Kyle
I PROMISED Andy I would compromise and I did. It took everything in me not to disappoint my nephew by ending our vacation to come back home. Mitch has been working a plan that doesn’t land my ass in jail. My first instincts were to come back home and beat the shit out of Michael, but Andy reminded me of my sister’s words.
However, Mitch has been taking his sweet time, and I’m getting impatient. That’s why when he called tonight and asked us to meet him at Beau’s gym, I was eager to get down here and hear him out. What I wasn’t expecting to find was all of my friends.
“So what’s this all about?” I ask.
“Fairchild is making a play for the gym,” Mitch answers. “Created some shady paperwork, a deed and all.”
My jaw clenches. I’m tired of this. I thought I was coming here to find out we were getting ready to put this to an end once and for all.
Instead, I’m hearing that Michael is coming for the one thing that means everything to Beau, Emma, and myself. Their father left it to the three of us. I hadn’t been in their family for more than a heartbeat, and he added me to his will. Michael knows what this place means to the three of us.
“What the fuck? So what now?” I bark.
“We wait.” Mitch shrugs.
“What?”
“He’s coming to us. His arrogant ass wants to put on a show. A little birdie happened to let him know we’d all be here tonight,” John explains. In the moment, he looks just like Andy as anticipation lights his eyes.
I’m going to break my foot off in Michael’s ass. On everything I love, he is going to learn I’m not playing with him. It’s one thing to try to fuck with my life. It’s another to jeopardize the lives of the people I care about.
“Don’t look so stressed out.” Mitch smiles. “I promised ya I’d take care of this. I’ve got ya.”
“I’m far from stressed. I’m livid. I want this over,” I say tightly.
This is all about earning my attention. The more I ignore Michael the more bullshit he has pulled. He doesn’t love me. This isn’t about love in the least. It’s about him having control and being the center of everyone’s attention. Well, he’ll get all the attention he wants now.
Mitch’s phone pings. He looks down at it, and a smile grows across his lips. He looks up at me with gleaming blue-gray eyes.
“Aye, well, here comes ya chance,” he croons. “Give me the signal and we’ll shut this all down for good.”
It’s after hours, so when the doors to the gym open, we all spin toward them. Michael comes strolling in with a few goons following. My jaw ticks at the sight of him.
“Hello, fellas,” Michael coos like a snake charmer.
“You have balls of steel,” I hiss.
“Yes, well, you would know. Wouldn’t you, love,” he replies.
“Fuck you.”
“Yes, at some point we may get back there. For now, I’m just going to teach you a little lesson.”
“Is that right?” Beau hisses beside me and goes to take a step forward.
I place a hand on his chest to hold him back. If anyone is going to lay hands on Michael, it’s going to be me. Beau reluctantly halts.
“Sorry to hear about you losing your promotion and your job, sweet pea,” Michael purrs at Andy.
This time Beau is the one grabbing me. Chris is on my other side, helping to restrain me. I don’t care if he’s talking shit and doesn’t know that Andy didn’t lose a damn thing. He doesn’t need to say a word to Andy, period. My lips curls back over my teeth as I glare at him.
“Oh, come on now. He can afford not to work. Don’t be so sour about it,” he taunts. “You see, I’m going to keep coming for the people you love and the things they love.”
“You sure you want to play this game with me?” I snarl.
“Oh, love. I warned you not to play with me. Do you see how long I’ve been waiting for you to come back? Do I look like I have time for these games?” he bites out.
“You’re the only one playing games. What don’t you get?” I toss back at him.
I clench my fists at my sides. He’s a damn lunatic. The anger running through me reaches a new level.
“You’re the one not getting it, but you will,” he says, looking around the gym. “This place is actually very nice. I’m going to make some good money off of it. You know, I used to want to box.”
He gives a dry chuckle and starts to shadow box. I tilt my head and study him. My lips turn up, and I nod at my thoughts.
Reaching to unzip my jacket, I slip it off my shoulders. Andy takes it from my hands. I think we’re on the same page when I turn to him and see the gleam in his eyes. I move toward the ring in the center of the gym.
“Get in the ring, Michael,” I say, beckoning him with my hand.
He laughs, his head falling back. “What is this shit?” he snarls.
He folds his arms over his chest. His goons laugh around him. They’re the only ones laughing. My crew stands ready to watch me knock this fool out.
“I said…. Get. In. The. Ring,” I bite out.
