Dark Horse (9 page)

“
So you want to tell me about it?” he asked me.

“
No,” I sighed. “I’m not really in the mood right now. I just need some time to get away and relax.”

“
Time to get away and relax? I got just the thing you need.”

“
I’m not interested in dealing with Lanea right now.”

“
Hey, do I look like the kind of guy that would bring you back to her when a guy’s at his lowest point?”

“
Yes.”

“
Okay, maybe I do. But let’s forget about Lanea for a second. I know just the place we need to go.”

Maxwell winked at me a
s he continued to enjoy his breakfast. I looked at him curiously but he remained silent about where he planned on taking me. I did my best to stomach the rest of my breakfast. The throbbing pain from the cut on my head started to return but I didn’t care. It was a relief compared to everything else I’d been feeling up to this point.

Chapter 10 - Henry

The lights were dim. The music was loud but not to the point that I couldn’t hear what Maxwell was saying to me. The alcohol was quickly beginning to take its effect. I didn’t remember the last time that I had something to drink so early in the day but I didn’t care. I didn’t want to think about anything else. The woman in front of me took off her bottoms and tossed them to the side. I stared at her for a moment as she danced in front of me. I was the same as any other man. I didn’t mind the sight of a naked woman. But the voluptuous vixen dancing right before me and the beer in my hand wasn’t enough to make me forget about what laid ahead of me.

“
That’s some rough shit, man.”

Maxwell grabbed my shoulder and shook me softly to try and comfort me. We sat in the strip club and I told him about the phone call I had received from Nina.
I didn’t care any longer at this point. After everything I’d been through, I felt like I was at rock bottom. Maxwell was the only man I could count on now to get me out of this hole I was in.

“
I figured she was your kid when I saw her picture. It’ll be okay though. You’re a good man, Homicide.”

“
How do you know that?”

“
I just do. I got a sense for these things. I had a good feeling about you ever since I saw you at Bruno’s.”

“
Yeah, sure you did.”

I laughed at him as I took another sip of my beer. I didn
’t know if Maxwell were lying to me or not. I didn’t even care. He wanted to talk business with me so I thought it was only fair I gave him what he wanted after he listened to my problems with Nina.

“
So, now what?” he asked me.

“
I don’t really have much of a choice. You say that I can make more money if I keep doing this.”

“
Yeah, that’s right. We’ll make a lot of money. And hey, I’m gonna make a lot of money, too. But we’re going to split it. Right down the middle. I’m only going to make as much as you are. That way you know that I’m not exploiting you.”

“
Just get me the fights and I’ll do what I can to win.”

“
Okay, okay. Just relax. There’s no need to rush. You’re not in the condition to fight at the moment. Take a break. Relax. The fighters in The Pit aren’t the kind to be messed with. You beat-up that pretty boy well and good but there are some real killers in there.”

I listened to Maxwell and sighed while I watched the woman dance in front of me. I still felt like I was dead on the inside and my surroundin
gs were the only thing keeping me alive. I just wanted to get this over with and get into a better situation before Elsa forgot about me completely. I looked around and noticed that there were other people in the strip club along with us. It was strange to see people around here at this time of day but then I remembered what part of town I was living in. Maybe Nina did have a point.

“
We should get out of here,” I said.

“
What? You ain’t got nowhere to go, man. Why not just relax for a little bit? Maybe spend some time with one of these pretty girls.”

“
We’re in the business of making money, not giving it away.”

“
You’re not giving it away. It’s a donation. She’ll give you something in return. In fact, I hear she’ll give you something more than that if you pay her right…”

Maxwell
’s attention had been captured by a busty blonde across the room. She winked at him and Maxwell sheepishly smiled back at her. I couldn’t help but laugh at him.

“
There’s this guy I used to know,” I said. “His name was Squeak. You remind me of him.”

“
Squeak?” he said, his attention still fixated on the big-breasted blonde. “I don’t think I like the sound of that.”

“
We called him Squeak because he couldn’t go more than a couple of sentences without his voice cracking. He was a grown man but he still hadn’t gone through puberty yet.”

“
Yeah, I definitely don’t like the sound of that. I mean, I’m grown, Homicide. My voice doesn’t crack, does it?”

“
That’s not why you remind me of him,” I laughed. “But Squeak was a good guy. We made fun of him from time to time but we knew that we could count on him. I miss him…”

“
Miss him? What happened?”

I sobered up as I remembered Squeak. The last thing I wanted to do was reminisce about a friend I
’d lost but I couldn’t avoid it now.

“
We were on a mission,” I started. “Really routine stuff. We were on-guard but didn’t really expect anything out of the ordinary. Just get in and get out. Intel was confirmed. Everything went according to plan. The last guy though… He… He was still alive. We were making our way out and he hit Squeak before we could get to him.

“
I remember holding him in my arms. All of the blood coming from his back. It was like he was taking a bath in it. There was nothing I could do…”

I clenched my jaw, trying to hold back all of the feelings that
the bad memories brought back. I exhaled a deep breath through my nostrils then swallowed a big gulp of beer to forget about it.

“
I didn’t know,” he said. “You used to serve?”

“
Yeah. United States Marine Corps. I think I enjoyed it more than I’d like to admit. That’s probably why Nina hates me so much. She’s probably right though. I was never there for Elsa and—”

“
Hey, man. Don’t say shit like that. You were just doing your job. And you’re there for her now. At least, you’re trying to be.”

