’s got you beat. When that girl wanted to sneak up on you, she was absolutely silent.”

There was no response for several seconds and the pale brunette was just beginning to doubt herself when there was a light tread from deep in the shadows. Seconds later, Kristin Kreuk seemed to pour out of the shadows and into the feeble glow cast by the lamp.

Keeping her green eyes locked on Neve, Kristin smiled coldly and replied, “I had no intention of hiding from you. I just wanted to see how long it took you to find me.” She settled into the left side of the booth, keeping a healthy distance between her and the other brunette. Reaching for one of the wine glasses, Kreuk continued, “It’s OK to drink it you know. I didn’t bring ya here to poison you.”

She brought the glass to her lips and allowed herself a small taste before returning her attention to the Scream Queen. Willing to play Kristin’s game, at least for now, Neve sipped and then answered, “I figured poison was a little too subtle for you. But why all the cloak and dagger? This whole meeting in the middle of the night thing is more noir than your typically blunt challenges.”

Neve took another sip from her glass, waiting for Kristin to answer. Sighing, Kreuk set down her glass and looked at the table for a moment. When she looked up, her emerald eyes were blazing with the hate and intensity that Neve had become all too familiar with. Her voice a low snarl, Kristin said, “Don’t play stupid with me Neve, you know damn well why I had to do it this way. Ever since you and I took a two story plunge off the side of Fannin’s steel box, good ol’ Dick has gone to extreme lengths to keep us from getting our hands on one another. If I’d tried to talk to you during the day or at a show he would have had security on us in a second and we’d still end up being denied that which we want most.”

Neve’s dark brown eyes tossed sparks as she asked, “And just what is it that we both want?”

Kristin’s response was immediate. “An end. An end to this war you and I have been waging for the better part of 6 months. The Box was supposed to indisputably prove which one of us was better and we both know how that ended. So instead of waiting for the boss to decide we’ve cooled down enough to fight in a ring, I’ve decided to take matters into my own hands. Are you familiar with the concept of a ‘Lights Out’ match?”

Neve nodded and said, “A throwback to the seventies and eighties. It was an unsanctioned match in which the promoter had no part. What happened to the participants was strictly on their own conscience as there was no referee. Often times they took place in an empty, or darkened arena, hence the name.”

“Ever the historian,” Kristin smirked.

“Is that why you brought me here?” Neve asked coolly. “You wanna little unsanctioned throw-down in the ring out back?”

Kristen shook her head, “This place isn’t quiet enough. The noise would attract attention and I want privacy for what I’m planning for you. Besides, I have no urge to face you in a wrestling ring Neve; when we settle this, it won’t be a wrestling match, it’s gonna be a fight.”

“How ominous,” Neve mocked quietly. “Of course, if we tear into each other in the middle of nowhere, there won’t be any wandering good Samaritan to come along and pry me off of you when you’re begging for mercy.”

Kristin just smirked, “That’s a risk I’m willing to take. Besides, we both know we’re way beyond showing mercy. Whoever loses isn’t going to leave upright, I can promise you that.”

Neve’s face was calm and cold as she said, “Where do you want to do it?”

“You know the North Road? Leads out of town and eventually ends up at Fannin’s place?”

Neve nodded and Kris continued. “About fifteen minutes outside of town, there’s a small shopping center that never got past the half-way built stage. The parking lot is paved, and a handful of lights work, but other than some basic framework, there’s nothing else there. The right corner of that parking lot is decently lit and even better, it’s shielded from the road by a thick strand of trees so no one can see us should they happen to go by. I can beat you all night long and no one would ever know.”

Neve thought it over for a second and then said, “You’re on. When?”

“Saturday midnight? I think it’d be cruel to make you anticipate the beating I’m gonna dish out any longer, don’t you?”

Neve smiled nastily and shot back, “I haven’t minded the wait. It’s given me time to savor all the ways I can make you suffer. I’m going to torture you Kristin and I’m going to do it with the greatest of pleasure. You’re going to recant ever bit of slander that’s come out of your mouth by the time I’m done with you.”

Kristin’s green eyes were almost glowing with malice as she spat her response. “The very first time we went nose to nose, I told you I wasn’t scared and that hasn’t changed. I will take everything you can throw at me and I’ll give it back in spades. You’re going to lose Neve and you’re going to lose badly. I’ll beat you like you’ve never been beaten before and I’ll break your spirit in the process. You may recover and wrestle afterwards, hell you may still be great, but you won’t be the best any more. That distinction will be mine.” She was silent then, taking another healthy gulp of wine while she waited for Neve’s answer.

“Still nothing but pretty words until you prove otherwise. How were you imagining we’d determine a winner?”

Kristin had seemingly reigned in her emotions and she answered quickly. “Well pins are out because we need a ref and that’s not going to happen. KO’s are always good but we’ve knocked each other out before and I want something more decisive. That leaves submission as the stipulation of choice. The fight doesn’t end until one of us gives up. And none of that tapping out shit either, it’s gotta be verbal.”

Neve nodded and said, “For once we’re in agreement. Keep your vocal cords strong Kristin, I’m gonna make you scream your surrender, even if you’ve gone hoarse.”

Kristen finished off her glass of wine and then slipped out of the booth. Standing at the edge of the light, she purred, “You’ll be the one sobbing and begging Neve. Your throat’s gonna be so worn out that you’ll have to moan to Fannin in sign language while you’re enjoying his company.”

Neve’s eyes burned with the power of her rage, but she managed to stay in her seat. Taking a final sip of her wine, she whispered, “When you’re lying on your back, with my foot pressing down on your throat, I hope you’re still coherent enough to realize that you’ve earned every bit of anguish and humiliation that I visited on you.”

Looking for a parting shot, the Hellcat threw Neve’s earlier words back in her face. “Nothing but pretty words until you prove otherwise. See you this weekend Neve.” Then she melted back into the shadows and was gone, her light footfalls quickly fading into the silence of the club.

Feeling her nemesis leave, Neve waited a second more and then slid out of the booth. Leaving the wine and glasses in their place, she left the solitary light burning as she headed towards the front of the club. Opening the door, she slipped back onto the porch and locked the Tavern behind her. Looking out at the slumbering town, Neve thought about the fight that awaited her and the career threatening implications therein. Reaching for her keys, she whispered, “Consider the reprieve over…” then she was heading to her car and the last few days of peace before this smoldering war would explode once more…

That Saturday. 10:54 PM.

Fannin had been sitting around the house, deeply ensconced in what must have been his fifth reading of Stephen King’s 'Nona' when the phone rang. Looking up with a surprised glance around, he quickly marked his page and grabbed the phone. Without bothering to see who was on the other end, he clicked it on and said, “Hello?”

On the other end of the phone, a familiar voice answered, “You always pick up the phone so fast; don’t you ever go anywhere without it?”

Ignoring the friendly jab, Rich smiled and said, “Hey Neve, whazzup?”

“I have a sparring session with Sarah Monday afternoon and I’ve run out of tape for my wrists. Does Straker have any extra rolls lying around your place?”

Nodding his head even though there was no one around to see, Fannin responded, “Only about a million. You want me to bring it in on Monday?”

“Actually I’m sorta at your front door, getting it now isn’t a problem.”

Rich groaned. “Sheesh Campbell, it’s like 50 degrees out and it’s been raining all night on top of that. Why the hell didn’t you just say you were at the front door?”

“Just love to mess with ya Rich,” she laughed softly.

Still shaking his head, the promoter quickly exited the room and strode down the central staircase, heading for the massive double doors at the front of the house. Speaking into the phone once more he said, “Hold on a second.” and then hung up. True to his word, he opened the door mere seconds later and let in the brunette waiting in the entryway. Rolling his eyes at her as she walked in, Fannin asked, “Looks like I’m not the only person with nothing to do this weekend.”

Turning to face him, Neve smiled and replied, “Hey don’t lump me in with you pal. I’ve got things to do, I just figured I’d stop by and get the tape now before I managed to forget it again.”

The statement was completely innocuous, but something about it struck the promoter as odd and he hesitated for just a second before answering, “Sure, make me look like a nerd. C’mon this way, Straker’s got a lot of his extra supplies in a closet down the hall.”

As the started towards their destination, Neve asked, “So, what’ve you been up to this evening?”

“Just reading Skeleton Crew again. I like to read King’s stuff when it’s cold and snowy. What about you Ms. Campbell, where are you off to after you take your leave of my isolated manse in the woods?”

Now it was Neve’s turn to hesitate, “Oh… I’m just meeting with a friend I haven’t seen in a while.” Fannin made a noncommittal ’hmh’ in the back of his throat as his only response.

They had reached the closet where the Fight Doctor kept his extra materials and Rich wasted no time in opening it. Scanning the cramped space quickly, he found several rolls of the plain white adhesive tape Neve was looking for, grabbed two and tossed them to his visitor. The brunette caught them easily out of the air, slipped one into her pocket and held onto the other one. As Fannin closed the closet she said, “Kudos Rich, I owe you one.”

He turned back around, “No problem. Here, I’ll walk you out.”

She nodded and they walked back down the hall, navigating the few turns with a practiced ease and within moments they were back at the front door. Still holding the second roll of tape in her hand, Neve glanced at Rich, smiled slightly and said, “Thanks again Rich. I’ll see you Monday.”

Neve was turning to open the door when Fannin asked, “Where are you REALLY goin’, Neve?”

The brunette stopped in mid turn and then came back around to face him. “I told you, to visit a friend. Why would I tell you anything different?”

Fannin smiled but he didn’t look happy, “You don’t just drive nearly an hour out of your way to come by and get a few rolls of tape. Add that to the fact that you’re dressed in old jeans, a battered jacket, a tank top that you haven’t worn in the better part of two years, oh and you’ve got your hair pulled back in pony tail for only the third time since I’ve met you. I may be a nerd, but I’ve done this job long enough to recognize a girl dressed for a street fight when I see one.”

Neve’s response was low, almost gentle, “Never could get anything by you boss.”

Fannin frowned. His next word was a statement, not a question. “Kristin!”

“We have to settle this Rich and you weren’t going to let us do it in the ring.” Neve’s voice was still low, but there was steel in it. She wasn’t going to be dissuaded.

Rich’s frown got a little deeper. “You’re right. I’m not going to let you two get a chance at each other again, not after what happened in the Box.”

