The week before Violent Conduct VIII was finally here and whilst the match between Krystal Wolfe and Sam Marlowe was full of controversy as the original opponent for Sam, Jessie Salco, had opted to pull out of the match and allow the Aussie to take her place, one couldn’t deny that it was one of the most anticipated matches of the show! Can Krystal end the Violent Conduct VIII cycle with a win?
Krystal’s hotel suite, New Delhi, India
Tuesday the 30th of August 2022, 09:00am
Last night was a hot mess.
It started off well enough, Carter and Laz arrived in India safely and we enjoyed an authentic Indian feast (or as authentic as you can get when said feast is being prepared by a Greek-American girl who’s never tried making an authentic Indian curry before, much less a Indian feast) which was delicious and was supposed to be capped off by us enjoying ourselves by watching Hocus Pocus.
And then Cass left her phone in the suite, and the mood took a complete 180 thanks to what she had stumbled upon when she went back to get it.
I know I have a reputation as a hot head but it’s rare that I go to bed angry, usually I can work out my anger by playing a video game or two (off-stream or on) but the revelation that Carter was being abused by Laz hit way to close to home for me and no amount of enemies killed in Elden Ring was going to help me with that anger! And don’t get me wrong, my anger is justified! Even if I hadn’t had my rough childhood, it’s still one of my closest friends in wrestling being beaten by his partner! For fucks sake I was ready to storm over to Carter’s suite and flat out murder Laz!
But once again, Cass ended up being my anchor in reality, even if I was acquitted of murder it would mean the end of my career and admittedly I don’t know if India has any kind of deportation agreement with Australia or America regarding their citizens committing crimes on their soil, being a duel US/Australia citizen (same goes for Makayla, Cass and her family) that would probably create a hell of a legal headache.
”Are you awake Charlotte?” Makayla whispered to me and I glanced over at my wife, I had been awake for the better half of an hour in all honesty but I had been so lost in thought that I had lost track of time only realizing how long I had spent in bed after glancing at the alarm clock. ”Surprised you got any sleep considering what happened last night.” Makayla added, and I turned to my wife, she had already gotten changed and looked ready for the day ahead, I was still in my pyjamas.
”For a while I thought I was going to be dreaming up murder fantasies involving me and Laz, but my dreams were relatively normal last night.” I admitted before I sat up in bed and let out a yawn, once I had regained my bearings I punched the bed in frustration. ”Damn it, how did I fail to recognize the signs? I grew up in an abusive environment for fuck’s sake, I should’ve seen it coming from a mile away!”
”He had us all fooled Charlotte, besides if the signs were that obvious Fenris would’ve kicked his head into orbit long ago.” Makayla pointed out and I let out a frustrated sigh as I realized that my wife had a point, Fenris and Carter got along like oil and water but I seriously doubted that Fenris would’ve let any of this slide if Laz wasn’t even trying to hide his abuse of Carter. ”How did Laz get away with any of this? Carter’s a trained wrestler, he trained at the Go Gym, same as you and Ari!”
”Could be any number of reasons, sadly being a child abuse survivor doesn’t make me an expert on the topic of domestic violence, the only thing I really know is that there’s no way in hell that I’ll repeat the cycle with you or Rachel.” I assured my wife with a sad sigh and Makayla said nothing, just pulled me into a tight hug from the side. ”Thanks, I needed that! Once I’m dressed, I’ll start going around and checking on the others who attended the meeting in Ari’s suite.”
”I bet I can guess your first three visits.” Makayla responded as I got out of bed and started looking for an outfit to wear, eventually settling on a black tank top that left my midriff and navel exposed, a jacket to wear over it and a pair of jeans. ”Cass, Becky and Francisco.”
I had admittedly not even considered Francisco or Becky when I was planning to make the rounds but Makayla was right, the two of them had received an impromptu crash course on how fucked up my childhood was during the meeting and I had been so focussed on trying to talk Cass down from blocking my way out of the suite that it had slipped my mind. ”Cass was going to be my first stop anyway, I need to apologize to her for my behaviour last night and we know she’s sharing a room with Becky, Ari’s been off Twitter since last night so I’ll be stopping by Ari’s suite to see what’s going on there.” I sighed as I started getting changed and Makayla nodded. ”What do you make of last night’s events? As someone who has helped an abuse victim escape her abuser that is?”
