Page 52 of Fight Me Daddy

Calix

A shiver workedits way up my spine and I tightened my jacket around me. I tugged up my hood and glanced around. The night air was still warm as spring tumbled into summer, but for some reason I was cold. My heart wouldn't stop pounding in my chest as I walked down the street and tried to keep my face passive. Showing fear would get me singled out and I wasn't in the mood to be a victim.

I pulledout my phone and stared at the screen. Nothing. Where the fuck is he? Gabriele had burst right back into my life as if he'd never been gone and ever since I'd been confused. It had been two days since he pinned me to the floor and made me cum so hard I'd seen stars, so where the hell was he? All I'd gotten were texts few and far between that said he was busy. And the latest one that pissed me off.

Gabriele: Go home after work. Don't stop off anywhere. STAY boy.

I ground my teeth as I stared at the message and shook my head. He was determined to call me his dog and I was going to kick his ass because of it. Why did he feel the need to torture me? Wasn't it bad enough that he had turned my whole world upside down and made me question everything I was?

No, I'm not going to think about Gabriele Bianchi. He's a bastard and a criminal. Focus.

That was easier said than done when I considered what I was about to do. Working for one criminal was bad enough, but I was currently employed by two. Conor Kelley needed me to find out what I could. And if I wanted that money, I needed real information and not bullshit.

It was time to stuff Gabriele into the back of my mind where he belonged. I forced down the odd feeling that collected in my belly as I thought that and pushed forward. Lev, Conor's contact, was waiting for me and he seemed like the kind of man you didn't want to make wait.

"You're late." A thick Russian accent greeted me and I turned to stare up at a giant of a man with a bald head and a severe frown. "The fights have already started."

"I'm not on until later though, right?" I asked.

"Doesn't matter. If I say be on time, be on time." He shook his head and looked me up and down. "You know what you're doing?"

I had a vague idea. But I didn't tell him that. Instead, I nodded once and then stepped into a dark building. The sound of fighting was nearby, the loud applause and yells of more violence. As soon as I was in that atmosphere, the chill fell away and excitement grew. Places like this were home.

"You'll fight and then no one will pay you any attention when you go into the bar next door. Have a look around, keep your head down. And if you get caught or something goes wrong? Don't fucking look at me. I'll pretend I don't know you so goddamn fast your head will spin."

I believed every word he said. When I finally gave him a nod in acknowledgment, he grunted and led the way. I kept my mouth shut as we moved deeper into the building. It looked like an abandoned warehouse, something no one looked at too closely at night. My eyes darted around as I tried to take in every detail I could. This was a one-time job that might set me on the course to freedom. All I had to do was play along for one night.

We stepped out of the darkness and the room opened up. There were people everywhere milling around a makeshift ring in the middle of the space. Electricity danced up my spine as I tightened my jacket around my body. The air here was different than the fights I'd been in before. There, it was a tinge of desperation. But here? It was danger, thick and heavy, ready to choke you and leave you discarded in a dark alley.

"If you keep cowering, they're going to smell your fear a mile away," Lev said as he nodded toward the corner. "The men here ain't your average fighters."

My eyes darted to the corner and I saw men three times my size lined up and itching for blood. That should have been what terrified me, but it wasn't. A challenge, a real and bloody challenge, was something I'd never run from. I liked being viewed as the underdog and showing everyone that I was the best.

But these men looked as if they killed on a daily basis. Everything about them screamed they weren't there for the thrill of the fight alone, but to take out their frustrations and do some serious damage too. They were all covered in various tattoos, some with a few discreet ones, and others bore marks all over their bare skin.

I glanced at each of them but didn't let my gaze linger. Conor had told me to watch out for a tattoo. It was distinct. A skull and crossbones with a snake bursting out of the top of the head. No matter how many people I checked out, however, no one had that particular mark.

"Fight starts in a while. Stay out of the way and sign the book," he said as he nodded toward it. "You can make bets over there. Collect cash there."

Lev turned and disappeared before I could even respond. And I was left on my own. I turned around and watched a man's heavy fist collide with his opponent's face. Blood sprayed, the crowd roared, and my stomach turned.

I'd never stepped foot in an underground fight once my father pulled me out of my last one when I was seventeen. He'd told me how stupid I was, berated me for throwing away my dreams, and for the first time in my life, he'd hit me. I still felt that punch to my chest to this day, but I knew I'd deserved it. He'd tried to save me.

So why the fuck had he thrown me to the goddamn wolves now?

And why was I flushing my dreams down the toilet again?

I'm becoming like him. Gabriele and his family. Seedy spots, dark corners, crime. Shit.

My stomach clenched tightly and I forced myself to stay put instead of getting the hell out of there. At the end of the day, my family had put the people I cared about in jeopardy. It fell on me to fix it.

I hung back and watched the fights. But every once in a while, I glanced around to take in the rest of the place. There were a few men I knew to stay far away from, the ones in nice suits with women on their arms and more than likely too much money in their pockets. I had no idea who belonged to what organization, but I already had one psychotic family on my ass. I didn't need another.

"Carlos!"

I came out of my daze and realized it was my turn. As I shed my jacket and laid it over a crate, I headed for the ring. I had to participate in the fight and truth be told, that was the easy part. At least while I wailed on my opponent I wouldn't have to be reminded that I was putting my life on the line in a completely different and terrifying way.

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