GABE

 

The way she looked at me. The way she leaned back into him. Her actions said it all. I had lost her. And I was foolish to think I could have ever won her back.

I was heartbroken when Lauren broke it off with me. At first, I delved into my usual response, drink. Drew sat to the side and watched as I drank and fucked my way through the heartbreak, but it was what I did next that surprised him the most. We had been friends for years, he had helped me through a lot of tough times, but when I announced I was going to the city to work for my father, he laughed. It only hardened my resolve. I would work for Dad and make my way up the rungs of the company ladder. I would prove to him, to her, to myself, I was capable. I would win her back.

Only she didn’t want to be won back, and I hated who I was trying to become. Tyler didn’t make it any easier. He despised me and I despised him. He stole my girl and now I was trying to steal her back.

Lauren had always let me down gently when I’d tried to sidle my way back into her good graces. She’d always been sweet, gentle. But last night in the club, she’d spoken to me harshly. She was sick of my advances. Sick of me constantly trying to get my hands on her, make her remember what we used to have. And it cut deeply.

I was back working at a coffee shop now. Dad had been surprisingly calm when I told him. In fact, he’d been surprisingly calm ever since the night he crashed the car and got arrested. I think it shocked him, made him realise what he’d become. A money-hungry, grumpy old bastard who cared more for Thornton Industries than his wife or children. He told me he was going to do right by Oliver. I hated him and loved him for saying it. Hated him because he never tried with me. Loved him because he was going to try for the wee dude that had never known him like I did. Hopefully, he never would.

The coffee shop wasn’t nearly as fun to work in as Peta’s, but that may have had something to do with my lack of interest in the co-workers. None of them were Lauren. It was only temporary though. After giving up my job at Thornton Industries and realising I could no longer afford the rent on my apartment, Jake let me crash on the floor at his place. There was only one condition. I couldn’t tell Tyler, even though he lived on the level above.

Then Jake had an idea. We should start up a gym together. We both excelled at sport. We both liked to workout. We could both box, and we knew plenty of personal trainers we could beg to come work for us if need be. There was only one thing stopping us. Money.

That was why I was back working at a coffee shop. Sure, it didn’t bring in the big bucks, but with Tyler footing the bill for the building and most of the utilities, we had very little expenses and the money Jake and I earned could be ferreted away for that dream. We could have asked Dad, but neither of us wanted to do that. This was for us. We didn’t need Dad getting involved on any level.

There was one problem. The way Jake earned money.

Ever since his return, he had been restless, uncertain of his place in the world. I think a part of him longed to go back to wherever it was he went. But then on the night he woke, yelling out in his sleep, begging with some unknown person to stop whatever it was they were doing to him, I knew as well as missing it, there was a part of him that feared it. Pushing himself physically became his way of escape. And fighting was his sport of choice.

He’d been fighting in the underground ring for a while now. He didn't tell me much about it, but then again, Jake didn’t say much about anything. He came home with split lips and bleeding noses, but would always fling a wad of cash onto the table, so I never really asked too many questions. I did earlier on though. After he’d disappeared from the club, leaving me with Sadie—who wasn’t nearly as much of a bitch as I originally thought—he returned home and folded over on himself, hand clutched to his side. I whistled low and long. Sections of his face were swollen, the skin broken in places, and one eye was almost fully lost to the engorged wounds on his face. When he told me he had another fight that night, I knew I had to do something. It was one thing to fight for money. It was another to get the shit kicked out of you and keep going back for more. We weren’t that desperate no matter what demons he thought he was keeping at bay.

But Jake wouldn't listen to me. He kept repeating that he needed to do it to feel alive, but I knew that was all bullshit. I was no stranger to fighting when I was pissed, both emotionally and because of drinking, but Jake didn’t have either of those excuses. He drank, but he rarely got drunk, well, not that I saw. He was doing it to punish himself or make himself forget. Neither were working.

There was only one person he would listen to and that person had no idea what was going on. Jake wanted to keep it that way but I knew he needed help. I knew if he set foot in that ring tonight, he might not ever be able to set foot in it again. It was plain to see from the way he clutched his side that his ribs were bruised, if not broken. There was also a suspicious tilt to the set of his nose, and a nasty gash over his eye.

It was like he didn’t care. Like he almost welcomed it.

Steeling myself, I picked up my cell phone and dialled Tyler. It rang and rang but he didn’t answer. Can’t say I was surprised. It was no secret that there was a loss of love between us. I guess loving the same girl did that to brothers. It drove them insane. But it was time to put it aside because this wasn’t about Tyler, or about me for that matter. This was about Jake.

I left a message. It was hard asking for help, but not as hard as sitting back and watching Jake destroy himself. After finishing the voicemail and asking him to call me back, I grabbed my jacket from where it lay on the floor and draped it around my shoulders. I wasn’t exactly sure where the fights were held, but I had a rough enough idea.

Pulling open the door, I stopped short when I found Tyler, ready to knock. He looked up, no surprise on his face when he found me standing there.

