Challenge Accepted (Eternal Combat Book 1), page 25
He nodded. "I'm more worried about Riley. She can handle her own out of game as well as in. Have you seen her horses?"
Flipz laughed. "No. We're not the ones sleeping with her."
"Huge!" he said. "You can't even imagine how big."
"They aren't that big, Logan."
He nodded over her head, and they all laughed.
"I just have one question," Flipz teased. "She fuck as hard as she fights?"
"No," Riley said, cutting Logan off. "You answer that, I start telling secrets, too."
"Like I was gonna say," Logan replied, "I'm still a virgin."
Knock nearly spit his drink through his nose, and Riley hopped up. "None of that! Shit burns like a bitch!"
She made her way into the kitchen and glanced back at the group of guys lounging around her room. This felt so normal, now. These were true friends. It didn't matter that this was the first time they'd all been face to face. There was a strange connection they shared that no one outside the scene would understand. Pro-Gamers hung out with sponsored gamers who were close friends with everyday gamers, and no one even batted an eye at it. Not a one of them cared that she wasn't a man.
"Hey, Q?" Cynister called.
"Yeah?" she asked, grabbing a collection of bottles from the shelf, making her way back.
"That shit with the dog? How far you wanna go with it?"
It was Logan who answered. "I need to know who did it."
Cynister turned grey-green eyes to his outfit leader, and a slow lazy smile spread across his face. "No, Mr. Attorney. You need to be able to catch who ever did it. I can't really help with that."
Riley dropped the bottles on the glass coffee table and gestured for Knock to refill his. The other guys moved in as well.
"Who pays for this shit?" Flipz asked.
Riley shrugged. "I do. It's a part of my deal. They expect us to be a bit frivolous."
"Nice!" He poured his glass full again.
She turned her attention to Cynister as she lowered herself back into Logan's arms. "I just have one question?" she asked.
"Shoot," Cynister said.
"Are you Legion?"
The smile on his face was sly. "Close. Think of it more like a spectrum of honor. We've been playing nice and still don't have shit."
Logan kissed her neck and pried himself out from under her. "Here's what I need," he told Cynister. "A reason to get a legal subpoena. If shit goes bad, I can't represent you, but I know someone who can. If I happen to find illegally obtained material in a way that is realistic and logical to see, I can use it as a reason to dig. Now I need a real long piss while you two figure out how to make that happen."
Riley shot him an appreciative look and waited until he'd walked into her bedroom, closing the door behind him, before she turned back to Cynister. "Do not get caught. Yeah, it's a fucking amazing law firm, but they don't do criminal stuff, just virtual, and most of that is client negotiations. Besides that, if you can stay clean, get it."
"Yeah, but how do we get it where you can see it?"
"Her website," Knock said, his eyes already glassy. "Hack it and post it there. It's realistic. You'd be warning her, and she'd see it."
"Nice, man," Cynister said. "You one of us?"
"Spectrum?" the kid asked, referencing a small but well known internet vigilante group similar to Anonymous.
Cynister lifted a shoulder. "Either one. I play with both."
"Fuck no," Knock slurred. "I'm just a good for nothin' gamer."
"You're a bad-ass gamer," Cynister countered.
"Pffft," Knock mumbled.
"I dunno," Riley said softly, "I think you're fucking amazing."
He grinned up at her with nothing but drunken adoration in his eyes. "Fuck yeah. I think I may have had a little much, Q."
"You fucked up?" she asked him with a grin.
"Yeah." He giggled. A seventeen year old guy was not supposed to giggle, but Knock managed it. "My dad kicked me out this morning."
"Ah, fuck," Riley sighed. "Someone top off his damned drink? Knock, when did you eat last?"
He shrugged. "Dunno."
"You got a room?"
He just laughed.
Riley nodded. "Ok, one of you guys grab my key and get a menu from the front desk? We're eating in. Lemme go tell Logan it's safe, if you have all you need, Cyn?"
"Yeah, babe. Just don't press charges, because when I hack your site, they probably could trace it."
"Shit," she laughed over her shoulder. "Doubtful, and I won't."
