"You'd think he was versing Seb with how fast that ended," Frank laughed from nearby. "Fucking pathetic."
He was referring to Seb's nickname, K.O., or Knockout. A name he earned from his talent of knocking his opponents out within seconds of his matches if he felt like a quick match. Half the time, Seb enjoyed playing games with his opponents.
Antonio approached the group, flanked by his usual bodyguards, and Joe hurrying along at their heels. He stepped in beside me, took one look at the kid, and turned to Joe. "Go upstairs and ask for the girl who helped Dean the other night," he said quietly.
My head snapped in his direction.
Joe nodded and made to leave.
“Wait a minute,” I said, frowning at Antonio as Joe paused nearby. “She doesn’t need to see this.”
Antonio nodded at Joe to keep going and then looked at me calmly. “She’s a woman, Dean. She can handle a little blood.”
The other guys dispersed when Antonio said they didn't need an audience, talking amongst themselves about what had happened as they hung around their lockers and the kitchen.
Questioning Antonio’s motives would be stupid, but it was a risk I was willing to take. This girl still had the chance to keep her innocence and remain uncorrupted by the dirty tactics of organized crime. She didn’t need to witness any more shit.
“Levi isn’t one of your guys,” I muttered. “Why are you worryin’ about him?”
“I’m not a monster, Dean. We can’t leave him like this. I imagine he has a mother who is worried about him.”
“So, wrap a bandage around his head and send him to a hospital.”
“Why do that when we have someone perfectly capable upstairs?” Antonio’s eyes narrowed on me. “She’ll learn.”
I paused and kept my voice low so the others couldn’t hear. They would think I had lost it or had a death wish. “Why are you doing this?”
Antonio tilted his head as he watched Levi, and shrugged nonchalantly. “You say the police were there that morning. She could’ve run to them, given you up, but instead, she kept you hidden. A stranger.” He looked at me and smiled a little. “I see potential, Dean.”
He placed a hand on my shoulder and squeezed it. The meaning behind the gesture wasn't for reassurance though. It was a warning to stop asking questions.
I nodded solemnly, looking down at Levi but not seeing him as flashes of my past resurfaced.
I see potential.
It was the same thing he told me eight years ago when he found me as a street fighter. I was 18, angry and gullible, with no idea what I was getting into. He reached out a hand and sold me a future I thought would help me. And it had, sort of. His promises lost their golden sheen as the years went on, and soon I was just another investment for his side hustle.
Lily was about to be the same.
Chapter 10
Lily
I closed the lid of my laptop slowly and placed it on the coffee table as if it were a bomb about to detonate.
The second I got home from returning Dean's phone, and my impromptu job offer at The Den, I googled mob boss, and then fell into a googling spiral, had a minor panic attack, and stared blankly at the living room wall until I had collected my thoughts again.
I shouldn’t have helped him.
Kira arrived home from work not long after I had abandoned my laptop on the coffee table. It didn't take her long to figure out something was off when she saw me down my third glass of water as I leaned over the kitchen sink.
I told her about my new job, leaving out the part about working for a mob boss, and that I would be starting tonight behind the bar, excusing my behavior as just nerves. Kira only knew of the fight club and nothing else. I figured it was better for her if it remained that way.
"Do your parents know about it?" Kira asked.
I shook my head quickly. "Definitely not."
She nodded slowly in agreement, followed by a scoff in disbelief. "What are the odds of you getting a job at that place? Maybe you could get Romeo's signature for Aiden?”
