Character Interview: Cole Haufner of Michael Houtz's Dark Spiral Donw

We’re thrilled to be talking to Cole Haufner from Michael Houtz’s Dark Spiral Down. It is a pleasure to have him with us today at Pimp That Character!

Thank you for your interview, Cole how old are you and what do you do for a living?

Great to be here! I’m twenty-six-years old, and I am a professional mixed martial arts fighter.

Can you tell us about one of your most distinguishable features?

I have liquid blue eyes that are featured on numerous magazines. I’m about to land several major sponsorship contracts for advertising. Kind of embarrassing, but my manager says, “a guy has to eat.”

What is your most treasured possession?

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A smooth, flat rock given to me when I was a young boy, by my uncle, Master Li, of the Shaolin Wulong Temple just outside of Dandong, China. It represents my youth spent living in China.

What is your greatest fear?

You see that played out throughout the book—Losing my family. It tears apart the very fabric of my existence. The pain and suffering changes who I am. Even all those years training as a monk can’t provide me the ability to cope with the loss. I’m not sure I like who I become, but I feel the justice I provide others is warranted. 

Do you think the author portrayed you accurately?

I believe he did. I love my family, and he portrayed my feelings well regarding that aspect of my life. The fight scenes were pretty cool, but he knows I don’t enjoy that activity outside of demonstrations and show. I wish he wouldn’t mention how women react when they see me. Guess I should collect some scars like the other fighters I’m surrounded by—but, I’m not one for letting others

Are you a loner or do you prefer to surround yourself with friends?

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I enjoy time surrounded by my family and closest friends. More of an intimate setting. Large crowds get me all flustered which, unfortunately, is becoming a bigger problem as my fame grows. Growing up as a monk, I do need that solitary time to redirect my thoughts.

Who is your best friend?

Kip is my best friend. He’s my business manager, and he’s also a retired MMA fighter and now lawyer. He’s the biggest kid you’ve ever met. He’s almost my son’s Godfather—my wife’s idea since she’s Catholic to the core.

Do you have children?

The other love of my life, Max. He’s 16 months old and has had a tough go of things, but he’s a fighter. Has a heart defect that needs surgery—which is the only reason why I fight in the octagon. We need the money for his care. I find out later my wife knew she was pregnant and didn’t want to tell me about it until after my big fight. I love her and trust she did that for all the right reasons.

Someone is secretly in love with you.  Who is it and how do you feel about that?

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After things go really wrong in the early part of the book, I meet a girl originally from London, Melody. She’s kind of trapped in this city in China trying to piece together her life. I force a bad situation that gets her into trouble, and I make a kneejerk reaction to get her out of town. I’m not comfortable with any of it, but I’m not that clueless I don’t see a spark there.

If you knew you were going to die tomorrow, what would you do today?

Spend the day with my wife, son, and unborn child at their gravesite.

About the Author:

After a career in medicine, Mike Houtz succumbed to the call to hang up his stethoscope and pursue his other passion as a writer of fast-paced thrillers. A rabid fan of authors such as Clancy, Mark Greaney, Vince Flynn, and Brad Thor, Mike loves series writing with strong characters, fast pacing and international locations, all of which explode into action in his debut novel, a 2017 Zebulon Award winner. When not at the keyboard, he can be found on the firing range, traveling for research across the globe, or trying out the latest dry-fly pattern on a Gold Medal trout stream.
He lives at the foothills of the Rocky Mountains in Colorado.

His latest book is the thriller/international/action novel, Dark Spiral Down.

Website: www.mikehoutz.com
Twitter: www.twitter.com/michaelhoutz
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/author.mikehoutz/
https://www.facebook.com/mike.houtz.77

BOOK BLURB:

COLE HAUFNER is a reluctant superstar in the professional mixed martial arts world. After his latest fight, his wife and child perish in a car crash. His grief deepens when his brother, BUTCH, a Delta Force operator, is absent from the funeral and reported missing by two furtive strangers who

show up unannounced at the burial. Despairing, and acting on a tip, Cole travels to his childhood home in southeast China, looking for his brother.

Butch and his teammate, HAMMER, are the sole American survivors of a gun battle between their unit and North Korean commandos, both sides fighting over possession of a stolen suitcase containing a miniaturized fusion device that could either provide unlimited clean energy or be converted to an undetectable bomb seven times more powerful than a nuclear explosion. Leading the North Koreans is the sociopath, Commander PARK. Pressed into helping the Koreans is a disgraced former CIA operative, BARRETT JENNINGS.

Cole meets with the uncle who raised him, MASTER LI, and is warned to stop his search for Butch. Barrett discovers Cole’s identity (with the help of a genius computer hacker, LILLY), which opens a twenty-year-old wound when Barrett was blamed for the disappearance of Cole’s father, along with the man’s invention. Barrett enlists the 14K organized crime syndicate to help capture Cole. Hammer, separated from Butch during the fight for the device, thwarts the gang’s attempt to kidnap Cole, and the two then set off to find Butch and the device. All parties converge on the city library where Butch, now disguised as a monk, is attempting to communicate with the Pentagon. Barrett and Park capture Butch, while the 14K gang nabs Cole.

Danger mounts as Chinese authorities begin investigating foul play within their borders. Cole fights his way free of the gang and reunites with Hammer.  Both men find Barrett’s apartment and discover Lilly (the man’s stepdaughter), who divulges Barrett’s identity and plan. Cole clashes with Hammer, who is willing to sacrifice Butch in order to recover the fusion device. Lilly offers her help in exchange for her and Barrett’s rescue from Park’s grip. Meanwhile, Barrett discovers the true nature of the case the North Koreans are pursuing and, sensing he and Lilly are to be assassinated by Park once he has the device, frees Butch. Butch, trusting Barrett was sent to rescue him, leads the turncoat to the site where he hid the device. Barrett, hoping to make a quick fortune selling it, shoots Butch before escaping with the case.

Cole, along with Hammer and Lilly, arrives at the location of Butch and finds him gravely wounded. Butch fingers Barrett for shooting him and for stealing the case. Cole wants only to save his brother but Butch makes him promise to kill Barrett and recover their dad’s invention. The revelation that the device is his father’s scientific discovery propels Cole forward to fulfill his brother’s mission. Cole is forced to abandon Butch at a hospital. Cole pursues Barrett to a remote dock where the ex-CIA man is planning to escape China by boat. With the Chinese military now actively looking for Cole, Cole confronts Barrett and Park sparking a gunfight. Barrett kills Park. As Barrett turns the gun on Cole, Hammer kills Barrett. Cole, Hammer and Lilly escape via the boat, and the fusion device is safely returned.