Page 36 of Forgiveness
From the corner of his eyes, he saw Pete limping toward him from across the way, and he didn’t know he’d been holding his breath until a large whoosh of relief swept out of his lungs. Pete waved his arms and wiggled his body, and the bull turned away from Flux and headed for Pete. Flux watched as the bullfighter took the animal in a number of riveting, long circles across the ring.
“Fuck,” Flux muttered as he hauled himself over the ring fence and nearly fell to the ground on his ass. His eyes narrowed as he scanned the ring and then the crowd looking for Hank, but he didn’t spot the fucker.What a fuckin’ pussy.Flux rolled his shoulders and did a mental examination of every inch of his body. Once he was convinced everything was in working order, he looked back at the ring where the bull was trotting into the holding pen. It looked like Pete had gotten over the fence without too much trouble.
Flux cleared his throat, wiped his palms on his jeans, and strode forward toward the area behind the arena where most of the performers hung out before and after each show.That motherfucker’s gonna be sorrier than hell.Flux balled his hands into fists at his sides and ignored everyone who spoke to him. His adrenaline flared across his scalp and his heart pounded in his ears while he charged forward toward a small group of bullfighters who’d gathered together in front of the bathrooms.
Hank was in the middle, neck arched back in a belly laugh that couldn’t be heard from the other noises in the area.Fucker won’t be laughing much longer.Before he knew what hit him, Flux ambushed Hank, striding into the center of the group and clocking the asshole in the face at the exact time the bastard’s head righted from laughing. The SOB didn’t even have his eyes open, and there was no way he could’ve seen it coming—much like Flux was fucking blindsided by Hank’s betrayal in the ring.
The asswipe stumbled backward with his hand to his face, then wobbled on his legs as he righted himself and glared through one good eye at Flux.
“Don’t act offended, you fuckin’ pussy. What the fuck was that about out there? What’s your goddamn problem?”
Flux didn’t give Hank time to answer any of his questions before he went in for another solid swing—but his arm didn’t connect because Chet grabbed his elbow. Doubly enraged by the situation, Flux growled and lunged with his non-dominant hand and swung it around in a tightly planted half-circle until his other fist connected with Chet’s jaw and knocked him on his ass. The guy mus’ve seen cartoon stars or some shit because he sat in the middle of the floor, blinking and holding his head. Served him fucking right and, man, did it feel good.
“Feel better now, Chet? Fuck, I just saved your sorry ass. The least you could do is stay outta shit that’s none of your goddamn business.”
Chet groaned, baring his teeth, as he struggled to rise to his feet.
“I fucking hate you, you pussy ass biker.”
“Who the fuck are you calling a pussy, cowboy?”
Without missing a beat, Flux squared off with the bastard. If Chet wanted it to go down, right here, right now, who was Flux to say no to a prime opportunity? With the excitement and terror from the ring still flowing through his system, Flux steadied his stance as Chet threw himself at his midsection and tried to bring Flux to the ground. Instead of going down, he landed a solid blow to Chet’s kidney, and the bull rider cried out as he doubled up. Flux didn’t let him regain momentum; he hit Chet again in the side of the head and launched a glancing blow toward the back of the rider’s spine to push him off balance. By now, the surrounding crowd had gathered around the fight with enough spectators to choose sides and probably start a betting pool. Flux knew exactly what he would use his winnings for when he handed Chet’s ass to him.
“Think you got more in you, pretty boy? Or are you all outta steam? Did I tire out the fuckin’ pussy?” Flux taunted, shifting back and forth on the balls of his feet.
Sure, he could have laid the fucker out flat in a one-two punch combo that would have left Chet dazed and drooling, but Flux didn’t want to make it easy for the cowboy. If they were going to go at it, Flux wanted it to be a proper fight and give the asshole an outside chance to face him like a man for everything he’d put Maggie through over the past few months. If that meant Flux got in a few more painful blows? So much the better.
He watched like a hawk as Chet righted himself and tried to make a tight circle around Flux, attempting to box him into place and decrease his hitting range.Fuckin’ rookie move. The bull rider hadn’t even landed a damn punch and he was angling for the offensive. Flux’s upper lip curled in disgust as he made an agitated noise in the back of his throat.
“Come on, asshole, fight like a man.” Flux surged forward and landed three jabs to Chet’s abdomen, chest, and shoulder. “Fuck, I forgot—you’re a pussy. No wonder you fight like one.” Flux chuckled.
“Shut the fuck up!” Chet cried out, launching himself at Flux at the same time the biker sidestepped.
Chet’s blow landed on the side of Flux’s right shoulder before he went for an upper cut, and Flux grabbed his wrist, dragged him down, and switched gears.I’m tired of this shit. Now, it’s time to fight dirty.Flux locked both his hands on the back of Chet’s head, and using his own momentum against him, he drove the cowboy’s face into his knee as he raised it and connected it with Chet’s nose. There was a harsh, gargled scream when Flux made contact as he felt the bones crunch against his leg.
Flux backed away.
“You motherfucker!” Chet yelled as he clutched his nose.
One final blow and this would all be over. “This one’s for Maggie, asshole. Flux took a sharp, deep breath that echoed through everything in him. Shit, it’d been a long-ass time since he’d felt this alive. It wasn’t that often he’d get a good reason to pick a fight these days. A majority of the time it was only his fists and some inanimate objects that may or may not have survived the wrath of his anger and pain.
Chet would survive, but not without his share of bruises to remember Flux by over the next few days. Flux cracked his busted knuckles, licked his lips, and watched as a winded Chet swayed while trying to regain his concentration through the pain as blood ran down his face from his nose. With a low grunt, Flux took two quick steps forward, swept his leg under Chet, and knocked the fucker onto his back.
The sound of the cowboy’s head connecting with the ground was a satisfying slap as Flux knelt over Chet and grabbed a fistful of his hair. He made the fucker lock eyes with him. The other man tried to spit in Flux’s face, but only managed a pathetic dribble that wound up sliding down his chin as Flux slapped him on the side of the face and then the head.
“Have you had enough, asshole? Do you fuckin’ get now what it’s like to constantly have someone go after you, like you do to Maggie?” Flux smacked the man with his open palm, again and again, in a relentless set. “That’s what it feels like for her when you won’t take the fuckin’ hint. So, I’m here to serve it to you, got it? Leave her the fuck alone from now on, or this won’t end with humiliation—it’ll end with your dead fuckin’ body. Don’t think I won’t enjoy doing it either, so don’t fuckin’ tempt me.”
“Flux? What’re you doing? Oh my God!”
Maggie’s voice from behind him drew him up short, as he immediately dropped the rider’s head and staggered to stand up and face her with barely a scratch on him. He turned his back toward Chet. No threat was there anymore, and if one of the cowboy’s cronies wanted to come finish what Chet had started, his biker radar would sense them and he’d tear them apart.
Flux locked eyes with Maggie and noted her crossed arms. She chewed the corner of her bottom lip and kept dropping her eyes to Chet on the ground and circling back to Flux. He cleared his throat, wiped his hands, and stood in front of her without a damn thing to say that would make what she was looking at any better.
“I suppose he started it,” she said dryly.
Flux heard Chet’s buddies pick him up and haul him off to the on-site EMT that was always on standby for any injuries in and out of the ring.
“What the hell happened?”
