Page 28 of If You Fight

“What’s going on, Robert?” I asked, even as I knew what his answer would be.

“I just want the truth. You’ve never lied to me, have you, Ryder?”

The look on my face likely told him the truth. I’d lied to him about Serena since practically the night I arrived there. He’d caught us that one time and punished us by sending her away and having me nearly pounded into the ground, so he knew I’d lied to him at least once.

Or maybe that wasn’t a lie so much as it was me breaking his cardinal rule. Whatever it was, he’d exacted his revenge quickly and painfully on both Serena and me.

“What’s this about, Robert?” I asked, hoping he’d stop the cryptic shit and finally tell me why he had the two behemoths standing behind me holding me down while he just stared at me and smiled that fucking psychopath grin.

“I guess we know the answer to that question. Maybe I should ask another one and see if you can answer that one. Who do you work for, Ryder?”

Unsure if that was a trick question, I tried to figure out what he was going for as the two guys behind me pressed down harder on my arms, holding them tightly to the chair and sending waves of pain through my shoulders. Did he think I’d been doing work for someone else? The mere idea was ridiculous.

“You, Robert. I work for you.”

The crocodile smile faded just a little, and he took a step toward me. Looking down, he smiled broader again, but I had the sense it was forced now.

“And what is your job you do for me?”

I had no idea where he was going with this, but I answered, “To some people, you say I’m security. To people in business who owe you money, I’m the long arm of the empire you’ve built.”

My answer seemed to please him. He nodded his head and stepped back away from me. “Some people would think that’s a smartass answer, but I don’t. Do you remember the first night I met you and I told you I thought you were pretty fucking cocky?”

“Yeah. I remember you thought I had reason to be cocky then too.”

“You did. You had brass balls, son. Still do, it seems.”

Even though the goons still had a tight hold on me, I felt like something in Robert had relaxed, so I took a chance and asked, “Robert, why do you have two guys holding me down so you can ask me these questions? They’re not necessary. You’re my boss. Ask me anything and I’ll tell you what you want to know.”

His eyes narrowed to slits, and he looked over my head toward the two men, gesturing for them to release me. I stretched out my arms to get the blood flowing in them again as Robert returned his attention to me.

“So you work for me? I like hearing that, Ryder.”

The ominous sound of an unspoken threat under those words told me he didn’t like anything about me at that moment. I’d already assessed my chances of getting out of there in one piece if he set the two giants on me and decided my odds weren’t good. I hadn’t entirely gone to pot in the time I’d been working for Robert, but even in good shape I wasn’t enough to handle two guys both larger than me.

“Yeah, of course I work for you. Always have since the day I walked through the front door.”

He shot the two guys another look and then leveled his gaze on me. “Then why did you get rid of Oliver? Who ordered that? Because I didn’t.”

Suddenly, I realized what this was all about. He thought I had taken care of Oliver for someone else and I was working for him.

“Oh. It’s not what you think, Robert. I’m not working for anyone else.”

In a flash, the two guys had a hold of me and Robert slammed his fist into my face, jamming his knuckles into my eye socket with a punch that sent my head flying back against the chair. Before I could say another word, he hit me again just as hard in the eye a second time.

“Who ordered it, Ryder? Who ordered the hit on Oliver?” Robert bellowed so loud the words echoed off the walls of his office.

I wasn’t going to bring Serena into this. God only knew what he’d do to her if I admitted I’d killed Oliver for her. So I said nothing and braced myself for the next shot to my head as the pain in my eye radiated down my cheekbone.

“You don’t have to say it. I already know. Serena. I should have known at some point I’d have to deal with your little infatuation with each other. I thought sending her away for two years would take care of it, but I see that didn’t work.”

If he thought I was going to simply admit I’d done it for her, he had no idea how wrong he was about what we felt for each other. It hadn’t been simple infatuation since before he sent her off to Italy.

“Robert, he was a fuck. He choked her and pushed her down the stairs. It’s no loss.”

As soon as the words were out, I knew my mouth had gotten me in trouble again. His face turned red with rage, and he barked, “Only I can order you to kill someone! Only me!”

I opened my mouth to say something to defend Serena, but from the side a fist hit my jaw with such force that it felt like my fucking teeth all shifted in my head. Another fist hit the right side of my face, pounding into my cheekbone that still ached from when Robert nailed me in the eye.

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