“I am.”
“And you’re going to not.”
I narrow my eyes. “Excuse you.”
He kisses my forehead—soft, quick, infuriatingly sweet. “Perimeter, Birdie.”
I glare.
He smiles.
Rae walks by and says without looking up from her tablet, “If either of you goes rogue, I’m locking your comms and publicly shaming you in the team chat.”
I call after her, “You can’t threaten me with a good time!”
She doesn’t even pause.
By the time we leave HQ, the plan is set. Ozzy will extract Salem. Knight and I will run outer control. Arrow and Juno will coordinate with Dean’s team to identify the next link in the chain. Render and Poe will bring the digital curtain down. River and Gage will manage internal systems inference and defensive comm shielding.
And somewhere in this chessboard of monsters and heroes and meticulous violence— a girl named Salem Bloom is about to be pulled out of hell.
I don’t know her.
Not yet.
But something in my gut tells me this rescue will shift the entire universe a few degrees.
We stop at a late-night pizza place on the way back. Because if you don’t eat carbs after planning an illegal rescue operation, did you even have character growth?
The whole crew crowds into two booths. Arrow has one arm around Juno. Render is arguing with Poe about camera angles. River is laughing at something Ozzy said— and Ozzy looks like he’s performing normalcy for the room while his mind stays locked on the photo of Salem.
Gage watches all of us like an exhausted dad at a birthday party where the kids are armed.
Knight sits beside me, thigh pressed to mine. The comfort of him still surprises me. Like my body is finally learning that safe doesn’t have to meanstill.
Gage is mid-rant about operational discipline when Knight leans over and murmurs in my ear, “You’re smiling.”
“I’m happy,” I whisper back.
“Dangerous sentence.”
“Correct.” I tilt my head and kiss him.
Gage makes a noise of disgust so dramatic it could qualify as a performance piece. “Absolutely not.”
River cackles. Juno grins. Arrow shakes his head like he’s proud and doomed.
Ozzy points at Gage. “See? Love is alive.”
Gage mutters, “I’m changing my name.”
I smile into Knight’s shoulder. This is the part of our lives I didn’t expect. The after. The family you choose. The work that matters. The kind of love that doesn’t make you smaller— it makes you sharper.
When we step outside, Saint Pierce is cold and bright with December energy.
Knight laces his fingers with mine. “Tomorrow we hunt,” he says.
“And rescue,” I answer.