”That’s one hell of a loaded question, I know from talking to my relatives that not all abusers are as moustache twirlingly evil as your dad, hell I’m still processing everything we learned last night.” Makayla sighed in response as she processed my question and I nodded. ”Do you remember your parents having any arguments that led to something like what Cass described?” Makayla asked, and I quickly shook my head. ”Repressed memories or……...”
”Dad never needed much provocation to turn violent, it’s the whole reason why he’s a suspected serial killer, not that he’ll ever admit it.” I sighed as I finished getting dressed and grabbed a brush to start straightening my hair. ”The most he claimed is that I’m a child by rape, but mom never confirmed it before her death.”
”I just want to preface this by saying that as a Jewish woman, I’ve never believed in an afterlife, it’s just not what my religion preaches.” Makayla sighed as she walked over to me and I glanced up at her. ”That said, that bastard can burn in hell for all I care!”
”Aside from the religious stuff? I couldn’t agree more.” I responded with a nod of appreciation, before I headed out to do my rounds, I made sure to stop by Rachel’s bed as my young step-daughter was fast asleep. ”God have mercy on anyone who treats you like Laz treated Carter, because I won’t.” I whispered to myself as I looked at my daughter, luckily she was a heavy sleeper so she had completely missed me and Makayla’s conversation, after that I left to have a walk around the hotel.
Walking through the hotel hallway, New Delhi, India
Tuesday the 30th of August 2022, 11:00am
Surprised I was able to eat anything.
Makayla insisted that we go downstairs for breakfast before I even thought about checking in on the other participants of the meeting in Ari’s suite, and as much as I wanted to skip breakfast and get to business, I did need to get some food in me to start the day.
The word going around was that Ari was using her second promo against Melissa and Georgie to take her mind off everything that had happened the night before (well, that was the word going around those who had participated in the meeting at least, as far as everyone else on the roster was concerned Ari was the first Bombshell to get her promo done and that was that) so it would likely be a while before I had a chance to talk to her.
As I neared Cass and Becky’s room, I could see that the two teenagers were returning from breakfast themselves, they seemed to be in high spirits all things considered but I had a feeling that that wasn’t the whole truth. ”Morning girls.” I greeted the young couple and Cass looked up. She was already looking a lot better than she was during the meeting, but it was clear that everything that happened last night had a lasting effect on her. ”Did you sleep okay?”
”Not really.” Cass admitted with a sigh as she leaned against the wall next to their room. ”I was so upset that I ended up taking up Ari on her offer at around 3:00am, she calmed me down but I slept in so late that we nearly missed breakfast.” Cass added as she brushed some hair over her shoulder. ”And that’s not even getting into our argument last night, I’m not sorry for talking some sense into you but I do need to apologize how I went about it.”
”Don’t bother, our emotions were running high because of the incident in Carter’s suite, I’m just glad that we never came to blows.” I assured my younger cousin who nodded in agreement as she realized that I had a point. ”But there is one thing that needs to be addressed, namely what you heard last night Becky.”
”Cass filled me in on the details when we returned to our room last night, she figured that I was going to find out eventually after your argument with her.” Becky responded with an uncomfortable nod and I sighed in relief, any other time I would’ve been annoyed at Cass for telling someone that but it at least saved me a few minutes and Cass was right. ”I knew you had it rough from what you had mentioned on Climax Control in the past, but I had no idea it was that rough, I’m sorry.”
”Rough doesn’t even begin to describe it, just don’t go blabbing to anyone, I generally prefer it if people learn the details directly from me rather than a second hand source, Cass is getting a pass because she’s family and she was right about you finding out eventually.” I explained and Cass breathed a sigh of relief whilst Becky nodded in understanding. ”On that note, Cass, this is just a suggestion but I think you should consider talking with your mom about what happened last night, either over video chat or when we return to Vegas next week, I know she can be overbearing but she’s still your mom and she’ll want to be there for you after she learns what happened.”
