Chapter 37

Supreme Fighter mansion—thelast place I wanted to return. The actual “reunion” show is being taped at a studio tomorrow. But we were all asked to meet at the mansion the night before to “get into the same head space.” If that isn’t a red flag that we’re being led into a trap, I don’t know what is.

They offered to send a car for us. I declined.

Molly was too nervous about navigating the busier roads of downstate New York, so I’m behind the wheel of her car.

“It says it’s seven hundred feet ahead on our right.” Molly points at the windshield.

The car’s GPS system announces the same information a second later.

“None of this looks familiar,” I grumble, staring at the perfect green lawns and glimpses of estates hiding behind high privacy walls and iron gates.

“You were in a high pressure, disoriented state when you arrived?—”

“And barely conscious when I left.” I slow the car and make the turn through the wide-open gates. “The day they let us ride the motorcycles, I was too worried about the camera crew in front of me and the other vehicles behind me.”

I guide the SUV into a parking spot close to the gate. Several other cars are already here. The detestable prison-style vans they carted us around in are nowhere to be seen.

“Wow.” Molly stares out the window at the sprawling mansion. “It’s…even bigger in person. And kinda tacky, honestly. All it’s missing is a big, gaudy fountain of cherubs out front.”

She nailed in five minutes what it took me weeks to figure out that I didn’t like about the place. “Inside’s not quite as bad.”

“You know Hayden looked it up.” Molly presses a finger to the glass. “They actually used this place in another crappy reality show.”

“Makes sense. It’s probably a tax write-off for some douchebag.”

I step out of the car and walk around to open her door. The crisp, late autumn air feels good on my face after the long drive.

“I’ll grab our stuff later.” Once I’m sure we’re staying.

I glance at the open gates and pat the car keys in my pocket to reassure myself I’m free to leave at any time. This time they’ll have to pry my license and cell phone from my cold, dead hands. I never want to feel trapped like that again.

Molly curls her fingers around mine. Love for her and overwhelming desire to keep her safe thrums through me.

“Ready?” she asks.

“No.” I stare at the huge mansion, its opulence hiding the ugly truth—it’s nothing more than a giant shark tank. Inside those walls, blood and lies triggered a feeding frenzy of cameras to capture every moment for someone else’s entertainment. “You should take the car and go home. Leave me here. I should’ve listened to Remy.”

What the fuck was I thinking, dragging Molly into this sick world where everyone has a hidden agenda we can’t even guess? I’m supposed to protect Molly, not bring more chaos into her life.

I suffered through drama, isolation, and exploitation in this house for months. But I agreed to it. Molly didn’t. She’s doing this for me. All because I admitted I basically want to come here waving my middle finger at everyone. Sure, the money’s an incentive but it’s not worth whatever falsehoods the producers have cooked up in their relentless pursuit of sensational content.

“No.” She stares up at me with determination shining in her blue eyes. “They used me too. Projected a persona onto me without ever letting me speak for myself. I want to do this. Show people I’m an actual person. Not a naive little girl who can’t think for herself.”

“Whatever we say, they’ll just twist it to fit their story. There’s no ‘reality’ here.”

She shifts her gaze to the house. “I know. But I’ve been silent for months. Even if it doesn’t go the way we want, at least I’ll know I tried to speak up for myself.”

I can’t deny her that chance. I want to protect my girlfriend, but I can’t do it by treating her like a little kid who can’t make her own decisions.

Dread slows my steps as we approach the front door.

Last time, I was here alone. I made friends in the house but never shook the feeling of impending betrayal.

This time Molly’s at my side. I trust her completely.

We’re going to get through the reunion. Together. As a team. Then we’ll collect our money and go the fuck home. Put this chapter of our lives behind us once and for all.

The door opens before we have a chance to ring the bell. Jordan’s mustached face greets us.

“Did you get demoted to butler?” I ask. “Why’re you answering the door?”

“Good to see you too, Stonewall.” He opens the door wider then drops his gaze to our empty hands. “You don’t have an overnight bag?”

“It’s in the car.” I jerk my thumb over my shoulder. “I’ll grab our stuff later.”

“Very well.” Jordan won’t even look Molly in the eye. Guilty conscience? Is he the one responsible for the Kiki storyline? Or did that come from higher up?

I need to chill.

“Well, you’ll be staying in your old room if you want to show your girlfriend?—”

“Molly. My name is Molly,” she says in a firm tone, forcing Jordan to acknowledge her.

“Yes. Right. Molly. Nice to finally meet you.”

“Is it?” she asks.

I bite my lip. Damn, she’s comin’ in hot and I fucking love it.

Jordan takes a deep breath. “I’m sure you have mixed feelings about being here. But the SUF family appreciates your attendance. I think you’ll be pleased. We’ll be able to set the record straight tomorrow about a couple of matters.”

I don’t know whether to be happy or terrified.

“A few things.” Jordan claps his hands together. “Naptime, Kiki, and the other ring girls won’t be staying here tonight.”

“Aw, shucks.” I pull a fake sad face to go with the sarcastic comment.

A hint of a smile twitches under his mustache. “People are still arriving. You can give Molly a tour of the house if you’d like. We won’t be doing any filming until a little later.” He leans in and lowers his voice. “All the cameras have been removed from the private quarters.”

“All of them?” I ask.