She pulled open the door to the bedroom to see Logan laying across her bed, stretched out. Without even bothering to close the door behind her, she made her way over and crawled across the bed on top of him. He slowly opened his eyes and smiled, wrapping his hands around her waist.
"Figure it out?"
"Yeah, my site's gonna get hacked. I have no idea who would do such a thing."
He looked at her adoringly. "Yeah. You get it. Thanks."
She shrugged and kissed him quickly. "Your client has privileges other people don't. I understand. Knock got kicked out this morning."
"Fuck," he sighed.
"He doesn't have a room."
"Yeah he does," Logan said. "Either the couch here, or mine. Shit, wouldn't shock me if a few of the others are roomless too."
"Let's go see. Kid's drunk and hasn't eaten either."
He kissed the base of her neck, making her close her eyes as he slowly nipped at the soft skin. "Then let's go play with our friends, and don't you dare say shit about my piercing."
Chapter 29
"Hey Knock?" Logan asked, following Riley back into the room.
"Yeah, man?"
"Heard you had a shit day?"
Knock shrugged before grabbing his drink. "Damn, Q, you got me drunk."
"Yeah." She dropped onto the floor behind him. "I sure did. I'm also about to buy your dinner and put you up in a suite."
"What?" He stared at her blankly.
"What about you, Flipz?" Logan asked. "You get a room?"
Flipz grinned. "Man, no, but I can drive home. I'm just twenty minutes away."
"Cynister?" he asked hearing the door.
He answered as he entered, "Yeah, boss?"
"You got a room?"
"Yeah. Why?" Cynister tossed a menu onto the table.
"Just sorting shit out with my guys," Logan explained.
Riley chewed at her lip. "Ok, so we can put Flipz and Knock in your place?"
"That works," Logan said. "I sure as hell am not staying there."
"Fuckin' hate you a bit, Void," Flipz teased. "Thanks, man."
Logan got each of them to make a selection from the menu, Knock trying to shrug it off before Riley threatened to take away the whiskey. While Logan called it in, she began massaging the kid's shoulders.
"So, where you staying when you get back?" she asked.
"Man, Q, I have no idea."
"Fuck," Flipz moaned. "Like, don't ever come back kinda kicked out? Why?"
Knock shrugged. "It's not a big deal."
"Kinda is to me," Riley said. "Seriously, though?"
"Yeah," Knock admitted. "Dumped my shit at a friend's place. I'll probably crash there."
"You graduate yet?" Logan asked from the bar.
"Nah." A wry laugh slipped out. "I'm just a junior."
"What'd you do to get kicked out?" Logan asked.
Knock grinned, "Hacked the school's wifi."
"Nice!" Cynister said.
"How'd you like Texas?" Logan asked, catching Riley's eye.
"Drink more before you answer," she warned him.
Knock obeyed, chugging back a long gulp, but they were interrupted by their food arriving. While they passed out the plates and all made themselves at home, Knock thought about the question. As soon as it got quiet again, he answered. "Texas is cool as shit. Nothing like I expected."
"Cool," Logan said nonchalantly, looking back to Riley. "How much Kitty selling her car for?"
"No, I got that. I don't have an extra room."
"I know," Logan said. "I do. I'm also going to need someone to keep an eye on my place."
Knock looked between them, his confusion obvious. Cynister leaned back, grinning.
"You two rich or some shit?" Flipz asked.
"Yes," Riley said.
"No!" Logan corrected.
"Nice," Cynister said again, with a chuckle.
Knock looked between them all. "I missed something,"
"You really shouldn't have loaned me your rig," Riley told him. "I'm honor bound to pay you back."
Logan rolled his eyes at her. "Thing is, Knock, this kinda works out."
"Me getting kicked out works out? Fuck off, Void."
"Nah, man. I need a damned roommate."
"His place is kinda snobby," Riley warned, "but the guest room looks nice."
"No shit?"
Logan nodded. "Yeah man. I'm not fucking dumb enough to fuck with QQ – "
"Just to fuck her," Flipz broke in.
"Fuck off." Logan laughed before continuing. "And she adores you. One condition, though?"