”I had been thinking about that all morning actually, I was just wondering how I was going to word it.” Cass admitted, and I sighed in relief knowing that wasn’t about to keep that bottled up. ”What’s the plan for you anyway? Checking to see how the others from the meeting are doing?”
”Pretty much, I probably would’ve done Ari next but she’s off filming her promo.” I explained with a nod as I went through my mental checklist. ”Francisco is my next stop, he doesn’t accompany Ari out for her promos so finding him won’t be that difficult, I mean, how many tall, dark and handsome Brazilian men are in New Delhi, am I right?”
”Probably not that many.” Becky admitted with a small grin before she remembered something. ”Krystal, Charlotte, whatever your name is, this is just a suggestion but my dad moved us to the US to work on his psychiatry degree, that was a few years ago and he’s a licensed psychiatrist so it might be a good idea if you have any issues that need sorting out.”
”I appreciate the thought Becky but I’m already seeing a shrink, have done since I moved to America.” I responded with an appreciative nod Becky nodded as she got the idea. ”As for my name, just call me Charlotte, you know enough of the details surrounding my childhood to earn that right.”
”Will do Charlotte.” Becky responded before she remembered something. ”That reminds me, Cassie showed me a tweet Carter put out, he’s claiming that food poisoning has knocked him out for the day.”
That made no sense, if it was true then everyone else who enjoyed Ari’s feast would’ve gotten food poisoning as well and considering Ari spent time in the Gold Coast Casino’s kitchen, if anyone knew about food safety it was her. ”Has Ari commented on that tweet yet?” I asked, and Cassie shook her head.
”No and I doubt she will! When I called her, Ari said that she was staying off Social Media after the incident because she’s worried about her saying the wrong thing and giving away that we know what happened between Laz and Carter.” Cass explained and whilst Ari’s logic made sense, it still worried me. ”Do you plan on asking Ari about it?”
”It is my plan now! I agree that Ari’s taking the right course of action considering how close she is with Carter, but it still worries me.” I explained before I walked off and before long, I was moving on to my next chat.
So far, so good but there was one chat I was dreading, and it was inevitable.
The chat with Carter.
Outside Ari’s suite, New Delhi, Inia
Tuesday the 30th of August 2022, 13:00pm
I know she’s promoting a title match but how long is Ari going to take?
I’ve been here or at least an hour waiting for either Ari or her boyfriend Francisco to show up, Cass and Becky’s room is two floors beneath us and the only reason I got down there so fast was because I took the elevator down there and back up again but right now I was regretting not bringing my Nintendo Switch with me.
Fortunately, my prayers would soon be answered as I spotted Francisco coming around the corner. ”Hey Francisco, sleep well?” I greeted Ari’s boyfriend who looked up before sighing.
”Not really, Ari was crying herself to sleep last night over what Carter was going through and all I could really do was give her a comforting hug.” Francisco sighed as he turned to me and I nodded sympathetically. ”And that was before Cassie called to take her up on Ari’s offer, but on that subject, I did want to talk to you about that meeting because there was a lot to unpack from that argument with Cass.”
”I had a feeling you’d say that.” I admitted with a frown before motioning for him to follow me, I led him into a nearby lounge area and turned to him. ”Before I get started, what did Ari tell you? When I went to check on Becky for similar reasons Cass had filled in the blanks for her.”
”Not a lot to be honest, Ari was so upset over what Carter was going through that I spent the rest of the night comforting her to the best of my ability.” Francisco responded as he shook his head and let out a deep breath, I hope Ari understands how lucky she was to have a man like Francisco in her life. ”But what she told me wasn’t pretty, she confirmed that you were abused as a kid and that but didn’t go into great detail, same goes with what happened to your mother and how you escaped.”
”Sounds like she was just reaching the tip of the iceberg, can’t tell if it was out of respect for my privacy or she couldn’t remember the details, or simply didn’t know.” I responded with a frown as I shifted my weight, I recounted most of what I had endured as a kid, from the uncertainty over whether my conception was consensual or not to my mom’s murder and my initial escape, it was only when I reached my final escape that I paused and glanced at the crop top I had been wearing. ”I hadn’t planned this when I picked out this top earlier, but I guess this works, you see how well defined my abs are right?”
