Page 60 of Poison Touch

“We don’t have an actual dojo per se. Edge has a full gym at his house, so that’s where we mostly train.”

Edge’s house—interesting. I want to ask him a thousand more questions but hesitate, not wanting to push too hard. Plus, he shared, so now it’s my turn. “I train at the Serpent’s Spear.”

“I’ve heard of that place. No offense, but it doesn’t seem like a place forrealfighters.”

Offense taken.“Itisa place for real fighters who want to train the way authentic martial arts was meant to be used—for self-defence and discipline.”

He holds up his hands. “Sorry. I guess we have different opinions about our pastimes.”

Before I can stop myself, I say, “I think MMA is more than just a pastime for Venom.”

Gunner doesn’t miss my insinuation. “I guess you can say we’re committed to the arts more competitively.”

Like illegal high-stake betting and murder.

“That’s some scar,” he comments as he trails his finger along the puckered skin of the knife wound.

“Yeah.” I grab my tank top to cover it. Three and a half months and seventeen stitches later, the darkened pink skin still looks angry. The moment the doctor told me the knife hadn’t hit anything vital, I knew I got lucky. Although grateful, I still hate how ugly it looks and the constant reminder of that horrid night.

My mind strays to how dazed I was when I woke in the hospital, covered in blood, with my mother and Luca standingover me. Question after question from police, doctors, and my mom about what happened. I couldn’t tell any of them the truth.

No, I don’t have any enemies. No, I don’t think I was targeted. No, I’ve never been to an illegal fight before. No, I didn’t know my dad was fighting.Lies. Lies. Lies.

“I’ll take it that topic is off-limits,” Gunner says.

“It’s not something I like to talk about.”

He claps his hands and then slides them together. “Next question. How is it you’ve managed to gain the attention of everyone at Monarch without even trying?”

I scoff. “Trust me, it wasn’t intentional. My goal is the exact opposite.”

Gunner clutches his muscular chest and laughs, full-on hysterical laughs.

Baffled, I ask, “What the fuck is so funny?”

“Girl, the second you climbed off that motorcycle, you never had a chance in hell of staying invisible.” He laughs again. “Fuck! I think I answered my own question.” He shakes his head in amusement.

His laughter quiets down until we only hear the tide lapping the shore.

“You know, for being part of Venom, you don’t seem so tough.”

He chuckles. “I’ve taken my share of being a dick. Mostly, I’ve learned to save it for the octagon. But if the need serves, then I’m all in. Mainly, though, I’m just along for the ride.”

I can see that about him. “What about the rest of your friends? Is that the way they feel?”

“Nah. Edge does a good job keeping us shitheads in line. He may be an asshole, but he’s as loyal as they come. Since my brother has been re-pussy-whipped, he’s ducked out of a lot of shit.”

“Re-pussy-whipped?” I question.

“Yeah, in love with the same girl, she leaves, then moves back, they get back together. So yeah, re-pussy-whipped.”

“Thanks for the vocabulary lesson.” I chuckle. “And Kade?”

“As for Kade, he’s just Kade. Nothing gets past him. He’s the one who decides who can sell pot and who can’t at Monarch. He only likes the good stuff, so all the others get waitlisted until they can get the good shit. If he needs to get involved, he does. Otherwise, his presence alone scares people shitless.”

That’s the exact impression I got on the first day.

Gunner glances sideways at me. The sun shines on his tan, scruffy face. “You know you’re almost as scary as him. You with your tattoos and piercings and badass attitude.”