Chapter 23 #2
I felt it then—the shift. The moment when the math finished itself in the room.
My pulse started to pound.
“That’s not what happened to Tyler, was it?” I asked.
Zarek shook his head. “No. He was collateral. A lower-tier fight went wrong. Then they needed a clean narrative.”
“And they found one,” Simon said. “Single-car accident. No witnesses. No questions.”
Code swore under his breath. “They use terrain the same way other people use paperwork.”
Zarek’s jaw clenched. “So who’s running this?”
Code didn’t answer right away. He leaned back in his chair and folded his arms, eyes fixed on a spot on the wall like he was lining things up in his head.
“We know who,” he said finally. “We just don’t have a clean way to touch him yet.”
My pulse started to race. “You know who’s behind it and he’s still walking around?”
Code looked at me then, really looked at me. “Because he’s not behind it in the way people expect.”
Simon leaned forward, elbows on the table. “Think of it like a pyramid,” he said. “At the bottom, you’ve got recruiters. Maurice is one of those. Loud. Visible. Replaceable.”
“That’s who Zarek met,” I said.
Simon nodded. “Above him are facilitators. Venue managers. Logistics people. Guys who secure locations, transport fighters, handle payouts, clean up problems. None of them know the whole picture.”
“And above them?” I asked.
Code exhaled. “Shell companies. A lot of them.”
He reached for a tablet and turned it so I could see.
Names scrolled past. Bland ones. Forgettable ones.
Blue Hollow Holdings.
RidgeLine Consulting Group.
Ironwake Solutions.
“These don’t do anything illegal on paper,” Code said. “They lease properties. Move money. Fund ‘private events.’ They hire subcontractors. Everything looks legitimate until you zoom out.”
“Who owns them?” I asked.
“Different people,” he said. “Or at least it looks that way. Retired finance guys. Silent partners. Trusts. Offshore accounts. Dead ends by design.”
Zarek frowned. “So, nobody’s actually in charge?”
“Oh, someone is,” Code said grimly. “They just never put their name on anything that bleeds.”
Simon tapped the table once. “He doesn’t run fights,” Simon continued. “He doesn’t recruit fighters. He doesn’t threaten families himself. He connects money to appetite.”
“Intimate Nights at the Colosseum?” I asked, even though I already knew.
“Yep, those are the big payouts,” Code said.
He scrolled again, pulling up another image. A blurred still shot from somewhere dark.
A man in a tailored jacket. No clear face. Just posture. Confidence.
“He hosts,” Simon said. “He’s the one we want.”
“So you don’t have a name,” Zarek said.
“Not yet. We’re calling him The Broker for right now.” Roan answered. “We’re in luck. Code’s found that they have an event planned in Memphis this coming weekend. If we could find out where the fight is, we could get him dead to rights.”
Zarek’s hands curled into fists.
“And Maurice?” he asked.
“Maurice doesn’t know about The Broker,” Code said. “Or if he does, he’s never met him. He thinks he’s working for investors. Event sponsors. He’s useful because he believes just enough of the lie.”
“And if he’s arrested?” I asked.
Simon’s mouth curved without humor. “He’ll be shocked. Offended. Cooperative. And utterly disposable. Nash will have only cut off the tip of one tentacle of this operation.”
The room went quiet and all eyes turned to me.
“What?” I turned to Zarek. “What is everybody thinking that I’m not going to like?”
“I found out they’re down a fighter,” Code said softly. “They’ve got feelers out with all of their recruiters to find someone, quick.”
Zarek went still.
My heart slammed into my ribs. “You don’t mean—”
“We mean Zarek,” Code said bluntly.
“No,” I said, pushing back from the table. “Absolutely not.”
Zarek turned to me and squeezed my hand, hoping I’d understand. Yeah, that wasn’t going to happen. Then he turned to Simon. “Let’s talk about next steps. I should probably call Maurice and say I need money.”
Then it hit me. I knew what needed to happen next, and it would make Zarek’s head explode.
“That’s part of what needs to happen, yeah.” Roan agreed.
Zarek frowned. “What else?”
None of the men responded.
“What am I missing?” Zarek asked again.
“Leverage,” Jase finally answered. “There is no way that they will have you get into the ring in Memphis unless they have leverage. Unless they can whisper in your ear about someone you love dying unless you kill the other guy.”
Zarek looked around the table, and finally his eyes fell on me. “I won’t do it,” he said. “We have to find another way to get to The Broker.”
I thought about saying something snarky. Something about a goose and a gander, but I held back. Instead, I pictured a young couple. A pregnant girl named Emily being told that her husband wasn’t coming home.
“You know Simon will keep me safe,” I whispered. “Hell, he probably won’t even let me drive my Miata because he thinks I’ll end up in a wreck.”
“You’ll have to turn over your keys, first thing.
You drive like a maniac,” Simon said seriously.
Then he turned to Zarek. “It’s a good plan.
Solid. Not only the five of us, we’ve got Kai, Beau, Ford, Renzo, Graham and Michael that we can pull in at any moment.
She’ll be protected seven ways to Sunday. ”
“Then how will they get their leverage, if they don’t take her?” Zarek’s question was reasonable.
“All they have to do is get a few photos of her close-up at the grocery store, the library, in her apartment, and show them to you. That’d do the trick, now wouldn’t it?”
I held my breath.
“Okay, I’ll call Maurice as soon as you get everyone in place to cover her, not a minute before that. You said the fight was this coming weekend. I’m assuming Saturday?”
Roan nodded.
Five days. We had five days before The Broker would expect Zarek to step into the ring. I ignored the hint of nausea roiling around inside me.
They started talking next steps, and I let their words wash over me. The part of my brain that needed to be engaged was there, listening. Comprehending. But me? The real Chloe was still holding onto Zarek’s hand, as if it was the only thing tethering me to Earth.
I couldn’t lose that.
I couldn’t lose him.
Not now.
Not when I finally had him back.