”Yes, you look like a healthy and athletic young woman.” Francisco nodded as he glanced at my exposed mid-riff, he had clearly been disturbed/disgusted by the details of my childhood up to that point so he was relieved by the change of topic, as brief as it was. ”I’m guessing you looked nothing like this when you escaped.”
”Let me put it this way, the doctor that examined me told the police point blank that they needed to arrest my dad for child abuse because by the time I escaped, I was borderline anorexic.” I explained and Francisco just stood there with a shocked look on his face. ”They found my mom’s corpse in the garden a few hours later, my dad had buried her in a shallow grave.”
”Jesus fucking Christ, some people shouldn’t have kids and I’m sorry you went through all that.” Francisco shook his head with a disgusted look on his face and I nodded in agreement. ”Cass mentioned that he will spend the rest of his life in prison?”
”The long and short of it is, my mom wasn’t his only victim, I don’t know how many other kids he has out there aside from Rachel’s biological mother and she turned to drugs and prostitution, I managed to get exclusive custody of Rachel from her last November.” I explained and Francisco nodded as he got the idea. ”As for how I dealt with it? Should be clear as day but Makayla helped me get up to a healthy weight, introduced me to gaming through video games and table top games like Magic the Gathering and Dungeons and Dragon and eventually wrestling.” I added before letting out a deep breath. ”All of which eventually led us to this conversation, fate has a twisted sense of humour doesn’t it?”
”You never get tired of saying that, don’t you Charlotte?” We looked up and saw Ari standing by the entrance to the lounge area. ”Makayla texted me after my promo went on the air, saying that you were making the rounds to see how everyone was doing after the meeting last night.”
”It was an intense meeting, and not one I’m in a hurry to repeat.” I sighed as I shifted my weight an Ari and Francisco nodded in agreement. ”Francisco already told me that you cried yourself to sleep last night, and then Cass told me that you’re staying off Social Media.”
”I’d probably flat out delete the account if I didn’t need it for promoting my matches for SCW and GCW.” Ari responded with a sigh as she thought back to the previous night. ”Carter’s still scheduled to compete at Violent Conduct VIII and his promo went on the air right before mine so I don’t think he’s pulling out of the match against Todd either, I’m going to wait to see how he is at the show before I make any decisions one way or another.”
”Don’t get me wrong Ari, I sympathize with you, but that wasn’t what I meant.” I responded before retrieving my phone from my jacket pocket, just because I couldn’t access my twitter account didn’t mean I couldn’t google Carter’s tweets and once I found the tweet I wanted I showed it to her. ”This is what Carter is saying after last night’s feast, I don’t buy it for a second personally but………”
”FOOD POISONING?!” Ari demanded as she read the tweet over and over her concerned look having turned to one of anger. ”I know my recipes can get weird but I’m a trained chef! I always practice proper food hygiene, whether it’s cooking for you guys or my YouTube Channel and Carter knows this! Why would we tweet out that he got food poisoning after………” Ari trailed off as it hit her. ”He’s making excuses for Laz, isn’t he?”
”Much as I hate to say it, it’s a better explanation than what I can come up with.” Francisco admitted with a frown and we sadly nodded in agreement. ”I don’t know what you girls want to do about this, but this clearly goes deeper than we realized during that meeting.”
I glanced over at Ari and it was clear tat a lot was going through the Greek-American woman’s head and none of it was good. ”Francisco, you mind waiting out here whilst I talk with Krystal about this in our room?” Ariana asked as she turned to Francisco and he nodded in response before making himself comfortable in he lounge area whilst I followed the younger woman into her suite. ”Much as I love Francisco, he’s not a wrestler, we are, and Carter’s our co-worker and friend, we need to figure out how we’re going to do this.”
”I agree with you Ari, but I know from personal experience that it won’t be that easy.” I sighed as I leaned against the countertop and Ari nodded in agreement. ”Take this with a massive grain of salt because I’m no professional and there’s a lot of controversy over whether the original diagnosis was fair, but this is reading like a textbook example of Stockholm Syndrome to me.”
