“You know what my dad did,” I said, and the words scraped coming out. “How he wrecked cases. How he twisted the system. My brother died…” I inhaled sharply, a familiar grief tightening my chest. “You know how many people suffered because of him?And how much worse it could’ve gotten if certain men in LA stayed in power.”
Frank’s posture shifted, the fight going out of him. “You’re not your dad.”
“Tell that to my conscience.” I ran a hand through my hair.
“So you’re a guy with secrets. I get that.”
“Not just me. A group of us met at college, and we set up a team that works behind the scenes. We call it the Cave.” Frank’s brows lifted. I huffed a laugh. “It started as a joke—Bat Cave. Shortened. It stuck.”
“And what exactly does this Cave do?”
“Whatever it takes,” I said simply. “We have hackers. A lawyer. Me, a cop. All four of us were people who’ve been burned by the system and wanted to make things right. We get information fast. Faster than warrants ever could. And we’ve saved more lives than I can count.”
Frank nodded slowly, absorbing it with that steady patience that made him the best partner I’d ever had. “So, the Cave is why you’re always three steps ahead.”
“Most days, yeah.”
He leaned back, exhaling. “Well. Fuck.”
I laughed under my breath. “That’s the reaction I was expecting.”
“Promise me something,” he said.
“What?”
“That these people aren’t going to get you killed before I retire.”
I didn’t have an answer. Not with Alejandro and his pet murdering cleaner in my orbit. Not with the lines I crossed daily.
“They won’t,” I lied. “At least… not intentionally. But hanging around the wrong men might.”
Frank’s eyes narrowed. “I want in on this?”
“You’re sure?”
He nodded, and I sent the coded message—911, but I’m not dying—looping in Caleb, Sonya, and Killian. We’d discussed bringing Frank in before. Quietly. Carefully. But it mattered that it came from me.
Caleb responded first. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.”
Sonya joined the call. And lastly, Killian. “Everyone,” I said. “I’m with my partner, Frank Mullins.”
“Hi, Detective Mullins,” Sonya said warmly. “I’m Sonya.”
“Please—call me Frank,” he replied, awkward but trying.
“Detective,” Killian murmured, razor-edged and suspicious, and not handing out his name. Caleb stayed silent—always thinking too fast for words.
“It’s time to bring him in,” I said. “Agreed?”
I waited.
Killian—the de facto leader of our chaos—answered first. “Agreed.”
Sonya followed. “Of course. We trust your instincts.”
Caleb added, “Access granted. Activating a security pass now.”
