Sirius Chapter 4: Chapter 3: Decision

Read chapter 4 of Sirius by Dealer on NovelPedia.

Bang "YOU LOST EVERYTHING?!" A crash followed by a shout echoed from inside the office. Tai Lung nearly split his desk in half. "You think money grows on trees? How did you manage this so fast, you idiot!" Furious, the veins on his neck strained against his skin and his face turned red. Li couldn't lift his head; too ashamed to face the man. "Dad, I already told you, it was an accid" "I am done with your excuses! Something always comes up. You always have some justification; how is it never your fault?" "But this time it really was," Li thought, but didn't dare say it out loud. By this point, he knew pushing the subject further wasn't going to end well for him. And truthfully, this time it really hadn't been entirely his fault, but how would he explain that to his father? He didn't even fully understand what had happened himself. "I had some kind of 'headache' while playing and blacked out. I got thrown out and woke up in a hospital without a dime..." he thought. 'If I were in his shoes, I wouldn't believe a story like that either.' "I'm sorry, Dad..." he whispered, just loud enough for the man to hear. "Alright, alright; I've heard it," he sighed. "Now get to your room and rest. You've got a fight in a few hours." "About that..." After everything that had happened at the casino and at the hospital, Li had started having second thoughts about the fight. It wasn't as if he'd never done anything close to fixing results before. More than once, he'd let himself take a few hits, dropping a round or two to throw off the betting multipliers. It was similar to when a soccer team concedes a goal. The odds of them winning the match drop sharply, making the multiplier for the trailing team much higher. So if that team comes back and wins, the bettor walks away with a much bigger payout. Li had never been interested in betting on his own fights; the feeling was different, because in that case the win or loss depended on him, which wasn't the same thing. The risk was far greater when the outcome wasn't in your own hands. "Can't we do something like before? Maybe just play it up a little more?" Li suggested, knowing it was something he'd already done; it wouldn't be that hard to repeat. "Play it up?" Tai Lung laughed. "No chance, kid. We're going for a full loss." "What? A KO?" Li quickly made his dissatisfaction clear, cutting the man off. "But won't that make my professional life a whole lot harder? Dad, I can't," Jihan was interrupted by a large hand grabbing his shirt and lifting him off the ground. "Listen here, kid!" Tai Lung's voice was different now, cold. Fear crawled up Li's neck and froze him in place. "You'd better not think about screwing me over. You're forgetting your place here." A chill ran down his spine. He had never seen Lung like this. "I'm not your 'daddy' or any of that crap. You belong to me. Everything you are, everything you have, comes from my pocket. I own you, kid. You had better NOT try to screw me over!" Releasing the collar of his shirt, Li's legs buckled and he dropped to the floor. "Things have changed. You'll do what I say, when I say it, until you pay off every cent you owe me. Only then will you get to choose what you do or don't do. Are we clear?" "Y... yes." "Yes?" "Yes, sir; I understand!" Li lowered his head. "That's better..." He laughed. "Though the way things are going, you won't be getting out of here for a decade or more!" Tai Lung flashed a malicious grin. "Now get out of my sight. You've got a long night ahead." Li turned and quickly left the office. Moments later, the man picked up his phone and dialed a saved number. "Hey, it's me." "Mr. Lung, to what do I owe the pleasure?" A robotic voice answered on the other end. "I want to know if the offer is still on the table..." "Of course. But what happened? I thought you weren't willing to part with your 'gem.'" "Well, I'm willing now. I don't think I owe you an explanation." "You don't. Very well; do you have a preferred timeframe?" "After tonigh