Free Prizefight: The Hell Raiders MC Goes MMA by Aden Lowe Page A

probably would. I sighed and dug out a T-shirt I hoped wouldn't entirely swallow her, and a pair of long shorts with a drawstring at the waist.
    Temptation hit hard when I stopped to leave the clothes in the bathroom for her. She'd already started the water, and the pebbled glass of the shower doors offered a tantalizing hint of naked body.
    "Leaving these with the towels for you, Elena." I dropped the shirt and shorts and beat a hasty retreat. In the kitchen, I grabbed a protein shake, hoping to undo a little of the damage from breakfast, the headed for the couch to start making calls.
    A vague pounding started in the back of my head. Looked like I'd gotten myself into a real mess this time. Just another day. I dialed Kellen first, and updated him myself.
    To say my president was unhappy was like comparing a pissed off tiger with a sore tooth to a fluffy house cat. "What the fuck were you thinking, Ryker? Some stray piece of tail can't interfere with business. You know that shit."
    Ever since I rolled out of the parking lot of that abandoned factory, sweaty from the fight and still way underdressed, with Elena on the back of my bike, I'd been thinking of what to say when Kellen asked. "I know, man. I followed my gut, and maybe I should have found another way. But there's something up with Royse, something bigger."
    Kellen grunted. "What do you mean, something bigger? What the fuck is bigger than stepping in Raiders business?"
    "I think he's fronting for somebody." There. I'd said it.
    "Who? And why?"
    "There's always at least one of a couple different dudes at the fights with him. Kinda hanging back, but a presence, you know what I mean? The fucker there last night, I've seen him a bunch of times. He was dragging the girl around, had hit her a couple times already. She said they call him the Russian. And he's a VIP, gets his pick of Royse's girls, even though those girls never come back. And that made me think of Vicki's Russians." I knew in my bones that man had his hand in Royse's business, one way or another. If he had connections to the Russian mob, they could possibly be the same crew Kellen's old lady ran up against when they first met.
    "A'ight, Ryker. We'll get somebody else inside. Meantime, you make that bitch disappear, and get your shit together. You're the only one we have that can get close, and you're already inside. Make peace and get your ass back in there."
    "That somebody else that gets inside, I need him to look for something."
    "What's that?"
    I explained about Elena's mother and held my breath. He could easily tell me to forget that shit.
    "Okay. I'll see what can be done." He hung up, having said all he intended to on the matter.
    I took a deep breath and busted the burner phone. For the next call, I used my regular phone. "Yo, Luke." The line went dead. Guess he was pissed. I dialed again.
    "Why the hell you callin' me, you little bastard?" Yeah. Pissed.
    "Guess Royse told you, huh?"
    "Yeah, he tol' me alright. While a couple of his boys pounded on my head."
    "Shit. Man, I'm sorry, Luke." Guilt sucker punched me in the gut. Luke was a good guy. He didn't deserve that shit.
    He sighed. "I just hope she's worth it, Ryker. You burnt some big bridges."
    I thought about that for a second. Maybe I was wrong about Royse putting money from my fights above revenge. Was she worth it? "You think I could talk to Royse? Apologize, or some shit?"
    A pained laugh echoed in my ear. "Sure, man, you could do that. If you want your hands busted. Ryker, you didn't just grab some whore from a spectator. You took the bitch a big backer wanted. And you made Royse look like he didn't have his shit under wraps. Made him lose face."
    I ran a hand through my hair as that sunk in. "Fuck."
    "Yeah. Fuck." Ice rattled in a glass on his end. "Look, kid, best thing you can do is disappear. No more underground fights. Even if another organizer would touch you after that, any time your name comes up on the circuit, he's going to be