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“That’s normal.” Craig offered with a sad smile.

“Yay.” I drawled sarcastically, rolling my eyes. “Look at me feeling things and shit.”

Az snorted, and Craig shook his head. “Yeah, you’re gonna be just fine if you’re back to cracking jokes.” Az said. “I’m gonna call Phil to deal with this. Craig, you stay in Leighton’s place to look for anything she might have brought for us. Leighton, you can come with me or you can head back to the Innocenti’s. Your call.”

Swiping my face with the back of my arm, I took a second to consider his offer. “I’ll go with you. I need to hear for myself what the fuck Joey was thinking. He has to answer for his fuck up.”

Chapter Thirty Six

Victoria

My body froze the moment I heard the front door open. My breath caught halfway to my lungs. I stayed still, listening. Slow, heavy footsteps. Not Az—his stride was sharper, more purposeful. Not Craig or Leighton, either. I knew this one. I knew it in the pit of my gut the same way you know when someone’s staring at you in the dark.

Joey.

The footsteps stopped in the doorway. I didn’t look up at first. I couldn’t. Not until I felt his eyes on me, sweeping the room like a searchlight.

He stepped into the kitchen, shutting the door behind him more forcefully than necessary. “Didn’t think anyone would be here with the news that came through.” He looked around, eyes landing on the empty chairs. “Where are they?”

“Out,” I said, watching him carefully. “Didn’t say where.”

He nodded slowly, jaw tightening, then loosening again like he was working through something in his head. “Saw what happened on Twelfth and Poppy,” he said after a beat, voice low. “Didn’t hear about it ‘til I was already on my way back. Four of ours, gone. Just like that.”

I flinched. I hadn’t heard about it yet. The coffee in my stomach turned bitter.

“Jackals?” I asked, swallowing hard.

“That’s the theory.” He moved to the counter and leaned against it, crossing his arms. “Starting to feel like they’re ramping up again. Retaliation, maybe. Or something worse.”

I didn’t say anything. My brain was still catching up, still trying to untangle the knot of fear, grief, and anger that always seemed to come with Joey’s presence now. Something about his tone was…off. It wasn’t cold, exactly, but not kind either.

It was measured, like he was trying something on.

“I’ve been thinking,” he said, and I tensed automatically. “My parents… they said some things. Things I didn’t want to hear, but…” He exhaled through his nose, dragging a hand over his jaw. “But maybe I needed to. I don’t know what to believe right now,” he continued. “Everything in my head’s a mess. I keep turning over the same shit, and none of it makes sense anymore. I just know I keep waking up angry, and I don’t even know what I’m mad at. Or who.”

I looked at him. He was paler than usual, as if he hadn’t been sleeping. His eyes were bloodshot. And there was something in them I hadn’t seen in a long time. Was this just another trick?

“I’m not saying things are better,” he said before I could speak. “They’re not. And I’m not… healed, or whatever bullshit word you wanna use. But I’m trying. I’m trying to figure out what’s real. What matters.” I was still clutching my mug too tight. My fingers ached. “And what matters,” he said, his gaze fixed on me now, sharp and unreadable, “is that if the Jackals are coming for you again, you need to be ready.”

My stomach dropped. “I’ve been training with the guys.”

Joey nodded. “Yeah, but you and I both know that’s not enough. If things escalate, you can’t rely on someone else alwaysbeing there to throw themselves in front of you. And I’m the best for the job of training you on a weapon.” His voice darkened.

I flinched again, but he didn’t apologize or soften.

“The range we went to before, they keep a private lane open for me. I was thinking…” He hesitated, then offered a weak, almost convincing shrug. “We could go. Just you and me. I’ll run you through some drills. Nothing crazy. Just… get your hands steadier. Make sure you know what you’re doing if it comes down to it.”

I stared at him, heart thudding hard against my ribs. Every instinct screamed at me to say no. To get up and walk away. To remember every venomous thing he’d thrown at me, every accusation, every time he’d looked at me like he wanted me dead. But he wasn’t looking at me like that now. And damn it, the logic made sense. It always did with him. That was the worst part.

I swallowed. “You’re serious?”

“I wouldn’t offer if I wasn’t.” His tone was calm. Convincing. He looked a little tired and worn down, but like this might be the first step back to something. Not forgiveness. Not trust. But maybe conversation. I looked down at my coffee. Cold again. My fingers were still trembling, just barely.

“You’ll let me drive?” I asked quietly.

Joey cracked a ghost of a smile. “Not a chance.”

I forced a breath past the lump in my throat, set the mug down, and stood. “Fine. But if you so much as twitch the wrong way…"