Total pages in book: 103
Estimated words: 95906 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 480(@200wpm)___ 384(@250wpm)___ 320(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 95906 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 480(@200wpm)___ 384(@250wpm)___ 320(@300wpm)
As soon as I’d arrived at the location, both my car and my person had been thoroughly searched and then I’d been escorted by several guys with all manner of firearms into the warehouse. If I hadn’t been so afraid for Micah’s safety, I would have rolled my eyes at the whole scene which looked like it had just walked off the pages of some fantastical Hollywood script.
True to form, a minute later, a large sliding door opened and a long black car pulled in, flanked by two dark SUVs. More men and guns filed out of the vehicles, but I didn’t take a breath until the target of my rage climbed out of the sedan. As the older man approached me, two of his men stayed next to him, one on each side, brandishing semiautomatic weapons.
“You know who I am?” the man asked.
“I do,” I responded. I forced myself to relax my stance as I said, “It’s too bad you don’t know who I am.”
The man chuckled and wagged his finger at me. “Ah, Zeus, I’ve so enjoyed watching your career grow these past few years. I made a lot of money on you.”
“A lot of people did,” I said. “But that’s part of the problem, isn’t it, Dick?”
The man’s smile faltered briefly.
“You’ll address him as Mr. Black!” one of the men next to him snapped. I dismissed him and returned my eyes to the old man.
“You needed me to win long enough for you to benefit from the odds but now that everyone’s putting their money on me, that pool of cash isn’t as big as it used to be, is it?” I said. “But if you put your money on the other guy and he happens to beat me, well then, that will make a nice dent in what you owe to whoever’s paying for all of this,” I added as I motioned to the men around me. “Trying to play in the big leagues, huh, Dick? The hookers and heroin you built your fortune on just aren’t cutting it anymore, are they?”
The smile faded completely from the man’s face, and I had the pleasure of watching his skin flush as he tried to control his anger.
“He warned me you’d be harder to flip than the others,” he finally said. “I figured I’d need a little bit more ammunition to get you to see things my way.” He motioned to the men next to him. One of them pointed his weapon at me while the other warily closed the distance between us. I knew what was coming just like I knew I couldn’t react to it the way I wanted. I had to bide my time.
So when the fucker slammed his fist into my side, it was all I could do not to block the blow.
Or the next one.
Or the one after that.
The guy was a tank and knew how to throw a punch, so admittedly, it was hard to stay on my feet. But I managed it. I didn’t miss the fact that all three punches had been aimed at the same exact spot.
My left kidney.
My only kidney.
Dick approached me. His eyes danced with pleasure as he stood before me. “I was all set to be reasonable and assure you that if you played nice with my guy in the ring and made the whole thing real, I’d let you walk out of it in one piece. But then a little birdie told me you weren’t going to give it up that easy and that I should take additional steps to ensure your… cooperation.” He made a motion with his hand and an instant later the passenger door of one of the SUVs opened and a familiar form was dragged out of the vehicle.
“Micah,” I whispered before I could stop myself.
Micah was shoved to his knees hard. The hood that had been covering his face was torn off. A large bruise covered Micah’s cheek and his face was streaked with tears, but otherwise, he appeared unharmed. There was a gag in his mouth and his eyes were wide with terror. I sent him a silent apology for getting him into this but then forced myself to focus on the man before me.
“As I understand it, your pretty little fuck buddy was quite upset when he ran out of your building. Certainly made your job easier, didn’t it, gentlemen?” Dick said to his men. There were a few laughs and then Dick nodded his head again. The tank slammed his fist into my side over and over until my knees gave out and I hit the ground hard.
I heard Micah cry out behind his gag, but there was nothing I could do to reassure him that everything would be okay.
“So, Zeus, or should I say, Con?” Dick said easily, victoriously. “Should we discuss terms?”