“We need to talk,” he said gruffly.

“How did you know I was here?”

Tyler grunted or snorted. “How could I not?”

“So you got my message?”

“What message?”

“The one I left on your phone. The one about Jake.”

Tyler pulled his phone out of his pocket and cursed when he saw the missed call. “I had it on silent.”

“So you’re not here for Jake?”

“What’s happened to Jake?” he asked.

“I’ll tell you on the way.” I closed the door, locking it behind me. “If you didn’t want to talk about Jake, what did you want to talk about?”

Tyler cleared his throat uncomfortably as we thundered down the stairs, two at a time. The metal steps and concrete walls echoed our footsteps loudly.

“Tell me about Jake first.”

I figured I may as well get straight to the point. Tyler and I had never been ones to exchange small talk and now didn’t seem like a good time to start. “He’s been fighting for money.”

Tyler, also not keen on small talk, barked out, “Where?”

“In some shed out on Styx Road. He’s in bad shape. He needs to stop.”

“Why didn’t I know about this?”

“Probably because no one told you.”

Tyler grunted behind me but didn’t say any more. He walked over to his vehicle, a late range Mercedes that was almost the exact opposite of my jeep, and we drove in silence.

Once we pulled onto Styx Road, I decided I needed to update him on the situation, let him know what we were walking into and warn him of Jake’s determination to fight, regardless of what shape he was in. Tyler’s mouth was drawn into a tight line, his eyes glued to the road. The knuckles of his hands were white from being wrapped around the steering wheel.

“Here,” I said, pointing to a group of buildings on the side of the road. “It’s in here somewhere.”

We pulled to a stop on the gravel and got out. There were no cars, no sign of people, but a low hum of noise came from the far building. Tyler dug his hands into his pockets and stalked in the direction of the noise. Stopping under the light over the door, he looked back at me, one eyebrow raised. “So what’s the plan?”

I shrugged. I didn’t do plans. “Go in and stop him from fighting.”

A lecture flickered across Tyler’s expression, but he must have dismissed it as he merely opened the door and walked in.

The noise was deafening and I was greeted by a sight I wasn’t expecting. Sure, there was a ring in the middle of the room, people gathered around the sides, shouting and yelling and waving dollar notes in the air above their heads as some sort of strange incitement for the fighters. As though they were hookers that could be lured with cash. But the thing that surprised me was the people. Men in business suits and women in glamour gowns all screaming at the fighters with blood-crazed lust in their eyes.

Tyler appeared unimpressed by it all, but I did notice him nodding to the odd person as we made our way through the crowd, trying to search out Jake. He knew some of them. These were his people. The sort we did business with at Thornton Industries.

“Can you see him?” I yelled across the space between us.

Rising to his toes, Tyler scanned the crowd. “The fighters are at the back.”

We pushed through the throng of people, earning scowls of disapproval when we walked between a person and their view of the ring. The fighters were kick-boxing and the power of their blows had me wincing.  Half the crowd were cheering for the man in red. The other half for the man in blue. It gave me flashbacks to my fight with Lauren’s ex-fiancé, Derek, and the pounding I had given him. It was nothing like these fights though. That fight was controlled with strict rules. These fighters were savage. I didn’t know if there were any rules.

The fight stopped before we made our way over to where a rope segregated the fighters from the spectators.  The crowd cheered. Money was exchanged and the losing fighter was being helped from the ring by his friends.

“We can’t let him fight,” I said, my eyes on the man’s body as he was dragged away, a hand held to his nose in an attempt to stop the bleeding.

When we reached the fighters, we found Jake in the corner, jumping up and down restlessly on his feet, punching into the air in front of him and trying to hide the pain.

“Jake,” Tyler said.

Jake whirled around, his face a measure of both shock and annoyance. “What are you doing here?” he growled.

“Stopping you before you get completely fucked up,” I replied.

“And you had to tell him?” Jake jerked his head in Tyler’s direction.

“I knew you wouldn’t listen to me.”

“Well, I’m not going to listen to him either so you can both fuck off back home.”

“Jake look at you,” Tyler said. “You’ve had the shit kicked out of you. You can’t possibly step back into that ring again.”

Jake rolled his shoulders, rocking his head from side to side. “I can and I will. I need this.”

“You need it why?” Tyler asked.

I leaned over, lowering my voice. “We’re starting a gym. This is the start-up money.”

“It isn’t about the money.” Jake’s voice was low and deadly as he glared at us.

A man with a pock-covered face and dressed in a smart pinstripe suit, walked over to Jake, a roll of tape extended. “You ready?” he asked and Jake nodded.

“He’s not fighting,” Tyler stated.

“And you are?” the man asked.

“His brother. Look at him. He’s in no state to be fighting. Another fight will land him in hospital.”

The man shook his head, pushing tape around and around Jake’s hands. “Not my problem. Jake signed a waiver. He agreed to this fight. It will fuck my whole line-up if he sits out. It’s just not possible. I’d lose too much money.”

