“I’m not responsible for them fighting, Bob,” I said, keeping my tone low but deliberate. “Hunter didn’t start it. None of the guys started it. Grayson’s temper got them into it, but it was the fans, too. There was provocation. You want me to control the crowd? Or rewrite physics?”
He leaned back in the chair, steepling his fingers, the picture of innocence with a side of schadenfreude. “It’s not about who started it, Holly. It’s about optics. And optics where Callahan’s concerned, are your problem. Management doesn’t care about nuance. They care about spin. And if you can’t get it done, you’ll be out the door before you finish your coffee.”
I gritted my teeth, stepping closer. “You know, Bob, it’s starting to feel like you’ve been waiting for me to screw up just so you could wag your finger and remind me who’s in charge. Like you’re keeping score, instead of mentoring.”
His eyebrows lifted, but that was the extent of the reaction. “Mentoring?” he said, voice oozing that patented oily smoothness. “Holly, this isn’t personal. This is business. You were hired to handle situations like this. You signed up for it. That means you’ll have to explain why this bar fight after the game last night hasn’t been contained yet.”
I could feel my pulse start to thrum, my patience thinning by the second. “Yeah, I signed up to manage Hunter, not babysit the whole team. You think this is about optics? It’s about competence, and maybe about the fact that you don’t want to admit that I’ve been keeping the whole circus from going off the rails while you… do whatever it is you do.”
“Holly,” he said, voice dangerously calm, “let me make this crystal clear. You clean this up, and you do it fast. My advice is to forget the details, and focus on what will work best for management.”
“Forget about my client?” I asked, not lowering my voice, letting some fire in me shine through. “Because that’s what you’re suggesting, right? Please feel free to correct me if I’m wrong.”
He smirked, the kind that reminded me why people call him slickas pig shit. “Holly, sweetheart, this sort of thing isn’t in the handbook. It’s just a given. You want results, you get them. That’s it. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have other things to do.”
I clenched my fists at my sides, trying not to slam them into his polished desk. Every muscle in my body was vibrating with a mix of rage and disbelief. “Fine,” I said finally, voice cutting through the tension. “I’ll fix it. But don’t act like you’re doing me a favor by breathing down my neck while I do it.”
Bob raised his eyebrows as if I’d just delivered a life-changing revelation. “I knew I could count on you.”
I turned sharply, fists still tight, and stormed toward the door, my heels clicking sharply against the tile floor. My jaw was sore from clenching it. My thoughts raced as I reached for my phone. Hunter needed to be in my office, now. No games, no niceties.
I dialed his number, tapping the screen impatiently. “Hunter, meet me in my office. Now. And don’t make me wait.”
“Yes, ma’am,” he said immediately, a sharp edge to his tone that mirrored my own.
I didn’t wait for him to arrive. I paced the small office, pulling up social media feeds and scrolling through clips of the fight, already calculating how I could frame the story, manage interviews, and diffuse the outrage before it mushroomed into a full-blown scandal. Every second counted.
When Hunter arrived, he stepped into my office, eyes alert as he gave me a brief nod. He wasn’t smiling.
“Let me guess… a cousin I never knew I had posted something damaging about me online,” he said with a sigh. “Or is it my dad again?”
“It’s what you and the guys got up to after the game last night.”
He rolled his eyes. Actually rolled them! Which didn’t do much for the frustration gnawing at my insides.
I waved him over to the chair in front of my desk. “Sit. And we’regoing through this fast, because management isn’t going to give a damn about delays, and Bob has made it clear this is on me,” I said, exhaling. “So, first, tell me exactly what happened from your perspective. Start at the top.”
He took a seat, leaning forward, elbows on his knees. “I wasn’t there when it started. I just heard Grayson getting into it. Some Minnesota fans were mouthing off. I tried to pull people away, but…” He trailed off, running a hand through his hair. “It escalated fast. By the time I got into it, fists were already flying.”
I nodded, jotting mental notes. “Good. I need you to be completely honest, but also strategic. I don’t want you saying any of this to the press. Not a word.”
He nodded. “Got it.”
My mind was already spinning. Social media damage control, press statements, video edits. Everything had to be airtight, or Bob’s threats about my job wouldn’t just be idle talk. I looked at Hunter, grateful for his composure, but my gut tightened. There was no hiding from the fact that even now, every move, every word, had consequences.
And Bob? He’d just be sitting back, waiting for the first misstep.
“Don’t talk to anyone else,” I said, eyes locking on him. “We handle this together, and we do it smart. If you get wind of anything, tell me immediately. No improvisation. Clear?”
“Jesus, why are you being so dramatic? It was a stupid fight.”
“This is why.” My voice rose, tempered with exasperation as I jabbed the screen. “Because from where I’m standing, after everything we’ve done, after all the progress we’ve made, this is a disaster.”
“Iwastrying to stop it!” he insisted, leaning forward, jaw tight. “Look closer. Watch the video again. That’s me holding people back, not throwing punches. It’s Grayson, okay? He got into it first!”
I pressed my hands to my temples, trying to keep the sting of anger from slipping into pity. “Hunter, I know it wasn’t your fault. Icansee that. But the world doesn’t work that way. The team can’t have thecaptain branded as a troublemaker. Not now, not ever. Grayson is the face of the Surge. He sets the tone. I can’t release anything that puts him in a bad light.”
“He did that to himself,” Hunter scoffed. “You’re telling me he gets out of this without consequences just because he’s the captain?”