“Yes. Tonight is just a low-key get together.” He gestures to Molly. “And to give the families a little behind the scenes look.”

Molly nods and lets her gaze wander around the foyer.

“I’ll leave you two. If you need something, just let me know.”

“Thanks.” I rest my hand on Molly’s lower back and guide her toward the kitchen and the hallways behind it leading to the bedrooms.

“I like the kitchen.” Molly waves her hand toward the long island with a prep sink in the middle and a row of tall stools on the outside. “I’d like a counter setup with stools like that in our house one day.”

Such a simple request fills me with happiness. No matter her mixed feelings about this weekend, she’s still planning our future. “Yeah? I thought you wanted to live in your grandparents’ place?”

“We could always remodel the kitchen one day.” She shrugs. “Or not. If you don’t want to stay in Johnsonville.”

I frown at the suggestion. “Where would we go?”

She shrugs.

We reach my old room and I take a deep breath, then push the door open. “Here it is.”

“Oh wow.” She walks to the center of the room and spins in a slow circle. “It’s even bigger than it looked on television.”

“Bigger than I remember,” I mutter. Since I left, I’ve been picturing it about the size of a prison cell.

“I love that chair!” She points to the purple velvet chair still standing in the corner.

“I thought you would.” I toss my coat on the bed and she does the same.

She turns and stares up at the corner of the room.

“At least Jordan wasn’t lying. See that black mount up there. That’s where the camera was.”

She stares at it for a few seconds, then glances at the bed. “That’s so creepy.” She steps closer, rests her hand on my shoulder and leans up to whisper in my ear, “I love you but I am not having sex with you here. I don’t trust them not to have placed a camera somewhere else.” She flits an anxious glance around the room.

Laughing, I lean down and kiss her forehead. “Don’t blame you one bit.”

Now that the excitement over seeing the room where I spent so much time has died down, I hold out my hand. “Come on, I want to show you something else.”

Outside the room, she glances up and down the sterile white hallway. “It’s like a maze. How did you remember which way to go?”

“Well, some of the guys drew all over the walls like toddlers, so that helped.”

She snorts. “That’s probably why they did it.”

I touch the wall near my door. “They must have brought painters in after we left.”

“They probably should’ve waited.” She snickers into her hand. “Be a shame if the guys draw all over the walls again tonight.”

“Come on, I want to show you something before too many people show up.”

She links her arm with mine and stays tight to my side as we return to the wide-open room at the center of the house. I continue past the oddly placed flatscreen. “That’s where we got to gather around and watch each other’s footage.”

“Oh, I bet you hated that.”

“Sure did.” I keep my eye out for any rogue camera guys. But so far, there’s no one else here. Even Jordan seems to have gone to another part of the house. Regardless, I lower my voice. “It was extra strange that they went to the trouble of finding old footage from illegal matches for some of us.”

She stares up at me. “From The Castle?”

“No, thank God.” We turn a corner and enter the area I called the book nook.

Molly gasps. “This is so cute.” She runs to the built-in bookcases and starts pulling out different titles.

“I thought of you the first time I saw it. And when I was in a taciturn mood, I’d hide out here and think about finding a house for us with a little reading area just like this one day.”

Her lips quirk and she slides a book into its place on the shelf. “I’d love that.”

Loud voices echo through the house. “I knew we wouldn’t be alone for long.” I sigh.

A few guys have congregated in the kitchen. I only recognize Pirate. The rest must be camera guys.

“Stonewall!” Venom’s voice booms through the space.

My gaze searches the room, finding him sitting on the sectional with a petite blonde woman at his side.

“That’s quite a size difference,” Molly mutters.

I tip my head down and stare at her.

“What?” She shrugs. “It is.”

My face splits into a grin as Venom stands. The blonde scowls up at him. He hurries to meet us halfway. “I’m so happy to see you, brother.”

I’m yanked forward for a hug and back slap. “How’ve you been?” he asks.

“Not bad.” I fall back and slide my arm over Molly’s shoulders. “Molly, this is Venom—the guy who got me through this shit show and taught me some sick new moves.”

A smile curves her lips. “Thank you for helping Griff survive.”

Venom glances over his shoulder at his wife, still sitting where he left her, and frowns. He tilts his head toward me. “Kelly, this is Griff. He kept me sane in this bungalow of bullshit.”

I burst out laughing. “What an accurate description.”

“I know it’s not a ‘bungalow,’ but ‘mansion of bullshit’ just didn’t have the same ring to it.” Venom grins. His whole demeanor is so much lighter than when we were living here.

Molly chuckles and squeezes my hand.

Kelly approaches us and forces a tight smile that doesn’t reach her eyes. Great, she probably thinks I’m an asshole who cheated on my girlfriend, then dragged her here to make myself look good.

“Venom said such glowing things.” I offer my politest smile. “I feel like I already know you, Kelly.”

“That’s nice to hear,” she says in a high, squeaky, childlike voice I’m not expecting from an adult.

I blink and try not to react. “Uh, this is my girlfriend, Molly.”

They exchange hellos but I don’t picture them being besties anytime soon. Then again, this whole situation is so strained. Maybe Kelly’s coolness has nothing to do with me and everything to do with anxiety about what’s going to happen tomorrow.

I can’t blame anyone for being nervous about it when I’m ready to bolt home any second, myself.