"Keep my grades up," Knock said, assuming that's where he was going.
"No shit," Logan replied. "No, you gotta work on getting your k/d up. You hit the third round this weekend, I won't give you shit. You don't, I'll ride your ass until you're in the finals. You go to every tournament with us until you place."
"Serious?" Knock asked. "Your condition for hooking me up with a place is that I game?"
"Makes good money," Riley said with a shrug. "You're good, Knock."
"Tell him what you made this year, Riley," Logan said.
She sighed. "Last year, my entire farm – which supports two people – made..." She looked at Logan for the number.
"Forty-two thousand and change."
She went on, "This year, I signed with EC for eighty thousand and Corsair for one hundred and thirty-five thousand. That's two hundred fifteen just from gaming."
"Fuck," Knock breathed.
"Wow," Flipz said.
"What about you?" Cynister asked Logan.
"Not a dime from gaming. Can't because of the job." Logan turned back to Riley. "Tell them about Deviant."
She grabbed Knock's chin and made him look right into her eyes. "Deviant signed a CGI contract with me for two million over five years."
"Option to renew," Logan added. "All that because she's a fucking gamer. Yeah, Knock, game hard. We also need some more virtual law experts." He winked. "My boss has a fondness for young attorneys who know the gaming scene."
"He's not your boss anymore," Riley whispered too loudly.
Logan lifted his hands in defeat. "Right."
"Fuck," Knock said, grabbing his glass again. "Holy fuck."
"I'll get your ticket changed, man," Logan assured him. "Move you to our flight."
"I should prolly tell my folks," the kid said, looking nearly sick.
Riley rubbed his shoulders. "Want me?"
He looked up at her, his eyes pleading, but his ego wouldn't let him ask.
"I got it, bro," she promised. "What are they going to do, bitch at me? Me?"
He finally cracked a smile. "Fuck yeah. I dare my dad to say shit to you."
"I'll fuck his world up," she teased.
"Weirdest thing." He looked around the room. "None of you know my name."
Logan held up a hand and grabbed his phone, flipping through a few screens. He tapped a few more times, then smiled. "Yeah, I do, now."
"It's Jeff," he said to Riley. "Jeff Beasley. It was a pleasure to meet you, Riley."
"Yeah." She hugged him. "It really was. You're part of the family now. Shit! I should tell Kitty we have a new brother!"
Logan laughed and shook his head, reaching behind him to grab her phone off the counter. He tossed it at her and she typed out a fast message.
RILEY: Bringing home a new brother for the family. You cool?
It didn't take long before Kitty answered.
KITTY: Mmk? Story time?
RILEY: Knock. Coming to stay with Void.
KITTY: Fuck yeah! Tell him I'm going to kick his ass. When's he coming?
RILEY: Flight home with us.
KITTY: Cool, then I'm buying a new desk tomorrow. He sits next to me!
RILEY: Cool. Gonna get drunk.
KITTY: Nite. Kiss Void.
Riley laughed at that then handed the phone to Knock. "Kitty's excited. She's claimed you as a gaming partner."
"I'm getting her into Executive Pain," Logan said. "Paradox can't have all of you."
"A chick?" Flipz asked.
"Yeah," Riley mumbled as an idea hit her. "Logan? Why don't we get her to the next convention?"
The look on his face was like he'd just been slapped upside the head. "Oh shit. Yeah. Riley, that would do it! Fuck!"
Flipz looked up. "What?"
"The damned glass ceiling," he said. "You both? Oh, yeah."
"She good?" Cynister asked.
"As good as Knock," Logan told him.
"Ouch," Cynister groaned, having died so many times to the kid. "Yeah. That'd do it."
"She single?" Flipz asked.
"Yes," Riley said, "but she's as mean as I am, just prettier."
Logan nearly spit his drink across the room, carefully setting the glass back on the counter. "Uh, no. Just no."
"You're fucking hot, Q," Flipz said with a shrug.
"Hey!" Knock warned him. "That's my big fucking sis there, man."
"Yeah?" Flipz teased. "You gonna say your big sis ain't hot?"
