"There's no need to escort us to Ares. I assure you Maddox, and I can find the way," remarked Karmin as she 'limped' down the empty railway.

"That's not happening," grunted the man, who she learned went by Big Joe. "I have to make sure you two don't run off."

"Have you seen my foot? The most I could muster is a pathetic speed walk," she commented, bringing her attention to her fake twisted ankle. Although her foot was fine, her face had traces of dry blood, and her jaw, along with her abdomen ached. But all things considered, she was doing pretty well.

"Your boy over here could carry you and run," pointed out Big Joe.

Maddox shook his head, his expression stoic. "That would just slow me down. I would leave her."

Karmin narrowed her eyes at him just to see amusement glimmering in his eyes. "See, you have nothing to worry about, Joe."

He grunted in response and quickened his steps. She suspected he was beginning to get tired of her chatty persona, but she didn't mind as it gave her the opportunity to talk to Maddox without the fear of being overheard.

"Is everyone in place?" she whispered quietly.

He nodded, lowering his head as he spoke. "I texted Cesar and my Mom before we left the club. They're all in position."

She hummed in response, letting out a shaky breath. They couldn't afford any mishaps. They had one shot, and if they missed, she was well aware Ares would be hell-bent on revenge. He didn't seem like the type of man that forgave easily, especially if someone was trying to lock him up.

Karmin had to make sure he got arrested. The last thing she needed was for him to show up at her house to murder her and her family. With finals coming up, I did not have the time to deal with murderous gang leaders.

This was the last time she was going to see his face when she saw him and his associates standing by the abandoned station. His expression showed no sign of emotion but that was more terrifying. Even in the dark of the night, his crimson ruby ring radiated when streams of light hit it in the right position.

"Remember the plan," whispered Maddox.

"Don't worry. I got us," she said through the side of her mouth.

Big Joe reached out his hand, halting the two of them in their steps. He nodded in respect at Ares and walked off to join the others in the group. The other members surrounded Karmin and Maddox, a mix of gleeful and aloof expressions on their faces. Lance looked exceptionally excited.

"You're late," sneered Lance with his arms folded across his chest.

"Sorry about that. Joe was a great tour guide, though," Karmin commented awkwardly.

"No, he wasn't. He got lost by the bridge," muttered Maddox with his hands in his pockets.

Big Joe glared at him annoyedly. "Not cool, man. Not cool."

Maddox shrugged. "It's not my fault you don't know what 'head north towards the yellow sign' means," he sassed.

"I don't fucking know what direction north is," Big Joe exclaimed. "I dropped out of high school."

"To support your family?" Karmin chimed in with piqued interest.

"No," he huffed. "I stabbed a kid."

"Oh," she said dumbly, her unsure gaze flickering over to Maddox's who looked shocked himself. "I bet you had a perfectly reasonable explanation."

"He stole my pink highlighter."

Karmin chuckled stiffly, unsure of what to do. What do you say to a man that attempted murder for writing stationery?

Ares cleared his throat, saving her from the awkward situation but placing her in a deadlier one. "Can I tell you how disappointed I was when I heard about your fight?" he sighed.

"It was –" started Karmin, only for her to be cut off harshly by him.

"I wasn't done speaking!" he barked loudly.

"Oh, I just thought you were done because you paused. My bad," she apologized with her voice rising in pitch.

Ares took a deep breath and chuckling ever so lightly. "I'm a busy man, Karmin. I have far more important things to be doing right now, but here I am, and I'm not too happy about it," he snapped. "Do I look happy to you?"

"No, you look a little mad from the lines on your forehead and your slanted eyebrows," said Karmin intuitively. "Or maybe I'm mixing that up with constipation. Tell me, Mr. Reign, have you been eating your fiber?"

"Once again, rhetorical question," hissed Maddox with a poke to her side as he stared at her with an incredulous look. "You're really bad at literacy devices."

