As Chad made it to the opulent rooftop, he immediately felt a swarm of eyes on him. Usually, he loved the attention, it was why he dressed so flashily, but having not been at a high-profile party or underworld event in some time, the scrutiny felt unnerving. Not only that, but not too long ago, quite a lot of powerful people had been after his life.
"I need a drink," Chad muttered, rushing over to one of the elaborate bars. At these events, it was always an open bar, so they could order as much as they liked.
’I shouldn’t drink too much, though. I have an important job to do,’ he reminded himself, trying to inject some professionalism into his panicked mind. ’I just need enough to settle my nerves.’
As Chad sat at the bar, he wasn’t mingling with anyone. He wasn’t even trying to talk with the pretty ladies he could see, a clear sign of his current distress. For one, those who were there were either part of big, influential family names, or if they were waiters or staff, it meant they were part of the Black Hounds gang itself.
And he was sure of it now: all of the Black Hounds staff appeared to be keeping an extra eye out for him.
’Man... man, what if because they knew I was coming they set this all up as a trap?’ Chad thought frantically, gulping his first drink. ’I mean, with how much debt I have to them, they won’t just let me get away free, right? They might kidnap me and take me away!’
What was worse, Max and the core Rangers weren’t here. Instead, there were only two people he could possibly rely on, who were in a completely separate building.
’Can I really trust Max to have my back if all of this goes wrong?’
Second guesses were swirling through Chad’s head, clouding his judgment. But a tiny, analytical part of him wondered why he was sent on his own. Maybe this was also a subtle test from Max. If so, the real question was, who did he fear more? Was it Max, or the Black Hound members who wanted to bleed him dry?
🥶 The Fighter’s Lounge
For the other two, Wolf and Joe, they had entered a separate location and been escorted to the floor just below the main rooftop venue. This was the fighter’s lounge.
Fighters were allowed to go up to the top floor when the event officially started so they could witness the other fights beforehand, but there was still about an hour before then.
So, a type of buffet, as well as several training areas, had been set up, allowing the people to mingle with each other. The atmosphere was thick with tension, testosterone, and the smell of cheap disinfectant.
"Man, I don’t know why I’m so nervous," Joe confessed, his hands shaking slightly again. He had already broken through his Vow, but facing a real fight in an enemy territory was a different kind of terror.
Wolf grabbed onto Joe’s hands, holding them steady. "Your hands are cold, man. That’s not good. You should warm up, do some running or something."
"I guess this is our first time working with each other, too, I mean, directly like this," Joe admitted, rubbing his neck awkwardly.
It was true. Joe was used to being with Stephen or Max the entire time, even Jay before everything had happened. When he was next to those people, he felt a surge of confidence that if he messed up, at least they could cover him. But now, Max was asking them to do something huge. They were to fight and earn money in enemy territory, and Joe was worried things would go wrong very quickly.
"Hey, we both trained hard for this," Wolf said, keeping his voice low and encouraging. "The Black Hounds will be concentrating on Max. He only sent us here because he believes in us. If you ask me, the one I’m worried about the most is Chad, up there with his millions."
"Right," Joe said, nodding quickly. "I don’t think anyone can trust that guy. I guess you’re right, I should relax a bit more. I mean, we’re different now, right? Now that we’ve made the Vow, I guess I should just focus on that."
While the two of them seemed to be enjoying small amounts of food before heading up to the higher floors, Wolf was trying to make small talk with Joe, trying to get him to be a little more comfortable. One’s mental state was especially important when going into a fight, and everyone in the room with them didn’t exactly look like the nicest or weakest people to deal with.
"So, are you going to tell me your Vow?" Wolf asked casually. "I know Max told us not to tell each other, but if you tell me, I’ll tell you mine. Just between us."
Joe smiled, a genuine, if still battered, expression. He thought about it for a bit, then answered.
"You tell me yours first," he challenged playfully.
"Haha, I’m not falling for that," Wolf chuckled, shaking his head.
Then, his eyes widened. He spotted something, or more accurately, someone, who had just entered the room with two large, imposing figures by her side.
"That woman," Wolf said, his voice instantly serious. "What is she doing here? I didn’t think she would be at an event like this."
Wolf, now actively going up against the Black Hounds, had done a bit of research on their key figures. He recognized the woman who had just entered immediately: it was Vivian Kross.
Also known in the underworld as Sable Vix, she was one of the recognized leaders of the Black Hounds.
****
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