Page 102 of Abundance of Obsession

Owen sits back down next to me. “Better now? How are you feeling?”

“Like I’m about to throw up, but a little less so.” I rest my hands on my knees and bow my head.

The less he sees of me, the better, in case he finds something familiar in my face. The shorter our interaction, the better for everyone.

I count to sixty in my head and take a deep breath. “I’ll have a drink, and then I won’t bother you anymore.”

I unscrew the cap when his heavy hand lands on my forearm.

“What the hell are you doing?” His voice drops.

My head sways slightly. “I want a drink. What does this seem to be?”

“That’s my drink.”

“That’s my drink, silly. Yours is right here.” The tip of my shoe points to his bottle.

I still don’t raise my head, waiting to see how things play out.

Finally, he grunts. “Sorry. You’re right. Guess we have the same taste.“

“The best taste.” I chuckle, and when he takes his hand off mine, I hold the bottle out to him. “Cheers? To your win and to you smashing someone’s face in.”

My slurred speech makes him laugh too, but he does what I want. He grabs the bottle, opens it, and knocks it against mine. We both take a few deep swigs.

“That’s all I needed. Fuck. I was supposed to go to the bathroom.” Unsteady, holding onto the locker behind me, I stand up.

“Whoa. Are you sure you can handle this, little bird?”

“You underestimate women and their creativity. In this state, I can still dance half the night away.”

Without looking back, I head for the exit. “Good luck out there,” I call. I can still hear his laughter even as I close the door behind me.

A deep breath flows from my lips. Relief. That’s what I feel.

Now all that’s left is to wait for the effects to hit. And I hope before he enters the cage, he’ll drink the rest of the drink laced with the intoxicant I bought on the black market. Hopefully, someone didn’t trick me, and I won’t accidentally kill him. All I want is to see with my own eyes the downfall of the almighty, the undefeated champion. The legend of this ring.

I leave the hall as quickly as possible. Watching the current fight unfold, I blend into the crowd screaming from all sides. Cheers greet the fighters’ blows.

After a few minutes, it’s all over. The fight ends, and they announce the winner. The loser’s unconscious, so two security guards drag him by the arms out of the ring.

There’s a break, and it’s almost certain that the drug I gave Owen is slowly taking effect. He’s confident, proud, and stupid enough, though, that he would never consider throwing the fight.

When he emerges from the hallway, enters the cage, and jumps around like a monkey, he looks normal.

Fuck. Maybe I gave him too little? After all, he’s a huge bull.

Owen shakes his head from side to side, and the crowd goes wild for his antics. They love him, no question about it.

“I’d fuck him any way I could,” says the woman standing next to me.

A quick glance at her, but she isn’t talking to me. It’s her friend who’s purring akin to a cat in heat. “I know. I’d lick every inch of his body.”

This time, genuine disgust wells up in my mouth. I’m sure I’ll puke if I stay standing here. So I move a few steps to the side as the second fighter appears.

He’s shorter than Owen, but equally strongly built. He shows off his biceps with a kiss, demonstrates a few kicks, and jumps up and down.

I hope I bet on the right horse.