"I'm not the one majoring in English here, okay," she hissed with a roll of her eyes.

"We're not here to discuss my eating habits or Karmin's lack of understanding when it comes to context," Ares insulted through gritted teeth. "We're here to talk about why you lost. Care to explain?"

"I was having an off day," she said simply.

"An off day?"

"Yeah, I wasn't feeling too well before the fight. You know, girl problems," she mused, smiling awkwardly at them.

Ares and some of the men shifted in their spot uncomfortably at the mention of her issues. Maddox was the only one who showed no sign of displeasure.

Oh, so periods made them uneasy, but brutal murder didn't? Got it.

Ares cleared his throat, continuing to speak. "Judas told me you were performing for the crowd. Is that true?"

"It's not not true. If you didn't know, I'm kind of a fan favourite," Karmin said smugly as she brushed her shoulder smoothly.

"Are you sure the crowd wasn't cheering for you to lose?" drawled Lance gruffly.

Karmin rolled her eyes and kissed her teeth annoyedly. "Look at this, Mr. Scarface thinks he's funny."

Lance visibly turned red at the insult, clenching his jaw. On the other hand, Maddox let out a small chuckle, scratching the side of his head to conceal his smile.

"And besides, I injured my ankle during the fight," she continued, purposely wincing when she pointed at it. "After that, there was no way I was going to win."

Ares narrowed his eyes at her ankle as he thought deeply about what she said. Karmin couldn't make out an ounce of emotion from his look. She could practically see the gears grinding in his head as he made sense of the situation. She needed him to believe her.

"Okay," shrugged Ares carelessly.

Her brows shot up in surprise. "O-okay?" she stuttered.

"Yeah, I get it. Happens to the best of us," he said with a smile that was supposed to look comforting.

"That's so... understanding of you," Karmin faltered, but she was still hesitant because, from the looks of his employees, it was rare for Ares. They all seemed shocked and confused as she was whilst they muttered amongst themselves.

"You think so little of me," Ares laughed deeply as he looked around for the other members of My Brother's Keeper to follow in suit. "I'm not a monster."

"Perfect," Karmin cheered. "We'll just be on our merry way then," and quickly grabbed Maddox's arm to turn around and leave. They had to be swift. They needed to be at a safe distance before Cesar, and his team busted in.

"I don't feel good about this," Maddox whispered as he clutched her hand tightly.

Karmin stayed quiet, pulling him along. The guards behind them reluctantly stepped away to make a clear path for them, but they had only made it a few steps before someone called out after them. No, no, no. Please just let us go.

"But!" Ares halted, "I will need some compensation."

Immediately, the guards who were once stepping out of the way, surrounded them yet again. Karmin swore under her breath and begrudgingly turned to face him.

"I'll get you more money. For my next fight, you don't have to give me my cut," she offered shakily.

"How gracious of you," he smirked, rubbing his hands together. "However, this time around, I require something a little different."

"Different?" she squeaked, gulping nervously. Maddox must have felt the same fear as he stiffened, and his chest rose up and down rapidly.

"Yes, I'm thinking of something along the lines of... blood," he mused excitedly.

"Blood," she whispered to herself. That sounded painful. "You know, I'm pretty sure there's a blood donation bank a few minutes away from here. I bet you can get all the blood you need."

Ares laughed loudly, shaking his head in amusement. However, as soon as that smile was on his face, the quicker it left, being replaced with a dangerous sneer. He nodded his head at Lance, who understood right away.

Lance with a triumphant smirk began to move towards the two of them, and she knew instantly what was going to happen.

"Please, you don't have to do this," she pleaded, her chest constricting and her breathing becoming shallow. "We can talk about this!"

"No one's going to die, geez," sighed Ares annoyedly. "Just going to lose a limb or two. Nothing big."

"That doesn't make us feel any better!" she yelled as tears began to fill her eyes. She liked all of her limbs attached to her body. The idea of them being sawed off made her want to vomit.