Mitch and Beau go over to surround him to move him toward the ring. His goons go to flex, but my guys have them surrounded, staring them down. It’s clear they don’t want it. They back off, abandoning their boss.
Michael’s face clouds over in disgust. So much for his hired hands. He’s not about that life. What did he expect? Looking at his men backing off, he rolls his eyes, before shrugging off his suit jacket. His dark eyes glare at me with more hatred than I’ve ever seen him aim at me.
Good, the feeling is mutual.
“Let’s go. We’re settling the score. I’m going to teach you a lesson,” I say.
Beau shoves him forward when he doesn’t start moving. Michael snarls at him but starts for the ring. My lips turn up when his face begins to show concern.
His red cheeks reveal his anger. Michael loves to be the one calling the shots, always the one manipulating the outcome. Oh, how the tides have turned.
“You’re a basketball player, Kyle. Not a fighter.” The smugness returns with his words.
“Are you sure about that?” I say with just as much smugness.
I never told Michael that I used to train with Beau, only that I’m part owner of the gym. I could have boxed and done as well as I have balling. Not to mention, I’ve been a scrapper all my life. Savanna used to say I’m naturally good with my hands.
“Leave now and I forget about all of this,” Michael says with less certainty as he steps into the ring. “The gym is mine. I have the docs to prove it.”
“Sure you do, pudding,” I tease.
His eyes scan the outside of the ring. His face crumples, seemingly calculating the situation. I snort to myself. He doesn’t have to worry about anyone outside this ring. I’ve got this all on my own. As long as his men don’t try anything stupid, we’re all golden.
“Only one leaving here is you. But first, you and I need to make some things clear,” I state, rolling my neck on my shoulders.
“Oh, really? What’s that?” he mumbles while he starts to bounce on his feet.
“I know you’re behind the pictures, the alleged sex tape, and the all so convenient death of my piece-of-shit uncle,” I hiss.
“I did you a favor. Because of me you won the championship. You should be happy I took care of that piece of shit. He was bleeding you dry, and he deserved what he got,” he seethes. “You abandoned me, tried to embarrass me by dating this nobody. I’ve done nothing but help you. You would be nothing without me.”
Rage charges me as his delusional words spew from his mouth. His egotism shows how much he truly believes all of this. That ever-present grin only serves to piss me off more.
I throw my first two-piece combination, hitting him in his mouth to knock the grin off. He staggers back. His busted lip is satisfying on so many levels.
His entitlement goes beyond material things. Michael believes he has a right to people and their lives. He needs to understand he has no rights to me.
“You see. Your problem has always been thinking I’m one of your little boy toys. You’ve tried to play me from day one. You saw me vulnerable and you pounced,” I say.
“I saw your potential and tried to pull it out. I saw me in you. You have potential to be great. You were better than the others,” he rants.
He charges me with a few combinations of his own, but I dodge him and the weak punches he throws. He looks like a flailing fool. He’s probably regretting entering the ring by now.
“I’m smarter than the others. I’m not going to bow down to your bullshit. I’m not going to let you ruin my life or anyone I care about.”
I let a right hook fly, followed by an upper cut. His head whips back; his body sways right. I dance back, plotting my next blow. When he pulls it together he looks at me, shooting venom with his eyes.
“You ruined your life. You walked away from me! You were so worried about everyone knowing the truth, knowing that you loved me. Now look, they all know,” he says with sinister grin on his split lips.
“That wasn’t love. You don’t know how to love. You’re so fucked-up in the head from your biological parents, you don’t know the meaning of love. That is if any of that shit was ever true. You’re a fucking pathological liar. And nobody knows anything! All you did was plant seeds, but they don’t know me. You don’t even know me.
“If you did, you wouldn’t try to force anything on me. I make the decisions in my life and do things when I’m ready. Instead of trying to rush me, you should have taken the time to understand me,” I seethe.
“You are so wrong. I know everything about you. I know exactly how you think. This thing with that little schoolteacher isn’t going to last,” he snarls, tossing another punch.
I dip back out of the way. He throws another, but I block it quickly. His next one misses my face, but brushes my shoulder. It’s not even enough to make me flinch. I rain blows on him, backing him across the ring into the ropes.
I back away, glaring into those cold eyes. I don’t know what I ever saw in him. I snarl at him in disgust.
“Let me explain something to you. Yes, Michael, I’ve been broken a few times. I met the devil when I was a boy, much too early in my life to be afraid of shit now. If you wanted to come for me, you should have done so with guns blazing. This is only a taste of what I’m capable of. You can get touched, Michael.