Neve corrected him, “You mean on top outside of the Box. I’m sorry Rich, I know a rematch between Kristin and I could make the promotion a ton of money, but we wanna do this private…I mean totally private. No cameras in the woods, none of Charles’ photographers clicking away; just Kristin and me. One way or another, this ends tonight.”

For the first time since he had met her, Richard Fannin was furious with Neve. Trying to choke back his the bad vibes, he said angrily, “Jesus, you don’t think much of me do you? Do you really think I spent so much time and effort keeping you two apart just to build up the pay-off for a return match? Shit, the two of your nearly killed yourselves in a structure of my own devising and wasn’t about to let you do it again, no matter how much the fans bitched and moaned. I was serious when I said no rematch and I meant it. You two aren’t going to lay a finger on one another ever again. Either inside my ring or out of it. I hate to pull rank on you Neve, but I’m still your boss and I’m not letting you go through with this.”

Neve’s eyes went hard and she tensed ever so slightly. It was a stance he’d seen her adopt on numerous occasions, but til now, Fannin had never been on the other side of it. He decided rather quickly that he never wanted to be in this position again.

Taking a tense step forward, Neve whispered, “How do you plan on stopping me Richard Fannin? Are you gonna hit me? Chain me to the stairs? You’re a big guy but don’t kid yourself into thinking that I can’t or won’t take you down. I’m finishing Kristin Kreuk tonight and so help me God, I’ll go through you to get to her if I have to.” She took another step toward him, and though he didn’t back up, it took Rich a moment to find his voice.

Staring her dead in the eyes he answered, “It’s not worth your career, Neve.”

Her voice didn’t waver as she replied, “It’s not about my career, it’s about my legacy, everything I’ve done up to now and will do in the future.”

Fannin still wasn’t willing to give up, “You’ve never even shown the slightest interest in getting a title shot. Why the hell should your legacy concern you all of the sudden?”

Neve’s anger at the Hellcat finally boiled over and was directed at her boss, “BECAUSE SHE’S CHALLENGING EVERYTHING I’VE EVER DONE! BECAUSE I BUSTED MY ASS OVER THE LAST FEW YEARS SO I CAN RIGHTFULLY CALL MYSELF THE BEST AND I WILL NOT HAVE THAT TAKEN AWAY BY SOME JEALOUS BITCH WHO’S SAYING I FUCKED MY WAY TO THE TOP!”

Neve was silent then, her breathing rather labored, her dark eyes still blazing as she did her best to reign in the anger still flowing through her.

Surprised (and let’s be honest here, a little frightened) by the brunette’s outburst, Fannin hung his head for few seconds. When he looked up, Neve was prepared to listen to more quiet pleas or stern demands. What she wasn’t ready for was the deep hurt that shown through from behind the promoter’s glasses. His voice low, Fannin asked sadly, “Am I really that terrible?”

Not understanding, Neve asked, “What do you mean?”

“I mean me.” he repeated. “I’ve known you for more than three years now and in that time I’ve seen meaner girls say nastier, more spiteful things about you and your accomplishments and you barely batted an eye. One healthy ass kicking later and everything was fine. But now… Kristin insinuates that you and I had an affair and you’re ready to tear her to pieces? We both know it’s a lie, but is the thought of us being together so repulsive that you have to put her in the hospital? I’m not deluding myself here, I know I’ll never make the cover of an Abercrombie and Fitch catalogue but I didn’t think I that I was so horrible that the mere mention of my name was something akin to fighting words. That definitely hurts, especially from someone I consider to be one of my few real friends in this business.”

Neve’s face softened for the first time in several minutes. Placing her hand on Fannin’s arm, she said, “You know that’s not it. It’s not you that pisses me off, it’s the insinuation that I’m your friend just to further my position in the promotion that I can’t stand. You’re right, we have been friends for three years now, and in that time, neither of us has done anything that could be considered even remotely unprofessional. That’s why I’m going to break Kristin tonight; so she has to admit that everything she said about us was a miserable, festering lie. And if you’re really my friend Richard Fannin, you won’t try to stop me.” She was silent then, waiting for the promoter’s response.

Richard sighed once more, took off his glasses and cleaned them without really paying any attention to the act. Looking at Neve, he said, “ I suppose I really can’t stop you. And I don’t really want to deal with the bruises and contusions that would certainly result from such an endeavor. I don’t like it, but I’ll let you go.”

Neve nodded and then leaned in, giving him a quick hug. Pulling back, she said, “Thanks Rich, it means a lot to me.”

She turned to leave then and was almost out the door when Fannin called out once more, “Wait a second.” Neve looked over her shoulder and titled her head quizzically as she watched Fannin dig around in his pocket. A moment later he pulled out a battered looking key ring with a single key and tossed it to Neve. “Take the Plymouth.” he said.

Holding the keys to the Fury in one hand, and the roll of tape in the other, she asked, “You want me to take Christine? Why?”

The melancholy look stayed in Fannin’s eyes, but he still managed to smile. “Because after you put Kristin away, I want you to bring her back here so Straker can look both of you over. And even if you’re in no shape to drive, my car knows the way home.”

Neve nodded and said, “OK. I’ll be back as soon as I can, but it may take a while. Kris means to take me out and she’s not going to go gently into that good night.”

Fannin replied, “I guess you’ll just have to take her out first then won’t you? Now get going, this is far too much prologue. You’ve got a rough night ahead.”

Neve opened the door and headed out into the cold and rain. She was about to close the door when she looked back over her shoulder and said, “I meant what I said you know. You’re a good friend Richard.”

“Maybe, but a great friend would have been able to talk you out of it.”

Neve smiled and shot back, “Not a chance.”

Then she closed the door and was gone. Moments later, Richard heard the ‘58’s engine roar to life and the car rolled out of the long driveway, taking Neve to some unknown destination to face a very uncertain fate. Working hard to not look worried, Fannin sat in a chair by the door, pulled out his book and settled in to wait for her return.
*****
Nearly an hour had passed since Neve had left Fannin’s mansion in the woods outside of Hobbs End Vermont and as the brunette drove the promoter’s Plymouth Fury through the constant drizzle of the wind and rain, her thoughts drifted over the course of events that had brought the two beauties to this time and place. It had all started back in the summer when Neve had returned from her vacation and helped Sarah and the rest of her friends fight down the insurgency being led by Katie Holmes and her followers in the Darkness. Kristin had been Katie’s number one lieutenant in her dark cabal and the emerald-eyed Hellcat had wasted little time getting in Neve’s face and goading her into a fight with the most personal insults she could muster. From that point things had escalated quickly; the two had skirmished at the culmination of the Fourth of July festivities, and they had interfered in each other’s matches almost constantly, generally making one anothers lives a living hell. Finally Fannin had enough and pitted the Scream Queen against the Hellcat in the very first Pandora’s Box match, a viciously twisted contest that ended with Neve and Kristin plunging off the top of the cage and crashing through the announce table. After that, Rich had done his best to keep them apart for fear that the brunette’s couldn’t refrain from seriously injuring each other within the confines of a normal match.

Up until earlier this week, it appeared that Fannin’s precautions were working, but when Kristin’s invitation had arrived in Neve’s mailbox earlier in the week, it set their stalled feud in motion once more. After a single late night meeting at the Yellow Sign Tavern, Neve and Kristin agreed to settle their differences once and for all. All of these memories went through Neve’s mind in less than a second and all thoughts of the past were banished as she saw the poorly lit entrance for the abandoned shopping center that was to be their dueling ground. Flicking the turn signal on, despite a total lack of other cars on the road, Neve turned onto the little road and piloted her way across the darkened lot, gliding the big old car smoothly towards the right corner where Kristin had indicated there would be the most privacy for their showdown. Parking the Plymouth under one of the two flickering lamps in that area of the lot, Neve cut the engine and sat silent for a moment. Collecting her thoughts, she looked out through the rain spattered windshield and said to no one at all, “Let’s end this.”

Then she opened the door and stepped out into the gently falling rain. Slipping the car keys into the pocket of her jacket, Neve pulled the old garment tighter around her shoulders and suppressed a shiver. The radio had said the lows were only going to be in the fifties over night and while that was remarkably warm for November in Vermont, the wind and the rain certainly weren’t helping ward off the chill any. Taking stock of her surroundings, Neve had to admit that Kristin was right. This place wasn’t just isolated, it was deserted. The two rivals could do anything they wanted to one another and no one would ever come by to investigate. Shaking her head to flick off the moisture, Neve heard a small noise behind her and she whirled on her heel to face the copse of trees at her back. Over near the edge of the woods, a slender figure was getting out of a car that had been conveniently backed into the surrounding trees. Her face growing cold, Neve waited in tense silence as Kristin closed her door and walked slowly across the rain-slick asphalt.

The smaller brunette was dressed much as Neve was, in tight fitting jeans, a dark tank top, tape wrapped hands and a loose sweatshirt type jacket while her long hair was pulled back in a tight braid. Even in the nauseating yellow orange light thrown by the arc sodium lamps, Kristin’s eyes glinted like burnished emeralds. Leveling her gaze at Neve from several feet away she said, “You always were good at keeping a deadline.”

“And you were always good at making a dramatic entrance. Are you ready to get this over with? I don’t have a problem kicking your ass all over this lot, but I’d prefer to do so quickly enough to make sure I don’t catch pneumonia.”

Kristin smirked and replied, “We’ll be hitting each other soon enough. A few more seconds of reprieve won’t make any difference. It’s going to end the same no matter what time we start.”

Neve’s lip curled in a tiny snarl and she fired back, “There’s no stay of execution Kristin. You’re receipt is coming and I’m going to make sure you pay for everything you’ve put me through in the last six months.”

Kristin only rolled her eyes and kept circling the Scream Queen. Keeping her glare focused on Neve, she walked over to the front of the Plymouth and traced her hand across the hood. Leering at her nemesis, she chided, “You’re driving his car now? Didja have a little quickie in the back before you headed out here? Did he kiss you goodbye or were you still on your knees when he handed you the keys?”

The sound in Neve’s throat was almost a growl and it took every ounce of her vast will to keep from tearing the Hellcat to shreds right then and there. Lifting her face to the rain, Neve took a deep breath and exhaled, watching the plume of steam rise onto the wind. Looking back at Kristin, her eyes still burned, but her voice was calm as she said, “It won’t work any more Kristin. I’m not going to be baited by your lies for another second. I’m still going to tear you apart for them, but I refuse to play into that trap.”

Kristin’s grin was nothing but malice. “I guess I’ll just have to try harder.”

