Crouched low, Cooper was trying to think. How could he get Fisher’s address? Would he take her to his home? Was he that stupid?
“I’ll call the cops.” Cooper knew he couldn’t do a fucking thing. With his history, if he hunted Fisher to the ground he’d be put in jail for the rest of his life. But if Fisher had touched Dani . . .? Cooper cracked his knuckles in impotent fury then froze as a small sound came from elsewhere.
His eyes met JD’s, confirming he had also heard something unexpected. JD pointed back the way Cooper had come and mouthed, “The office.”
Without hesitating, Cooper was moving, keeping low. He pressed his ear to the office door and thought he heard a small groan. It sounded like pleasure.
He kicked the door in one fierce blow, it flew open so fast it hit the wall and slammed shut again. In that moment what Cooper saw threatened to break him.
Chapter Eleven
There were still a few hours till closing as two rival rugby teams entered the bar side by side, so far jovial. Dani knew from experience that this wouldn’t last and soon the bouncers would be separating testosterone fueled, alcohol drenched sport thugs and their shrieking WAG’s. She thought to tell JD she had changed her mind and wanted to go home. One look showed she couldn’t do it to the poor guy. It must be a full moon tonight as everything felt off kilter.
Sure enough, long before final orders were called the worst brawl in the bar’s history erupted. Chairs and tables flew, drinks and glasses with them. The bouncers tried their best but the police were called to clear the place. The fighting had made its way to the top floor and even Dani was stunned when chairs were thrown at the police below as they entered. The excitement had spilled onto the sidewalk and eventually emptied the bar. JD had sent the staff home, what was the point of keeping them here? One of the bouncers was taken to hospital with a suspected broken hand and several staff had cuts from flying glass.
“What about this mess?” Dani had asked, gazing around when the place was thankfully quiet, the violent echoes still ringing in her ears.
JD had sighed, “It’s not so bad.” Dani was incredulous until he added. “The cleaners will be in first thing. I’ll haul the broken stuff out back and sweep the glass into a corner. By tomorrow we’ll be ready for another brawl. Shit, that one was epic.”
“Terrific.” Dani had grimaced. “Thankfully I’ve got the night off.”
Without comment they began tidying. They were paid for another couple of hours so thought they might as well keep going.
A noise caught Dani’s attention. “JD, did you lock the front door?”
“Shit, I forgot. A delivery came in late too, can you go check the back?”
Before she could check the back lock, she heard JD shout and raced back to find him and Fisher squaring off. Fisher's gaze was, completely spaced out, unfocussed.
“What are you doing, Fisher?” Dani groaned.
“You’re going to pay for fucking me over, bitch.”
“Get out of here.” JD said warily. “The cops will be back soon.”
Fisher wasn’t at all imposing but something about his wiry young build mixed with his crazy eyes put Dani on high alert. After years of working around drunks both Dani and JD knew this was beyond their skill set. This guy was unraveled and they just needed to escape safely. The cops could pick him up later.
“I’m showing the bitch how she ruined my life. Women should know their place and I’m gonna show you yours, Maxwell.”
Hands raised, Dani placated, “I’m sorry for what happened to you but I was protecting Cooper. Those lies were not right. What would you have done?”
Fisher shrieked, “It’s too late for excuses, you whore!”
JD backed away as the smaller man yanked a handgun from the back of his jeans. Guns were so rare it was startling to be confronted by one. Grinning, Fisher followed JD until he was behind the bar then snatched a bottle off the back wall and threw it. JD was too slow and went down.
Dani ran for the front door, stunned to find Fisher had locked it. Whatever he was doing, whatever state he was in, Fisher remained calculating enough to get Dani alone. She raced for the back door instead.
She had just grabbed the handle when Fisher said, “Stop running or I’ll blow your fucking head off.”
Spinning to find the black eye of the gun barrel, Dani fought her terror, lifting her chin to snarl, “Do it.”
