10. Dax #2
“So that’s how you did it,” Cam mused. “I always wondered why no matter how hard we dug and who we got to turn on, you didn’t have anything useful to tell us. It helped me from having to cover up stuff all the time. It’s quite brilliant.”
I yelped as the phone in my hands started to vibrate, scaring the piss out of me. Looking down at the number, it wasn’t saved, but it had a New York area code. Glancing up at Void, he nodded, so I answered it.
“Tell me you have good news for me, Ruby,” I said once the call connected.
There was a moment of silence before a voice cleared, then spoke, “This isn’t Ruban. You can call me Mr. Three.”
A smile bloomed on my face as I looked at the others and pointed to the phone as if proving my point. “It’s a pleasure to speak with you, Mr. Three.”
“Ruban said you had something you wished to chat with us about?” Three inquired.
I took half a beat before I answered just because, as far as I was concerned, we were equals in this world of ours.
“Yeah, see, the thing is that I wanted to do this whole fight thing as a whole coming-out party. The world knew me as Dax, the enforcer, but what I need now is for people to see me as Two Tricks, the ruler of the Hidden Empire. The terms you laid out just aren’t matching with the respect I’m owed and why I’m even considering doing this. ”
“Respect… I see,” Three mused. “What exactly did you have in mind? We are always interested if it can be made into a profit for us. What do they call it?”
“Mutually beneficial,” I offered, knowing full well he knew the term.
“Hmm, yes, that’s the one,” Three agreed. “Now tell me how you can help us and help yourself at the same time. Don’t think we aren’t aware of your feud with Diego. If you’re going to bring hell down around us, that isn’t going to benefit us in the slightest.”
“Diego and I have never liked each other, but for him to blame me for the son he killed is taking things a little too far. All I want to do is prove I can show up on his turf if I wanted to and leave still alive,” I explained.
“As for what I can offer you, that depends on how many bodies you want to clean up after. The bloodier the fight, the more the crowd loves it. They drink, gamble, and fuck their way through the night. So that being said, the only thing I’m not willing to do is fight my own people. ”
“You understand how things work here perfectly,” Three complimented.
“I wasn’t in favor of you fighting Void as it was.
One of you would die, and in my eyes, that would be a lose-lose situation.
He is one of the most ruthless and blood-thirsty fighters I’ve ever witnessed, but word on the street is you two are matched in that. ”
“My little demon and I are soul mates. We are perfect for each other in every way,” Void stated.
Part of me cringed at him saying that, knowing it would tell them we are also each other’s weaknesses.
Men like Three would glean any information they could about people to use against them when the time was right.
While it was clear I was with all these men, I wasn’t sure advertising just how far I would go to protect them or avenge their deaths would be wise.
“Delightful,” Three crooned through the phone. “Then let me propose a few different ideas. We still want fights with you two, individually. That will be expected. What I want to change is weapons will be allowed, not guns obviously but knives perhaps?”
I glanced at Void and he shrugged, not caring one way or the other. “Knives would be fine. Is there any other weapon just so we make sure to prepare to give you the best show? You wouldn’t want it to be over too quickly, now would you?”
“Oh, you are as sharp as everyone says,” Three said with a chuckle. “The other crowd favorite is bare hands with brass knuckles. People still bleed but don’t die quite as quickly.”
“Either of those options is fine with us. Just know if it ends up being something else, or you try to surprise us with a weapon out of left field, it won’t end well for you,” I warned. “What is the other idea?”
“Instead of you fighting against each other, we want you to fight as a team against an unknown number of attackers,” Three answered.
Hell, that was a piece of cake. We proved that when we fought the other day. I wanted to agree outright, but something told me to question it.
“Weapons as well?” I asked.
I could hear Three laughing on the other end as if I’d just said the most hilarious thing to him. “Why can’t more people be like you? It’s far more fun to plan these things with criminals who know the game. To answer your question, yes, with weapons.”
“No guns,” I ordered.
“Absolutely, as I said before, to die too quickly means we lose out on money,” Three agreed. “Now, I just want to make sure I got this information correct, but you are giving us free choice in who you fight as well as who we invite to the event?”
Glancing at the others, double-checking they didn’t have any last-minute changes of heart, I answered, “Had to make it worth your while.”
“Indeed, this is going to be the biggest event we’ve ever hosted,” Three commented.
“We might even need to find a different venue that will hold everyone. While you two will be the main course, the others have fighters they want to put in the ring as well. They will be the warm-up, getting the crowd going for you to make your appearance.”
“Works for me,” Void said, and I echoed his agreement.
“It was lovely to speak with you, Tricks. I do hope that however this feud ends, we might see more of you in the future,” Three stated cryptically before he hung up.
Setting the phone down on the couch next to me, I waited for the others to share their thoughts. None of them seemed eager to speak, so silence hung in the air.
“It’s what we hoped for,” Void said, breaking the quiet. “It could have been much worse for us if our little demon hadn’t been so wise to his game.”
“Cockroaches like him always have a game. It's just figuring out what motivates them,” I explained. “Really, that’s the secret to getting most people to do what you want if we’re being honest.”
Eagle nodded and ran a hand through his hair before letting out a heavy sigh. “Okay, so this is our main plan, but I still think we need to have alternatives if this doesn’t play out the way we want. There’s no guarantee they won’t back out or flip on us.”