Planning. The word sits wrong in my stomach.
“Mom.” I reach for her arm, keeping my voice low. “What’s going on?”
But she just shakes her head, pulls away. “Go. It’s okay. It’ll be okay.”
The sitting room is at the front of the house, a formal space we barely use. Heavy furniture, dark wood, windows overlooking the valley all dark now. My brothers are scattered around the room, drinks in hand, and I can read the tension in every line of their bodies.
Sawyer stands near the fireplace, posture rigid, one hand wrapped around a whiskey he hasn’t touched. His laptop isnowhere in sight, which means he came here expecting trouble, not business. Kade paces by the windows, restless energy barely contained, his broad frame casting shadows across the hardwood with each pass. He looks ready to fight something. Anything. Levi sits in a leather armchair, leg bouncing, fingers drumming on the armrest. He won’t meet my eyes.
None of them knows why they’re here.
None of them knows about the FBI.
That was always the plan. The less they knew, the safer they’d be if everything went sideways. I’d carry this alone, the way I’ve carried everything else Roman’s asked of me. Except this time, I’m not carrying it for him. I’m carrying it against him.
Looking at my brothers now, at the confusion and barely contained fear on their faces, I wonder if I made the right call. If I’ve just walked them all into a trap they can’t see coming.
“Brother.” Sawyer nods, voice careful. Controlled. “Interesting evening.”
“Know what this is about?”
“No idea.” His eyes cut toward the ceiling, toward Roman’s wing upstairs where the old man keeps his trophies, his secrets. “But he’s been in a mood all day. Whatever it is, it’s big.”
Kade stops pacing long enough to glare at me. “Finally decided to show up?”
“We’re on time.”
“You know how he gets when he has to wait.” His gaze flicks to Saint, dismissive and hostile. He’s never liked her. Never accepted her as family. To Kade, she’s still the witness, the loose end, the problem I should have solved with a bullet instead of a ring.
I don’t rise to the bait. Just guide Saint toward the drink cart, pour her a glass of water, and keep her tucked against my side where I can protect her if I need to. The wire sits heavy in my pocket, not yet applied. I’ll put it on before we go in to dinner.
Levi catches my eye from across the room. Something passes between us. A question. A plea. He’s been trying to get me to open up for weeks now, trying to understand why I’ve been acting strange, why I shut him down every time he asks about the ceremony. I’ve given him nothing.
The guilt of that sits heavy in my chest, right where the wire will soon be.
He uncurls from the chair and crosses to stand beside me. “You okay?” Low voice, meant just for me.
“Fine.”
“You don’t look fine. You look like you’re about to face a firing squad.”
“Maybe I am.”
Levi’s jaw tightens. “What aren’t you telling me, Calder?”
“Nothing you need to worry about.”
“Bullshit.” But he doesn’t push. Just stands there, close enough to offer support yet far enough to give me space. That’s Levi. Always reading the room, always trying to smooth things over. Tonight, there’s nothing to smooth.
The minutes stretch. We stand in awkward silence, nursing drinks we don’t want, waiting for the patriarch to make his entrance. It’s deliberate, I know. Roman’s favorite power play. Make them wait. Make them nervous. Remind them who controls the room even when he’s not in it.
Twenty minutes. Thirty.
Then footsteps on the stairs.
Everyone straightens. Even Kade stops pacing. Even Levi stops bouncing his leg. We’re all trained animals, conditioned to respond to that sound. The approach of the alpha.
Roman descends like a king approaching his throne, Elena trailing behind him like a shadow. She’s changed from earlier, dressed now in something formal and dark, her gray hair pulled back in that severe bun. Her eyes find mine for just a moment,and I see something there. Warning. Apology. Fear. Then she looks away.