Neve took a several steps forward, cutting the distance between them to less than two feet. “I just want to know one thing…why? Why this way? Not your phony, posturing bullshit slander reason. The real reason. What slight, real or imagined have I dealt you that would cause you to come after me like this?”

Kristin’s smug glare dropped away like a veil and the rage roiling inside her made itself known for the first time since the lock on Pandora’s Box had been snapped shut. Going nose to nose with the taller brunette, Kristin whispered hatefully, “You still don’t get it do you? After everything we’ve put each other through, you still don’t understand just how alike we really are.”

Keeping her voice low, Neve said two words. “Enlighten me.”

Kristin’s green eyes narrowed for a moment and then she said, “Two years ago, I was hired by Richard Fannin to come to his promotion. I was ecstatic. I’d busted my ass for three years before that in a no name Kansas backwater on the slim chance that some day, I’d get my chance to prove just how good I was. Richard was my shot. My first day on the job, I came to his office to say thanks and he told me, and I quote, ‘I’ve seen what you can do Ms. Kreuk. I have no doubt that you will prove to be the very best in relatively short order.’ From that point on, I was bound and determined to make that come true. I put everything I had into all of my matches so that the next time he said it, it wasn’t going to be some first day on the job hyperbole, but an honest to God statement of fact. But after nearly a year of putting my body on the line, I came to realize that there were only two distinctions Fannin made between his talents and no matter how hard I tried, I was always going to be in his second tier. Do you have any idea what those two classes are Neve?”

“ I bet you’re going to tell me,” Neve said, her voice straining to be heard over the rain.

Kristen nodded her head minutely and continued, “Richard Fannin’s assessment of his talent can be summed up very simply. There’s ‘Not Neve Campbell’ and ‘Neve Campbell’ Not being you, I’m relegated to the first group, but I’ll be damned if I put my soul into this business only to be lumped in with the rest of that locker room. Even if I have to drop your broken, beaten body on his doorstep, I’m going to change his way of thinking. After I’ve finished you off for good, the only categories in his mind will be ‘Kristin Kreuk’ and ‘Kristin’s potential victims.’ And you’re the first name on the top of that very long list. That’s why I went after you the way I did. I wanted you to bring your very best and still get destroyed. That way he’d have no choice but to acknowledge the fact that I AM BETTER THAN YOU!” Kristin’s voice rose over the howling wind and then died back down. Stepping back from the Scream Queen, she ran a hand through her hair and asked, “If you were in my position, if all the things in your career always got second billing no matter how hard you tried, what would you have done?”

Neve kept her voice steady as she said, “I’d probably do what you’re doing…Shall we?”

Kristin nodded and then took another step back. “Just a second. I’ve never been comfortable fighting in a jacket.” In the next instant, she peeled off the loose garment and tossed it onto the wet concrete. Letting the rain fall on her bared arms, Kristin closed her eyes for a moment and then opened them. In a very soft voice she said, “Whenever you’re ready.”

Neve stepped back and shrugged, letting the leather jacket slither free, she caught it in one hand, tossing it at the base of one of the light poles. Ignoring the shiver that rolled across her as the rain and wind set in, Neve dropped into her typical crouch and began to circle to the left.

Not letting her eyes leave Kristin, Neve curled her fingers toward the Hellcat and whispered, “C’mon Kristin. Come and find out why he thinks the way he does.”

Thunder split the night sky and the glare illuminated Kristin’s green eyes. With a sibilant cry, she dropped into crouch and launched herself at the woman she hated more than any other. Drawing to within less than a foot of the taller brunette, Kristin pulled her arm back for a split second and then arced it forward, cracking Neve across the side of the face with a spiteful Forehand Slap that snapped Neve’s head to the side. Neve was rocked back a few steps, the rain on her face and in her hair actually knocked loose by the force of the blow. But the Scream Queen had her own hate to motivate her and she recovered quickly, not even bothering to take note of her quickly reddening cheek before winding up and administering a brutal forehand of her own. Kristin grunted and staggered back, her long ponytail whipped around by the power behind Neve’s strike.

Regaining her senses, Kristin wiped the rain off her forehead, and glared murder at the other brunette. “That all you got?” she sneered at Neve.

Curling her tape wrapped hands into claws, Neve’s smile was a frightening portent of the violence she was contemplating. “I haven’t even begun yet.”

Kristin snarled and the two rivals lunged at each other once more, body’s colliding with a cold, wet THWAP as two sets of hands buried themselves in two ebony manes and two sets of legs stomped and stumbled on the wet concrete to keep from tumbling to the ground. Digging her fingers into Neve’s hair as deeply as she could, Kristin tightened her grip and began to jerk back and forth as hard as she could. This was not the pseudo-polite, drunken college girls at a mixer sort of follicle tugs, this was a steady stream of great, scalp burning yanks that pulled hair out by the handfuls and drew a pained cry from her prey’s pain twisted lips. Kristin was in the midst of shrieking her joy when Neve wrapped both hands around Kristin‘s braid. Before Kristin’s triumphant yell could be fully articulated, Neve pulled hard to her left, tearing at Kristin’s hair and wrenching her neck painfully in the process. Kristin’s legs wavered but she stayed on her feet, tightening her grip on Neve’s damp hair to keep from falling. With her face only a few inches from her nemesis’ Kristin pulled back with both hands, forcing Neve’s head back to make sure the other brunette was looking her dead in the face.

Hissing as Neve gave another hard-hearted yank on her braid, Kristin sneered, “That’s not gonna be good enough.”

Gritting her teeth as Kristin resumed tearing at her hair, Neve shot back, “We’ll see about th…ARRRRRRHHHGHH!”

Before Neve could finish her retort, Kristin freed one of her hands from Neve’s hair and whipped it into the other brunette’s face, shaping her fingers into cruel hooks and clawing evilly at Neve’s nose and mouth. Neve’s cry was garbled as Kristin slipped three fingers into the side of her mouth and yanked to the side, painfully distending her lip and cheek. Thinking quickly, Neve let go of half her grip on Kristin’s braid and formed a claw of her own, immediately slipping two fingers into Kristin’s nose and pulling back with all her strength. Ignoring the rather nasal quality of her screech, Kristin maintained her grip on Neve’s hair and face long enough to jerk the taller brunette towards her, unbalancing her foe in the process. Feeling the torturous pain in her hair and face relent for a moment, Kristin shifted her weight and then drove a Knee Lift, catching Neve right in the navel. Neve gasped and doubled over, sucking in the chilly November air while Kristin pulled herself free of the Scream Queen’s clutches.

Wiping a hand across her face, Kristin recovered quickly and wasted no time securing a two handed grip on Neve’s tank top. Pulling her foe upright, Kristin released her right hand and brought it whistling up, smashing Neve across the chin with her forearm, a simple but effective European Uppercut. Neve was knocked up on her toes by the power of the punch and she would have lost her balance if it weren’t for Kristin’s left hand on her shoulder to keep her in place. Resetting her stance, Kristin administered a second Uppercut and then a third, each shot landing precisely on the point of Neve’s jaw. After the third punch connected, Kristin released her grip on Neve’s shoulder and rudely shoved her away, watching the other brunette stumble and backpedal across the asphalt.

Taking a breath, Kristin stalked after her foe, calling, “There’s nowhere to run!”

A bit disappointed at the lack of a reply, Kristin caught up to her foe and slipped behind her in one smooth motion. Pulling Neve into her, Kristin wrapped an arm around the Scream Queen’s windpipe and the other across the back of Neve’s skull, cinching in a Sleeper. Clamping down on the hold, Kristin pulled up and twisted her torso from side to side, trying to put as much pressure on Neve’s throat as she possibly could. Enjoying the panic she felt pouring off her rival, the Hellcat bore down on the Sleeper and put her lips next to Neve’s ear.

Blowing clouds of steam into Neve’s face, Kristin purred, “I told you I was going to tear you apart. I think I’ll start with your FACE!”

With the last word she darted her head forward and bit down hard on Neve’s ear, gnawing and chewing the malleable flesh while the captive brunette wailed and struggled to pull free. Trying to block out the burning pain in her ear, Neve got her arms under Kristin’s choking arm and pushed up hard, managing to get the constricting limb about half way over her face. Satisfied for the moment, she opened her mouth and returned Kristin’s favor, sinking her teeth deep into the soft skin of the Hellcat’s elbow. Unprepared for the tactic, Kristin stopped chewing Neve’s ear and shrieked in pain. Trying her best to maintain the hold, Kristin pulled hard and managed to wrench her arm from Neve’s maw only to immediately lock it back around Neve’s head and jerk her into a tight Side Headlock. Snarling furiously, Kristin crushed Neve’s skull in her the crook of her elbow while simultaneously grinding the side of her prey’s face against the point of her jeans clad hip.

Watching Neve’s face turn pink, Kristin wrenched the hold and hissed, “C’mon tough girl, where’s the chick I’m supposed to be afraid of? Where’s the chick that’s supposed to be the best in the world? Where’s…”

The question was never finished because Neve got one hand on Kristin’s elbow and another on the small of her back. Before Kristin knew what was going on, Neve shoved as hard as she could, breaking the Headlock and sending Kristin slipping across the parking lot. In a ring setting, the counter for a Headlock wouldn’t have been all the dangerous, but given the wet nature of their concrete battle ground, Kristin fought to keep her balance as she staggered away from Neve and it was only because she was able to get both hands up in front of her and slam them against the Fury’s driver side door that she didn’t go tumbling face first onto the ground. A few steps away, Neve looked up and saw Kristin leaning against the car. Shaking off the effects of the Sleeper and Headlock, Neve set her feet and then exploded forward, running at Kristin’s exposed back at top speed. The shorter brunette never saw it coming as Neve left her feet and brought her right knee up, sending it crashing into the small of the Hellcat’s back. The force of the Jumping Knee Lift drove Kristin forward and slammed her chest and face against the Plymouth’s window. Gasping in shock and pain, Kristin let out a pained wheeze and then collapsed to her knees.

Looking down at injured rival, Neve ran both hands through her hair and took a moment to undo the ponytail that had failed to do her any good up until this point. Feeling sufficiently refreshed, Neve bent down and grabbed a hold of Kristin’s top and the back of her jeans.

