Total pages in book: 124
Estimated words: 118459 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 592(@200wpm)___ 474(@250wpm)___ 395(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 118459 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 592(@200wpm)___ 474(@250wpm)___ 395(@300wpm)
“What do the two of you need to talk about?”
“Have you heard from Jules today?” Will asks, narrowing his eyes.
“No. I just checked my phone before I got in the ring with Victor. Why? Is Everleigh okay?”
“Yeah, yeah, yeah. She’s fine. They’re on their way home, actually.”
I breathe easier until I realize that not only has Will talked to Sal, but also to Julia.
Something’s fucking wrong.
“The NAFL called this evening,” Sal says, his chair rolling back as he stands. “Davidson donated a few thousand dollars to your niece’s care today and they wanted to know if you wanted to make a statement.”
“He did what?”
Sal shrugs. “It’s a publicity stunt, gets him bonus points with some of the fans. I think his camp was taken aback by how many people are rooting for you in this fight. So this just makes him look slightly better in the press.”
“Fuck him,” I say, still not sure I have the whole story. There’s a bubble of uneasiness sitting in my stomach, threatening to burst.
“They’ve got this press release coming out about how generous he is, a modern-day Robin Hood or some shit. They’re spinning this whole thing and making him a saint. It’s disgusting. I don’t know how you want to respond,” Sal says calmly, but I sense the uneasiness in his voice.
“What else?” I look between them, waiting for someone to start saying the things they aren’t saying.
“What else what?” Will asks, not looking me in the eye.
“What else is going on? I’m not fucking stupid.” I look at Sal. “Someone better talk.”
Will jams his hands in his pockets. It’s his nervous tick, the unconscious thing he does when he’s uncomfortable. I’ve seen it a million times. “Look, Crew . . .” Will blows out a breath before looking back at me. “Davidson showed up at the hospital today . . .”
“He did what?” I imagine him in the room with my girls, breathing the same air, his poison tainting the only pure thing I have. I can’t handle it. I’m going to fucking kill him. “He showed up to the hospital? Did he talk to them? Did he hurt them? Did he—”
“Calm down,” Sal says, his voice riding over mine. “Will talked to Julia and they’re fine. They’re on their way home, like he said.”
My head snaps to Will. “You swear to me they’re okay?”
He nods. “They’re okay. I called Jules and she said Davidson was there but she was fine. She didn’t know they were coming . . .”
“You know as well as I do that his impromptu visit wasn’t a fucking publicity stunt. There was more to it. There always is with that bastard,” I say, looking at Sal. “If he even breathed on her, I’m going to rip his heart out and feed it to him. There will be no fight in the cage because I’ll kill that motherfucker now.”
“You’re going to stick to the game plan, that’s what you’re gonna do,” Sal says, marching across the room. “You’re going to get your head straight and fucking remember what we’ve been training for. He’s fucking with you and you’re playing right into his hands by letting him get in your head.”
“He—”
“Do you want to win this fight or not?” he booms. “Do you want to win and save your niece’s life or do you want to have a pissing match with this chump? Huh? Answer me, damn it, because I can guarantee which way he’d rather have this go.”
I glare at him and he steps within inches of my face.
“Answer me!”
“I’m gonna fucking win!” I shout but Sal doesn’t flinch. “I’m gonna fucking win,” I say quieter this time. “But God help me . . .”
“God doesn’t help you win fights, Crew. That’s up to you.”
CREW
My foot is heavy on the accelerator. It feels like I’m barely moving, but I’m probably going way too fast . . . if I cared. And I don’t.
With every passing mile, I don’t feel any less like wanting to explode.
The idea of that asshole with Jules and Ever . . .
I pound my palm off the steering wheel.
Fuck!
This stunt isn’t just about me and him; this is about him being near them.
I’ve seen a lot of worthless pieces of shit in my day, but Hunter beats them all. He was a wrestling standout at Iowa but has never won a match playing fair in his life. He talks all kinds of trash, gets into ridiculous situations and uses his parents’ money and father’s position on Wall Street to get him out of every predicament he’s ever been in. He’s a Five Alarm FuckUp, one that should never have been allowed to get near my girls.
I have Sal calling around to see who let them in and to make sure it doesn’t happen again. Somebody’s head better roll, or I’ll cut it off.