“How do you know?”
“Come on.”
“Come on, what? How do you know you won’t face somebody who just wants to clean up with easy opponents? Somebody just like you, with experience? If you’re thinking about doing it, isn’t it possible others are? It’s not just going to be inexperienced boys looking for their moment of dirty glory.”
“Can you think of a faster way?” he asks me. “Because if you can, let’s do that.”
I shake my head slowly. “No, I can’t.”
“Then I’m fucking doing it. We need the money. Just in case.”
“Yeah but what use is it to me if you get hurt?”
“I won’t.”
I think about it. It really is the best option we have, and I know he’s dead-set on doing it. I’m not going to be able to change his mind.
“Then I’ll be with you there at the fight,” I say.
“Good, because I’ll need you there.”
“Did you beat Manic? In the end?”
He sighs. “Yeah, just. I looked for you after… I… I just knew something was wrong. We’re going to need something else, Dee. We’re going to need a way to protect ourselves.”
“What are you talking about?”
“We just need resources. Now I need to know since you know him better than me. Are you sure Glass is coming?”
I nod. “Want to hear something scary?”
“Shoot.”
“Last night, I got a text message from my email provider telling me someone had tried to re-open my account. I shut it down when I left. Dad’s looking online for me, now. If that’s how you found me, that’s how he’s going to find me.”
“Can we move?”
“Where?”
“Into the country.”
“And do what? It’s easier to hide in a city.”
“Okay,” Duncan breathes. “So he’s coming, and we have to be ready. We need a plan. I know a guy here, somebody who may be able to help us.”
“A guy?”
“A fighter. I’ll ask him for help.”
I pinch my brow together in confusion. “How’s he going to help?”
“That’s what I’m going to find out. I don’t want to get him involved, but I don’t see it as us having much choice. Any help we can get, we take.”
“Who is this guy, anyway?”
“He used to fight underground here. Stopped a while ago, I think he got tied up with the mob and had to retire.”
“Is he a good guy?”
Duncan nods. “I think so. His name’s Fletcher. We used to email back and forth, talk strategy. Fighter’s stick up for each other, Dee. I think he can be trusted.”
“Are you sure?”
“No, but I will be in a bit.”
“Okay,” I whisper. Then, I remember. “Oh, damn it, I was meant to go grocery shopping after feeding Lisa and Tammy.”
“You named stray dogs?”
I nod, defiant. “So what if I did? I thought about taking them home once or twice, but I knew I’d never be able to afford all the vet’s fees. Also, they don’t allow dogs in this building.”
“What do you need?”
“For what?”
“Groceries.”
“Just something for dinner. Why, are you going out?”
“I have no clothes, Dee. I’ll go by my place, pick some up, then do the shopping.”
“No, don’t worry about that, I’ve got some tinned spagh—”
“Damn it, Dee, don’t eat that crap. Not now, not with… Thom. I’ll go, it’s no trouble. I’ll talk to Fletcher as well, see what he says.”
“Will you be long?”
“No. Be fast as I can. Trust me, I don’t want to leave you.”
“Why? Think that when you get back I’ll be gone?”
“I don’t think that’s what is going to happen,” he says, his face crunching up for a moment as if he’s struggling to find the words for what he wants to say. “But it’s a nightmare that plays in the background.”
“I’ll be here.”
“You better fucking be here,” he says, getting out of bed. “Because I’ll never stop looking for you.”
“I wasn’t running from you.”
“I know.”
I watch him as he gets dressed, and I fold a robe around myself, take him through the apartment.
“One last thing, Dee,” he says at the door.
“What?”
“If you haven’t yet, forgive yourself.”
I suck on my upper lip, whisper, “Hurry back, okay?”
Chapter Thirty Seven
“Motherfucker!”
The man swaggering toward me is huge, obviously takes care of his body, trains a lot. His long arms are perfect for fighting, and his low waist gives him a great center of gravity; right in the mid-point.