Noah shook his head. “He’s good. Better than anything I’ve seen out here. Better than anyone who should be operating in a town this size.”
Harmony whispered, “Ravenhill…”
Noah blinked. “I don’t know that name. But whoever accessed those files wasn’t improvising.”
He looked at Harmony again, and for the first time since he’d stepped inside, real fear edged into his voice. “You need to be careful. All of you. These people must operate on the dark web. It isn’t something I touch.”
Dad didn’t soften. “We always are.”
Noah stepped back into the snow. “Just keep your guard up. Whoever’s doing this, he’s not done.”
“Noah, why have you been lurking around our property?” Becket asked.
Noah flinched. “Didn’t mean anything by it. I was trying to figure out what was going on with the breaches without alerting any of you. The Trust doesn’t exactly want to trigger police surveillance.”
“Is there a reason we should be watching the Trust?” Pierre asked his eyes stern on Noah.
“No, Sir, everything is on the up and up. What’s happening right now is external to the trust. I’m pretty sure it’s all related to Harmony.” He tilted his chin toward Harmony. “She needs to watch her back, like I said.”
“Thanks Noah,” Pierre said.
The door closed behind him with a soft, chilling click. Harmony stared at the floor.
I moved closer, my hand instantly finding hers.
“Sunshine,” I murmured, “look at me.”
Slowly, she lifted her gaze. “Whoever it is, they’re coming for me.”
I cupped her cheek gently, forcing her eyes to meet mine. Fear swam thick, deep and honest in her green depths, making the gold circle inside her eyes seem like fire.
“I don’t care how close he is,” I said softly. “He doesn’t get to you. Not past me. Not past this family.”
Her lip trembled, just barely. “I don’t want anyone else hurt.”
“I’d take a hundred hits before I let him within ten feet of you.”
Her shoulders rose on a shaking inhale. Dad stepped closer; voice steady enough to anchor the whole room. “We’ll tighten security. No unnecessary movement. Becket will run point with the station. We’re on this, Harmony. You’re not facing this alone.”
Harmony swallowed hard, her fingers curling into my sleeve. “I don’t feel safe anywhere.”
I pulled her into my chest, feeling the way she melted and fought it all at once. “You’re safe with me,” I said into her hair.
For a long time, none of us spoke. And when Harmony finally lifted her head, her voice was a fragile thread. “What happens next?”
Dad exchanged a look with Becket, one that told me they both already had an answer.
“We prepare,” Becket said. “Because whoever this man is… he isn’t done.”
CHAPTER 51
Harmony
The quiet after Noah left felt too thin, like the house was holding its breath with me. Even wrapped in Eric’s sweatshirt, my chest stayed tight, but clarity edged through the fear. Noah hadn’t come to watch me. He’d come to warn me, and real threats don’t bother with warnings. Somewhere along the way, survival had taught me to doubt everyone, to keep distance even when hands were offered. Tonight reminded me, not every door opening was a trap. Some people stepped closer because they meant to protect. And maybe, just maybe, I didn’t have to face what was coming on my own. Eric stayed beside me on the couch, as if he sensed my thoughts were moving too fast to stay inside my skin. A knock at the door startled me hard enough that Eric’s arm went tense behind me.
But the second Pierre opened it, warmth spilled in along with familiar voices and laughter. Elyna rushed in first, snowflakes clinging to her blond hair, she was holding a casserole dish like it was an offering. Phoenix trailed behind with take-out bags from the brewery, and little Braden burst through their legs in a puffy coat.
“Hah-nee!” he squealed his version ofHarmonyand toddled toward the couch with a stuffed moose half-dragging behind him.
