Mason: Inked Reapers MC

by West, Heather

  “We gear ourselves up for an old grudge match,” Carl was explaining, rubbing his hands together as though trying to warm them by a fire.

  “You go out there, pummel them, and show the world that you’ve still got it. Your sponsors will come knocking again, and you’ll be back on top.”

  “It all sounds good,” Jasper admitted. “Almost too good.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I thought I had it this time, Carl. I was on fire when I walked in to that ring, but come the second round the wind had well and truly been knocked out of my sails, and I was just…I well and truly failed. I can’t face that kind of humiliation again. And it scared Kait; she thought the worst when the lights went out for me.”

  “But you’re fine!” Carl insisted brightly. “You’ve taken hard knocks before, Jasper. Don’t let her reaction put you off!”

  “She wasn’t the only one who got scared, Carl. The way I lost it out there, it was unreal. I just fell to pieces.”

  “Endurance, stamina, that’s all it comes down to,” Carl was clapping his hands together on the key words.

  “We’ll get you in the pool swimming laps and running at least two miles a day. When did you last go swimming?”

  Jasper had to pause to think. It obviously wasn’t a recent memory.

  “Exactly!” Carl pointed excitedly at him. “You’ve been slipping with your training. You used to swim every day.”

  “Back when I was trying to create muscle tone,” Jasper defended himself. He no longer had time to swim. It had been pushed to the bottom of the list of his priorities against weights and reps.

  “That’s your problem! You’ve been neglecting the elements which help you with endurance. It’s not all about power, Jasper. I shouldn’t have to tell you that.”

  “I know, I know,” Jasper leaned forward and cradled his head in his hands. He wished he still had his trainer. The American had been tough, but he knew his stuff. He’d make sure Jasper could endure the end of the world, let alone a second round in the ring.

  “This next fight, this is your chance to shine, and we’ll be properly ready this time,” Carl promised. “You’ll taste victory again, Jasper.”

  “I hope so,” Jasper sighed. Because if he didn’t, it was all over.

  Chapter 103

  “Thanks so much for meeting me,” Kait slid in to the booth across from Michael Daniels, a former champion fighter whose career had ended just before Jasper’s began.

  Michael was broad with powerful shoulders and a friendly smile that lit up his old face. Kait vaguely recalled hearing his name when she was younger. Michael had been known as the Gentle Giant. He had a kind face and a pleasant disposition, but the moment he was in the ring, all that changed. At the height of his career, he was a household name, but he abruptly lost everything thanks to a string of devastating losses.

  Kait had been surprised that he’d replied to the email she’d sent. He seemed eager to meet up and talk about Carl.

  When it comes to that man, he’d wrote, I always have something to say.

  “Did you find the place okay?” Michael enquired kindly.

  “Yes,” Kait nodded with a smile. “I had no problem.”

  Michael was already nursing a black coffee, so Kait caught the waitress’ attention and ordered herself a pot of tea. They were in a small café down a narrow side street on the outskirts of the city, hopefully tucked away from any prying eyes. It was a café Kait had never been to before, but she liked its quaint décor and wall lined with plush leather booths. It was definitely somewhere she’d look to visit again.

  “So you’re dating Jasper Duboix?” Michael asked before taking a sip of his coffee.

  “Yes,” Kait smiled shyly.

  “I’ve seen him fight on television; he’s a powerhouse.”

  “Yes, he is,” Kait agreed, “or at least he was.”

  “Is he taking some difficult losses?”

  “Sadly, yes.”

  Kait’s tea arrived, and she began to stir in the sugar and milk while Michael talked.

  “Does he go in to the ring feeling stronger than ever, then out of nowhere it’s like he’s been drugged or something?”

  “Yes!” Kait was surprised that Michael could know so much, but then she reasoned that Jasper’s story was now tragically mirroring his own.

  “It’s how he does it,” Michael leaned back in the booth and furrowed his brows together. His dark hair was streaked with grey, and deep lines framed his hazel eyes. He was still a handsome man, but the loss he’d weathered at the hands of Carl Santino had taken its toll. He looked tired.

  “First, he builds you up, then, he tears you down.”

  “But why?” Kait asked desperately. To her, it made no sense. Why would Carl look to sabotage his own client? Surely it benefited him more for them to be on top? “Money?”

  “You’ve heard of people fixing matches?” Michael asked while Kait nodded. She had of course heard of it, but it was an illegal practice.

  “Well, the way Carl Santino works is that rather than get his hands dirty and ask his client to take a fall, he just drugs them.”

  “With the energy drinks?”

  Michael clicked his fingers together and pointed at Kait.

  “Exactly!” he enthused. “You’re a smart girl. I could have done with having you around when Santino was busy screwing me over.”

  “But I still don’t get it,” Kait gingerly raised her mug of hot tea up to her lips. “Is Carl betting on Jasper to lose?”

