Dark Horse

by Wilde, Rhea

  “Okay. Just give it some real thought. I sent you your checks. And after tomorrow night, I’ll have enough money for a long time. I told you that you just caught me at a bad time.”

  “Listen, Henry. I have to go now. Can we talk about this later?”

  “Sure.”

  “I promise I’ll think about it.”

  “That’s all I wanted.”

  The phone clicked off quickly. Just knowing that Nina would give me a second chance to spend some time with Elsa had put me in a better mood than I was already in. It put a lot of pressure on me to win the fight against Wilson but now I was more focused than ever. There was no way I would allow myself to lose to him.

  I was going to put my phone into my pocket when it started to ring again. I looked down at the number that I didn’t recognize. I hesitated to answer it for just a moment before finally putting the phone to my ear.

  “Hello.”

  “How are you doing, Henry?”

  “Who is this?”

  “Oh, I’m hurt, Henry. You would forget my voice so quickly after all of the fun we had last night.”

  “What do you want, Lanea?” I sighed.

  “Is that any way to talk to the woman you just fucked the shit out of? Oh wait, it is.”

  I listened to the sound of Lanea giggling on the other end of the line, waiting for her to get to the point.

  “I was just checking on my favorite fighter. I wanted to make sure he’s ready for his big fight.”

  “I’m fine, Lanea. I’ll be ready. I’m going to win.”

  “That’s what I like to hear. I like a man who knows what he wants. Confidence. That’s what it takes to make it in this world. Speaking of which… What do you say you come over and relax? I know that you’ve just finished up a very thorough training session. I’m sure your muscles are very tense right now. I could relieve some of that tension.”

  “Not now, Lanea. I have to focus.”

  “But how can you focus when I know what’s building up inside of you? You need to release—”

  “Listen, Lanea. What happened last night… I don’t know why I did what I did.”

  “I know why you did it.”

  “It doesn’t matter. You’re just complicating things by thinking that our relationship is anything more than you making money off of me. Do you understand?”

  “Now, Henry—”

  “Do you understand, Lanea?”

  I knew that my moment with Lanea was just a feeling of lust that had taken over me. I couldn’t let my lust for her cloud my better judgment. I had to make it clear to her that what happened was just a one-time thing, and if anything else, a mistake.

  “All right, Henry. You win. I won’t badger you and try to get you to shove your cock into me again. But just know that my legs are spread wide open and my ass is waiting for you to pound it up against the door again.”

  “…I’ll see you on fight night. I’ll be with Maxwell until then.”

  “You just make sure you’re ready, Henry.”

  “I will be.”

  I clicked the phone off then sighed. I didn’t know what Lanea was up to but she was up to something. She was trying to manipulate me. Or maybe she just wanted to use me for sex. I couldn’t allow it to go any further. She was already using me to fatten her bank account. And I knew that she got enjoyment out of watching men like me fight. I didn’t want to give her any more satisfaction than I was already giving her. I had to stay focused.

  I looked up at the sky and watched as the clouds started to roll in. The sun was beginning to set and the stars were out to shine. As I walked down the street, I noticed that a limo was cruising slowly through the street. I turned around and stared at it as it crept up close to me. I had this strange feeling that there was someone inside of it, watching me. But it quickly rolled past me and I shook the thought out of my head.

  “Now you’re just being paranoid,” I said to myself.

  I started to softly chuckle with a slight smile on my face. I headed down the street toward the diner where Maxwell was waiting for me. It would be my last dinner before my biggest fight so far.

  Chapter 16 - Lanea

  There’s always something special in the air on the night of a big fight. It’s something I can’t describe exactly. There’s this feeling of anticipation that’s palpable. I could feel it tonight.

  I slipped myself into a fancy black evening gown for tonight’s event. My hair and makeup were done to perfection as they usually were. I had a lot at stake tonight. It wasn’t just the money. Tonight was the night I would find out whether or not Henry was the man I thought he was.