"Don't fucking touch her," Maddox shouted as he blocked her from his view.

"Good thing we don't want her," Lance commented slyly as he seized Maddox's arm roughly.

Karmin's heart dropped into her stomach. Actually, more like it fell out of her body into the deepest pits of hell. It was one thing for her to undergo this punishment, but having Maddox, the boy who didn't ask to be here, was another.

Maddox fought back, throwing a punch at Lance that landed successfully on his jaw. But then two more men came his way. He couldn't handle them all by himself.

"Wait, no. Stop!" she screamed, lunging at the other two. She aimed a few punches and kicks before someone grabbed her from behind. Karmin struggled against the man's grip, but he wouldn't give in.

Maddox groaned in pain as he was shoved to the ground. Lance and the others kicked him in the gut and once even landed a hit on his face. They kept his head steady in the asphalt as they hurt him again and again.

She shouted for them to stop, but they kept going, and she couldn't stop the tears from rolling down her face. She was angry. Infuriated for hurting the boy she... she what?

"This isn't what I meant when I said I wanted to see you get beat up," she said hoarsely.

Maddox smirked at her from the ground, his lip now bleeding, and his clothes covered in dirt. She could see how terrified he was no matter how hard he tried to conceal it from her.

"That's enough," Ares announced. "Bring him."

Karmin watched helplessly as they dragged him towards Ares and a newly appeared block of wood that was the size of a small table. Lance and his helpers forcefully grabbed Maddox's hand and placed it on the block with a firm grip on him to make sure he wouldn't get loose.

One of Ares's henchman handed him a short, but glistening object. The sharp end shone when the light hit it just right. It was an ax.

"Do you just carry around an ax everywhere like an accessory?" Maddox grunted as sweat and drops of blood rolled down his face.

Ares twirled the knife in his ruby-ring clad hand, grinning like a mad man. "You never know when it'll come in handy."

Karmin eyed the ax wearily. "You don't have to do this."

"You're lucky it's not you. You need your hands to fight. I don't need Maddox," Ares remarked as if he was some sort of divine being that was saving her. "But don't worry. It'll be quick, and you can take him to the hospital right after."

Maddox fought even harder as Ares got the ax ready. He stood above him, and all he could do was struggle against the grip of three men holding him down. Karmin's heart battered against her chest as she kicked and swung her legs to get free, but nothing worked.

"Can't you just opt for a pinky or something?" Maddox grumbled as Lance placed his knee on his back to keep him from moving.

"I could," sang Ares with a smile, "but I won't. Now get ready. It's going to hurt."

Karmin with wide eyes followed Ares as he swung the ax above his head. Fear coursed through her veins, and she felt utterly helpless. This wasn't how the plan was supposed to go. They had to be away from the premises before Cesar, and his team came. She just prayed they were watching and would come and save them.

"No, no, no," she whispered as Ares made a motion to bring down the weapon and cut through his flesh and bone.

But suddenly, a red dot appeared on Ares's chest, stark against his all-black attire.

It was a sniper.

She was shoved to the ground, and the grip on Maddox's was released as everyone drew out their guns. Lance tackled Ares to the ground, attempting to save his boss from a bullet as people in black jumpsuits began to flood the abandoned train station.

And then the guns sounded, and bullets flew through the air.

She heard the screams and thuds as she crawled on her belly, trying to get to Maddox.

If I knew this was going to end in a shoot-out, I would have laid out my funeral outfit beforehand.

***

Author's Note:

Hi everyone!

I changed the title from Beautifully Lethal to The Daphne Effect! The Daphne flower is beautiful, but poisonous and I thought it was the perfect thing to symbolize Karmin.

Also, has anyone seen the trailer to The Falcon and the Winter Soldier? All I got to say is Sebastian Stan is freaking gorgeous lol. I would marry that man in a heart beat haha.

Anyway, have a great week

Until next time - m.k.t