“Next I’ll find your mother. She’ll die sucking my cock.” He smiled at the idea. “Unless you give me something that makes me forget how to find her.”
“Like what?” All her confidence was sapped by the gun and the threat against her mother. She was trapped, unable to fight for her own life.
Fisher gazed around as if for inspiration, then beamed, “I know, you can suck my cock instead. I’m sure you won’t mind if we get some photos of the occasion, wouldn’t want the world missing out on how good Cooper Graves’s new bitch is at giving head.” Dani noticed the black strap running diagonally across Fisher’s chest. His camera was at his back. There were only two options here, she would either do what Fisher wanted or she would die. It was easy. She would die before she submitted to anyone, especially this loser.
“Is this about me or Cooper?” Dani wanted to keep him talking, maybe JD would wake up or the police would come back, maybe her father had heard about the brawl. Maybe Cooper would drag himself from his safe hidey-hole to save the day. Life didn’t work that way and Dani knew she was alone with this madman.
“No contest. You picked the wrong man. He has serious enemies, although messing with me has made this personal.” He sounded like he was about to cry. “To make amends you are going to suck my cock while I get unexpected photographic evidence that will get me back to work. And if you ever scream rape I’ll call you a liar then pick your mother up when you least expect it and she’ll endure much worse than a blow job.”
“If I do this you promise to leave us all alone?”
“Everything will be square.”
“You’ll leave Cooper alone too?”
“Cooper Graves is not my problem, just my source of income.” The tears sliding down her cheeks delighted Fisher.
“Let’s get this done so I can get my life back.” He said then grabbed Dani’s upper arm and dragged her into the office, engaging the lock. When he turned back his gun touched the fire extinguisher that was wedged inside the door. Instead of the thud of metal on metal there was the distinct clink of metal on plastic and Dani realized it was a stupid fake kid’s gun.
Fisher and Dani froze until Dani launched herself at him, wanting to hurt him until her family and Cooper were safe. They went down in a ball of violence. Dani punching, hitting and biting, pulling hair until it came away from his hated head, then kicking and elbowing. They were both panting and Dani took blow after blow as Fisher hit her back with equal ferocity. She was being pushed backward and if she didn’t do something soon Fisher was going to win. Her hand closed over the fire extinguisher and on a jubilant cry she arced it at Fishers head.
Before it could connect he threw an old coffee cup and Dani slumped forward over JD’s desk. The extinguisher clanged to the ground.
◆◆◆
Fisher didn’t want to hesitate but had no choice. His head was swimming and touching his face showed blood and numb patches. The bitch had done him over good. She was feisty but thankfully unconscious so Fisher sat for a moment to calm his heartbeat and let the dizziness pass. His good throwing arm had saved him twice tonight, even with how much he had to drink. Perhaps he should have stuck with cricket instead of photography, like his older brothers had said.
He woke with a start, a creak outside the door bringing him upright, frozen in fear, ears straining, his fight or flight response screaming at him to run, to escape. After several minutes he thought he must have imagined the noise and taking a long deep breath he surveyed Dani again. She hadn’t moved.
With his head and body screaming in pain, Fisher set his camer
a on a shelf to show Dani from behind. He moved her around, his professional eye judging the angle for best exposure. He would have to move the camera at least once to get a good shot from in front. He needed to see her pretty face but had no intention of exposing himself. Ha, ha, not his sweet smile anyway.
No one would ever know she was unconscious. As the Cooper Graves photo had shown, there only needed to be one shot and if all else failed he would doctor an image until she appeared uninjured and in ecstasy.
Satisfied he had the angle right Fisher took a moment to survey her. Even through his pain he would enjoy this. It was only a shame she was on her stomach so he couldn’t touch those fantastic tits. He was too exhausted to rearrange her. Why couldn’t Cooper have gone for some scrawny runt like the rest of them?
