Jackal stands there rigid, waiting for her to say something. Anything. Ash holds her hand, but she doesn’t seem to notice. Titan shifts, uncomfortable with emotions he doesn’t know how to fix.
My side is on fire. The bullet wound Jamie stitched up feels like someone’s shoving hot coals into my ribs with every breath.
I push off the doorframe. Pain explodes through my torso. I grit my teeth and keep moving. “Everyone needs to take a breather,” I say.
They all look at me like they didn’t know I was here.
“Ghost, you should be resting—” Ash starts.
“She needs air.” I look at Bonnie. Her eyes are glassy, unfocused. “Come on.”
She blinks. “What?”
“You’re coming with me.” I hold out my hand. “Now.”
For a second, she stares at my hand like she doesn’t understand what it means. Then she stands and takes it.
Jackal opens his mouth, but I shoot him a look that makes him close it.
I lead Bonnie out of the office. My side screams with every step, but I don’t let go of her hand. Down the hallway, past brothers hauling debris. Past the common room where someone’s hammering boards over broken windows.
We reach the narrow stairs at the end of the hall. The ones that lead to the roof access most people don’t even know exists.
“Where are we going?” Bonnie’s voice sounds hollow.
“Up.”
The stairs are steep. Metal. Each step sends agony lancing through my wound. Sweat breaks out on my forehead. My vision blurs at the edges.
But I keep climbing.
Bonnie doesn’t ask if I’m okay. She knows I’m not. She stays close in case I fall.
We reach the roof access door. I shove it open, and desert heat blasts us in the face.
The roof is flat, tar paper, and gravel. AC units hum. A single rusted folding chair sits in the corner from when I dragged it up here months ago.
This is where I come when I need to think. When the clubhouse feels too small and the noise gets too loud. When I need to remember I’m more than just the Ghost, the enforcer, the killer.
Up here, I’m just Jacob. Just a man trying to figure out how he ended up here.
Nobody else comes up here. It’s mine.
Until now.
Bonnie steps onto the roof and looks around. The compound spreads out below us. The burned garage. The destroyed gate. Brothers moving like ants, rebuilding what was torn down.
“I didn’t know this was here,” she says.
“Most people don’t.” I walk to the edge. The low wall is supposed to keep people from falling, but it wouldn’t stop anyone determined. “That’s the point.”
She joins me and stands close enough that our arms touch.
The evening air is cool against my skin.
“Ghost—”
“You don’t have to talk,” I say before she can finish. “Not if you’re not ready.”
