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“I thought I made it perfectly clear last time I saw you that I never wanted to see your face again,” I barked.
Our last meeting had not been a good one, to say the least. It had taken place just after I’d thrown the fight, allowing him to make a whole load of money from bets. Back then, no one would ever have suspected I’d ever lose on purpose, which would pay off the last of the debts I owed to Nero.
What had started as a way to make enough money for Dad’s cancer treatment, had taken an awful turn. Gambling had consumed me. I’d been sucked in by its promise, which had led me to take out numerous loans from my good friend Nero. In the end, I’d owed him so big, the fight fixing had been the only way to get out of my huge hole. I’d owed money to many people—to many bad people who had lost patience waiting to be paid. There had been no other way. Or at least no other way I could see in my constant drug- and alcohol-infused state at the time.
What was one fight?
What was one fight where I sold my soul to the devil?
Hell. That was what it was. Complete and utter hell.
I’d let myself down, the fans down, and everyone who’d known that fight had been mine to win. Then, of course, the power of social media guessed what might have happened, and they posted all kinds of terrible things about me. They hadn’t known for sure, but by that point, it really didn’t matter.
I’d told Nero to fuck off, get out of my life, and to never come near me again. And I honestly thought that would happen. I’d assumed he would see how far he’d pushed me, and that would be the end of it.
And for a while, it seemed like it had worked.
“Oh, don’t be like that,” Nero teased me playfully, as if he didn’t give a shit what he put me through. “I think we can help each other again, bro.”
“Help?” I half laughed back. “Help each other. Do you really think you helped me last time? Did you not see the mess you left of my life?”
“Did you get the money to pay for your dad’s treatment?” His tone went cold. “Was it my fault you got sucked in so deeply? I didn’t rack up your gambling debt. You did.”
I wanted to laugh, to tell him that he was supposed to be my friend, and that he could have accepted another method of payment for my issues, but there was really no point. He didn’t see what he was doing wrong. I’d known that for a very long time. You couldn’t argue with stupid and stubborn.
“Look, all I’m asking for is a chance for us to make some money again. It won’t be like last time. We’ll do things totally differently.” He stepped closer to me, trying to look as genuine as humanly possible. “Judging by this shit-pit house that you live in, you could really use the cash. We all know that old-school gym isn’t going to be paying you that much.”
Even though he wasn’t tempting me in the slightest, he knew just the right words to say to get under my skin. He was an expert in manipulation, and it pissed me off that I was in this position again.
“Just get the fuck out of my house,” I sneered at him as I balled my fists. “I don’t care what you think. I don’t give a shit why you’re here. I will never do anything with you ever again. The sooner you understand that, the better.” My words didn’t affect him at all. A serene smile played on his lips. “I would honestly rather die than work with you.”
“Okay.” He held his hands up in a defeated gesture. “I can see you’re still a little upset about something that happened over a year ago. If you’re really unable to let things go, despite the fact that you’re on your way up again, then that’s fine.” He moved toward the door. “But if you do change your mind, here’s my info.” He slid a business card onto the coffee table, which made me roll my eyes in disgust. “I suspect you’ll be calling me soon enough.”
I had to bite down on my lip, to stop the expletives from spilling out because I wanted him to go now. I didn’t want to draw him back into a fight, not when he was so close to the door.
“Fucking idiot,” I muttered under my breath as soon as the door clicked behind him. “Fucker.”
I went upstairs, wanting to see if my dad was okay, and I quickly found him sitting up on his bed, looking shaken up and weak. The first thought that ran through my mind was that Nero had come up to the room and done something to him, but I quickly shook away that thought. Nero might be a scumbag, and the lowest of the low, but he would never do something like that. No one would.