He touched his hard on, then rubbed it against her ass. Hurrying, he pulled a condom from a back pocket and hauled his pants down. He wasn’t stupid, he could not leave traces of semen. He was no rapist, this was work. He would say they had fought then he had left her here and someone else must have found her. Someone like Cooper Graves. It was too perfect. He made a mental note to call Cooper from a payphone and alert him to his bitch’s plight, straight after the police.
Getting her jeans down would be awkward and he had just opened her top button when the door flew wide. He had locked the door but it was hit so hard it slammed into the wall then shut again. Too exhausted from the fight with Dani to react as he might have, Fisher could only turn to watch as Cooper Graves pushed the door wide again with one slow hand, his intelligent gaze assessing the scene.
Fisher could see the moment Cooper’s body caught up with his mind. His face shut down with brutal expectation and Fisher had a split second to realize the big man would enjoy beating him to death, that he had enough pent up aggression to hurt him for a very long time. Fisher reached out a hand to stop the furious advance, soon too stunned at the savagery to comprehend the pain. He tried to curl into a ball and focus on not dying. He felt otherworldly. Such brutality was alien and he couldn’t imagine the keening grunts were his own. He just had to stay alive, stay alive, stay alive.
His head was yanked off the ground by his hair and he gazed into the face of Cooper Graves with the one eye that would open. He watched Cooper’s fist pull high behind him, the fatal blow that would turn Cooper into a murderer.
Fisher then took a long breath and waited for his life to end.
◆◆◆
Cooper had been accused of rape and seeing it attempted on a woman, on Dani, the woman he wanted and couldn’t have, sent him over the edge.
He felt calm as he pummeled Fisher, like he was doing the job he was made for, not knowing if it was something he wanted to do. When he raised his fist for the blow to end it he hesitated, his mind clearing, becoming more clinical. His need for revenge was not slacked but relieved enough to see sense.
Cooper leaned down to whisper, “Do you know how much I want to kill you?”
Another voice pulled his fierce concentration, “Cooper?”
“Dani.” He rasped. Her face was turned toward him, the blood and swelling redoubling his fury. Fisher screamed at Cooper’s deadly intention.
“Don’t watch this, Dani.” Cooper told her.
Her quiet voice stilled him again, “Kill him. Kill him for all of us. Especially for you.” He winced at her battered face.
“Dani.” He repeated, unsure what he wanted to say or to hear to make this all go away. He didn’t want to be here, wanted to be far away with Dani safe and unharmed. He didn’t want her hurt but was hurting this idiot going to change it?
She struggled to stand, managing to sag against some boxes, “He’s been hired by Birgetta Growler.”
Fisher nodded in terror. Dani continued, “He knows why you were accused of rape. Birgetta is helping to keep the secret that ruined your career and sent you to France. Now they are the reason we can’t be together. He was going to rape me, Cooper, to help Birgetta sell some papers or send people to their fucking social media accounts.” Bitter tears of a victim tracked her battered face.
“Kill him for you and for me.”
Cooper dropped Fisher like he was poisonous, “I can’t.”
“He was going to rape me.” At Cooper’s sad refusal, she screamed, “You fucker, do something for me!”
“I can’t!” He bellowed. “I’m not a murderer!”
“You’re a rapist!” She shrieked in return.
“No, I’m not! And I won’t kill him.”
Turning her head away as if she couldn’t stand to look at him anymore, she said, “Then knock him out. Push the alarm and get lost.”
“I’m not leaving you here alone.”
“You have to.” She started to sob then, snotty tears of pain and rage “I’ll tell the police I hurt him.”
Cooper was hesitant as Dani sagged forward while Fisher continued groaning on the floor. Fisher was not huge and Dani was not small. She was fit and from a family of sportsmen. Anyone would think that the Fish Finder had targeted the wrong girl.
Looking at her now, crumpled and in pain, Cooper knew she was struggling and he knew he would still walk away so he didn’t get into trouble.
Seeing his hesitation, Dani cried, “I hate you for this, Cooper. Don’t ever come near me again.”