Holding on tight, she found her voice and said coldly, “You were asking about the best in the world? Well here she is.” Then she pulled Kristin back several feet, roughly abrading the other girl’s hands and jeans clad knees against the pavement. Satisfied with the distance between them and the car, Neve straddled her penitent rival’s back and reached down, grabbing a hold of Kristin’s long braid with her right hand. Pulling up hard on her captive’s hair, Neve forced Kristin to look up at her as she said, “Feel free to scream if you want. I don’t think anyone’s going to come and help you.”

Kristin appeared to be readying a reply when Neve lashed out with her left arm, smashing the Hellcat across the face with the inside of her forearm. Kristin grunted and tried to pull free, but Neve held her prone and she delivered four more withering Cross-face Punches from the left before, switching her grip around and belting Kristin across the face with her right arm several times. Each blow sent a noticeable tremble through the smaller brunette’s arms and legs and she seemed to be on the verge of going face down on the asphalt when Neve ceased her pugilistic assault and sat down hard on the small of her back. Reaching forward, she cupped both hands under the shelf of Kristin’s chin and then pulled back hard, forcing Kristin’s face up into the steadily falling rain as she tortured her with the Camel Clutch. Leaning back to increase the pressure, Neve bounced hard on Kristin’s back and jerked her hands from side to side, stretching her nemesis’ neck to the breaking point.

Ignoring Kristin’s frantically clawing hands, Neve flipped some damp hair out of her face and sneered, “Don’t you dare think about giving up yet Kristin. Even if you did, I wouldn’t let you go. I’ve got a whole lot more torture in store for you, ya slanderous bitch.”

Groping wildly at Neve’s clasping hands, Kristin was able to clamp down on the offending limbs and pull them up just enough to bring them within range of her mouth. With Neve’s taunts still ringing in her ears, Kristin opened her jaws and bit down, gnashing and digging her teeth into the meat of Neve’s fingers. Neve shrieked and pulled back even further on the Clutch, but Kristin continued to chew and Neve was forced to relent before the Hellcat could bite her fingers off. Shaking her hand alleviate some of the pain, Neve backed up a few paces and glared at Kristin as the slender brunette slowly got to her feet and rolled her shoulders to loosen up her neck.

Turning around to face Neve, Kristin hissed, “If you want my submission, you’re going to have to cripple me and you don’t have that in you.”

“But are you willing to pay the price if you turn out to be wrong?” Neve asked in a flat, hard tone.

“If it means beating you, I’d gladly pay anything,” Kristin shot back, her voice echoing and hollow on the wind.

Lighting crashed again and both ladies took it as a signal to resume their battle. Dropping into their preferred stances, Neve and Kristin stalked each other carefully, the distance between them growing smaller and smaller with each revolution they made. Finally, when their outstretched fingers were less than a foot apart, the brunette’s lunged at each other with talons extended towards face and shoulders. Kristin went for Neve’s shoulders, hoping to pull the Scream Queen into a lock up and proceed from there but Neve avoided the clench this time, instead hammering her forearm across Kristin’s mouth with a stiff Forearm Smash. Kristin was caught by surprise and her head snapped back painfully as she was knocked into a drunken, backwards lurch. Catching up with her retreating prey, Neve grabbed Kristin’s damp tank top with one hand and hauled her in, hitting another tooth shaking Forearm in the process.

Smiling evilly as Kristin quivered in her grip, Neve pulled her arm back and cooed, “You like using your mouth slut? Well how do you like using it as a target?”

She received no answer and she didn’t care; she simply punctuated the statement by driving several more Punches to Kristin’s mouth and the bridge of her nose. After about the tenth Forearm to the face, Neve felt Kristin beginning to sag in her grip and the Scream Queen decided that if Kristin wanted to get a close up look at the pavement, who was she to deny the Hellcat her fun? Looking to expedite Kristin’s trip to the ground, Neve maintained her grip on Kristin’s shoulder while she threaded her other arm through the brunette’s thighs, groping tightly at her denim-covered butt. With no discernible effort, Neve scooped Kristin into the air and held her over her shoulder, waiting for just a moment before she rose up on her toes to complete the Body Slam. Unfortunately for Neve, to someone as well versed in the mat game as Kristin, a second can be an eternity and the Hellcat proved as such by suddenly writhing free of her tormentor’s grip and slipping down her back to land comfortably behind the taller brunette. Before Neve could even turn around, Kristin brought both claws up across Neve’s eyes to Face Rake her viciously, temporarily blinding her. Snarling in anger and satisfaction as Neve cried out and stumbled forward, Kristin lunged and grabbed a double handful of her adversary’s matted locks.

Pulling her grip from side to side, Kristin purred insolently, “Did you want to introduce me to the ground Neve? Well as your friend, I insist that you go first.”

The words were still leaving her mouth when she pulled back and down, hauling Neve off her feet and slamming her spine first into the wet pavement. Luckily for her, Neve had enough presence of mind to get her arms up and protect the back of her head, but the landing was still a mighty unpleasant one. Groaning audibly as the pain raced up and down her back, Neve tried to turn onto her side and curl up, but Kristin wasn’t going to allow it. Standing over her downed nemesis, Kristin ruthlessly gave Neve a Kick In the Ribs forcing the taller girl to her back once more.

Stalking over to Neve’s head, Kristin looked down and chided, “That was pretty smart, trying to protect your head like that. Let’s see you protect yourself from THIS!”

She bent her knees and then leaped into the air. At the apex of her momentum, she extended her left leg and then came crashing down, dropping the full weight of one rock hard thigh across Neve’s face with a Leg Drop. Neve’s body jerked and she tried to pull free once more but Kristin simply rolled to one knee and then straddled the Scream Queen’s waist, pinning her to the ground like a bug on a card. Putting both hands on Neve’s shoulders, Kristin loomed over her opponent and smiled, obviously enjoying the fact that she was dominating the fight at this juncture. Breathing heavily, she watched as a drop of rain rolled off her nose and landed in the middle of Neve’s forehead. Chewing her bottom lip for a moment, Kristin shifted her grip from Neve’s shoulders to her throat, locking in a blatant Strangle Hold.

Tightening her grip, Kristin dug her thumbs into Neve’s windpipe and whispered, “I hope you struggle.”

Then she was squeezing in earnest and Neve did struggle, bucking and thrashing wildly as she tried to stop Kristin from choking her out. For all her talents, Neve soon realized that she couldn’t simply buck the green eyed Hellcat loose and that she’d have to forcibly remove her if she was to have any hope of winning this war. Ignoring the black dots and swirls that were already floating across her vision, Neve stopped pawing at Kristin’s shoulders and instead went back to her adversary’s hair. Grabbing two huge fistfuls of Kristin’s dark locks, Neve twisted violently, wrenching the other brunette’s head back and to the right at a wicked angle. Crying out in anguish, Kristin pulled herself up and off of Neve, but still held onto the Chokehold, pulling Neve up with her. Trying to force her foe to release her hair, Kristin shifted to a one handed grip on Neve’s throat and pulled her free arm back to smash Neve in the face with a looping, bar room brawl style Haymaker.

The punch was inches away from Neve’s face when she managed to pull her head to the side, sending the blow grazing off her shoulder. Seeing an opportunity, Neve let go of Kristin’s hair and unloaded on the other brunette with a stinging series of punches that knocked the Hellcat’s head from side to side. A callous Hook to the ribs finally broke Kristin’s grip on her neck and Neve pushed her rival away, giving them both some much-needed space. Her throat raw and burning, Neve took several deep breaths and then stalked over to where Kristin was clearing her head. Grabbing the Hellcat by the strap of her tank top once more, Neve balled up her right fist and drove it deep into Kristin’s undefended belly. The smaller girl doubled over, gasping and gagging as Neve grabbed her by the wrist.

Pulling Kristin up straight, Neve glared into Kristin’s face and hissed, “So you’re ready to start playing rough are you? Well then, lets get you started off right.”

Speaking no more, she set her feet and Irish Whipped Kristin hard toward the Plymouth that was sitting innocently under the light less than ten feet away. Though they weren’t fighting in the ring, the basic tenets of wrestling still applied and tragically for Neve, Kristin put on the brakes and reversed the momentum of the Whip, sending the other brunette rushing towards the old car. Neve’s eyes widened and she cursed silently but that was about all she could muster before she rammed full speed into the Fury’s door, her left shoulder and back taking the majority of the impact. There was a loud but somehow dull sounding THUD, and as Neve slid slowly onto the pavement, a part of her mind that wasn’t reeling with pain realized the Rich wouldn’t be pleased to find out his car was being used as a weapon. Moaning quietly, Neve was able to get her hands under her and push up to a sitting position only to immediately find herself straddled by the Hellcat. Bouncing roughly on Neve’s lap, Kristin brought her hands up and grabbed Neve by the sides of her head. Digging her fingers into the stunned brunette’s temples, Kristin tilted Neve’s face up to hers and leaned in very close to her foe.

Breathing hard, Kristin waited for a few seconds and then asked in a cruelly sincere voice, “I think that was a pretty good start don’t you?”

Smiling as Neve glared at her, Kristin tightened her grip and suddenly rammed her captive’s head backwards, banging the back of her skull into the door. Neve’s moan overrode the THUD but just barely. Not satisfied with a single attempt, Kristin pulled Neve towards her again, letting the Scream Queen’s dazed face rest on the swell of her chest for just a moment before she repeated the maneuver bouncing Neve’s head off the Fury’s door over and over again, each booming impact tearing another cry of pain from the taller brunette’s lips.

Feeling her arms beginning to tire, Kristin pulled Neve’s face to hers and asked, “Ready for this to be over?”

Neve opened her mouth as if to answer, but before the words were out of her mouth, she brought her claws up and raked ferociously at Kristin’s face, digging long pale fingers into the sensitive skin around the Hellcat’s eyes and mouth. Blinded and furious, Kristin shrieked and released her death grip on Neve’s head, scrambling away on her knees to so she could regain her senses. Watching her opponent beat a temporary retreat, Neve sighed gratefully and gingerly felt along the back of her head. She didn’t feel any lumps at the moment but she was quite certain that they’d be there in the morning. Thunder crashed overhead and she was just about to push to her feet when she realized Kristin was standing over her once more; worse, the Hellcat was drawing back her foot, ready to kick the life out of her foe. Neve got her hands up and tried to block the strike, but she was only partly successful. Kristin’s foot grazed through her hands and landed deep in her belly, knocking the wind out of her.

Drawing her foot back for another kick, Kristin looked down at Neve’s gasping form and spat, “You can’t even defend yourself bitch! Give up now before I splatter your brains all over the pavement.”

