Page 4 of Martyr (Sterling Falls Rogues #3)

Reese walks toward me, and I allow my gaze to roam his body.

Not in a sexual way, but in a concerned way.

He’s been holed up in Sterling Falls, coasting under my radar, for far too long.

The sheriff has been most unhelpful locating him.

Antonio Greco and his family have also gone underground, leaving no one.

No Olympians, no Artemis, no Hell Hounds encroaching where they don’t belong. No promised final stand.

It’s left the door open for Ouranos to move in.

The city isn’t any worse for the wear. Not yet. But West Falls residents now pay a protection fee. There are blockades everywhere, at the entrances to the neighborhood, interspersed throughout, and it seems like Ouranos only wants to push farther east.

Slowly.

Creeping.

Like a black fog, he’s crawling toward a total takeover.

The opposition he faces: the city council, law enforcement. The Hell Hounds, once he crosses into their territory.

Reese Avery will fight.

Jace King, Wolfe James, Apollo Madden—they’re out unless they can get back into the city. Ouranos has eyes everywhere. Gabriel made sure they couldn’t return.

But Reese… he should’ve escaped when he had the chance. There’s no telling what Ouranos will do if he gets his hands on him. The leniency he granted me, the risk I took to get Reese out—wasted opportunity.

He’s in a jacket, hat, jeans, boots. His hands are tucked into his pockets, and his breath puffs out when he stops in front of me. The knit cap obscures his blond hair, but there’s no hiding his hazel-green eyes and the hard cut of his expression.

“You look okay,” I say to him, leaning forward in my seat. “Are you?”

He makes a face and sits beside me. He shifts, adjusting, and kicks out his legs. “Did you ask me here just to check up on me?”

Same old Reese.

“So what if I did?” I question.

It’s not the reason, but I don’t think I can come out and say it. Not knowing where Saint and Artemis are is killing me. All I know is that a Cyclops hit Saint’s vehicle, and he was rushed to the hospital… then nothing.

No discharge paperwork, no trail to follow.

It’s like he vanished into thin air, and I know all about that. I’m looking at the ghost I’ve been chasing for far longer.

“I tried to find you for two years,” I point out. “And it led me here.” Two years of breadcrumbs . There was practically nothing but rumors to keep me going. Rumors and, eventually, a solid lead. A string I grabbed on to with both hands.

“Ouranos brought you here,” Reese snaps. “You can lie to yourself, say that it was all about finding me. Following the fucking clues I left you. But I didn’t expect you to bring a whole army?—”

“Reese.” I bite my tongue to stop the apology.

Our relationship has always been complicated. From serving together overseas, to the rough transition back home, to… this . We each have our trauma. He thought he could atone for his sins by serving his country. I thought I could outrun my past in the same way.

From the very beginning, we were like brothers. Through thick and thin. He saved my life, and I’ve been struggling to repay him in the same way. Struggling with knowing that, on the brink of death, I was so fucking ready for it.

And then he dragged me away from that edge.

“I did odd jobs for the Cyclopes in Emerald Cove,” he says quietly. “Did you know?”

My breath catches, and I shake my head fast. “When?”

“Before I came here. It was just… It was surface-level stuff. I didn’t want to get sucked into the gang, and some of the guys wanted extra hands-on jobs.

So they paid me to hold a gun and make sure no one snuck in through the back door—that kind of thing.

” His shoulders inch higher. “The longer I was around them, the more openly they talked. Lesser stuff, usually, until they started on about how the Cyclopes were going to move to Sterling Falls because the previous gang had been wiped out.”

“ Reese .” I pinch the bridge of my nose.

All this time, he was there? We were in the same city?

I was searching for him, and if I had only opened my eyes sooner?—

“I don’t know how Ouranos got to you, brother,” Reese continues. “I don’t know what he promised you.”

“He promised me you ,” I bite out.

He tenses. His gaze stays locked on the ocean, the waves crashing to the sand in front of us.

I stare at the side of his face. “I was chasing your ghost, and I practically fell into Ouranos’ arms. He saw straight through me. Gave me structure. And, yes, he promised me you . Just as he promised Gabriel…”

Artemis .

He tenses, like I had said her name out loud.

“Why did you ask me to meet you here?” He makes a show of looking around the abandoned boardwalk.

Bow & Arrow, quiet and closed down, is just down the block. The beach is deserted, but the weather is biting. There’s a layer of snow on the sand. Tourist season is over, which is what makes Ouranos’ plan so brilliant.

By the time the ground thaws, he’ll have control over the whole fucking city, and the people who flock to Sterling Falls for vacations will be none the wiser.

“I wanted to make sure you’re okay.” I rub my hands together. The cold has officially sunk in, and my fingertips are tingling. “Again.”

“Your act of saving me… It didn’t do much, did it? I’m still here. Still stuck trying to figure out how to be better.”

“Better?”

“Than my past.” He shakes his head carefully, his gaze finally cutting to my face. “And maybe that means stopping Ouranos on my own.”

I reach for him, but he rises and steps out of range.

“You wouldn’t help me, Kade?” His expression turns pleading. “Why are you so invested in him? Help me .”

“Tell me where Saint is.” I stand, too. “You can keep Artemis. But Saint?—”

He shakes his head fast. “No. Saint? You’re so focused on him, now? No.”

“Why?”

“Just accept the no, Kade.”

I grit my teeth. “I’ll follow you. I’ll find them through you.”

He laughs. “Good fucking luck with that one.”

He turns and walks away. Shoulders back, head tall. My throat tightens, my jaw clenches. I look to the ocean again, but all it does is remind me of Artemis.

Asking for Saint’s location and not hers is some sort of cruelty, but it’s all self-afflicted.

I almost follow him, like I just threatened.

Instead, I sit back down.