  “He will be, yeah,” Michael nodded. “And he’ll have people paying him to make sure Jasper loses. When Carl and I finally parted ways, I had nothing. All my sponsors had left me, and I was flat broke. So imagine my surprise when I learned that my agent had managed to purchase two new houses and several flash cars.”

  “Blimey.”

  “He’s a leech, Kait. He takes all he can from someone and then leaves them with nothing.”

  “I’ve tried to talk to Jasper about it, but he won’t listen,” Kait admitted dismally.

  “Because he trusts him,” Michael was nodding thoughtfully to himself. “That’s all part of it you see. For years he’s a great agent, helping you get on top, so that when he turns on you, you’d never dream that he’d do it. The guy is a pro. He’s screwed over loads of top athletes and keeps getting away with it.”

  “Well not anymore,” Kait gripped her china mug so tightly in her hands that she feared she might break it. “I can’t stand by and let Carl ruin Jasper,” she said tearfully. “I just can’t.”

  “The fact that you’re on to Santino already puts you ahead. You got a plan for the next time your boyfriend fights?”

  “I’m going to switch out the energy drinks for water.”

  “Good,” Michael smiled approvingly. “Those fucking drinks. He used to tell me they were imported from God knows where and that nothing else could hydrate me as effectively. I’d drink gallons of the stuff. Most of the time I’m certain it was just water, but then come fight night, he slipped in something else, and I was always too distracted to notice.”

  “Jasper has ended up in hospital a few times after his fights, but no drug has ever shown up in his blood,” Kait countered, starting to doubt her own logic.

  “Only because they weren’t looking for it,” Michael assured her. “Typical blood work checks white cell count, protein levels, stuff like that. To look for drugs in the system, you’d need to specifically do a full blood check, which takes longer and is more thorough so less practiced. I learned all this when I started looking back and trying to understand what had happened to me.”

  “What will happen if Jasper wins his next fight? To Carl, I mean?” Kait was leaning forward, eager to hear Michael’s response. He was so kind, personable, and willing to share what he knew. It pained Kait to think that Carl had ruined the career of someone so good and kind. It made her even more determined to save Jasper before it was too late.

  “He’ll b
e set to lose a hell of a lot of money,” Michael explained. “He’ll be forced to pay off a lot of angry people.”

  “So he’ll be the one losing everything?” Kait couldn’t help but smile at the prospect.

  “Indeed,” Michael was also grinning. “And it couldn’t happen to a nicer guy.”

  Chapter 104

  Jasper leaned back on the bed, exhausted. He’d never known Kait be so veracious when it came to their sex life. She’d wanted it in every possible position and had made him climax but not once but three times. That sort of performance was unheard of for Jasper. In the moment he’d been loving it, but now he was unbearably drained and utterly spent.

  His body sagged heavily against the soft pillows and satin sheets. His breathing was already starting to slow as he lay there contentedly.

  “Did you enjoy that?” Kait purred the question to him as she gently stroked his forehead.

  “Yeah,” Jasper grinned sleepily. “That was amazing.”

  He felt her kissing her neck and rubbing his bare chest, but it felt like it was happening in a dream. His eyelids felt unbearably heavy, and he struggled to keep his eyes open.

  “Babe?” He called for her and yawned at the same time. “I don’t think I can go again,” he told her, his eyes closing. “I’m so tired.”

  It didn’t take long for him to fall in to a deep, dreamless sleep.

  Chapter 105

  Kait watched Jasper for a few minutes, needing to be certain that he was fast asleep. His chest rose slowly with each breath which was intoxicating to watch. Kait loved to see him so peaceful, so free from worry. But she couldn’t linger on the bed too long; she had a job to do. Carefully she lifted herself off the bed, trying not to disturb Jasper. He grumbled slightly but did not wake.

  Holding her breath, she tiptoed towards the door and gently eased it open. It creaked but still Jasper didn’t stir. Releasing her breath, Kait stepped out into the darkness of the open plan living space. She knew that she couldn’t risk turning on a light as that might wake Jasper. She’d need to work under cover of darkness.

  Quickly, she darted barefoot over to the kitchen area. She pried open the large refrigerator and spotted the two shelves packed full of garish neon sports bottles. There were more of them than she’d anticipated. At least twenty.

  “Dammit,” Kait muttered angrily to herself. It was going to take a considerable amount of time to empty them all out and refill them with water, but it had to be done.

  Kait started removing the chilled bottles and lining them up beside the sink. It was going to make a lot of noise when she emptied them down the drain; she just had to pray that Jasper was tired enough to not wake up.

  With shaking hands, Kait began to empty the first bottle. In the dark it was difficult to tell what color the liquid was inside, but it appeared clear.