”You mean Carter may still love Laz after everything he’s done?!” Ariana asked and I nodded reluctantly, I didn’t like the idea myself, but it made the most sense after seeing Carter’s tweet. ”He attacked Carter, that’s not love, you know that better than anyone thanks to your upbringing, but it explains why Carter seemingly didn’t fight back, as much as I hate to say it, I don’t know what exactly are we supposed to do!”
”Trust me Ari, this is killing me as well.” I responded as I ran a hand through my hair and Ari paced around for a bit. ”There’s only two ways this can end, either we intervene and get Carter out of the relationship with Laz or Laz does the unthinkable.” I sighed to myself as Ari looked up at me. ”Even a day after my argument with Cass, I still can’t bring myself to say it!”
”I take it you checked on Cass and Becky first? Cassie did call me at three in the morning because she was literally too upset to get any sleep.” Ari asked ad I nodded to confirm that at which point Ari sighed. ”And I’m guessing that’s how you learned about Carter’s food poisoning tweet?”
”Got it in one! Cassie did seem to be in better spirits, but it was clear that she was troubled by everything that happened last night.” I responded with a nod as I let out a deep breath. ”I thought my biggest problem heading into this show was going to be everything to do with me being originally left off the card, but this? I almost wish I had never spoke up and just stayed in Vegas until Saturday night like I originally planned!”
”Is that with or without you taking Jessie’s place in the match against Sam?” Ari asked, and I just shrugged my shoulders as if to say “both”. ”PPV shows are usually the most eventful periods of the SCW calendar but this takes the whole kitchen, never mind the cake! We need to stage an intervention for Carter, but it won’t be effective without his mom or grams there to back us up! I think they still live in Seattle but I’m not sure.”
”Based on my impressions of them? They could be living on the Moon and they’d make the trip down to Vegas if they knew what Laz was doing to Carter and that we needed their help in an intervention!” I pointed out and Ari quickly nodded in agreement with my assessment of them. ”Problem is, there’s only one person with their phone number and he’s the one we’re trying to save from an abusive relationship!”
”There’s a chance that either the bosses or Gabriel and Odette have them listed as next of kin, you know, in case something terrible happens to Carter?” Ari responded before her frown deepened. ”But we need proof! Cassie’s a sweet girl but all we have to go on from her is what she heard, as much as it sickens me, what’s to stop Laz from claiming that she misinterpreted rough sex?”
”Cass watches enough porn that I’m pretty sure she knows the difference between rough sex and a beating, but I get your point.” I sighed as I realized that Ari was right. ”And here’s the worst part, the only way we’re likely to get any proof from Carter is when he shows up for Violent Conduct!”
”If he shows up at Violent Conduct with bruises, scratches, marks, anything that can’t be explained away easily, then we’ll have a chance.” Ari commented with a sigh as she looked at the ground. ”I still can’t believe wanted to date that guy before I found out he was gay! What’s happening to Carter now could’ve easily happened to me otherwise!”
”At least you can say that you landed on your feet when you started dating Francisco, I saw the looks on his face during the meeting, he was likely just as angry as I was!” I responded before I walked up to the younger woman and put a reassuring hand on her shoulder. ”We’ll get Carter out of this in one piece! I promise!”
”Carter let me live with him after my parents disowned me for following my dreams, it’s how we became best friends!” Ari responded as she started to cry and after I removed my hand from her shoulder I sighed as I watched my friend form a fist with her hand. ”H hurt my bestie Charlotte! He needs to pay!”
Out of anger and frustration (I guess) Ari threw a punch at the wall next to my head and my instincts kicked in, prior to starting at the Go Gym I had taken up boxing training as a form of self-defence and whilst I was rusty from being out of practice, my reflexes were still fast enough to catch the punch. ”I know your angry and I sympathize but breaking your hand isn’t going to solve anything! Especially when you’ve got a title match coming up!” I said firmly as Ari pulled her fist back and relaxed her hand. ”Things will work out in the end, I promise!”
”I hope so, for everyone’s sake.” Ari responded as I handed her a tissue from my jacket pocket and she took it, we’re barely two days into the week and things are already this fucked up.
I dread to think what Violent Conduct VIII will bring if this week was any indication.
