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. Fuck, no. He d fight this, with everything he had.Which wasn t much.He exhaled and sank back into the sofa.Face it, he had nothing.Nothing but thestart of his business funds, his apartment& and Ashland.He rushed to the phone and called Murphy.The man picked up after three rings. Murphy? You gotta help me.Durio wants Ash back.I can t let him take Ash.Idon t know what to do, but I ll sell everything.That bastard can t have him back. Thewords tumbled out of him as he clung to the receiver with a death grip. Whoa! Slow down, son.Stoltz took a deep breath, held it, and then let it out slow and even. Sorry.I m justso& fuck. I get it.Look, Durio probably doesn t have a leg to stand on. That s not what this lawyer says. He rattled the paper in front of his face. Which lawyer? Stevens and Stevens.Stoltz heard Murphy s breath catch on the other end of the line. Okay.They regood.What exactly does it say?Stoltz read the letter to him. What do you think? Fuck.Dan, I think you might lose Ashland.96 | LYNN LORENZ No.I can t.I won t give him up. He shook his head as if Murphy could see him.Murphy chuckled. So, it s like that, huh? He s got to you, bad.What are yougoing to do, son? His voice softened. Take him and run? The man is marked.You llbe tracked down and sent to the slave market.You ll be throwing everything you veworked so hard for away.And all for a man you won t even fuck, a slave. How didMurphy read his mind? His mentor sighed. Think about it, Dan. I m thinking. Stoltz s mind spun, searching for what to do, but none of his ideashad him keeping Ash legally. I need a lawyer. He put the paper down and closed hiseyes. Now that s the first thing you ve said that made sense.* * * *Stoltz met Murphy later that afternoon in the office of Murphy s lawyer, FrankSutton.He wasn t high powered like the Stevens firm, but he knew his contract law,and Murphy had used him for years.Stoltz sat in the chair, clutching the letter, all his hopes pinned on this man.Hehad to find some way of fighting this claim.He had to.Failure meant losing Ash.Andfaced with that prospect, Stoltz realized how much he loved the werewolf, slave or no.The secretary nodded to them. You can go in now. Thanks, Greta. Murphy nodded and stood.Stoltz rose and followed him inside.The office was nice, not plush or anything, but the furniture was a good quality.The man behind the desk stood and offered his hand to Murphy. Good to see you. Glad you could make time for me.Sutton motioned to the two chairs in front of his desk, and they sat.He held outhis hand. The letter?Stoltz surrendered it to him.Sutton was his only hope of keeping Ash, and heprayed the man could work a legal miracle.WEREWOLF FIGHT LEAGUE: ASHLAND | 97Sutton read the document, then tossed it on the table. Boilerplate legal crapdesigned to scare the shit out of you. Well, it worked, Stoltz deadpanned.He didn t want to let the lawyer know justhow freaked out he was over this.The man didn t need to know how deeply he caredfor Ash. However, their case hinges on one point the league made a mistake. Bottom line, Mr.Sutton.Do I have to give Ash back? You might.I have to go over the records from the league, but frankly I m bettingtheir lawyers know their stuff and wouldn t have jumped the gun on the dates.Relaxfor now, and give me time to check into it.In the meantime, I ll send an answer back,lawyer to lawyer, letting them know we intend to fight this. Okay. Stoltz exhaled.He glanced over to Murphy. What do you think? Well, I ve never lost a slave before, but I m betting the league won t like this.If itgoes through, then every incidence of seizure like this comes under suspicion.Right?He looked to Sutton. Exactly.Bad precedence.They won t like this claim any more than you do.Really, don t worry.You won t lose your fighter, not if I can help it. I can t lose him. Stoltz heard how ragged his voice sounded. He s my firstsparring werewolf, and my entire business is wrapped up in him.Without him, I mfucked. And he meant it, but not in the business way.Murphy stole a sideways glance at Stoltz, but asked Sutton,  How soon will youknow? Soon enough.So this Durio? He didn t pay his back taxes, but what else can youtell me about him?Stoltz bristled. The bastard is abusive.Kept Ash near half starved.Murphy canattest to his condition when I bought him.98 | LYNN LORENZ Abusive? That might count for something.The league takes a dim view ofowners who abuse their werewolves.Makes it look bad for all the owners; drags downthe reputation of the league.Brings out the bleeding-heart antislave radicals who d lovenothing more than to shut down the cage fights and the slave industry. He gave thema devious grin, then sobered. When you say abusive, what exactly are you talkingabout?Stoltz shifted in his chair. I heard from a reliable source Durio raped Ashrepeatedly, underfed him, and never actually fought or trained him.He wanted awerewolf for his personal enjoyment. There s no law against that.A master has full and complete control over hisslave.You know that.Whether or not Durio had sex with his slave is beside the point.It s expected.His lawyer will just claim the slave didn t need to consent to it. Heshrugged [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]