  I positioned myself near the throne as the scheduled fight came closer. I listened to the sound of rumors murmuring through the crowd.

  “Wilson is going to kill this guy.”

  “Why is this guy getting a shot at Wilson?”

  “I hear he’s Lanea’s new pet project.”

  “I think I might put a small bet on this other guy. I saw what he did to Fabian.”

  The rumors and speculation never failed to put a smile on my face. It’s not a big fight unless everybody is talking about it. It’s the kind of thing that gets people to bet and put all of their money at risk. That’s part of the satisfaction of watching a fight. When you have something at stake, it makes the fight that much more exciting.

  I stood near my throne and watched as Wilson was the first to enter the ring. Wilson Haugen was a man I was familiar with. He had a reputation for being no-nonsense. His style was brutish and caveman-like. He would probably find himself more at home during a time when men were living in caves and forced to kill everything they ate. He stood in the center of The Pit in nothing but a pair of brown slacks, his massive physique imposing even from where I stood. I could see how anxious he was to tear into something new.

  “Look at him,” Octavio whispered to me. “He looks focused. Are you sure Henry is up to this? This is a dangerous fight.”

  “There’s no excitement without a little danger,” I replied. “Henry will figure a way out of this. He just can’t hold back any longer.”

  As Octavio and I observed the mammoth man down in the pit, Lucas slowly strolled over to me.

  “And where is your fighter?” the exuberant old man said to me. “He’s not getting cold feet, is he?”

  “He’ll be here,” I replied. “Henry’s not going to back out of the fight. Why do you care so much?”

  “I’m merely interested in observing the specimen before he steps inside the ring. I like to see the product before I purchase it. I take it that you will be making a significant bet on Henry.”

  “Yes, that’s right.”

  “I wonder… How would you feel if I did the same, Ms. Zara?”

  I looked at Lucas as he tried to hide the smile creeping upon his face.

  “Do whatever you want, Lucas?” I said as I turned away from him. “Whether you win or lose is not my concern.”

  Just then, Henry arrived with Maxwell just behind him. The focused and determined look I had grown so familiar with was still on Henry’s face. Maxwell managed to dress himself up in even tackier clothes for the fight tonight.

  “What are you wearing?” I said to Henry as I noticed he’d returned to the cheap clothes I told him to replace.

  “What does that manner, Lanea?” Henry said to me. “I’ll wear what you want me to wear but not in the ring.”

  Lucas slowly started to walk forward toward Henry to observe him more closely. Henry looked down at the curious old man who was now looking him up and down. Lucas grabbed both of Henry’s arms and squeezed them.

  “How are you feeling today?” Lucas asked him.

  “Good,” Henry said. “I feel good. I feel strong.”

  “Hmm, interesting. I suppose I should make my bet now.”

  Lucas looked at me and I couldn’t tell which way he was leaning. He slowly made his way away from us and toward Francis, who was taking down everybody’s bets.


  “All right, baby,” Maxwell said with some excitement in his voice. “Get in there and kicked this guy’s ass. You worked too hard to just rollover for him.”

  “Yeah,” Henry stated. “I’ll beat him.”

  “We’re celebrating tonight. I’m putting everything I got on you.”

  “I’ll win.”

  Henry assured his friend of his victory then glanced over at me for a moment. He didn’t say anything before shortly descending the stairs into the ring where Wilson was waiting for him.

  I stood between Octavio and Maxwell as we watched Henry stretch himself out. I continued to observe him to see just how focused he was.

  “How’s he looking, Maxwell?” I asked.

  “He’s looking good,” he replied. “Better than ever.”

  “So you’re confident he’ll get the job done.”

  “Everything is gonna go just fine. What are we looking at here?”

  Francis slowly made his way over to me. He had a clipboard that he used to take down all of the bets.

  “So, Francis,” I said. “What’s happening?”

  “A lot of people like Henry,” he said. “But more people like Wilson.”

