“Meet for lunch today?” I text to Dash.

I’m already at the restaurant. I expect he’s nearby.

“Yeah, I can be there in five.”

As expected.

I plant the recorder right under the table, near his side. I need to make sure I get everything he says recorded clearly.

I order a whiskey, down it, and order another. I want to look a bit unhinged.

When Dash arrives, I’m on my third drink. My hair is still disheveled from being with Elise, and the bags under my eyes are from real exhaustion.

“You look like shit, man!” Dash says, sitting down. “I heard what happened...tough break, man.”

I raise an eyebrow to him. “You heard pretty fast, huh?”

“Yeah,” he says. “I got an ear on Sencorp, I have to so I can check out the names you gave me. I heard a few hours ago.”

I down the rest of my drink and glare at him. I already know that Dash is working for Gideon--he’s the only person who knew about Elise--but I want him to feel like I’m only just now piecing it together. Like I’m drunk and pissed off and suspicious, but not quite certain.

“Who did you hear it from?” I ask. “And when?”

“I heard about the board meeting,” Dash says. “Harsh fucking stuff. At least you can get divorced, though, huh?”

“The board meeting hasn’t gone public yet,” I say, narrowing my eyes at him. “So who exactly told you?”

“I gotta’ protect my sources, man! But it was someone I paid off. Come on, you know how I operate.”

“Yeah,” I say. “I thought I did, at least.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Only one person knew about Elise and me,” I say. “So I’m just wondering how it got out.”

“Someone must have seen you,” Dash says. “Why the hell would I tell anyone? You’re telling me no one from the club that night saw you guys?”

“No one in there knew who the fuck she was. Just some girl. You’re sounding awfully defensive, Dash.”

“You’re accusing me of shit I didn’t do! Of course I’m defending myself.”

I stare down into my empty glass. “Sorry, man, you’re right. I’m just looking for someone to blame, I guess. I just really don’t understand how he found out. We were careful.”

I haven’t yet eliminated the chance that someone from the club saw us, or a photo got out, or maybe it was even the fucking Uber driver. I just need Dash to implicate himself. On tape.

“There’s plenty of ways Gideon could have found out, man…”

I don’t even hear the rest of what he says. He’s just implicated Gideon--and himself--into the recorder. I never told him that Gideon was the one who knew, and Gideon’s entire confused old man routine would never lead Dash to assume it was Gideon. The only reason Dash would say Gideon’s name now is if Dash is the one who told him.

“How much did Gideon pay you?” I say, cutting him off.

“What?” Dash says, throwing up his hands. “Why would--?”

I reach across the table and grab him by the neck. I squeeze, choking him.

Everyone around us freezes and stares. “Someone call the police!”

I squeeze harder. “Dash, if you don’t fucking tell me, I will kill you right here. I’ve got nothing to lose.”

Everyone gawks, but no one has the balls to actually try to stop me. A guy my size choking someone in a packed restaurant is not someone you want to mess with.

Dash raises a hand, and I let off his throat just enough for him to speak. “More than you!” he croaks.

I let go, and he gasps for air.

Everyone is staring at us in stunned silence.

“Sir!” the manager says, coming up to me. “The police are coming, you need to leave.”

I glare at Dash.

“It’s fine!” Dash says, wheezing. “I won’t press charges…”

“You both need to leave,” the manager says, furious.

I turn back to Dash. “How much did Gideon Fleischmann pay you, Dash?”

“Gideon caught me snooping on him! Alright?” Dash says. “He told me if I had dirt on you, he’d pay me double whatever you were paying me, every year! It’s nothing personal, but I couldn't turn down that kind of cash!”

“Now!” the manager says. “You need to leave!”

I slide my hand under the table and grab the recorder. I stand up and reach for my wallet.

“Forget your bill!” the manager snaps nervously. “Just leave!”

I slide the recorder into my pocket and walk out of the restaurant. Now I’ve got something on Gideon Fleischmann. If there’s any hint that he intentionally worked to bring down Sencorp, he’ll get blasted for insider trading, or whatever other angle he has to profit off of Sencorp’s demise. I won’t directly be able to link blackmailing me to wanting Sencorp to fail, as he could just claim he hated my guts and wanted me gone.

But showing this to Nadine and the other board members will be enough to put them on the right track--to get them to suspect Fleischmann. The guy who never has his hands directly on anything will be blown wide open as the puppet master that he is.

Dash glares at me. “It wasn’t personal, you fuck, but now it is!”

I roll my eyes at him and turn my back as I walk away.

* * *

When I get back to my apartment, Elise is already gone.

I was hoping to get back into bed with her, but she probably went to go smooth things over with her mom.

I sigh. I should have known it would come to this. There was no way to stop it, though, not after that first night together. It’s not like I really regret it. I regret the whole shitstorm that hit because of it, but there’s no way I regret being with Elise. I’ll be able to smooth this all over soon enough. The difficulties now are just the price I have to pay for happiness.

I laugh to myself. Happiness. Who would have thought I’d ever really think in those terms? Before Elise, it was all about success and status. I fucked women to make myself feel good, but happiness is about a lot more than making yourself feel good. Elise taught me that, even if she wasn’t trying to. That’s just who she is.

And that’s why I absolutely cannot fuck this all up. If I destroy her shot at Sencorp, and her Mom’s career, then how much happiness am I really bringing her?

I sit down at my computer and start typing--outlining everything I can possibly think of for Nadine, Elise--and the rest of the interns--to do. Now I have to be the puppet master.

Gideon and I are going to fight a shadow war with each other. Neither of us can see each other, but we’re fighting face-to-face either way.

Out of the corner of my eye, I see the folder that Dash originally gave me on Gideon on my desk. I grab it and flip it open. “I’m coming for you, fuck head.”

Then my eyes catch one passage from Dash’s report: “Fleischmann has no underground connections. He seems to be strictly a white-collar criminal. Any blowback you suffer for messing with him would be strictly above the belt and legal--lawsuits and other legal pressure--no physical threats.”

Dash’s report was all bullshit. Gideon recruited him before he delivered the report to me. Gideon’s first move was to blackmail me--not to sue me--he very well could have the kind of connections that lead to physical violence.

I grab my phone and call Elise.