Lena listened without interrupting.
Marcus continued.
"I also encouraged Sloane because I wanted the attention he promised. I didn't ask enough questions, and I nearly dragged the academy into something I didn't understand."
He swallowed.
"I'm sorry."
Lena studied him for a moment.
"Thank you for saying that."
"Do you forgive me?"
"I think forgiveness is something people demonstrate through their behavior over time. An apology is a beginning, not a conclusion."
Marcus nodded.
"That's fair."
She handed him a pair of focus mitts.
"Would you like to work on your entries?"
He blinked.
"Now?"
"Unless you'd rather stand here discussing your feelings for another hour."
Marcus laughed.
"Training sounds better."
They began with basic footwork. Lena corrected his positioning and encouraged him to recognize when his desire to dominate an exchange was causing him to lose balance.
For the first time, Marcus accepted criticism without treating it as an attack on his identity.
Across the room, Derek watched them and shook his head.
"Unbelievable," he muttered to Julian.
"What?"
"Marcus is learning humility."
Julian smiled.
"Don't tell him. He might stop."
That evening, Marcus wrote a statement documenting his contact with Sloane. He included the offers he had received, the conversations about the proposed exhibition, and the pressure he had felt to accept the contract quickly.
He did not exaggerate his role or blame others for his decisions.
When he finished, he sent the statement to Master Ward and agreed that it could be shared with the appropriate investigators.
It was the most difficult thing he had done in years.
Not because it required physical courage, but because it required him to abandon the excuse that his ambitions justified his choices.
For the first time, Marcus understood that a champion's character was not measured by how confidently he entered the ring.
It was measured by what he did when nobody could guarantee that he would emerge looking victorious.
On Thursday evening, a visitor arrived at Ironclad carrying a brown envelope.
She was a woman in her late fifties, with short gray hair and a walking stick. Her name was Patricia Hale, and she introduced herself as a former tournament administrator who had worked with Victor Sloane's organization for nearly fifteen years.
Master Ward recognized her immediately.
"Patricia. I haven't seen you since Catherine's memorial."
She nodded.
"I know. I should have come sooner."
Her gaze moved toward Lena.
"And you must be Lena Mercer."
Lena stood.
"Yes."
Patricia studied her face with an expression that was difficult to interpret.
"I owe you an apology too."
"For what?"
"For remaining silent when people blamed you for Adrian's injury."
Lena did not respond immediately.
Patricia sat down and placed the envelope on the desk.
"After the Denver tournament, Sloane's organization circulated a report suggesting that the private sparring session had been mishandled. The report didn't directly accuse you of cheating, but it allowed people to draw that conclusion."
"Why didn't you correct it?"
"Because I was afraid."
Patricia's voice trembled.
"My husband had recently lost his job. My daughter was in college. I had spent years building a career in sports administration, and I believed that speaking out would destroy everything."
Lena understood the fear, even if she could not excuse the silence.
"What changed?"
Patricia looked toward the envelope.
"Someone sent me copies of the original records. I recognized several documents that had been altered before the final report was published."
Julian leaned forward.
"Altered how?"
"Dates were changed. Two referee statements were omitted. A draft recommendation that called for an independent review was replaced by a summary that treated the incident as a private dispute between athletes."
Ward's face hardened.
"Who authorized the changes?"
"I don't know who physically edited the report. But I have correspondence showing that Sloane requested revisions before it was distributed."
She opened the envelope.
Inside were printed emails, handwritten notes, and a signed statement from a former event official.
The evidence was not conclusive by itself, but it supported the concerns raised by Catherine's letters and Adrian's archive.
Lena examined the documents carefully.
"Why bring these to us?"
"Because I heard Sloane was trying to recruit Ironclad's team. I realized he was preparing to use the same methods again."
Patricia turned toward Lena.
"I also wanted you to know something about Catherine."
Ward became very still.
"What about my daughter?"
Patricia took a breath.
"Catherine didn't leave the sport because she was defeated by the organization. She left because she discovered that one of the young fighters she had mentored was being pressured to compete while injured."
"Who?" Julian asked.
Patricia looked at him.
"Your father."
Julian's expression changed.
"Adrian?"
"Yes. Before the Denver tournament, Adrian had suffered a shoulder injury. Catherine urged him to withdraw. Sloane argued that the event needed him because he was one of its biggest attractions."