Chapter 241: Playing the House
Leaning forward, Max rested both elbows on his thighs, eyes locked on the ring as his mind ran wild. It was a familiar position, one he often took when deep in thought, when the pieces of the puzzle started to click into place.
’I need to figure out how the Black Hounds are going to play this,’ Max thought, his brows slightly furrowed. ’I can guess... but there are still a few variables I can’t control.’
’Just like Chad, they might try to coax me into continuing this gambling streak, maybe tonight, maybe some other time in the future. There’s a chance they’ll fix the fight and let us win, especially since I bet on Sniper...’
’But that’s only a possibility. The amount of money at stake, 100 million, isn’t small. If they have to pay that out, there’s a good chance I’ll just walk away and never come back. They don’t know who I am, not really. They have no idea what kind of person they’re dealing with.’
His eyes drifted up, locking with the manager’s from across the room. The man offered a slow, ambiguous grin. It wasn’t smug, or even friendly, just unreadable. But Max could tell the manager had already drawn his own conclusions. He could see the contrast, two Sterns, but worlds apart. It wasn’t hard to tell who was the gambler, and who was the player.
’Another possibility... the others in this room. Some of them have to know these fights are rigged, right? But then again, if they did, why keep coming back?’
’Maybe the fights are only fixed when Chad’s involved. He’s easy prey. They must’ve tested the waters, found out he had no real backing, not even from the Stern family, and decided to squeeze him dry.’
’And now that Chad’s dropped my name, they might assume the same about me. I thought about asking the others to place a bet for me, maybe even a larger one, but trusting people with money?’ He scoffed inwardly.
’Unlikely. Most of the people here are probably scared of the Black Hounds too. Judging by the crowd, and the fact that I don’t recognize anyone, this doesn’t look like one of their big events. These are locals, disposable nobodies... They’d rather die than go against the Black Hounds.’
Still, there was one saving grace to the entire setup: the group had agreed that the money would be exchanged after the event.