The night should have wrapped up with a big celebration.
It had been IRW's biggest show to date. The arena was packed to the brim, and the crowd was electric, cheering loudly from the very first women's match right through to Mason Brooks' jaw-dropping return. Even backstage, despite everyone feeling worn out, there was a palpable sense of achievement, like they had just hit a new milestone.
Vince had just settled back in his office when his phone rang.
He leaned back in his chair and picked it up.
"Nicholas?"
On the other end, Nicholas sounded unusually pumped.
"Highest ratings in Vox this week."
Vince perked up a bit.
"What did you say?"
"You heard me," Nicholas replied, barely able to contain his excitement. "Not just wrestling. The whole channel this week. Your show beat everything else."
A smile crept across Vince's face.
Even after all he had experienced in his past, hearing it straight from Nicholas still felt incredibly rewarding.
Nicholas went on, "The board is over the moon. I've never seen those old guys smile so much."
Vince chuckled. "Tell them to get used to it."
Nicholas laughed, then lowered his voice a notch.
"You really think the numbers will keep climbing?"
Vince glanced through the glass of his office at the tired crew packing up equipment outside.
"It will."
Before Nicholas could reply, there was a loud banging on Vince's office door.
Mark Rivera burst in without waiting for an invitation.
He looked frantic.
"There's a fire backstage!"
Vince shot up from his chair.
"What?"
Nicholas heard the chaos through the phone.
"What happened?"
"I'll call later."
Vince hung up instantly and rushed out with Mark.
-----
Lance was already shouting orders in the hallway.
"Don't let the crowd find out about this!"
The audience was still streaming out of the arena in droves. If panic broke out now, it would lead to total chaos.
Lance quickly gathered a few staff members.
"Keep everyone moving toward the exits. No one says the word fire. Got it?"
Vince and Mark dashed past him toward the staff parking area behind the arena.
As soon as they burst through the exit doors—
They were met with a shocking sight.
A car was completely engulfed in flames.
The fire lit up the parking lot in a vivid orange glow, while thick black smoke billowed into the night sky.
Several staff members and wrestlers were already trying to tackle the situation.
Hogan Hornet was closest, furiously spraying a fire extinguisher at the burning vehicle.
Diego Cortez was helping to pull nearby equipment away from the danger.
A few production workers were hurriedly dragging cables out of the way before the fire could spread.
Mark stood frozen, "What the hell…"
Vince quickly scanned the area.
"Whose car is that?"
No one replied.
He raised his voice.
"Whose damn car is it?"
Silence.
People exchanged bewildered looks. No one stepped forward to claim it.
That made Vince's stomach churn.
Eventually, firefighters arrived and managed to control the blaze before it could reach other vehicles.
The fire was put out.
But the car was a total loss.
Nearly an hour later, police showed up.
An officer examined the wreckage while taking statements.
"This vehicle doesn't belong to any registered employee here."
Vince crossed his arms. "What does that mean?"
The officer looked at him with a serious expression.
"It means someone probably put it here on purpose."
Mark's expression hardened. "You're saying this was premeditated?"
The officer nodded, "Could be vandalism. Could be intimidation."
He fixed his gaze on Vince. "Do you have any enemies?"
Before Vince could respond—
Lance jumped in.
"It's NPJW."
Everyone turned to him.
Lance's jaw clenched. "This is Yoichi sending a message."
Victor Cross was fuming.
"That little rat—"
He tried to storm off, but Diego grabbed one arm while Jett and Axel held the other.
"Let me go!"
Victor was seething. "I'll kill him tonight!"
The officer stepped in right away.
"If you walk out that door and hurt someone, I'll personally make sure you're arrested."
Victor shot him a fierce glare.
Mark quickly intervened, pulling Victor back before things could get out of hand.
Vince rubbed his temples, feeling utterly drained.
He turned to the officer.
"Take the car."
"We already are."
"And investigate quietly."
The officer raised an eyebrow.
"That depends on what we find."
Vince faced the crowd that had gathered.
"Tonight stays here."
Silence fell over them.
He reiterated, "Nobody talks about this."
Everyone nodded in agreement.
At least not publicly.
By the time the legal statements were wrapped up and the wreckage of the vehicle was cleared away, it was well past midnight.
Vince finally left the arena, feeling completely spent.
When he checked his phone, several unread messages lit up the screen.
One was from Harry Khan.
Why were police at the arena?
Why smoke?
Was there a fire?
Vince let out a sigh.
Another message made him smile.
It was from Maya.
I left early. Heard something happened. Is everyone okay?
Vince quickly typed back.
Everyone's fine. Someone pulled a stupid prank. Nothing to worry about.
He stared at the screen for a moment before tucking the phone away.
----
Across the city—
Yoichi Isagi was lounging in his apartment, flipping through the television channels.
He had been waiting for breaking news.
He had anticipated headlines about IRW going up in flames.
But instead, he got nothing.
His excitement gradually faded away.
Still, he couldn't help but smile.
At least they got the message across.
He had stuck around long enough to see the fire ignite before he made his exit. He wished he could have witnessed Mark Rivera's reaction.
Just thinking about it made him chuckle.
"It's not over."
----
The next morning—
Vince was at his IRW office, talking with Gavin on the phone.
"It's fine," Vince reassured him. "Nothing major happened."
Gavin didn't sound convinced.
"Someone set a car on fire outside your arena."
"And failed."
"That's not exactly comforting."
"It is for me. You are very important to the company and also my friend. I don't want anything to happen to you."
After hanging up, Vince turned to Lance, who was standing awkwardly by the doorway.
"Why is the news spreading?"
Lance looked uneasy.
Vince narrowed his gaze, "I told everyone to keep it under wraps."
Lance let out a heavy sigh.
"You can't expect everyone to be that disciplined."
Vince's expression darkened, "What happened?"
"A few wrestlers went out for drinks after the show."
Vince stared at him, waiting. "And?"
"They talked."
Vince leaned back in his chair, slowly.
"Names."
Lance hesitated.
"What are you planning to do?"
"Terminate their contracts."
Lance's discomfort grew. "You can't be serious about taking serious, right? Just some disciplinary action will do."
Vince's tone remained steady.
"If they can't keep quiet about this, what's going to happen when they leak real plans?"
"This doesn't warrant termination."
"A precedent needs to be set."
Lance looked at him, concerned.
"Vince—"
"Who."
Lance exhaled deeply.
"…Axel."
Vince's face was a mask of unreadability.