Malicious retaliation (7)
I believe the answer is:
revenge
<span class="explanation-format__ClueExplanation">'<span class="explanation-format__original">malicious retaliation</span>' is the definition.<br/ ><span class="explanation-format__explanation">(I've seen this before)</span><br/ ><br/ >This is the entire clue.<br/ ></span>
(Other definitions for revenge that I've seen before include "Ship remembered in verse" , "Malicious retaliation" , "Satisfaction taken for injury" , "An eye for an eye" , "Retribution" .)