Her threat made, Kristin shot another Punt towards Neve’s gut, but this time, the supposedly dazed beauty got her hands up and around Kristin’s ankle a second before the kick could connect. Surprised, Kristin tried to pull her foot back but realized she couldn’t do so without taking a spill on the asphalt. Hopping awkwardly on one foot, she was still trying to pull free when Neve looked up and locked eyes with her.

Finding her breath after having it kicked out of her, Neve jerked Kristin’s ankle and fired back, “I can’t defend myself? bitch, you don’t have a leg to stand on.”

She lashed her legs out and Leg Sweeped Kristin’s remaining foot out from under her. Crying out as she tumbled back, Kris twisted to her side and got her arms up around her head, taking the worst of the landing on her hip and shoulder. Even so, the fall to the concrete wasn’t gentle and she forced herself to choke back a sob as pain raced up and down her left side. Watching Kristin shudder and groan a few feet away from her, Neve released the other brunette’s ankle and slowly pushed to her feet. Wiping her slightly muddy hands on her jeans, Neve then shook the worst of the rain out of her hair and circled to her right, watching her downed rival with a hateful intensity. Using the crack of the thunder and the howl of the wind to her advantage, Neve managed to get around behind Kristin without the downed girl realizing it. Settling into an expectant crouch, Neve waited silently as Kristin rolled to her belly and then pushed to her knees. When the Hellcat looked up from the pavement to the spot where Neve had been sprawled by the Plymouth, Neve sprang into action.

Rubbing the sole of her foot against the concrete, Neve called softly, “Here kitty, kitty.”

Kristin’s head whipped around just in time to see Neve charge towards her and lash her right foot up at Kristin’s face. The kneeling girl gasped and tried to pull back, but she was a fraction of a second off and the arch of Neve’s foot smashed into her chin with a ferocious CRACK! The green eyed beauty managed a low grunt before she was knocked off her knees and sent into a sprawling roll that didn’t end until she was laying face down a few feet from the Fury.

Walking slowly over to her mangled rival, Neve looked down and smirked, “There’s no going back now Kristin. You should have quit while you were ahead.” Smiling slightly at her own bad joke, Neve bent down and grabbed a double handful of hair that she used to Hair Haul the smaller girl to her feet. Shifting her grip from Kristin’s hair to her top, Neve tangled one hand in the Hellcat’s tank-top strap, while the other grabbed her nemesis by the face. Crushing Kristin’s cheeks in her hand, Neve raised her prey’s head and forced her to stare into her eyes. Going nose to nose with the stunned beauty, she said, “Beginning to regret this yet?”

Neve didn’t get a verbal response, but the noticeable narrowing of Kristin’s green eyes made a perfectly coherent statement. Furious with Kristin all over again, Neve backed her opponent up until her butt was pressed firmly against the left side of the Plymouth’s hood. Releasing her hold on Kristin’s face, she lowered her arm and returned another favor from earlier, clipping Kristin across the chin with a European Uppercut of her own. Kristin moaned and slumped forward, but Neve didn’t allow the clinch. Instead she pushed Kreuk just far enough away to tag her with another Uppercut to the chin. This blow was even more forceful than the last and it knocked Kristin up on her toes and spun her around before she fell forward, landing hard with her upper half resting splayed on the Fury’s hood.

Staying close to her downed opposition, Neve sidled around to Kristin’s left side, reached down and grabbed another double handful of hair. Slowly grinding the Hellcat’s cheek into the car’s Autumn Red paint job, Neve took a moment to enjoy the rain and then said, “I hope Rich knows a mechanic good enough to get a face shaped dent out of his hood. Otherwise, both of us may be in trouble.” Ignoring the mumbled curse of the other brunette, Neve pulled Kristin up and off the hood and then slammed her back down onto it. Bouncing her face and chest off the solid steel with a loud CLANG! Kristin groaned and tried to pull away, but Neve kept grinding her face into the unyielding metal and then she pulled the Hellcat up only to slam her face right back down again. The Scream Queen repeated this hood-denting tactic twice more before finally letting go of her slumped foe. But as Kristin attempted to slide off the hood and create some distance between the two of them, Neve grabbed her by the back of the jeans and held her in place, “I didn’t say you could go anywhere!”

Keeping Kristin immobilized as best she could, Neve clamored awkwardly up onto the hood of the Plymouth so that she was kneeling by Kristin’s head. Letting go of the slender brunette’s jeans, Neve drove two sharp Punches to the Hellcat’s ribs to keep her complacent. Hoping she had enough time to pull this off, Neve used Kris to steady herself as she slowly stood up on the hood of the car.

Taking the necessary half step so that she was right next to Kristin’s head, Neve looked down and said, “I almost regret insisting that this fight not be taped or recorded in anyway. This surely would have made my highlight reel.”

Neve leaped into the air and then extended her leg, coming down with her thigh on the back of Kristin’s head. The simple Leg Drop sent waves of agony through Kristin as her face was driven into the steel once more. The saving grace for her was that when Neve peeled off her, the smaller brunette was able to get off the hood, even if her retreat was limited to a few staggering steps backwards before collapsing to her hands and knees once more. Sliding easily off the car’s hood, Neve walked slowly over to where Kristin was kneeling and pulled her to her feet once more. Standing close behind the Hellcat, Neve drew her arm across Kristin’s throat and placed her other hand against the back of the slender girl’s skull. Locking in the Sleeper, Neve pulled back as far as she could, forcing Kristin to rise up on her toes if she wanted any chance of alleviating the pressure of the choke.

Stoically riding out the thrashing and twitching of her foe, Neve bore down on the hold and muttered, “Sweet dreams Kristin. When you wake up, you’ll still be a loser.”

She was in the process of hauling Kristin off her feet again when Kristin sank her teeth deep into the muscle of Neve’s forearm. Neve shrieked in agony and surprise, trying her best to tighten up on the Sleeper while Kristin was chewing and otherwise worrying at her arm. Unwilling to give up her hold just yet, Neve pulled the arm behind Kristin’s head loose and brought it around front, settling her claw into Kristin’s mouth and pulling evilly to the side. Yelping as Kristin’s teeth dug in deeper for a moment, Neve was pleased to feel the pain ease up as she managed to free her forearm from Kristin’s maw.

Jerking the other brunette’s head from side to side, Neve sneered, “Is biting the only defense you can muster at this point? That’s pretty pathetic Kristin.”

Unable to understand the garbled response that Kristin let loose, Neve released the Sleeper entirely and pulled her other hand from Kristin’s mouth only to lock them around the lithe brunette’s middle in an inescapable Waist Lock. Clasping her hands tight, Neve planted her feet and prepared to deliver a German Suplex onto the unforgiving concrete. She had just started the upward motion of the throw when Kristin’s foot came up too, smashing directly between Neve’s thighs. The Scream Queen did just that, shrieking long and loud as the Waist Lock crumbled and she staggered back, both hands groping protectively at her wounded center. She had only made it a few feet when Kristin whirled on her heel to face her wounded rival.

With all the fires of hell burning behind those green eyes, Kristin smiled viciously and threw herself at Neve, nearly decapitating the retreating girl with a stiff Clothesline. This time Neve was unable to get her hands up in time and she went down hard, the back of her head cracking off the cement as she came to rest in a wet, moaning heap. Resting on her knees next to the crippled Scream Queen, Kristin reached behind her and undid her rapidly fraying battle braid. Feeling her long hair come free, she ran her hands through it a few times and then tucked it back behind her ears, leaving her vision unobstructed. Watching smugly as Neve rolled onto her side and tried to cradle the back of her head, Kristin scooted forward and grabbed Neve’s hair.

Digging her fingers deep into the matted brown tangle, Kristin sighed contentedly and said, “Does your neck hurt? I hope I haven’t broken it…yet.”

Lost in the joys of tormenting her prey, Kristin pushed to her feet and pulled Neve to hers. Holding the taller brunette up on spaghetti legs, Kristin moved behind her and stood back to back with Neve. Reaching both hands over her shoulder, Kristin looped them under Neve’s chin and pulled her in close, forcing the base of the Scream Queen’s neck to be bent painfully against Kristin’s left shoulder. Without saying a word, Kristin suddenly sat out, landing roughly on her butt and whip-lashing Neve’s neck heinously with the Reverse Neckbreaker. Neve bit back a sob and she rolled onto her side once more, both hands up around her head in a vain attempt to cover up. Getting her knees under her, Kristin grabbed Neve by the back of her jeans and rudely shoved the other brunette onto her back, forcing her to look up into the falling rain and swirling thunderheads. Seeing a simple but effective way to end this fight, Kristin straddled Neve again, sitting directly on her chest with both legs framing the sides of Neve’s head. Cracking her knuckles ominously, Kristin rubbed her jeans-clad rump against Neve’s breasts as she looked arrogantly down at the girl pinned beneath her.

Locking Neve’s gaze in her own, Kristin said, “Most girls in my position would probably end this fight by sitting on your face. But I’m going to finish this by smashing your face in.” Her grin only grew more feral as Neve tried to squirm free and Kristin kept up the subtle grind as she started to rain closed fists down into Neve’s face, battering the helpless girl’s head from side to side with each mindlessly sadistic shot. Stopping occasionally to grate her knuckles against Neve’s cheek or eye socket, Kristin kept up the pugilistic barrage as she screamed, “GIVE UP! BEG ME! PLEAD FOR MERCY BEFORE I CRIPPLE YOU!”

Soaking up the wicked shots to her face, Neve managed to find her voice and roar back, “NUH-NEVER YOU LYING…CUNT!”

The brazen defiance only angered Kristin further and she retaliated by pulling her fist back as far as it could go before slamming it down towards Neve’s upturned face. Unfortunately her anger had messed with her aim and at the last possible moment, Neve jerked her head to the side and Kristin’s fist rammed into the wet asphalt of the parking lot. Kristin howled in agony as she pulled her hand into her and cradled it tightly, somehow hoping that by being close to the rest of her body that it would dull the burning pain. Refusing to give up the straddle, Kristin breathed raggedly for a few moments and then opened her eyes, fixing a seething glare on Neve. Biting back the pain in her hand, Kristin grabbed Neve’s hair in a two handed grip and pulled the punch drunk brunette to her feet.

