Page 21

Saylor

Leo and Brynn walked into the common room with their two suited men flanking them like shadows.

We all froze.

They’d only been in church for maybe thirty minutes. That was either a very good sign—or a very bad one. Judging by the set of Leo’s jaw and the unreadable expression on Brynn’s face, I wasn’t betting on good.

“Uh, hey,” Adalee called out from the kitchen. Her voice way too chipper to be casual. “All done?”

Brynn nodded once. “We’re done for today.”

“Oh. Uh…” Adalee looked down at whatever she was chopping. “I was going to make lunch, but it’s not ready yet.”

Leo glanced at her. “We need to be going.”

“Maybe next time,” Brynn added with a polite smile.

Adalee shook her head, flustered. “No, no. You can’t leave without eating.” She grabbed a plate from the top of the microwave and started moving toward them. “At least take some blueberry muffins with you.”

“Normally, I’d say no, but we missed breakfast,” Brynn said and stepped forward.

Adalee placed the plate in her hands.

“Thank you,” Brynn smiled.

“You have the world’s best muffins in your hands right now,” Sloane called from the couch. “Be prepared to have your socks blown off.”

Leo eyed the plate. “Be careful with those. If they’re as good as they say, Bristol’s going to quit.”

Brynn laughed. “I wouldn’t let her quit. If anything, we’ll just steal Adalee.”

Adalee’s jaw dropped. “I mean… well, that’s… very flattering, but… Who’s Bristol?”

“Our chef,” Leo replied. “She’s amazing.”

“Then you shouldn’t have to kidnap me…” Adalee trailed off.

Brynn laughed again, the sound smooth and rich. “Or you’ll just have to send us more.” She winked, then turned and handed the muffins to one of her men. “I know there are six there, Sig.”

The man—tall, dark, and deadly-looking—shrugged. “Two for you and Leo. The rest are for me and Murphy.”

Brynn rolled her eyes but didn’t argue. “We need to get back to Chicago.” She looked around the room and offered a softer smile. “It was nice meeting you all.”

We all murmured our goodbyes. Dove waved. Fallon gave a polite little bow. Sloane actually curtsied, which made Brynn laugh again. “I think you might be the Alice of the group,” she said.

And just like that, they were gone. Brynn and Leo walked out, their presence like a wave of authority that had swept through the room and left everything just slightly… off.

The door clicked shut behind them.

Silence stretched across the room.

We all looked at each other.

“I don’t think it’s a good sign the guys haven’t come out yet,” Olive finally said.

Yeah. I didn’t think so, either.

My stomach was in knots. Pirate hadn’t texted me or looked back when he went into church. Not because he was being cold—because he was focused. And now that Brynn and Leo were gone? He still wasn’t out here.

Something was wrong.

I leaned forward on the couch and rested my elbows on my knees. “Maybe they are just celebrating?”

“They just said they were done for today,” Fallon said. “That’s not code for everything’s fine.”

“They were too calm,” Poppy said and crossed her arms over her chest. “Especially Brynn.”

“Maybe that’s just who she is,” Dove offered.

“They looked like they were walking away from a crime scene,” Mac said flatly.

We all snapped to attention when the church door finally creaked open.

One by one, the guys filed out—and none of them looked good. Pirate’s face was stone. Compass looked pissed. Aero was rubbing the back of his neck. Throttle had his fists clenched. And Dice…

Dice didn’t stop.

He stormed down the hallway with his boots hitting the hardwood like thunder, then shoved the front door open and tore outside.

“Dice—” Smoke moved to follow, but Yarder stepped in front of him.

“Let him go. He needs to blow off steam.”

Smoke growled low in his throat but didn’t push past.

Poppy’s eyes narrowed. “Yarder,” she said, using that tone only an ol’ lady could use on a club president. “You better tell us right now what the hell is going on.”

Yarder ran his hand down his face and looked more tired than I’d ever seen him. “Leo and Brynn found Stretch.”

Every single person in the room reacted at once.

“That’s great news,” I said, almost smiling.

Sloane nodded. “He’s okay then?”

But Yarder didn’t smile. He didn’t relax. His next words were quiet.

“There’s a pretty good chance he flipped.”

The words slammed into the room like a punch to the gut.

“Flipped?” Fallon asked.

“Flipped as in…” Sloane started.

“Working with Boone and Gibbs,” Yarder finished.

It was like the air left the room.

“No way,” Throttle muttered. “No fucking way.”

“Yarder,” Poppy said, blinking like she hadn’t heard him right. “You’re serious?”

Yarder nodded once. “Leo’s people have had eyes on Boone and Gibbs all week. This morning, Stretch showed up in the background of one of their intel photos. Right there with them.”

“That doesn’t mean anything,” Olive argued. “He could be undercover, trying to get closer to them.”

“I said the same thing,” Smoke added. “So did Dice.”

“Then why does everyone look like they’ve been kicked in the face?” Dove asked as she stood up.

“Because Leo thinks the intel means he’s really working with them,” Compass said, his voice heavy. “Not pretending. Not infiltrating.”

“That’s not Stretch,” Sloane said as she shook her head.

“We all thought that,” Aero said. “But Leo’s source says otherwise.”

“Who’s the source?” I asked.

“Someone Leo trusts,” Yarder answered. “But Brynn doesn’t. She wants to verify it before they move.”

That gave me a tiny sliver of hope.

“So they’re waiting?” Poppy asked.

Yarder nodded. “For now.”

“But if they confirm it…” Fallon trailed off.

“Then Stretch becomes collateral,” Compass said bluntly.

Poppy’s hand flew to her mouth.

“Leo said the only way they can take out Boone and Gibbs without repercussions is if everyone connected to them disappears with them,” Yarder said. “That includes Stretch.”

“No,” I said. It just flew out. “There has to be another way.”

“There always is,” Sloane said. “We just have to find it before Leo and Brynn pull the trigger.”

Silence fell again, heavier this time.

We all knew what this meant.

The war wasn’t over.