  I smiled knowing that we had gotten exactly what we wanted. With the odds stacked against Henry, we would be able to make an even larger profit.

  “What do you say, Francis?” I asked. “Final odds.”

  “I got three-to-one for Henry,” he said. “He’s only been in The Pit once. There are people who want to take those odds but not against Wilson.”

  “Three-to-one, you say? It’s not a very even number. Let’s say… one-hundred thousand on Henry.”

  “One-hundred thousand, Ms. Zara?”

  “Yes, that’s right.”

  There was a bit of shock on Francis’s face. I suppose I couldn’t blame him. It was rare that I ever wagered more than five figures on a fight. For me to put so much money on Henry would probably seem ridiculous. But I had the money to back it up and more importantly, I knew that I wasn’t going to lose it.

  “All right,” Francis said as he made a note of it. “One-hundred grand down for Ms. Zara.”

  “And put me down for five-thousand,” Maxwell said.

  “Where did you get that much money?” I asked him.

  “It’s not just my money. Some of it is Henry’s, too. What? He can’t put a bet on himself?”

  “All right,” Francis interrupted us. “Anything else you guys need?”

  I shook my head and motioned for Francis to leave us. With the bets down, there was nothing left to do except wait for Henry to win his fight so I could collect my winnings. I took a seat upon my throne and waited anxiously for the fight to begin. Maxwell took a spot on the railing and looked on with a similar anxiety on his face.

  The sound of the crowd slowly started to die down. Francis announced that no more bets were being taken and the fight was about to begin.

  Henry stood there in nothing but a plain t-shirt and a pair of dirty jeans. Wilson balled his fists and even from up here you could hear his knuckles beginning to crack. The crowd looked in anticipation. Suddenly, Wilson yelled a primal scream. The crowd roared in a similar fashion and Henry immediately put his fists up. Wilson charged at him with his arms open. Henry ducked out of the way before the man could get him into his grip. As Wilson turned around, he was greeted with two violent punches to the face. Wilson’s face was already bruised but it didn’t deter him.

  The crowd oohed and ahhed at the way Henry managed to avoid Wilson’s repeated attempts to grab him.

  “He’s certainly more mobile this time around,” Octavio said.

  “I told you that he was holding back the first time.”

  I smirked as I watched Henry dance around the hulking behemoth. But as efficient as Henry was at staying out of Wilson’s way, there was little indication that anything he was doing was effective.

  Blood was streaming from Wilson’s face. His face was covered in red and the whites of his eyes made him look like something out of a horror film. He yelled and charged at Henry once again. Henry did his best to move out of the way but Wilson was ready for it. He moved in the same direction that Henry tried to escape and quickly wrapped his arms around him.

  I held back a gasp as I watched Wilson squeeze his arms around him. He lifted Henry in the air and off of his feet to the delight of the crowd. Henry struggled to get free, the air being pushed out of his body. He looked like a small child in Wilson’s grasp.

  I could see the life starting to leave Henry. He raised his hands up and began raining down punches on Wilson’s face but they had little effect. Wilson wrapped his vise-like arms tighter around Henry. With nothing left to do, Henry reached down and began shoving his thumbs into Wilson’s eyes. Wilson screamed violently and released Henry from his grip. He stumbled back as Henry collapsed to the ground. Before Henry could make his way back to his feet, Wilson blindly pounced on top of him and began raining down with punches. Henry’s face bounced off the ground after colliding with Wilson’s fists.

  The cut that Henry received from his fight with Fabian opened up once again. The blood streamed down the side of his face past his ear and onto the ground.

  “If he doesn’t get out of this—”

  “Shut up!” I muttered to Octavio. “What do you think I’m watching?”

  I shifted in my seat, trying to maintain my composure. Henry was getting the hell beaten out of him and I was powerless to stop it. More importantly, I could almost see the money burning right before my eyes. I was doing everything I could to try and urge Henry to turn this around.

  Get up, Henry. Come on.