“
It’s not just that though,” I sighed. “You don’t know what it’s like. Seeing all of those people around you. You get close to them and become friends. Then the next day, they’re gone. You don’t even get a chance to say goodbye. It makes you wonder if there’s a point to all of this. When they discharged me because of all of my injuries, I decided that I was done. I wanted to get as far away as I could from all of that violence. I just wanted to spend time with my little girl…”

My situation was stirring up the wrong kind of
feelings in me. I could feel my eyes beginning to glaze over so I hid it by taking another sip of my beer. Maxwell’s eyes were upon me as I stared at the next stripper dancing in front of me.

“
So that’s it, huh?” he asked me. “That’s why you don’t want to fight.”

“
I’ve killed enough people in my life, Maxwell. It doesn’t matter if I were doing my job or not. Most people don’t even kill one. I envy them. No more.”

“
You’re not killing anybody though. It’s just… You’re just trying to win a fight and make some money. Everybody understands that going into it.”

“
You’re right. But it’s still violent. The moniker you gave me isn’t helping matters.”

“
Right,” Maxwell said before pausing for a second. “I think I’ve got you all figured out now.”

“
That was quick,” I laughed.

“
It’s not as complicated as you think it is. It’s real simple.”

“
What you think about me doesn’t matter. Just get me those fights so we can make some money.”

“
Hey, you do your job and I’ll do my job, Hom… Henry. Speaking of which.”

He stood up
from his chair and tossed a few more dollars at the woman dancing on stage.

“
Come on,” he said to me. “Let’s get started.”

“
You said I wasn’t in any condition to fight.”

“
You’re not. But that doesn’t mean you can’t get ready for your next fight.”

I followe
d Maxwell out of the club and we walked down a few blocks until we ended up in front of a gym. I looked inside the window and saw a few men pound away at a heavy bag. Some other men were grappling with one another on a wrestling mat. The gym was more crowded than I thought it would be when we stepped inside. Some people were jogging on treadmills while others lifted weights to the sound of the trainers yelling at them.

“
This makes sense, I guess,” I said. “I suppose I’m a little rusty and could use a little training. Do you know any of the trainers here?”

“
I’ve got just the guy for you.”

I walked with Maxwell through the gym until we found a man in the back holding a pair of heavy pads. He was a big man with an equally thick beard. His bald head was shining
with sweat. There was a focus in his eyes as he held the pads up. The young man in front of him punched away at them.

“
Keep going!” he shouted at the young fighter. “One, two! One, two!”

The sweat flew as the young man maniacally punched away at the pads.
The bald man stood firm as the man swung at him.

“
Who is he?” I whispered.

“
His name’s King. He knows better than anybody what he’s doing.”

“
He certainly looks like it.”

King finally instructed the young man to stop. The boxer
’s arms dropped down to his sides and he nearly collapsed on the ground.

“
Good work, kid,” King said to him. “Take a break. I’ll see you in a few minutes.”

As the young man walked away, King turned and noticed us standing there watching him.

“King, my man!” Maxwell said as he held his arms out to the side. “What’s going on?”

Maxwell smiled at him but King
’s demeanor was not the same. The look of focus was replaced with one of disgust as he rolled his eyes.

“
What are you doing here?” he asked. “Who let you in? Didn’t I tell you not to come back?”

“
No, listen. I’m not here for me—”

“
You’re always here for you, Maxwell.”

“
Fine. But I’m not here for just me. I want you meet a new friend of mine. This guy’s a fighter. Henry, this is King.”

King looked at me as he unstrapped the pads from his arms. He tossed them to the side then looked me up and down.

“So, you’re a fighter, huh?” he asked me.

“
Not professionally, no but—”

“
Listen, kid,” he said as he walked up closer to me. “I’m telling you this because it’s for your own good. I train fighters in here. Real fighters. Boxers, kickboxers, wrestlers. These guys are martial artists. They’re not street thugs fighting for dollars like a couple of bums. The fact that you’re hanging out with this guy means that you’re not a fighter.”

“
What’s the difference?” I asked.

“
What’s the difference?
The difference is that there’s more to it than just trying to make a quick buck or two. What you’re getting involved in—and I know what it is because this scumbag is standing right next to you—is something that I don’t want any part of.”

King turned around and started to walk away. I looked at Maxwell, waiting for him to answer.

“Wait!” Maxwell shouted at him. “Just listen—”

“
I don’t need to listen,” King interrupted him as he turned back around. “Take this poor guy and get out of here before I start to lose my temper. You have no business in this gym. We’re training for ourselves, not to satisfy the bloodlust of a crowd.”

“
King, please. This is important. This guy’s going to lose everything he has.”

“
That’s not my problem.”

King turned back around and started to walk away. I looked at Maxwell and his head was down and dejected. I didn
’t know why Maxwell thought it was so important that I talk to this guy. But something came over me. I yelled out to try and stop him.

“
Wait!” I said as I rushed closer to him. “I need your help.”

King slowly turned around. He still had the same look of disgust on his face.

“You’re right,” I said. “This is wrong. I don’t want any part of this. But I don’t have any other choice. I need all the help I can get. I’m desperate.”

“
King, please,” Maxwell joined in. “He’s going to lose his daughter.”

King looked less disgusted than he did initially. He stared hard at me as he looked into my eyes. I looked at him almost pleadingly to see if he could find any understanding.

“He doesn’t need much,” Maxwell said to him. “He already knows what he’s doing. He just needs a little bit more to take him over the top.”

King still looked hesitant to agree. Despite his initial reluctance, he finally sighed then nodded. He ran his hand over his head and wiped away the sweat.

“All right,” he said to me. “You put in the work and I’ll see what I can teach you. I’m not… I’m not used to teaching people the sort of things that they can’t legally do in a ring but if you show up, I’ll teach you.”