Marching her towards the Plymouth, Kristin tugged nastily on Neve’s hair and screamed, “You want to keep fighting me?! Go ahead and try! But when you wake up and the hospital staff tells you you’ll never wrestle again, don’t you blame me! I’ve given you every opportunity to beg and you’re too stupid to take an out when I give you one! You wanna experience everything I can do to you? Fine. But don’t try surrendering now, because I won’t listen.”

They’d reached the proximity of the car again, but Kristin never slowed down. Instead, she sped up and hurled Neve forward, throwing her forehead first into the driver’s window. Neve’s head bounced off the glass with a THUMP and her long legs came unhinged as she slid slowly to her knees and then turned around, resting with her back against the door, head lolled to one side, both arms splayed limply at her sides. Surveying the wreckage she’d made of Neve, Kristin snarled and took several steps back. Setting her feet, she sprinted forward and left her feet with very little room between the two brunettes.

Preparing herself for the rough landing ahead, Kristin shot her feet out and comforted herself with the knowledge that this would hurt Neve a whole lot more. Indeed, Kristin’s well executed Drop-kick slammed into Neve’s chest and she was driven back hard against the door of the Fury, her shoulders and back forced to take the brunt of the blow this time. As for Kristin, the landing turned out to be tolerable, the only downside being that she scraped up the palm of her right hand when she was trying to protect herself as she dropped to the concrete.

Pushing to her feet, Kristin surveyed the scrape on her hand, decided it was nothing she couldn’t deal with and focused her attention on Neve. The taller brunette was curled into a loose ball at base of the driver’s side door, clutching weakly at her bruised ribs and neck as she struggled valiantly to get back in this fight. Smirking down at her wounded rival, Kristin knew her victory was at hand, but that wasn’t enough for her. She needed for Neve to know that defeat was coming and Kristin wanted to wallow in the fact the Neve was helpless to do anything about it.

Breaking her temporary reprieve, Kristin sauntered over to where Neve was curled up and dragged her up by the hair. Letting Neve slump against her for the moment, Kristin pulled them both away from the driver’s side and out a ways, bringing them to a few feet in front of the Fury’s hood. Holding Neve tightly against her, Kristin gently maneuvered her right leg between Neve’s legs and pushed the quivering limbs apart, giving the Scream Queen a stronger vertical base to rest on. This was no act of charity however, for in the next moment, Kristin grabbed Neve by the shoulders and drove her right knee up, a hateful, unprotected Knee to the Groin. Neve’s pale face went several shades paler and if it wasn’t for Kristin’s hands on her shoulders, she would have toppled right there. But Kris held her up for the time being, and she leaned into the taller brunette’s pain addled face to whisper, “Give up!”

Though there were tears forming at the corner of her eyes, Neve was still able to slowly shake her head ‘no.’ Sighing, Kristin was about to drive another knee lift home when lightning flashed again, closer than ever this time. The resulting glare blinded the Hellcat for a moment and when her vision returned, she was shocked to see Neve’s head dart forward, a surprise that quickly turned to agony as Neve twisted her head so she could Bite the bridge of Kristin’s nose. Kristin roared in pain as Neve gnawed at her face and it was only after she drove a fusillade of fists into Neve’s belly that she was able to pry the Scream Queen off of her. Nearly blind with rage, Kristin hissed and shot forward, grabbing hold of Neve’s wrist in both hands. One can only wonder at the thought process that caused her to attempt an Irish Whip, perhaps in her fury she forgot there were no ropes to send Neve bouncing into. Regardless of the presence of ropes or not, Kristin did attempt an Irish Whip, but much to her chagrin, Neve planted her feet and grabbed her clasping hands before she could force the release. In the next instant, Neve pivoted and Whipped Kristin back towards the front of the Fury with as much strength as she could summon, the momentum she put behind the toss actually forcing her to her knees for a moment.

As she careened towards the Plymouth, Kristin was relieved to see that Neve had tossed her at such an angle that she would miss running into the car’s wide grille and instead simply pass close by on the passenger’s side. She didn’t see the rearview mirror until it was far too late to stop. The rounded cone of the mirror caught her right in the sternum and the force of the collision snapped it clean off the body of the car. Kristin’s cry of anguish rose over the wind and she only managed to walk another half step before falling to her hands and knees, the broken mirror clutched tightly against her bruised sternum. Sobbing openly at the blast furnace that had suddenly gone off in her chest, Kristin tossed the mirror away from her and then cradled her ribs, for right now wanting nothing more than to be left in peace with her pain.

She was resting her forehead on her knees and trying to staunch the flow of her tears when a cold voice from behind her taunted, “Poor Kristin. Looks like you forgot one of the basic rules of the road.”

Sneering at the sound of Neve’s voice, Kristin pulled her head up and looked over her shoulder just in time for Neve to drive another hard-hearted kick into the kneeling brunette’s forehead. Kristin’s eyes crossed and she felt herself go numb for a moment as she was knocked flat on her back by the blindside kick. Looking up into the rain, Kristin saw nothing but clouds until Neve loomed over her, blocking out just about everything else. The Hellcat’s emerald eyes burned with that same old hate, but for now, all she could manage was a feeble roll onto her side.

Glaring daggers at Neve, she tried to say something but the Scream Queen cut her off. With hands on her hips, Neve looked down and purred, “Don’t you remember? Objects in mirror are closer than they appear.”

The last word had just left her mouth when Neve pulled her foot back and drove it forward, punting Kristin in her tenderized ribs. Kristin gasped as the tears formed again, but the sadistically resilient challenger to Neve’s throne would not give her tormentor the satisfaction of hearing her scream. She was still clinging to this thought when Neve bent down and pulled her to her feet. Holding Kristin tightly against her, Neve brushed hair out of her nemesis’ face and pressed her forehead to the Hellcat’s.

Speaking in a low, soothing tone, Neve said, “Resisting the urge to scream is a very admirable trait Kristin. But the more you hold back now, the more fun I’m going to have ripping them out of you after you’ve given up.”

Kristin heard the threat and any other time, she would have torn Neve’s tongue out for such an insult, but right now she was too weak to do anything but croak, “I’ll never…suh…never suh…ubmit…to…you.”

“Yes you will.” Neve answered coldly.

Aware that it would be unwise to give Kristin any more time to recover, Neve lowered her shoulder and then pulled Kristin into her, lifting the Hellcat up in a basic Fireman’s Carry. Now in a typical wrestling match, this would have been a perfect time for Neve to parade Kristin around the ring, but seeing as how there was no audience, it didn’t bother Neve in the least to forgo the preamble and simply get on with the show. Taking a deep breath, she bent both knees slightly and then rose up on her toes, pushing Kristin off her shoulders and out in front of her captor. As she began to fall towards the ground, Neve dropped to one knee, smiling with cruel satisfaction as Kristin landed belly first on her posted knee in a Gut Buster. Kristin gaped again and cradled her abdomen as Neve pushed her off her knee and left her prone on the pavement for a moment. Doing her best to fight off the aches and pains inflicted by the Hellcat, Neve stood a few feet away and pondered her next move. She knew the Gut Buster had helped exacerbate the injury to Kristin’s ribs, but it didn’t have the impact necessary to put the gutsy brunette down for good. Quickly scrolling through her list of moves, Neve settled on a basic weapon in any wrestler’s arsenal that would pretty much guarantee victory given the setting of their battle.

Ignoring the pain that was settling over her again, Neve moved forward and pulled Kristin to her feet. The Scream Queen was prepared for resistance, but Kristin came along quietly and Neve had no problems doubling her foe over and trapping her in a Front Face Lock. Positioning Kristin’s free hand across her shoulders, Neve used her unoccupied claw to get a firm grip on the waistband of Kristin’s soaked through jeans.

Bending her knees, Neve muttered, “And yet another ‘holy shit’ moment that no one will ever see. Where are Ward’s camera crews when you really need them.”

She hauled Kristin off her feet and into the air directly over Neve’s head. The taller brunette normally liked to hold the Suplex in this position for several seconds but she was weary and knew that an extra few seconds in the air wouldn’t make the difference. So when Kristin was inverted directly overhead, Neve fell backwards, administering a Vertical Suplex on the concrete right as lightning split the stormy sky once more. Kristin’s scream of agony was covered by the crash of thunder, but Neve could tell from the smaller brunette’s twisted expression that the Suplex had done its job. Tired and wounded, Neve decided it was time to end this war. Pushing slowly to her feet, she walked over to Kristin’s feet and grabbed hold of her left ankle in both hands. Pulling the limb into the air, Neve glared down at Kristin for several seconds before she got her attention.

When the Hellcat tried to pull free of her grip, Neve clamped down and demanded sternly, “Submit!”

Kristin shook her head ‘no’. “Never.” she groaned.

Neve sighed. “Have it your wa…ARRRGGHHH!”

Her simple response degenerated into a mindless howl of pain as Kristin slammed her free heel hard into the center of Neve’s jeans. The taller brunette’s grip fell away and she stumbled back a step before collapsing to her knees and then onto her side. Even though her ribs were causing her constant agony, Kristin still managed a smile as she watched Neve fall to the ground and curl in on herself. Gritting her teeth, Kristin willed herself to roll onto her belly and get to her feet. Limping over to where Neve was lying prone, Kristin bent over and grabbed hold of both of the other brunette’s ankles.

Lifting the trapped limbs up and apart, she stood on wobbly legs for several seconds before looking down at Neve and rasping, “Torture doesn’t even begin to describe the things I’m going to do to you.”

Neve sneered at her foe, but it was a feeble gesture that had no real threat behind. Kristin on the other hand, went about making good on her threat in the next instant when she leapt up and then dropped a bent knee straight into Neve’s unprotected groin. The downed brunette writhed and tried to pull free but Kristin held onto her prey’s ankles tightly and slowly pushed herself back up. Regaining her balance, she didn’t bother with a taunt before dropping another knee into Neve’s defenseless center. Neve screamed again and doubled her efforts to escape, but Kristin was relentless and she administered another half dozen blows to Neve’s crotch before she finally tossed the Scream Queen’s rubbery legs aside and stepped back to admire her handiwork. With one hand cradling her ribs and the other running through her matted hair, Kristin stole a glance at the Plymouth waiting silently under the light.

Turning back to Neve and grinning as the rain continued to stream down her face, Kristin stood over her battered opponent and said, “You’ve proven to be pretty handy with cars over the course of this fight. Let’s just see if I can be half as inventive as you are.”