"No, but she's got a man."
Logan just laughed from the far side of the room.
"Guys," Cynister said, stopping the friendly banter with a gesture to the television. "What the fuck?"
Riley's face was plastered across the screen with the title "Can girls really hold their own in FPS games?" Next to it, a spindly guy was speaking. The volume was too low for them to hear.
"Shit!" Flipz cried, searching for the remote.
Logan dragged his hand over his face and walked into the other room while the two Executive Pain guys struggled to turn it up. They succeeded just as the segment ended.
"Fuck!" Flipz moaned.
When Logan returned, he had his laptop and set it on the table. Opening the Gamer Channel's site, he clicked a few links, then played the stream. "Seriously. Act like you know your way around the interwebs," he teased. "Fucking Paradox would never do that shit."
"Fuck off, Void," Flipz shot back just before the segment started playing.
The guys hovered around the tiny screen, hanging on every word. Riley just sat at the back, looking over their shoulders, already knowing what it would say. She wasn't wrong, either. The gist of the segment was how IceMan had taken a shot for her in the Dallas tournament, and hinted that Void's flirting had been his way of taking it easy on her. While they gave her a few back-handed compliments, never once did the announcer imply that she might have a chance to even place in Denver.
It ended with a bittersweet segue. "So the big question is, can QQ keep up with the boys, or is her best asset her appeal to the playerbase? Next up, Claudia Watson of MMOweekly is the most recent game journalist to be a victim of swatting..."
"Fuck that!" Knock said.
"We'll show them," Flipz snarled.
"We can't do shit," Cynister said, his eyes locked on the screen.
The other two just looked at him, but Riley nodded. "He's right. You take a hit for me, and it's proof that I'm not good enough. I let it be known I'm with Void, and they'll assume he's babysitting me. There's no way for me to come out of this looking good, unless I do it on my own."
"But you can," Logan said softly. "You're better than me."
"I still have tits." She wasn't upset. A decade ago, she'd been angry about it. Now, it was nothing but fact. FPS games were the realm of men, and she'd have to prove that she could handle it.
"Still good advertising for the sponsors," Logan said. "They pulled your Corsair picture and commented on your EC stats."
"I know." She smiled up at him. "Trust me, I know. Just keep the CareBear shit off the media?"
"What?" Cynister's head snapped around.
"Ah fuck," Logan sighed. "Yeah. Same player. No, she didn't fuck the sponsors."
"Who cares," Cynister said. "CareBear? You mean you've been good enough to go pro since you were like his age?" he pointed at Knock.
"Yeah," Riley said. "Seven years to get a second chance. Do not help me."
"In game? No." Flipz said. "On the floor, that's a whole different thing. We've played with you, Q. We have stories to tell."
"Lots," Knock agreed. "Specially how you've been training me."
"Flipz, tell Executive Pain to spam world chat about how one of our own is being trashed," Logan ordered.
"Can do."
Then, Logan stood up and gestured for Knock, pulling him aside. Riley didn't hear what was said, but with a shrug and a grin, Knock agreed, grabbing Logan's card. She could only guess they were working out sleeping arrangements.
"It's two am local time," Logan announced. "Crash on the sofa, use my room, I don't give a fuck, but I'm stealing QQ and passing out."
"You think so?" Riley asked.
"Please?" he tried instead.
"Damn," Flipz laughed. "Fucking whipped."
"You pick a fight with her," Logan said with a grin. "No fucking blow jobs for a week!"
Riley just laughed, amused at how this setting suited him more than his real life. "I'm not lickin' that little – "
"That wasn't the deal," Logan said, cutting her off. "Nope. Can't go there."
"QQ has shit on Void," Flipz announced, as if the rest hadn't already figured that out. "Ok, Q. What does it take to spill it?"
"Let's just say he's not the good boy his daddy thinks." She bit her lower lip to contain the smile, and looked up at her boyfriend.
"Fair enough," he said. "I'll be good."
"Oh yeah," she told him. "Very."
"Time for me to go!" Knock declared, heading to the door.
"I'm with ya, man," Flipz said. "That couch sounds better than this one."
