The Parking Lot Attendant Who Controlled the Stock Market

Chapter 11

Chapter Eleven: The Traitor's Return

Felix did not go back to his cousin's floor that night.

He drove to Derek's building instead. The doorman recognized him now. The suit did the talking. The watch did the rest. The doorman nodded and Felix walked through the lobby like he owned it.

Derek opened the door with a black eye and a split lip. He looked worse than he did in Victor's office. His hands were shaking. His eyes were red.

"You should not be here," Derek said.

"We need to talk."

Derek stepped aside and Felix walked in. The apartment was a mess. Clothes on the floor. Empty bottles on the table. The white walls looked gray in the dim light.

"You look terrible," Felix said.

"I almost died," Derek said. "Your monster almost killed me. And you saved me. Why?"

Felix sat down on the couch. The same couch where Derek had handed him a beer three days ago. It felt like three years.

"Because I am not a killer," Felix said. "Not yet. And because you are still useful."

Derek laughed. It was a broken sound. "Useful. That is all I am to you now. Useful."

"That is all any of us are to each other. That is how the world works. You use people. They use you. The only question is who uses who better."

Derek sat down across from him. His bruised face was pale. His hands were still shaking.

"Victor knows I betrayed you," Derek said. "He knows I came to warn him. He will never trust me again."

"He was never going to trust you. He does not trust anyone. That is how he survives."

Derek looked at Felix with desperate eyes. "What do I do? He will kill me. Not in a week. Not in a month. One day he will just decide and I will be gone."

Felix pulled out the coin and held it up. The eye stared at Derek. The number three stared at Derek.

"I can help you," Felix said. "But you have to do exactly what I say."

"Anything. I will do anything."

Felix put the coin away. "Victor gave me three days to find the recording. I need someone on the inside. Someone who can watch him. Listen to him. Tell me what he is planning."

Derek's face went white. "You want me to spy on Victor Kensington? The man who almost killed me?"

"I want you to survive. And the only way to survive is to be useful to me. I am the only one who can protect you now."

Derek stared at him for a long time. His eyes were full of fear and anger and something else. Something that looked like respect.

"You have changed," Derek said. "The Felix I knew would never talk like this. The Felix I knew was soft. Scared. Quiet."

"The Felix you knew is dead," Felix said. "He died in that parking garage when you slapped him."

Derek looked away. His hands stopped shaking.

"Fine," he said. "What do you want me to do?"

Felix stood up. "Go back to Victor. Apologize. Tell him you were scared. Tell him you want to make it right. Tell him anything. Just get close to him."

"And then?"

Felix walked to the door.

"Then you wait. And you watch. And when the time comes, you tell me everything."

He walked out of the apartment and into the hallway. The elevator doors opened. The doorman nodded. The city was waiting.

Felix got in the BMW and drove.

He needed to see Marcus. Not at the office. Not at the party. Somewhere private. Somewhere safe.

He pulled out his phone and called Chloe.

"I need to see Marcus," he said. "Not at the office. Somewhere else."

Chloe was quiet for a moment. Then: "There is a restaurant. Old town. Called The Lantern. Be there at midnight. Back room. Come alone."

The line went dead.

Felix drove to the old town. The streets were narrow and dark. The buildings were old and crooked. The Lantern was a small place with a red door and no sign. It looked closed.

Felix knocked twice. The door opened a crack. A pair of eyes looked out. Then the door opened wider and Felix stepped inside.

The back room was small. A table. Two chairs. A single lamp on the wall. Marcus Webb was sitting at the table with a glass of whiskey in his hand. He was not wearing a suit. Just jeans and a shirt. He looked tired.

"Felix," Marcus said. "Chloe told me what happened."

Felix sat down across from him. "Victor knows someone betrayed him. He does not know it was me. Not yet. But he is suspicious."

Marcus took a sip of whiskey. "And Derek? He went to Victor?"

"He was scared. He made a mistake. But he is on our side now. He will watch Victor for us."

Marcus laughed. It was a dry sound. "You trust him? The man who sold you out?"

"I trust him to be scared. Scared people are predictable. They do what they are told."

Marcus nodded. "That is smart. That is cold. I like it."

He leaned forward. "What is the plan?"

Felix pulled out the voice recorder. The original. With the full recording.

"Victor wants the whole thing. He gave me three days. I am going to give him a copy. Enough to buy time. But not enough to destroy you."

Marcus looked at the recorder. His eyes were dark.

"And after that?"

Felix put the recorder away. "After that, I need you to release the real recording. Not now. When I say so. When Victor is at his weakest. When he cannot fight back."

Marcus leaned back in his chair. He swirled the whiskey in his glass.

"You are playing a dangerous game," he said. "You are playing both sides. Victor. Chloe. Me. Derek. Everyone is a piece on your board."

"Everyone is a piece on everyone's board," Felix said. "The only question is who is playing chess and who is playing checkers."

Marcus smiled. It was a real smile. Surprised. Impressed.

"Chloe said you were different," he said. "She said you were hungry. But I did not understand until now. You are not just hungry. You are starving."

Felix stood up.

"Three days," he said. "I need you to be ready. When I call, you release the recording. Every platform. Every follower. Every news outlet. Victor Kensington needs to fall in public. That is the only way."

Marcus nodded. "And you? What do you get from this?"

Felix walked to the door.

"I get to be the man who brought him down. That is worth more than money."

He walked out of The Lantern and into the dark street. The city was quiet. The moon was hidden behind clouds.

He flipped the coin.

Three seconds.

He saw himself standing in Victor's office. Victor was smiling. Victor was handing him a check. Victor was saying something.

Then the vision changed. He saw Chloe. She was holding a gun. She was pointing it at him. Her eyes were cold.

The vision ended.

Felix put the coin away and got in the car.

Chloe was not on his side. She was on her own side. She had been using him from the beginning.

But that was fine. He was using her too.

Everyone was a piece on his board.

The only question was who would be the last one standing.

Felix started the engine and drove into the night.

Three days.

The clock was ticking.

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