  Once all the bottles were empty, Kait waited before proceeding. Her entire body tensed as she expected to hear the bedroom door creak open and Jasper’s footsteps upon the floor as he came over to see what she was doing. He’d surely be mad to think she was sabotaging his sports drinks.

  But thankfully the apartment remained silent and still. Kait didn’t waste any more time worrying. She started to quickly rinse out the sports bottles and then refill them with safe, clear water. Her hands became cold and numb, but she didn’t care. All that mattered was stopping Carl. Her meeting with Michael Daniels had convinced Kait once and for all that the man was a monster. He didn’t care about Jasper; he just cared about making money.

  “Try and stop him now you bastard,” Kait whispered to herself as she stood before the restocked refrigerator, gazing smugly at the water filled sports bottles which were back on their relevant shelves and seemingly never touched.

  Before heading back to bed, Kait cleaned up any spilled water and made sure that the kitchen looked pristine. It was like she’d never been there which was exactly her intention. With the energy drinks taken care of, she’d almost won her war against Carl Santino and his evil ways.

  Chapter 106

  “There’s only two days until your next fight,” Carl was beside Jasper in the car as they drove over to the gym, Carl was driving. He kept stealing glances away from the road to look at his client.

  “Two days,” Jasper nodded, “I know.” He felt pleasantly rested after his night’s sleep which had eased some of his previous tension.

  “You need to commit one hundred percent now, Jasper. No distractions.”

  “Okay.”

  “And by that I mean the girl.”

  Jasper tensed.

  “Kait?” He blurted out her name in disbelief.

  “Jasper, she’s a distraction; you know she is,” Carl said, his voice level. “Before a fight, she shouldn’t be engaging in certain…activities.”

  “You can say sex, Carl, we’re both adults here.” Jasper scoffed.

  “Okay,” Carl nervously cleared his throat, “you shouldn’t be having sex before a big fight. I also think she’s a negative influence on you.”

  “That’s not the case.” Jasper stated defensively.

  “Oh?” Carl glanced at him from the corner of his eye as he waited at some traffic lights.

  “You’re telling me she doesn’t harp on about what a bad guy I am and how I’m trying to cause you to mess up?”

  Jasper was silent.

  “See,” Carl was nodded to himself in satisfaction. “And you don’t need that kind of negativity around you, Jasper. You need to focus now and be positive. You don’t need the girl stressing you out. You can see her as much as you want after this fight.”

  “Just not before?” Jasper muttered sadly.

  “This is standard, Jasper, you’d know that if you’d ever had a serious girlfriend at the start of your career. Built up sexual energy will fuel your performance; you know that.”

  “What if I see her and don’t sleep with her?” Jasper ventured.

  “Are you capable of that?” Carl asked, his hands tightening upon the wheel.

  “No,” Jasper admitted with a cheeky laugh. “I’m not.”

  They arrived at the gym, and Carl pulled in to a vacant parking space and killed the car’s engine.

  “So, we have a deal?” He was fully focused on Jasper now, his eyes bright and alert. “You don’t see Kait again until after the fight?”

  “Sure,” Jasper shrugged nonchalantly. “We have a deal; anyway, it’s only two days.”

  “Exactly,” Carl grinned like a Cheshire cat. “After this fight, you can spend your free time however you like.”

  Chapter 107

  “I don’t understand,” Kait uttered despondently, drawing her legs up beneath her as she sat on the sofa in her apartment.

  “We just can’t see each other,” Jasper repeated, his voice brittle. “At least not until after my fight.”

  Kait felt a large, awkward lump form in her throat which she struggled to swallow against. She had feared that this would happen, that Carl would try to drive a wedge between them. At least she’d already tampered with the sports drinks; for that she was extremely grateful as it looked like she wouldn’t get the chance to be near them again. Not until after the fight anyway, and then it would have been too late.

  “Was this your idea or Carl’s?” Kait demanded angrily, already knowing who would have suggested she and Jasper be apart for the next forty eight hours.

  “Kait,” she heard Jasper sigh her name on the other end of the line.

  “Look,” Kait straightened and hugged her knees up to her chest. “If I’m right about him, will you walk away from him for good? Can you promise me that?”

  Silence.

  “Jasper?”

  “If you’re right about him then, yeah, I’ll walk away,” Jasper reluctantly agreed. “But you’re not right, Kait. You just don’t like him.”

  Kait bit her tongue, holding in her barbed words and all that she had learned about Carl Santino. If only it was simply that she didn’t like him, but the man
was crooked and looking to bring down the man she loved. Hate seemed too tame a label for how she felt towards Jasper’s agent.

  “I’m going to miss seeing you before your big fight,” Kait admitted softly, some of her anger thawing as she felt the next two days stretch out before her. She was really falling for Jasper, so much so that two days away from him felt like an eternity and made her heart ache.