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I pull on my gloves and roll my shoulders.

It’s almost time.

I hear the roar of the crowd and get a quick nod from Grim before he disappears down the hallway.

Now it’s just me and my thoughts.

Bronco’s comments about Luna’s weight this morning have been sitting on the edge of my psyche all day, and I’m going to make him pay for them in the cage. If he was trying to get me riled up, it worked. Frankly, I don’t need to draw this out. A knockout in the first round is a perfectly acceptable way for me to end this whole thing.

“Mr. Rageis.” One of the assistants sticks his head in the room. “It’s time.”

I nod and make my way down the hall toward the tunnel that will lead out into the crowd and to the cage. I got my nickname, Rage the Cage, because I used it as part of my arsenal—pinning guys against it so I could punch from the clinch. It’s part of what made me a champion. That and my lethal left hook. I’m a southpaw, so most fighters aren’t used to the way I hit, and I scored a lot of knockouts that way.

And that’s the goal tonight.

Hard, fast, done.

Garth asked us to give the spectators their money’s worth, but I don’t have time for that. I thought this would be fun. Instead, it’s turned into something stressful. Worse than that, I let my nerves get the better of me and I’m almost positive I hurt Luna’s feelings. Which is unacceptable.

The crowd goes wild as I pad across the floor toward the cage.

I see Grim and Metal standing next to it, waiting.

I see Bronco already inside.

And I see Garth in there too, ready to announce the fight.

“I love you, Rage!” a woman’s voice calls out.

I’m sure Luna loves hearing that.

“Show ’em how it’s done, bro!” That’s a man’s voice.

I just drown it all out, scanning the crowd for Luna and the others.

Daniil and Courtney are in the front row, with Silver next to Daniil and an empty seat next to Courtney. Eric and Delilah are right behind them, with a couple other guys from the club next to them.

Luna might be in the restroom. Or doing something with Candy except—Candy’s sitting a few seats away, also in the front row.

And there’s no sign of Luna anywhere.

An uneasy feeling crawls over me.

She’s not petty. Even if she’s furious with me, she wouldn’t just skip the fight.

So, where is she?

She knows the fight is starting soon.

She knows I want to see her out there.

For the first time, it occurs to me that maybe she was right—and someone recognized her. Someone who has no idea how much of the Assault Academy clientele she saw. There were a hundred thousand names, so she couldn’t possibly have memorized them all but what if they don’t know that?

What if she still has a copy?

What if⁠—

The ref approaches us. “Gentlemen, we’ve already gone over the rules. I want you to protect yourselves at all times. Listen to my instructions at all times. Fight hard, but fight clean. Touch gloves if you like—” The referee nods at us and Bronco surprises me by tapping his knuckles to mine. “Step back. Good luck.”