Page 27 of Thunder's Reckoning

Didn’t answer right off. Boot kept tappin’ in the dirt. Finally muttered, “Yeah. Yeah, I do. And I don’t know what the fuck to do with that.”

Gearhead clinked his bottle to mine. “Then maybe stop lettin’ Leena climb you like a damn tree, brother.”

That dragged a real laugh outta me, low and rough. First one tonight. “Yeah. Maybe.”

He cut me a look. “Ain’t no maybe. If she’s different like you say, don’t fuck it up.”

I knew what he meant. Wasn’t just me he was speakin’ on. His tone was full of ghosts—Fiona. Tillie. The kind of lossesthat carved a man hollow. Gearhead didn’t believe in fairy-tale endings. But he could spot rare ones. Knew the cost when you lost ‘em.

The fire cracked loud, like it wanted in on the talk. Behind us, the party noise lifted, cheers, laughter, maybe a Sweet Butt earnin’ her patch on somebody’s lap. Used to be the kinda thing that made me grin, maybe join.

Tonight, it felt like watchin’ somebody else’s life.

My world had tilted.

And her name was Sable.

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

GABRIAL

THE FIREspoke louder than the men around me.It spat and hissed like it knew what I’d lost.

Like it dared to grieve her too.

I stood still, hands clasped behind my back, watching the flames claw their way up the stone fireplace.

I didn’t look at the others. I didn’t need to. I could smell their fear, stale sweat, cheap cologne, and that sharp tang of panic men try and fail to hide. Brother Eli shifted once, stiff as a statue,and swallowed hard, as if the silence itself might catch in his throat.

“Do you know what I’m feeling right now?” I asked, quiet as a blade sliding free.

No one answered.

Smart.

“My flame has disappeared,” I continued, forcing the rage back down where it boiled. My eyes closed, but that only made her voice clearer—Sable’s voice, those whispered prayers at midnight, the breathless surrender in our ceremonies. So soft. So beautiful. So obedient.

Until she wasn’t.

“She was made for me,” I murmured.

Born of Liora’s fire and Brother Eli’s seed, yes, but by my hand. My design. My devotion. From my pocket I drew the ribbon. Pressed it to my face. It still smelled of her hair. Vanilla. Sunlight. Stolen breath.

“I anointed her twelve times beneath the Circle’s gaze. Took her in ash and flame. She is my wife before the faithful. Mine before she bled. Mine after.”

The ribbon slipped from my fingers, falling soft and useless against the tiled floor.

“Are you sure she ran—alone?” My voice tightened, poisoned by the thought she might’ve fled with another man. With the children. With lies in her eyes. I turned, fixing Eli with my stare. “And you—you believe she had help?”

He nodded, slight and trembling. “Yes. One of the lower brothers. We believe it was… Tallis.”

Tallis.

Of course.

Liora’s pet.

My hand slammed into the wall. The crack of it rolled like thunder through the office. The windows rattled. So did Eli.