Leaning down, she grabbed a handful of hair and yanked Neve to her knees and then to her feet. Standing in front of her rival, Kristin scooped Neve up and held her over her shoulder in the stall position for a basic Body Slam. Looking to make good in her word, Kristin stumbled towards the Fury as best she could, resetting her grip on the weakly protesting Neve whenever it became necessary. Approaching the car’s wide hood, Kristin rose up on her toes and then slammed Neve down as hard as she could, watching with sick fascination as the bigger brunette’s back arched when she hit the hood. Putting her hands on Neve’s chest and hip to keep her from sliding off the car, Kristin positioned Neve so that she was lying across the hood with her head hanging off the driver’s side.

Kristin rested both hands on Neve’s hitching belly and said, “From here you look like the world’s biggest, most pathetic hood ornament. I’m not sure if Rich would want you junking up his car like this.” Stepping back a few paces, Kristin set her feet and taunted, “Let’s get the trash off this hood shall we?”

She sprinted forward a few steps and brought her right foot shooting up, punting Neve right in the temple with her heel. The Scream Queen uttered a silent groan and slid bonelessly off the hood, barely able to get her hands up to protect her head before she hit the asphalt in a tangled heap. Moving slow, Kristin grabbed Neve’s ankles again and slowly pulled her away from the Plymouth. Convinced that she had enough room to work, Kristin dropped Neve’s feet and slowly straddled her waist.

Taking a deep breath, Kristin reached down and grabbed a double handful of Neve’s soaked green tank top, then slowly pulling the garment up, Kristin said quietly, “I did this to Elisha before I put her down, it seems only right that I do the same to you.”

Receiving no protest from her nemesis, Kristin continued to peel the shirt up and over Neve’s chest until the sopping garment was pulled over her head and clean off, leaving her clad in nothing but her jeans and a simple black bra. Holding the rain soaked top in both hands, Kristin twisted it into a tight loop and proceeded to wrap it around Neve’s throat, choking her mercilessly. Neve began to squirm and fight almost immediately but the best she could do was a weak clawing at Kristin’s neck and face that the Hellcat easily turned away from. Soaking up Neve’s escape attempts, Kristin tightened her grip on Neve’s top and eased up out of the straddle, getting to her feet and pulling Neve to hers in the process. Twisting around behind Neve, Kristin pulled back on the stranglehold, actually lifting Neve up on her toes for a few seconds before setting her back down to gasp and claw at the fabric that was cutting off her air. Looking for a leverage advantage, Kristin backed up, heading slowly towards the car once more. Keeping the pressure on the choke steady, Kristin kept moving backwards until she felt the irregular shape of the Fury’s grille press against her hips.

Glancing over her shoulder to confirm their location, Kris relaxed the pressure on her choke just long enough to hop up onto the hood and pull Neve into her, wrapping her long legs around the gasping Scream’s Queen’s waist as she added a Body Scissors to the insidious choke that was already destroying her rival. Remembering the erratic hitch and tug that Elisha’s breath had taken on when she applied the Scissors on the blonde nearly a year ago, Kristin was pleased discover the same irregularity in Neve’s shuddering attempts to breathe.

Locking her ankles tighter, Kristin pulled Neve closer and whispered in her ear for what she hoped would be the final time, “Elisha went out to this hold fairly quickly, though to be fair I had just tossed her off this very car. Still, I hope you’ll last longer than she did. I like feeling the last little bit of fight leave your body.”

Kristin grinned at the slight gurgle that was Neve’s only response. She had just snuggled her face in against the Scream Queen’s cheek for an even closer look when Neve’s formerly limp hands shot up and Poked her in the eye. Surprised and blinded, Kristin finally released the choke but was able to maintain the Scissors; she was still shaking her head wildly when Neve slammed a hard elbow into the point of her jaw, stunning her even more. Acting more on instinct than anything else, Neve wrenched free of the Scissors and grabbed Kristin by the thighs. In the same motion she shoved up and back, dumping Kristin head over heels onto the pavement, where she landed with an undignified THUD. Overjoyed simply to breath without incident, Neve fell to one knee and took in great, tearing gulps of oxygen. Several seconds passed and the injured brunette was finally able to force her way to a vertical base.

Still rubbing her throat, Neve turned around, trying to get a bead on Kristin’s location. That turned out to be a relatively easy task as Kristin was crouched on the hood and ready to pounce. Seeing the whites of Neve’s eyes, Kristin shrieked and flung herself at the Scream Queen. Letting instinct take over again, Neve took a step back and then lashed both arms out, smashing Kristin in the face and knocking her out of air. Kristin landed hard on her back, while the still woozy Neve was dropped to one knee by the shock of their collision. Staring blankly at the glistening ground, Neve fought to steady her breathing for nearly thirty seconds before she felt well enough to brush the hair out of her eyes and get to her feet. Limping the few steps to where Kristin was sprawled, Neve reached down, buried both hands in Kristin’s hair and yanked her to her knees. Holding Kristin’s face about even with her navel, Neve flipped the hair out of her eyes and glared down at Kristin’s upturned face.

Her voice a ragged whisper, Neve said, “You’ve taken a lot of the fight out of me Kristin, but I’ve got just enough left to finish you off. Feel free to give your submission any time you want. I don’t plan on going anywhere.”

Kristin raised her hands and pushed weakly at Neve’s hips, but the Scream Queen held the Hellcat in place and proceeded to ram her knee up, bashing it into Kristin’s forehead with a heartless series of Knee Lifts. Kristin’s head snapped back with every shot, only to loll forward and give Neve a target she couldn’t pass up. Keeping her hold on Kristin’s shoulders steady, Neve’s attack was machine-like in its methodical destruction of Kristin’s skull. After nearly a minute of these brutal, unprotected strikes, Neve shifted her grip once more, placing one hand on top of Kristin’s head while the other reached down to secure a grip on the bottom of Kristin’s maroon top. Without a word, Neve yanked the top over Kristin’s head, tying the score at least in terms of attire, Neve glared coldly down at the deliciously unguarded expanse of Kristin’s torso, now protected by nothing more than a bra the same shade as her discarded top.

Stepping behind the kneeling brunette, Neve wrapped the fabric around Kristin’s neck and pulled back with both hands, returning Kristin’s stranglehold from earlier in the battle. Cinching the choke as tight as she could, Neve sat down behind her struggling foe and laced her legs around Kristin’s recently bared waist. Locking her ankles, Neve poured the pressure into the Body Scissors while she added to the misery of the hold by wringing the Hellcat’s neck. Clenching and unclenching her ankles, Neve ignored the mild irritation of the concrete abrading her back and continued to squeeze the life out of her nemesis.

Cracking a smile as she felt Kristin’s long fingers dig into her arms, Neve found her voice and said, “Beg me.”

Gagging and retching, Kristin continued to squirm and rasped, “Fuck…you.”

“Not gonna happen! Wouldn’t want to give you any more ammo to insult me with!” Neve laughed as she put a final constriction into both holds and then released them, shoving Kristin away with a single dismissive kick. Tossing the distended top away, Neve rolled to one knee and then got up, making her way slowly over to where Kristin lay splayed on her belly. Placing her foot arrogantly on the small of Kristin’s back, Neve pressed down hard and said, “You tried to turn me into a hood ornament, Kristin. But I’m gonna turn you into road kill!”

Kneeling, she grabbed Kristin by her bra strap and the back of her jeans before pulling her to her feet. Keeping a rough grip on the Hellcat’s remaining attire, Neve pivoted in one smooth turn and tossed Kristin onto the hood of the Fury, with a wet, smearing, SQUEEEEEEAL. Waiting a moment to make sure Kristin wasn’t going to tumble off the car, Neve climbed up onto the hood and pulled Kristin to her feet, holding her up for just a second before scooping her up under one arm and lifting her into the air, holding her parallel to the Plymouth’s hood. Using her other arm to hold Kristin’s legs steady, Neve knew the surface she was standing on was too slick to delay the inevitable for too long. Making sure her footing was steady, she simply dropped straight down, driving the full length of Kristin’s back into the big red car’s hood with a Sidewalk Slam. Kristin shrieked over the rain as she tried to roll off the hood to get some distance between them, but Neve grabbed her by the hair and kept her from going too far. Sliding off the hood, Neve wheeled Kristin around so that the Hellcat was pressed awkwardly against the Plymouth’s grille.

Getting in Kristin’s face, Neve rested her forehead against Kristin’s and taunted, “Finally trying to run away are you? Looks like we’ve finally found the quitter in Kristin Kreuk!”

Not getting a cogent answer, Neve backed up slowly and then exploded forward, extending her left arm to smash Kristin back onto the hood with a Clothesline. But before Neve could decapitate her rival, Kristin stepped forward and dropped low, scissoring her legs out to trip up the Scream Queen. In the blink of an eye, Kristin unbalanced Neve with the Drop Toe Hold and sent the taller brunette face first into the hood of the Plymouth. Neve was able to turn her face to the side before she hit but that was all she could do. There was a resounding BONG as her head snapped up for a second and then came to rest on the Fury’s hood.

Catching her breath, Kristin got off her knees and slowly brushed the water off her arms and abdomen. Flipping her hair back in a remarkably feline like gesture, Kristin draped herself across Neve’s nearly bare back and purred, “You called me road kill but you’re the one who’s ending up a carcass. Hope Rich is patient enough to pick all the little pieces of your face out of his classic piece of Detroit Rolling Iron.” Pleased that she able to keep her sense of humor despite the pain she was in, Kristin peeled herself off Neve only to grab a double handful of the Scream Queen’s waist band. Pulling Neve off the hood, Kristin led the weak kneed girl over to the driver’s side door and pressed Neve’s face arrogantly against the glass, Rubbing her victim’s face back and forth across the rain slicked glass, Kristin sneered, “Take a moment to reflect Neve. Think about the best moments of your career, because you aren’t going to be making any new ones after tonight.”

Working her terrible little pun to the hilt, Kristin pulled Neve’s head back and then tossed her forward, crunching the Scream Queen’s features against the window. Neve groaned and then she went limp, lying on the pavement at the base of the door in a semi-coherent pile of rain drenched flesh. Looking down at Neve’s defenseless form, Kristin felt galvanized. After all the suffering, all the mind games and all the torture, she was finally going to do it. She was going to beat Neve at her own game and she was going to do it all by herself! The thunder roared directly overhead and in the afterglow, her emerald eyes blazed a lightning all their own. Bending down, Kristin pulled Neve to her feet and as she maneuvered behind the barely protesting brunette, it seemed to her that the wind rushing through the trees sounded a lot like a capacity crowd urging her own.