“Come on,” Tyler urged. “Just look at him. One knock and that split above the eye will break open and blood will go everywhere. He won’t be able to see, let alone fight. And look at his ribs.”

The dark coloured swelling was more prominent now. Jake was glaring at Tyler, mentally telling him to shut the fuck up. I’d had bloodlust before. I knew of the need to feel flesh under my knuckles but this was something else. This was stupidity.

“I’ll lend you the money you need for the gym. I’ll be a silent partner and won’t interfere at all. But there is no way you’re stepping into that ring.”

“It’s not about the money,” Jake repeated, shoulder barging past Tyler.

Twisting to step in front of Jake, Tyler placed a hand on his shoulder. “This is not happening.”

At the signal of the man who placed the tape on Jake’s hands, two large men stepped over to Tyler and glared down at him, almost begging him to lay another hand on Jake and give them the excuse of taking him out.

“How much money?” Tyler asked, reaching for his wallet.

The man in the pinstriped suit laughed. “You don’t have as much as I’ll make off this fight so take your pitiful wads and leave before I have you escorted off the premises.”

Tyler looked at me desperately, but I shook my head. There was nothing I could do. That was the whole reason I needed Tyler in the first place. Jake wouldn’t listen when I talked to him. Tyler was my last option.

“What can I do?” Tyler asked the pock-faced man. “What can I do to stop this?”

“Just leave,” Jake said, his words mumbled by a mouth guard.

But the man put his hand across Tyler’s chest. “If Jake doesn’t fight, his opponent doesn’t fight. I know this might look like some backwater fighting arena to you, but each fight is carefully planned. Each fighter is matched. Each style of fighting is carefully considered. I make a lot of money off these fights and the fighters make a lot of money off me. In order for Jake to sit this one out, I would need a fighter to take his place. Do you two care to volunteer?” He raised one mocking eyebrow.

“Who?” I asked. “Me and Tyler?”

“I don’t see anyone else involved in this conversation, do you?”

“I’ll be fine,” Jake insisted. “Just get out of my way and let me do this.”

“It might be worth considering, Jake,” the man said. “The way you’re looking at the moment, you’re not going to last. Fuck, the way you’re looking you might not be back in the ring for a long time and I don’t want to lose you as a fighter. Do you really want this to be your last fight?”

“Fuck,” Jake cursed and started unwinding the tape from his wrists. “Well, you heard the man. If you don’t want me to fight that means you two have to.”

I looked over at Tyler. He was taller than me, bulkier too, but I was sure we could put on a good enough show to entertain the crowd, and the thought of having the chance to exchange blows with him was therapeutic in a sense. “Shall we?” I asked.

“I don’t want to fight you, Gable,” Tyler growled.

“Yes, you do.” I could see it in his eyes. I could remember the feel of his fist against my face from not all that long ago, and I knew there was a part of him that would relish doing it again. All he needed was a little prod. I leaned in close and whispered in his ear. “Just think of me fucking Lauren and I’m sure you’ll find it in yourself.”

Tyler’s jaw clenched. His teeth worked over each other as he glared at me. He turned to the pock-faced man. “Give us five minutes and then you’re on.” Jerking his head in my direction, Tyler guided me over to the corner of the room. “That’s what I came to talk to you about,” he said.

“What?” I taunted. “Fucking Lauren? Did you want to compare notes?” I knew I was playing a dangerous game, but since the thought had been put into my mind, there was nothing more I wanted other than to take Tyler down a notch or two. Excitement had started to buzz in my blood.

“Would you fucking shut up for a minute?” Tyler was angry and it was just the reaction I was looking for. I grinned and it angered him more. “I love Lauren,” he continued. “I want her back. But she said something last night that made me realise it could never happen unless I sorted out shit with you first. She said that I made her feel guilty about a part of who she was. You. You were a part of her life. You were a part of her. Are a part of her. You shared something and I need to deal with that in order to move on, so basically, what I came to ask for was a truce. I will stop being such an arsehole if you stop trying to win her back. I care for her, Gable. I want to make her happy. I want to spend the rest of my life with her and I can’t do that if there’s constantly this thing between us. I want a truce, but first I need to ask your forgiveness for stealing her from you in the first place. Because of you, I now know what the threat of that feels like.” He held out his hand. “I’m sorry.”

I looked down at the hand extended towards me. There were two parts of me wrestling with the situation. There was the little boy who screamed at Tyler while begging for his attention, and there was also the part that still wanted Lauren and would have wanted nothing less than to knock his block off and claim her for myself. There was one problem with that, though. Lauren didn’t want me. She wanted Tyler.

Fighting the urge to spit in his face, I cautiously held my hand and placed it in his, shaking firmly. “Apology accepted. I’ll keep my hands to myself in the future.”

“And your eyes and your fucking mouth.”

I grinned. “And my eyes and my fucking mouth.”

Tyler nodded once. “Right, well let’s celebrate this new-found truce by getting into the ring and punching the shit out of each other.”