“Stop thinking you’re God. You’re not. Don’t play with me, my family, or my man. Do yourself a favor and forget all about me. Walk away, last time I’m going to tell you,” I say in a calm I don’t feel.
I throw a hard punch to his jaw, knocking him on his ass. From the look in his eyes as he struggles to sit up, I know I’ve made my point. At least, if he has any sense he’ll take heed.
“We good, Michael?” I ask through clinched teeth.
“Oh, you’re good. Good and fucked,” he spits.
However, his confidence is as shaken as his voice. His eyes aren’t glowing with that air of control. Michael looks like he’ll think twice about fucking with me from now on.
“Wrong answer,” I reply. “You fucked up, Michael. Your arrogance has caught up with that ass. Unlike you, I don’t bluff. You never had a tape. It was a nice play, but again, I’ve never slept on you. In the back of my mind, I always knew you were going to show your true colors. We’re done.”
“We’ll see.”
“Yeah, we will,” I toss over my shoulder as I turn to Mitch and nod.
This is a waste of my time. I’ve made my point. Although, with people like Michael it will never fully sink in. The world will always owe him something because he’s so damn insecure and hateful.
Mitch nods back and puts his phone to his ear. This should be interesting. I can’t wait to see what Mitch has in store.
Andy
MICHAEL’S CHEEKS are red with rage. Bruises are already blooming on his face. Yet he doesn’t move from the floor as he glares at Kyle’s back. I’m the nearest to him outside the ring as I watch him closely.
It’s the reason I’m quick to react when he gets up to charge Kyle. Moving nimbly, I reach into the ring and grab his ankle, tripping him onto his face. Kyle turns swiftly at the sound of the crash.
“Ow, fuck,” Michael hollers.
“I’d stay down if I were you,” I hiss.
“The things I plan to do to your life,” he snarls. “Both of you!”
“Yeah, yeah, yeah,” Beau taunts, waving Michael off. “We almost done here?”
“Aye,” Mitch says simply, his eyes narrowed on Michael. “Ya should have given up while ya were ahead.”
“Fuck you,” Michael barks. “You thugs beating up on me will never stop me. As for you, pieces of shit, you’re all fired.”
If you ask me, I think his men quit well before he stepped into the ring. The only reason they are still here is because we haven’t allowed them to leave. Who knew a group of athletes could look so intimidating?
“You have a big mouth,” Daniel grunts.
“I’m coming for you, too, all of you,” Michael hisses.
“Aye, figured that, asshole. Good thing I know where ya buried that body,” Mitch retorts.
“By the way, you killed the nephew of a kingpin, dipshit,” Beau spits at him. “Good luck in prison.”
Michael freezes, his reaction to Beau’s words registering on his face. He closes his eyes.
“You’re lying,” he hisses. “You’re bluffing.”
“You wish,” Daniel replies.
The blood drains from Michael’s face. This is more satisfying than I thought. Seeing that look on his face is worth it.
“You’re one twisted son of a bitch,” Ray mumbles.
Trusting my brother was the right thing to do. With some more digging he found Fernando’s body. It was a long shot, but my brother has good instincts. He followed his gut.
The feds enter through the front of the gym headed for Michael. My smile spreads across my lips. This is what he deserves. I hope he rots in jail.
A few calls and Mitch found out there were some feds salivating to get their hands on Michael. Wire fraud, money laundering, and racketeering are just a few of the crimes adding up against him. It turned out to be a win-win.
“Thanks, Connor,” one of the feds says, walking up to shake Mitch’s hand. “We’ve been looking for something to stick on this one for a while.”
“Take him, then. We have no use for him,” my brother says.
“I can’t believe you betrayed me like this,” Michael starts to shout at Kyle as they slap the cuffs on him. “After all I did for you. I loved you and you repay me like this? So ungrateful and selfish.”
Kyle ignores him, moving to step out of the ring. He comes to me, hovering over me as he looks down into my eyes. I smile up at him.
“You can’t even look at me while they do this. That’s how I know you still love me,” Michael continues to shout. “You’ll forever have to live with this. I don’t deserve this. I did nothing but love you all. Each and every time, you all were the ones that tried to leave me. You will always love me.”
I search Kyle’s eyes. His disinterest with this scene is clear as he stares back at me. He looks thoroughly over it. I’m right there with him. It’s time to start a new chapter.
“I believe I’m done here.” He confirms the look I see.
“Let’s go home,” I say.