Chapter 86 Minx.

Chapter 86: 86 Minx.

"Of course! Golden?" Lacey called, glancing toward the backstage area. "Would you mind coming out here?"

The curtain shifted, and a man shoved his way through it before stepping onto the stage with all the subtlety of a wrecking ball.

What the fuuuuuck?!

The second I got a proper look at him, I could practically feel a migraine forming behind my eyes.

Lacey had somehow managed to recruit the human embodiment of a douchebag.

He stood there with a smug grin plastered across his face, sunglasses perched over his eyes and a Channing Tatum face that looked like it had just survived a fight with a cheap glitter-covered hooker.

"Fucking Golden Boy," I muttered, dragging a hand down my face. "What the hell is it with you?"

The asshole—better known to the public as Golden Boy—just laughed and extended a hand toward me. "Magneron! Well, well. This is a pleasant surprise. Who would’ve thought destiny would bring the two of us together?"

I physically cringed at the word destiny.

Before I could tell him exactly what I thought about that, Psyren beat me to it.

"You two know each other?" she asked, looking between us. "And judging by the faces you’re both making, I’m guessing it wasn’t a particularly pleasant introduction."

I swallowed the collection of insults forming in my throat and sighed. "Psyren, meet Golden douche—I mean, Golden Boy. Not much difference between the two, but I digress. A real professional."

"Damn right." Golden grinned, giving me a friendly pat on the shoulder before turning toward Psyren. "Good to see you working with a new villainess. Hey there."

He offered her his hand.

"Golden Boy. At your service. Son of Extraordinary, defender of New Lagos, and apparently your hero for the evening."

I watched Psyren shake his hand and silently wondered what I’d done to deserve this.

Why couldn’t I catch a fucking break with these guys?

Don’t get me wrong, Golden Boy really was a professional. When it came to playing a character and committing to a gimmick, nobody did it better.

His skin wasn’t naturally gold. He’d done that shit himself.

Everything about him was part of the character, right down to permanently altering his appearance and living with it for the rest of his life.

He’d been in the business long before I ever showed up, starting at fourteen as his father’s sidekick before eventually deciding that being daddy’s little boy wasn’t exactly the image he wanted anymore.

Back then, he went by Exemplar.

Then came the rebrand.

He returned with golden skin, a far better handle on his powers, and enough confidence to make you think he’d just gone on a Luffy trip.

These days, he drank like a fish, ran through heroines like they were going out of fashion, and somehow couldn’t seem to land one anymore.

I’d fought him plenty of times over the years, and he’d bounced between several different agencies during that time.

Golden brought in serious money, but he was also careless, destructive, and, most importantly, fucking expensive.

Apparently Firefly could afford him.

"Nice to meet you," Psyren said, though the tired look she gave me made it pretty obvious she was checking whether I was okay with all this.

Golden’s grin widened.

"I haven’t been mind-controlled by such a pretty girl in a long time," he said. "Not since that Russian model, Anastasia Volkov."

Psyren blinked. "Who?"

"I’ll tell you one thing," Golden said, chuckling. "That woman could ride like a pirate on the Grand Line."

Psyren stared at him.

"And before you ask about the skin," he added, gesturing casually at himself, "don’t worry. I’m perfectly healthy. Just a little more eccentric than most people prefer."

"Wow. Uh..." Psyren glanced at me. "Okay?"

"Come on, Lacey," I said, turning toward her. "There has to be someone here who isn’t actively trying to piss me off."

"Miles." Lacey’s voice remained completely level. "You didn’t tell me you had a problem with Golden Boy before I hired him, and I don’t see how this should interfere with anything considering you’re technically not even part of this particular job."

She gestured toward Golden.

"But he’s already been contracted."

Golden beamed. "And I really was expensive."

"He really was," Lacey confirmed.

Golden’s grin somehow became even wider.

"So he’s doing the job. The question is whether I need to find another psychic to take your protégé’s place."

I looked at Psyren.

She’d gone strangely quiet, watching me with the kind of expression that made it clear she was waiting to see what I decided.

I couldn’t fuck this up for her.

With a resigned sigh, I nodded and stepped back.

Trevor laughed, waving off my concerns. "Relax, Miles. I can be professional. I’ve been doing this for quite a while, after all."

"Which is precisely why he’s perfect for the role of the Superstars’ mentor," Lacey said, spreading her hands as she laid out the vision in her head. "Think about it! The seasoned hero returns to guide the next generation, helping shape them into champions of truth, justice, and progress. Their mentor. Their champion. And all after they rescue him from the domination of the wicked villainess."

She smiled brightly.

"It’s perfect."

Golden’s smile remained in place, but I noticed it tighten slightly around the edges.

"Well," he said with a shrug. "That’s how it goes."

He turned toward the three Superstars.

"Ladies, don’t hit me too hard, okay? But don’t hold back either. Trust me, I can take it."

I believed him.

I’d seen it firsthand during an auto show years ago. I’d slammed an entire dozen trucks into the bastard, and he’d just kept coming, soaking up the impacts while glowing like a fucking star.

"We’ll be pleased to work with you," Phoenix said.

"Wonderful! I’m glad we’re getting everything sorted out." Lacey turned back toward me. "And Miles? I assume you’ll be sticking around for the show as well?"

"Of course," I said. "Wouldn’t miss it for the world. Besides, I’d like to keep an eye on things in case anything goes sideways."

"We’ll have very tight security," Lacey assured me. "There won’t be a repeat of what happened at the museum."

"Good to hear."

We spent the next hour or so hammering out the remaining details of the performance.

A lot of the conversation went straight over my head, but Psyren knew what she was doing. This wasn’t some casual appearance for her anymore. She was one of the headliners, which meant she actually had a legitimate reason to be there and participate in the whole production.

My area of expertise was the villainy side of things.

Specifically, how the villain got the hell out at the end.

"Smoke machines," I said when the subject came up. "They’re already going to be part of the performance, so we trigger them when Golden Boy’s brainwashing gets broken. Once the stage fills with smoke, Psyren slips backstage and we fly out of there."

I looked toward her.

"Officially, she escapes through the fire exit. Hell, she could even hypnotize one of the guards into opening it."

I paused.

"Not that she actually needs to do that," I added, remembering my meeting with Divina. "Streeters have a habit of scoping out emergency exits just to ruin a dramatic getaway."

"Carrying me away into the night sky?" Psyren purred, pressing herself against me like an affectionate cat. "How romantic."

I grunted as heat immediately spread through me.

Dammit.

She knew exactly what she was doing.

Fucking minx.

I cleared my throat and slipped an arm around her anyway, my hand settling against her hip.

"Right. So that covers the major objectives. Give the audience a good show, have the Superstars team up to take down the heavy hitter, establish their new mentor, and get Psyren out safely. Anything we’re missing?"

"Your role, I suppose," Robin said.

"I’ll be the lookout," I answered. "I’ll stay in the audience and keep an eye on things in case anything goes wrong. I’ll scope the place out beforehand and make sure there aren’t any heroes lurking around besides the ones we’re expecting."

Then I looked toward Golden.

"Golden?" I asked through clenched teeth. "Can I count on you to keep an eye on Psyren too, just in case?"

"Of course, man." Golden gave me a knowing smile. "She’s my friend’s girl. I’d protect her with my life."

I stared at him for a moment.

Then I looked back at Lacey.

"Then I suppose that’s it."