  Despite getting his face pummeled, Henry still looked like he was fighting back. He flailed with his arms, trying to find a way out of this. Suddenly, he managed to get a grip of one of Wilson’s arms. Henry tugged with both of his arms and pushed Wilson off to the side. With Wilson’s arm still in his grip, he wrapped his legs around it and began to extend it. Wilson struggled but the power in his arm couldn’t match the strength of Henry’s entire body. The big man flexed his arm but Henry continued to extend it in the wrong direction. I could hear the faint sound of muscle and bone starting to snap.

  “Stop!” the beast suddenly shouted. “I submit!”

  Henry had done it. He had won. But the crowd continued to cheer him on. I leaned forward in my seat as Henry had not released his grip.

  “Is he going to do it?” Octavio asked me.

  “Mmm, it would be amazing if he did.”

  The crowd was waiting for Henry to finish him off. Wilson’s arm was completely at his mercy. But before he extended the arm fully, Henry released it from his grip and made his way back to his feet. The crowd leaned back from the railing and groaned in disappointment. I held back a sigh and fell back into my throne.

  “The money is the important thing,” Octavio said to me.

  “Yes. The money.”

  Despite just making a few hundred-thousand dollars, I couldn’t hide my disappointment in seeing Henry’s act of mercy. But it quickly disappeared as I watched him ascend the stairs toward me. He was my fighter and my warrior. And he had delivered on everything I expected of him.

  Wilson managed to make his way back up to his feet. He screamed angrily at security as they escorted him out of the arena. Henry stood bloody but victorious in front of me as I stood up from my chair.

  “Oh yeah!” Maxwell yelled as he jumped up and down next to Henry. “That’s what I’m talking about! Piece of cake, baby!”

  “Yeah…” Henry was able to mutter out.

  I stared at Henry with a grin on my face. He looked back at me, breathing hard. Francis returned to us and told us the results.

  “You can pick up your winnings in the main lobby,” Francis instructed Maxwell. “Congratulations.”

  Maxwell was more excited than everybody else. Henry was clutching his knees and still trying to catch his breath. As Francis left, he was quickly replaced by Lucas.


  “It seems Lanea has been setting us all up,” the old man said. “Putting her precious fighter in the ring with someone of Wilson’s caliber and watching him win. I’m glad I was able to see through all of the smoke and mirrors. Thank you, Henry.”

  He smiled at my fighter and slowly walked away. I stood there with the other three men as everybody else left the arena. There was a feeling of dejection in the air but I didn’t allow it to ruin the mood I was in. There was no need for us to complain.

  “I suppose a celebration is in order,” I said.

  “No,” Henry said. “No celebration. Not right now. I need… I need to take care of this.”

  “You all right, Henry?” Maxwell asked him.

  “I’m fine,” he replied. “I just think he might have broken something. I need to make sure that I’m okay.”

  “Very well,” I said. “But I do have some business to discuss. Octavio, please escort Henry back to the lobby while I speak with Maxwell.”

  Octavio nodded his head before showing Henry his way out. Before he left, Henry stared at me for a moment. But he remained silent, staring at me with a look I couldn’t describe. I made my way into the room behind my throne along with Maxwell. The den designed strictly for decadence wouldn’t be put to use tonight, as Henry’s injuries wouldn’t allow it. But there was still something important to discuss.

  The red lights of the room were a contrast to dim darkness of The Pit. I made my way over to the bar and poured myself a glass of champagne.

  “Would you like one?” I asked Maxwell.

  “No, I’m okay for now.”

  “You don’t want a drink?”

  He shook his head. I was surprised at Maxwell’s sudden decision not to celebrate. Normally he would be excited about this kind of outcome but it was clear there was something else on his mind.

  “What’s wrong?” I asked him.

  “Nothing,” he said. “I just want to make sure the man is all right before we start celebrating too much.”

  “Are you concerned about him, Maxwell?”

  “Aren’t you? I mean, the man just made you two-hundred thousand dollars profit. Don’t you have any sympathy for him?”