Page 30 of Mean Machine

“Must have been weird going from the plod to the ring. But better to be a first-rate boxer than a second-rate copper. Not saying you were, but the sport would have missed out if you hadn’t.”

The tension was back. He didn’t want to remember. Didn’t want to relive the old painful ideals of being a copper and the mistakes and the endless, painful, dark drudgery of it. Or how he’d turned from policeman to convict. No, that was stuff for the night. Waking up, sweating, seeing the legs kick in their dog dance. The deformed head, covered in blood.

Was he really better off as a boxer? At least now he could unleash the rage. Now he was rewarded for hurting people. He wanted to. Wanted to win. Knew if he didn’t break the other man, he’d end up broken. The rules of the ring couldn’t have been simpler or more primal.

Eric pulled back, respectfully, and then left like Curtis would never have managed even if somebody had held a knife to his balls. Brooklyn gave him a grin he didn’t feel and began to unpack his clothes. They looked shabby and worn in this environment. T-shirts washed so often they were various shades of the same nondescript colour. He took a pile and opened the wardrobe.

He was greeted by the suit and shirts Nathaniel had bought in Hamburg, freshly ironed, neatly arranged. It suddenly reminded him so much of his old life, he choked up. School uniform, work uniform. There it was, a promise of normalcy.

“Hey.” A knock on the door jamb. Nathaniel entered the room carefully, as if expecting rejection. “The cook has a small snack for us now or a meal later.”

“I’ll take the meal later.” Brooklyn closed the wardrobe. “Can we talk?”

“Yes, we can talk.” Nathaniel sat down on the bed and folded his hands.

So strange that Nathaniel could be so soft and accommodating and at the same time make men like Les and Curtis shake in their boots.

Maybe start with the easy questions. “Why am I here?”

“To get you out of that environment. This is not my personal den of debauchery, Brooklyn. You will work here, and you’ll work hard. If you want to sleep in my bed, you’re welcome, but it’s not part of this.”

“So what are you getting out of it?”

“That’s between me and ISU. But I certainly wouldn’t mind watching the future world champion frolic on the beach.”

“That makes me sound like a dog.”

“So sue me for enjoying watching you.” Nathaniel’s expression was an odd “bring it on” smile coupled with openness.

“You work for ISU?”

“No.” Nathaniel looked down at his hands. “I made a deal with them. In certain circles, I’m considered to have some standing when it comes to stewardship law. I earn a fair share of my money as a consultant and expert witness.”

“An expert on stewardship?” Brooklyn laughed. “You should try it. You’ll learn a lot more.”

“I’ve observed convicts and interviewed them and their keepers.” Nathaniel’s tone was strictly neutral.

“And they’d tell you the truth because there’s no way they’d get screwed by those who control them.” Brooklyn shook his head. “Because we learn we can trust them; they always keep their word. Our stewards treat us just like regular people. Except they don’t.”

“I am.” Nathaniel looked up as if to challenge him.

“You always pay for your first few dates?” Brooklyn laughed again.

“It was the only way to gain access to you. With you, I needed to take a more circuitous route than I would have meeting somebody else for the first time.” Nathaniel’s gaze was unwavering. “You wouldn’t have been open to the suggestion. I’m not convinced we would have got this far if we’d met under more regular circumstances.”

And guess which of the two I’d prefer if asked?Brooklyn shook his head. Alienating Nathaniel would get him nowhere. Shelley had often enough thrown her hands up in exasperation and told him to do whatever he wanted, since he couldn’t be convinced. Maybe that was something the weaker party in an argument always ended up doing. Giving up. Conceding a point without agreeing to it.

“So all this is from ISU?”

“The funding, yes. It’s your reward and another investment in your career.”

“It’ll only put me deeper in the red.”

“That will soon be moot, Brooklyn.”

“I always wanted to know who’s responsible at ISU.” It would be easier to hate them if he knew their faces.

“ISU holds fifty percent plus one share of your contractual value in an off-shore fund that buys the contracts of mostly athletes and physical labourers, although there are a few minor interests in other fields. The people running the fund are sports enthusiasts, and their investors believe that the regular prison system didn’t work in its underfunded shape. What issues may happen, happen because ISU is very hands-off. They aren’t boxing specialists; they don’t know how to train fighters. But they take a keen interest otherwise. Now that I’m involved, I will keep an eye on things. Less brutality, more respect. That is what you want, isn’t it?”

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