Without further comment Cooper lifted Fisher by his collar and hit him, one hard jab in the temple. Fisher collapsed sideways. Cooper moved to Dani, to touch her just once before he left her unguarded. She turned her head away to stare at a blank wall and Cooper stepped quietly from the room.
Grim with uncertainty, Cooper strode through the shattered detritus of the bar, nodding at JD who was sitting with his back propped against the clear glass fridge doors, holding a bar towel to his bleeding head.
“I was not here.” Cooper said as he reached over the polished bar to punch the panic alarm before unlocking the front door and striding away. He sat in his car to ensure no one else entered until the police arrived then he calmly drove.
On his way home he called Jacob. As soon as the phone connected he said in a dead tone, “Dani was hurt by Fisher Davies. I was not there.”
He hung up before Jacob could question him.
◆◆◆
The next morning Cooper arrived at the gym as expected. To pull off this latest charade he needed to continue as normal. If he appeared tired or different fingers might start pointing and he could not explain his part in Fisher’s assault. Not that he cared about the photographer but if he thought too hard about leaving Dani he would hate himself, more than she hated him.
So instead he covered himself in his well-used emotionless shield while hiding his torn knuckles beneath a long sleeve t-shirt and continued with work.
He was driving himself as hard as his players with drill after drill until the men were complaining loudly. He was scared to stop, scared to acknowledge that Jacob had not arrived at practice, terrified when the team manager walked onto the field for Andrew who was unaware his sister was physically and emotionally battered.
Andrew’s incredulous denials rang around the ground. The rest of the team unconsciously huddled together while Cooper stood to one side wondering if he should confess his involvement. He didn’t, instead standing like a fucking statue while Andrew sagged under the realization that something horrific had happened to his sister, something this decent family never dreamed of and certainly didn’t deserve.
Andrew left the field and Cooper wondered if his secret remained safe or would Dani, JD, Jacob or Fisher confess. He felt like a self-centered asshole, everything he had been accused of.
The men were just beginning to question what the hell was going on when Andrew turned back, searching the row of men until he found Cooper, his gaze long and assessing. In reply Cooper turned his back and called an end to training.
“Be at the pool in two hours.” The men groaned.
Chapter Twelve
Dani came awake but didn’t open her eyes, everyth
ing hurt and she knew what happened when she was in extreme physical pain. Sure enough her stomach heaved and her eyes flew open. A small round container was thrust under her chin and afterward she found her mother’s concerned face.
She was in hospital and gasped, “Drugs, I need drugs.”
Her mother pressed a button to call a nurse. She didn’t speak just rubbed Dani’s forehead, the only part of her that didn't hurt.
The nurse entered, asked a few questions then gave over the drugs. Dani soon passed out, welcoming the release. When she woke again the day outside had turned to night and she felt a little better, or the drugs had kicked in. JD entered, grinning from beneath a huge bandage covering his head. He was clean and dressed in normal clothes meaning he had not needed a hospital stay. Seeing her his face crumpled. He hid it quickly and Dani attempted a smile in return to alleviate his concern.
“Hey.” He called, “You look like shit.”
“Always a kind word.” She rasped. “Love your hat.”
He touched the bandage as if surprised. “You should see your mate Fish Finder. You must eat your breakfast since you came close to killing the bastard.”
Had JD seen Cooper at the bar? Dani didn’t know, so said, “Nothing you wouldn’t have done.”
He winked, “Yeah, well, that fucker got everything he deserved. He’s lucky he got me with that bottle or I would have fucked him up.”
Dani groaned as her body ached. “He only got your head since it’s massive.”
Relieved, JD leaned down to kiss her cheek. Trisha had left to give them a moment alone. “Are you alright?” JD asked, staring intently into her eyes.
She shrugged, “I’m alive and that’s good enough for now. I guess Fisher isn’t dead?” She scowled when JD nodded. “Do you think he’ll try something again? I don’t want to spend my life looking over my shoulder.”
Rules of her Game: A Contemporary Sports Romance Page 11