Pushing up against Neve’s backside, Kristin whispered, “I’ve only got one hold left to use on you Neve, but it’s all that I need. I’ve been waiting a very long time to trap you in this. Get ready to beg for mercy you outclassed bitch.”

Standing against the brunette’s right side, Kristin forced Neve over, holding her by the hair to keep her from falling down. In one practiced motion, she scissored her right leg around the Scream Queen’s left, making sure her thigh was pressed close to Neve’s ribs. In the same motion she reached over Neve’s bent torso and hooked Neve’s right arm with her left arm. Finally, she swung her left leg up and slung it over Neve’s neck, the back of the brunette’s knee resting comfortably against the side of her victim’s face. With “Kruel Intentions” locked in, Kristin pulled up with her arm and pushed down with legs, bringing incredible pressure to bear on the Scream Queen’s ribs and neck.

Bouncing and jerking the hold to increase the pressure of the sadistic hold, Kristin grinned triumphantly as Neve wilted in her grasp. But despite the vile force she was pouring into the hold, Kristin could not force the other brunette to concede. She thought it might be possible for Neve to be trying to surrender but that the brunette’s voice actually had failed her. Kristin held onto this hope for just a moment and then dismissed it. If Neve were really trying to give up, she would have been slapping frantically at Kristin’s leg or hi with her free hand. Instead, Neve’s free hand was pushing futilely at the thigh pressing down on her bent neck. No, Neve wasn’t giving up yet and that made Kristin furious. Screaming over the seemingly ceaseless torrent of rain, Kristin roared, “GIVE IT UP NEVE, I’VE WON! DON’T YOU GET IT? YOU’RE HELPLESS! BEG FOR MY MERCY OR I SWEAR TO GOD I WILL BREAK YOUR NECK!”

Suffering the nearly indescribable agonies of Kristin’s chosen finisher, Neve blocked out Kristin’s tirade and focused on doing nothing but turning her head the several inches necessary to make good on her escape. Silently cursing the tears she felt streaming down her face, Neve suffered in silence for several more seconds until she was finally able to get her mouth pressed against Kristin’s thigh. Thinking of nothing but how she would make the Hellcat suffer, she opened her mouth and clamped down hard, her sharp teeth digging painfully into Kristin’s thigh even through the protection of her jeans. Surprised by any show of resistance at this stage, Kristin gritted her teeth and tried to shake free, but she couldn’t effectively free herself without breaking the hold. Throwing her head back, she let loose with a primal scream and released her grip, letting Neve fall to her hands and knees while she hobbled back, snarling hatefully at the circle of bite marks that were barely visible on the thigh of her drenched jeans. Whipping her head up, Kristin’s glare was pure murder as she stalked over to the slowly rising Neve. Grabbing the Scream Queen by her hair and a bra strap, Kristin silently marched back towards the Plymouth and threw Neve onto the hood. Hopping up on the hood with her, Kristin got to her feet and pulled Neve to her knees, trapping her in Standing Headscissors.

Facing towards the Fury’s windshield, Kristin wrapped her arms around Neve’s waist and screamed to the night sky, “THIS ENDS NOW!” A peal of thunder was her only reply and it was all Kristin needed. Lowering her head, she lifted Neve into the air and pulled the bigger brunette into the Powerbomb position. Not caring that she couldn’t hold Neve in the stall position for long, Kristin slammed her prey down hard, driving Neve full force into the Fury’s wraparound windshield. CRRAACK! Lightning cracked, the windshield cracked and Kristin swore the Scream Queen’s spine cracked as well. Knowing the fight was hers; Kristin sank to her knees, straddling the battered brunette’s waist. Breathing hard, Kristin held her eyes closed for several seconds and then whispered, “I did it…I proved I’m the best in the world.”

“You…haven’t…proved anything.” came a low croak from right in front of her face. Kristin’s eyes snapped open. As impossible as it may have seemed, Neve was conscious, though not very. Seeing Kristin’s incredulous expression, Neve continued, “This fight doesn’t stop til one of us submits. And despite all you’ve done to me, you can’t make me surrender.”

Kristin lost it then; lunging forward, she pressed her hands against Neve’s shoulders and pinned her back against the spider-webbed glass. Getting in Neve’s face, she shouted, “SAY IT! SAY IT! SAY IT! SAY IT OR I’LL MAIM YOU AND LEAVE YA HERE FOR FANNIN TO FIND IN THE MORNING! SUBMIT OR SO HELP ME - I’LL MAKE SURE YOU NEVER WALK AGAIN!”

Smiling through a busted lip and other debilitating aches and pains, Neve shot back, “Just words until you prove otherwise.”

Unable to believe the injured girl’s gall, Kristin shrieked again and got up off Neve only to immediately pull her to her feet. Stepping up onto the cab of the Fury, Kristin pulled Neve up to join her and forced the girl into another Standing Headscissors. Wrapping her arms around Neve’s slick waist, Kristin sneered, “Fine, don’t submit. After this Letdown you won’t be able to do anything but lie at my feet.” Bending her knees, Kristin gathered the last bit of her reserves in preparation for delivering the devastating Powerbomb/Facebuster combo that was her finisher, the oddly but truthfully named, “Beautiful Letdown!”

Calming her nerves, Kristin was about to haul Neve off her feet when the prone brunette suddenly went limp in her grip and dropped to one knee. Thrown slightly off balance, Kristin shifted her weight to regain her balance and in that instant, Neve shot her right hand up, a desperation Uppercut that caught Kristin directly in the crotch. Sobbing silently, Kristin pulled back from her wounded nemesis but she had barely gotten a half step when Neve straightened up and booted her in the crotch a second time. The kick did what the punch couldn’t and doubled the Hellcat over, putting her in perfect position for Neve to step forward and trap her in a Standing Headscissors of her own.

Wrapping her arms around Kristin’s quivering middle, Neve said quietly, “Sorry about your car Rich.”

Then she inverted Kristin and sat out hard, driving the top of Kristin’s skull into the Plymouth’s cabin with Neve’s signature Sit-Out Pile-Driver. Kristin’s head made a sort of BWONG as it bounced off the top of the car and her lithe form jerked once before she tumbled off the top, avoiding a broken neck through sheer happenstance as she landed on her side and not her face.

Her neck a burning agony from the Powerbomb and the “Kruel Intentions”, Neve sat on the cabin for almost a minute before pushing off and landing beside Kristin’s semi-conscious form. Knowing that Kristin would continue to hound her if she couldn’t make the Hellcat tap out, Neve limped over to the light pole where she had left her jacket. Bending down like a woman in her 90’s as opposed to her late 20’s Neve reached into her pocket and fished out the keys to the Fury. Turning back to Kristin and the car, Neve limped back to the silent pair and slipped the key into the driver’s side door. Popping the lock, she opened the door, barely noting all the rainwater that came pouring into the front seat. Holding the door open, Neve bent down and pulled Kristin to her feet. Setting her brutal plan into motion, Neve propped the Hellcat next to the open door, reached down and pulled Kristin’s left leg up so that it was resting on the floor by the brake and accelerator. Gripping the door in both hands, Neve pulled it out as far as it would go and then held it there.

Looking over at Kristin’s battered face, she said quietly, “Last chance Kristin. Give up.”

Not even sure of where she was, Kristin was still cogent enough to recognize the demand and who was making it. Lifting her head, she looked at Neve and her emerald eyes glowed in the flickering light, “You can’t make me.”

Neve replied, “You’re right, I can’t!”

She slammed the door shut as hard as she could, smashing Kristin’s knee between the door and the body of the Plymouth, eliciting an ear splitting shriek from the mangled Hellcat. With the last vestige of strength she had left, Kristin pushed the door open, then fell backward, pulling her demolished knee up and holding it tightly to her chest with both hands. Looming over the hobbled brunette, Neve shook her head and went about ending the fight. Bending down, she grabbed Kristin’s left ankle and stretched the battered leg out length, then with a quick spin and a short drop backward, Neve locked in her preferred submission hold, the Figure Four Leg Lock.

Cinching the hold on tight, Neve put her palms on the asphalt and pushed up, bending the already injured joint to the breaking point. Feeling the unbearable pain of the Figure Four race up her wounded leg, Kristin twisted wildly, clawing and writhing on the pavement, even going so far as to pull her own hair to fight off the anguish of the hold. But try as she might, the Hellcat could find no way out of this predicament. Placing her own hands on the asphalt, she pushed up and threw her head back, sobbing in pain and rage as her most hated adversary tortured her. Rocking up and down on the hold, Neve waited for Kristin’s cry to die down and then she demanded quietly, “Submit.”

Choking back her pain, Kristin forced herself to look at Neve as she said, “I give.”

The Hellcat leaned back then, laying prostrate on her back while Neve still held her legs twisted. Knowing she’d won, Neve still wanted one more thing from Kristin before she let her go. Ratcheting up the pressure one more time she added, “Beg!”

Crying silently, Kristin draped an arm across her eyes so she wouldn’t have to look up into the endless rain. Hating the subdued tone of her voice, she said, “Please let me go…I…I’m begging...”

Hearing those six words, Neve knew that the war was finally over. Releasing the Figure Four, she scooted back on her butt and then got to her feet very slowly. Looking around the lot, Neve spied her jacket, decided it could wait til morning and turned back to Kristin. Limping over to the beaten Hellcat, Neve knelt down and pulled the smaller brunette to her feet one last time. Holding Kristin against her, Neve was prepared for a struggle but it seemed that her submission had taken the last bit of fight out of her and she’s finally surrendered to the mercy of unconsciousness.

Shuffling towards the old car, Neve had to shift her hands a few times in order to open the back door and tossed Kristin’s limp body into the backseat. Making sure she didn’t close the door on her slumbering foe’s lower body again, Neve closed the door and made her way to the front seat. Sitting on the very damp seat, she closed the door and slipped the keys into the ignition. With a twist of her wrist, the 58’s engine turned over and roared to life. Shifting to ‘drive’ Neve piloted the car back towards the exit of the abandoned shopping center. Forgoing the turn signal as she got back onto the main road, Neve looked in the one remaining rearview mirror and then back at Kristin sprawled in the backseat.

Turning back onto the twisting country road in front of her, she told the car, “I hope Fannin wasn’t lying when he said you know the way. Because right now I don’t think I could get us there.”