Killer Knockout

KILLER KNOCKOUT STELLA KNOX SERIES: BOOK EIGHT MARY STONE STACY O’HARE Copyright © 2023 by Mary Stone All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review. Created with Vellum To all the black cats of the world. You can cross my path anytime. CONTENTS Description Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 11 Chapter 12 Chapter 13 Chapter 14 Chapter 15 Chapter 16 Chapter 17 Chapter 18 Chapter 19 Chapter 20 Chapter 21 Chapter 22 Chapter 23 Chapter 24 Chapter 25 Chapter 26 Chapter 27 Chapter 28 Chapter 29 Chapter 30 Chapter 31 Chapter 32 Chapter 33 Chapter 34 Chapter 35 Chapter 36 Chapter 37 Chapter 38 Chapter 39 Chapter 40 Chapter 41 Chapter 42 Chapter 43 Chapter 44 What’s Next? Stella Knox Series Acknowledgments About the Author DESCRIPTION Sometimes you win, and sometimes you die. On the verge of finding the person who ordered their fathers’ deaths, Special Agents Stella Knox and Hagen Yates are diverted by another murder. A kickboxer whose body is discovered with two bullet holes in his head. Stranger still is a pattern of dead boxers around the state. Are the murders linked to organized crime? A serial killer? A grudge? Or something more disturbing? Getting information about the illegal world of underground boxing would be next to impossible without the FBI’s Nashville violent crime unit’s inside connection—Special Agent Chloe Foster, a special agent who lives a secret double life in the ring. But as Chloe works undercover, the deeper she’s sucked into her role. As the trail of bodies grows, Stella knows they must find the killer, and fast, before Chloe faces the fight of her life...for her life. Puzzling and action-packed, Killer Knockout is the eighth book in the Stella Knox Series by bestselling author Mary Stone and Stacy O’Hare—a thriller that will make you question just how far someone will go to win. 1 Lonnie Maguire blinked away the sweat dripping into his eyes and balanced his weight, concentrating on his next move. He lifted his elbow to shoulder height and twisted his hips, gathering as much power as he could. His fist whipped around in a short arc. Bullseye. His left hook landed hard, smacking into the side of the punching bag. He followed that up with a quick combination, landing a right hook, then another left before leaning back, rotating his base foot, and swinging his shin into the middle of the bag. A masterful roundhouse. His leather opponent rolled in circles, dizzied by the vicious attack. Lonnie bounced on his toes, ready to go again. That was a perfect kickboxing combo, delivered with speed and power. It would’ve floored any human opponent and brought a crowd to its feet. Just a shame there were so few people around to see his achievement. The Hard Diamond Gym was almost empty at nine thirty on a Saturday night. The sparring ring in the middle of the room was bare. Some new kid with arms like matchsticks tried to skip rope by the wall but kept losing his rhythm after five or so cycles of the rope. Lonnie remembered those days, feeling uncoordinated and awkward. He didn’t miss them. Lonnie’s coach, Toby Azaria, sat at the table in the far corner that served as his “office.” He scowled at the screen of a computer almost old enough to run on steam. There was no one else here. Apparently, the other guys had places—better places—to be. They didn’t want to hang out in a gym where bare patches pockmarked the linoleum floor. The brickwork flaked off in wide chunks every time someone brushed a shoulder against the wall. Only half the fluorescent tubes hanging from the high ceiling worked. Whatever breeze the wheezing air conditioner managed to cough into the room disappeared through the holes in the high, broken windowpanes before cooling any gym goers. Lonnie’s friends were out partying or sitting on a stoop somewhere, drinking hard with their pals or passing a joint. Not him. Not Lonnie Maguire. He was going places. He was going to take on the world and win. Knock ’em all out. Every single one of them. No way would he ever waste training time on booze or drugs. World Championship, here I come. A few more fights, and he’d be ready to go pro. He’d work his way up, win a belt or two. A world championship, a defense, and another. Wouldn’t be long before he’d be set for life. Then he and his girlfriend and their little boy could just relax. Rosa and Kev meant the world to him. He only had to keep putting in the work. Sacrifice today and take home the reward tomorrow. Discipline. That was key. Nothing good came without strong discipline, dedication, and commitment. He landed a couple of quick jabs on the punching bag, then tested a slow rear kick just to check his balance. Not that he needed to train hard for his next fight—a rematch against Damien Pereira from Round12. Their last fight had been a doozie. Two good right jabs to the face, then a single high kick to the side of the head that sent the kid sprawling on the mat. A third-round knockout, leading Lonnie to believe Damien had to love the taste of his glove in that filthy mouth of his to put up with the humiliation that came with the defeat. Lonnie was even a little disappointed when the referee finished the count. He’d hoped to get in a few more blows before the fight ended. The little shit deserved every smack he got for the things he’d said before the fight. And now, Pereira wanted a rematch. Hell, he’d insisted on the