Logan was beginning to curse the day he ever befriended Cole.
‘Who says I don’t call the shots?’ Logan countered, not wanting to give Cole an inch. ‘As far as I can tell, you’re the desperate one. Messaging me. Approaching my girl in a bar. You know what, screw it. You can keep my car. Whatever. I’m out.’
Logan was making his play.
He wanted to show Cole just how little he thought of him. And by being so dismissive, Logan felt like he had Cole right where he wanted him.
What Logan wasn’t counting on though was the presence of Cole’s two sidemen. As Logan got up from his barstool to leave, the two burly men stepped directly into his path.
‘I don’t think so, asshole,’ Cole said, a sneer on his face as he watched his two associates do his dirty work for him. ‘You’re staying until I’m done with you.’
‘You’ve got ten seconds to tell me what this is really about,’ Logan said. ‘Don’t mess with me, Cole. This needs to stop.’
Logan waited for Cole to speak.
Don’t blink.
Don’t show a single sign of weakness or doubt.
Cole hasn’t got anything over me…
‘Well?’ Logan barked, his patience running low. ‘Are you going to speak or…’
‘Here’s how it’s going to go down,’ Cole said, a hint of a smile on his face. ‘I’ve got images of you asleep at the wheel. I’ve got your car. I’ve got evidence that you drove under the influence and ran from the scene.’
‘Asshole!’ Logan said, momentarily losing his composure.
‘There’s a big drag race coming up,’ Cole continued, unperturbed. ‘You’re going to enter. And you’re going tolose. This will make me a shit-ton of money and in exchange I won’t forward all of my incriminating evidence to the police. How does that sound?’
Logan felt enraged.
This was totally out of line and crossing so many barriers of honor and conduct. Respect and trust was big in the drag racing community. In fact, it was one of the things that Logan loved most of all about racing.
But Cole was attempting to undermine every single aspect of what made drag racing such a vibrant, incredible community. Logan was truly appalled.
‘You think you can blackmail me?’ Logan said, his voice full of barely concealed rage. ‘Logan Rain doesn’t lose races on purpose. And I certainly don’t take orders from slimy, good for nothing pieces of crap like you, Cole.’
‘You’ll lose the race, or take your chances with a jail sentence,’ Cole replied, not looking like he was in the mood for backing down. ‘How will your corporate girlfriend react to that? And who will protect her when you’re locked up?’
The threat to Stella was the last straw for Logan.
In a flurry of explosive action, Logan took a swing at Cole and narrowly missed his chin. The two henchmen began to rain down punches on Logan, and he knew that he had his work cut out from the second that the first heavy right-cross landed on the side of his head.
The scuffle was brief, but brutal.
No sooner than had the brawl started, theSinkersdoormen were over and breaking things up. Clearly, it was apparent who the bad guys in the situation were and Cole and his men left without too much pressure from the doormen.
But Cole didn’t leave without one final parting shot…
‘You’ll race and you’ll lose,’ Cole squealed. ‘You work for me now, Rain!’
Logan staggered over toward the bar. He felt dazed and disoriented. The punches that landed from Cole’s henchmen had been heavy, concussive blows. This wasn’t good. This wasn’t goodat all.
What… the…
There’s no way I can race.
But… Stella… the police… I…
