Chapter 17
Present Day
Cade
I'd been to Stadmore arena many times in my lifetime, but never like this. Tonight I'd be stepping into the ring myself and trying to make my own dreams come true. Tonight I'd join all those fighters I'd watched come and go over the years, some of them rising to the top, many others falling back down into obscurity.
I hoped, I prayed, that I would join the ranks of the former.
I had sat in the upper reaches of the arena earlier that day, looking down on the ring. It was so small in the middle of the wide space, encircled by row upon row of seats, starting level with the ring and climbing higher and higher the further back they went.
I had never sat so far back, not even as a kid. Dad would always pay for the best seats, often getting great tickets from business associates and other contacts. I'd watched the action up close, so near I could almost taste the blood, smell the sweat, sense the nerves that so many fighters carried into the ring with them. They were a burden for many, but not for me. When I stepped into the ring, I was fearless. One day, I'd be peerless too.
But tonight, in so many ways, was different from all the others. There was more on the line this night than any other, more for me to win, more for me to lose. Win, and my chances of rising to the top would be greatly improved. Lose, and they'd take a real hit.
It all weighed down on me, creating pressure that I'd never had to deal with. But even so, even with the prospect of thousands of fans cheering and roaring my name, I wouldn't be phased. I had this inner confidence, this inner tranquility that would help me focus, help me perform at my peak. I just hoped, tonight, the home crowd would give me an edge.
And then there was Gemma, my lucky charm. The thought of seeing her face in the audience watching me gave me confidence. I still didn't know what it was, but ever since she'd entered my life, my boxing had gone from strength to strength. It wasn't something I wanted to lose.
It was a few hours later that I sat on the bench in my changing room, my gloves being taped up by coach. He was giving me his usual pep talk, talking me up, making sure that when the bell for the first round went, I'd have my full energy stores intact.
“This is your time Cade, this is your town, your crowd. They're all here for you, all here to see you win. This night will be remembered as the night when Cade Logan made a real name for himself, a name that will soon be accompanied with the word 'champion'. You're in the best shape you've ever been, you're faster than him, stronger than him, younger than him, fitter than him. Agulla is a no-hoper, he's in your way. You're going to trample him tonight, walk straight over him. Nothing's going to stop you getting to the title. Nothing.”
I'd never told him, but most of the time I wasn't really listening. I liked to go into my own zone, my own little world, a place where I could focus on the fight, visualize what I'd do, how I'd win. I'd done my homework on Agulla, watching footage of him fighting every night for hours. I knew his strengths, I knew his weaknesses, and I knew exactly how to exploit them.
I could hear the heavy roar of the crowd begin to rise now as the current fight moved towards its conclusion. It had gone the full distance, both young light middleweight fighters clearly well matched. But it was merely a warm-up for my own bout. I was the one people had come to see.
I stood and began walking around the changing room from wall to wall, keeping my muscles warm, keeping my body moving. I felt calm as always, my focus absolute. I had tunnel vision, and all I wanted to do now was walk out and step into the ring to the sound of thousands of roaring supporters.
The minutes passed by as the other fight was wrapped up. The clock on the wall said 7.45 PM and my fight was due to start in 15 minutes. I knew, at any moment, that the door would open and I'd be called to the arena.
I kept pacing from side to side until the door opened behind me.
“It's time,” said a voice.
Right Cade, here we go my boy. You know the drill. You're in perfect shape. Just go out there and do it.”
Coach walked to the door and held it open for me as I walked through, my head covered in a hood and my eyes set directly in front of me. We walked forward, my nutritionist, Steve, and other members of my team cruising along in my wake, down a long corridor towards a set of double doors. There were small glass windows on them through which I could see flashing lights of various colors shooting this way and that.
We stood and waited at the end as my opponent entered the arena from the other side. I disappeared back into my own head, unwilling to look through the glass, unwilling to listen to his entrance music.
In a flash I heard my own walkout music and stepped straight forward, pushing the double doors open and walking out into the arena. The roar was something I'd never heard before as I paced up the corridor between the crowd, the arena filled with staring faces, roaring and cheering my name.
I saw posters and banners out of the corner of my eyes dotted to the left and right and high up into the stands, but kept my eyes straight and set on the ring. I kept moving, the high pitched shrieks of girls penetrating the deep overall rumble of the crowd.
When I reached the ring I could see Agulla standing there, staring straight down on me. He was known to try to intimidate his opponents by staring at them throughout the buildup to the fight. It didn't phase me at all. Nothing could divert me from my goal.
I climbed slowly into the ring as coach held down the ropes for me to slide through. Agulla looked in prime condition, his body shorn of fat, his muscles so wiry they hung off the bone. His skin was tanned and dark, his head shaved. There were tattoos covering the left side of his body, all the way down his shoulder and arm. Again, if they were intended to intimidate, they'd chosen the wrong target.
His eyes kept on at me as the announcer stepped through the ropes and into the middle.
“And now,” came his booming voice down the microphone, “the moment you've all been waiting for, tonight's main event! In the blue corner, weighing in at 199 pounds, Carlos 'The Killer' Agulla!”
Agulla stepped forward as the ring announcer lingered on his name, raising up his arms to a smattering of applause from the crowd.
“And in the red corner,” continued the ring announcer, “weighing in at 195 pounds, your local hero, the Pride of Branton, Cade 'The Crusher' Logan!”
I stepped forward now as the crowd erupted in applause, the ring announcer finishing his bit with the customary “lets get ready to rumble!”
“OK lads, come together,” said the referee, looking at both of us. I could hardly hear him over the roar of the crowd.
We both walked in and stood face to face. Agulla stood at the same height as me, his eyes still burning with hatred. I stared straight back, my eyes equally intense.
“When I say "break", I want a clean break,” the referee continued. “In the event of a knock-down, you will be directed to go to a neutral corner. Are there any questions?” We both shook our heads lightly, our eyes set on each other.
“You're both professionals so I expect a good, clean fight. Protect yourself at all times. Okay, touch gloves and come out at the bell.”
We raised our gloves and touched them together before turning and walking back to our corners. I could see coach nodding and squeezing his fists together by the corner post, this gritty, passionate, look in his eye.
I glanced down towards the front row of the crowd, searching for my support. I caught eyes with Crash, standing tall and nodding intensely. Next to him was Kyle, then Jude., both of them shouting their support at me.
My focus was lost for a moment as my eyes searched to the left and fight of my three brothers, but they were alone. Next to Crash were two empty seats, spaces where I'd expect to see Zack...and Gemma.
I looked quickly further to the right and left of where they were seated, searching several rows back, but I couldn't see them.
No, Zack wasn't there.
Gemma, my lucky charm, wasn't there.