When I turned around, Trigg was there, his hand on my shoulder, clapping me hard. I was still scanning, looking for Tempest in the crowd, half-convinced she was just a figment of my imagination or some remnant of the head injury I'd incurred months ago.
"Where are you going?” Trigg asked. “Shit, man. That was an awesome fight. You did it. You beat Rush's ass. And Coker looks fucking pissed off, too."
"Yeah," I said, distracted. "Did you see that girl?”
“What girl?” Trigg asked. “Hell, this fight is it, Saint. It’s your comeback. Take a look around. All of these girls are going to be throwing themselves at you. You’re going to be flooded with so much * you won’t be able to see straight.”
“The woman with Coker,” I said, still looking behind him. “Did you see her?”
"I have no idea who she was, if that’s what you’re asking," he said. "One of his new girls, maybe? She was hot shit, though. I wouldn’t kick her out of bed. Why? You have the hots for her? You want me to ask around?”
One of his new girls. Why the hell did the thought of that make me want to beat the ever living shit out of something?
“Yeah,” I said. “Ask around. Find out who she is.”
“You got it.”
“Have you heard anything from Abel?" I asked.
"I got a text from his wife during the fight," he said. "It's all good, man. Well, as good as can be expected after what happened. She said his insurance from the plant will cover them. He's got a couple of broken ribs, and the doctor says it looks promising for his leg."
I breathed a sigh of relief. "Shit. That's good."
"It's fucking great, I'd say. You got that purse, too. And against Coker’s guy."
"Yeah." I looked around, scanning the crowd for Coker. "You know that's going to be trouble."
Trigg grinned. "Well, you're not the only person in this town he's pissed off."
"What do you mean?" I asked. "Is something going down?"
"I don't mean anything," Trigg said. "Just that karma has a way of coming back on someone. You do that shit, playing dirty like that, it'll find you eventually."
"Yeah," I said. "Of course, it never hurts to give karma a little push, either."
Trigg looked at me. "What do you have planned?"
Before I could answer, I heard Coker’s voice behind me, and I spun around.
“You cost me good money, you piece of shit,” he snarled, rushing toward me.
I lunged at him, getting in one good swing that connected with his face, sending him skidding to the floor, but a couple of his guys stepped in and threatened to drag me outside. When Trigg blocked them, the owner of the gym got between us.
“Not here, Saint,” Trigg said, standing between me and Coker. “There are too many witnesses.”
Coker wiped his mouth, blood on the corner of his lip. “You’re dead, Saint.”
“You tried to kill me once, if I recall correctly, Coker,” I said. “You did a shit job of it.”
He grinned, his front teeth stained with blood, giving him a crazed look. “Next time I’ll do better.”
“Good luck,” I said. Trigg pushed me through the small crowd that had gathered around us, guiding me to the back room.
“Watch yourself, Saint,” Trigg said. “That guy, he has a lot of reach. We both know that.”
“Coker is a piece of shit.” I spit at the ground. “Trigg, do me a favor. Find out why that girl was with him.”
Trigg shook his head and smiled. “Only you’d be thinking about * right now.”
“I’m not,” I said. That was only partly true. “I just want to know what the hell Coker is up to.”
"All right," Trigg said. "I'll ask around. One of the guys will know. If I leave you alone, will you calm your shit down in here? Don't break anything."
"Fuck you," I said. "Look at this shithole room. There's nothing in here to break." I sat down in a chair.
Trigg was right. I needed to calm the hell down. I sat down, breathing and willing my heart rate back to normal. But when I closed my eyes, all I could see was Tempest.
***
Tempest tucked her hair behind her ear, and looked up at me, her eyes wide. She pulled her knees up to her chest, wrapped her arms around her legs, and curled up in a little ball, sitting on the flat rock that bordered the clearing in the woods.
I thought my heart was going to explode, looking at her. She was the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen.
"There are supposed to be scouts at the tournament tomorrow," I said.
"You're going to do amazing," she said. "I know you will."
"Shit." Beside her, I picked at a piece of the rock. "I have to get a scholarship, Tempest. I need to get out of here. We need to get out of here. We can make something of ourselves outside of here…”
She nodded, biting the middle of her lower lip. "You're going to, Silas. I know you will. You're that good."
I turned toward her, pulled her onto my lap, her long legs straddling me, and she wrapped them around my waist. Her hair spilled down over me, the honey blonde strands falling around my face as she pressed her forehead against mine, closing her eyes. "Wherever I go, you're coming with me," I said. "You could stay in one place, for once."