Raisina Hill, New Delhi, India
Tuesday the 30th of August 2022, 18:00pm
*promo time*
Oh boy.
”I’ve had some time to reflect on what happened last week and it got me thinking, was this a mistake? Not on my part mind you, because I wouldn’t be in this spot if Jessie hadn’t given up her spot in the match but was it a mistake on the bosses part to leave me off the card in the first place?” I wondered out loud as I looked over the city before shaking my head and turning to the camera. ”Don’t get me wrong, I’m still entering this match with the goal to make the bosses look at my decision to leave me off the card and go “This Was a Mistake!” but I don’t think Sam’s got the memo yet.”
Awkward.
”I did catch some of Sam’s promo as I was packing my things for my trip out to New Delhi and whilst I didn’t catch all of it because I had a plane to catch, the fact that she didn’t even mention me or the opponent switcharoo was pretty damning!” Who knows what her reason was? But my focus is crystal clear, no pun intended. ”Who knows? Maybe she’ll get the message by the time Sam tapes her second promo but that won’t stop me from winning this match!”
Not if I can help it.
”I’m already facing an uphill battle considering that I wasn’t even meant to be in this match in the first place, but I’ve risen to the occasion before and this match will be no different!” I added as I flipped some hair over my shoulder. ”As for what happens after the event? I’ll take what I can get because I need to prove myself everyone else all over again because of the downhill slide I’ve been in since I lost the Roulette Title, and as I said last time Sam, it was my loss to you in the opening Blast from the Past round that started the beginning of the end of that reign so if anything? You could say that there is a bit of a grudge match between us!”
A minor grudge but still.
”What can I say? I’ve been waiting for a chance to get that win back since that Tag Team Match and I’m going to have to buy Jessie a drink once we’re back in the states for giving me this opportunity!” I commented before grinning to myself. ”Maybe a whole round of drinks if I manage to get the win over you in this match, either way me and Jessie are going to get wasted once the dust settles on Violent Conduct VIII! But there’s still the important part of this whole match, me getting the win over you and as far as I’m concerned? That’s the only way this grudge, as minor as it is because if I was really pissed off at you Sam, you’d definitely know by now and if you want further proof of that, ask Diamond Steele and see what she says about my ability to hold a grudge!”
Yes, I’m referring too THAT match.
”I mean sure, you’ll probably give Diamond flashbacks to being fish food but it’s not like I give a shit what she thinks!” Hey, at least I’m honest about it! ”Rude? Maybe but my point still stands! And Sam? This may not have been what you were expecting when you saw the Violent Conduct VIII card but look on the Brightside Sam, you at least get to have a fresh match out of the deal! How many times have you faced Jessie over the years? If Mercedes was around, I could at least ask her but alas, she isn’t but the fact that I have to refer to SCW’s (often inaccurate) Resident Historian says a lot about how much the bosses love booking you and Jessie in matches against each other! And unlike your many matches with Jessie, this won’t end in a win for you!”
It’s that simple.
”I mean let’s face it, people can only watch you kick Jessie’s ass so many times before it becomes tedious! But this match? They get to see you get your ass kicked by the only other Bombshell to hold the Bombshell Roulette Title for over two hundred days and the only Bombshell to reach that milestone in one reign! I don’t have time to do the math but how many combined reigns did it take you to reach that milestone Sam? More than one?” I asked before grinning broadly. ”Does it eat up at you inside Sam? Knowing that some young upstart from Australia not only broke your record for most defences but surpassed your title reign length record on top of that? If the answer is yes, then you’ve already lost!”
And with that I decided to wrap things up.
”Because how can you focus on trying to beat me when you know that my one title reign was better than any of your multiple reigns? I don’t think you can!” Oops, am I getting full of myself again? ”And I’m sure the keyboard warriors are already taking to Twitter to declare that I’m developing an ego again! Because how dare a young upstart do what many of the more tenured Bombshells couldn’t, am I right? That was sarcasm, just to make that clear but as I turn the page on this chapter of my SCW career it’ll once again fall to me to prove those jealous doubters wrong by striking you Sam with the Down Under Thunderbomb! See you on Sunday!”
I walked off as the scene fades.
