I blow out a long breath. “My name showed up on the dark web. My legal one.”
Ghost tenses. “A hit list?”
“Probably.” I scrub a hand down my face. “Tony’s targeting Rockford mates and allies.”
Rowan slams his glass down, liquid sloshing over the rim. “Fuck. Tell me what went down at the docks, and anything else you’ve learned.”
Bringing Rowan up to speed takes a distressing lack of time. Aside from the bribes, confirming Tony is trying to set up a new network, and the name Darrow, we don’t know anything else that can lead us to stopping this asshole.
Unlike my conversation with Gabriel, though, Ialso include the tidbit about Darrow knowing about my time in juvie.
Rowan slams his fist into the bar, and his glass wobbles before righting itself.
“I can reach out to our contacts at the docks. They owe us some favors,” Ghost offers, already reaching for his phone.
“No,” I say. “Too risky. If they’ve uncovered my real name, they’ve done their research. We can’t have them connecting me to the Blue Note.”
Rowan turns to Ghost. “Look into it. I want details about what they want with Saint.”
The door behind me opens, letting in a slash of daylight that stretches across the floor. I don’t need to turn to know who just arrived. My body responds before my brain, heart rate kicking up as Gabriel’s scent reaches me, now familiar enough for me to pick it out from across a room.
“We’ve got bigger problems,” Rowan mutters, staring past my shoulder. “Your rich boy is here, and he doesn’t look happy.”
Gabriel stands in the doorway, backlit by morning sun. He’s changed clothes since leaving my apartment and now wears a crisp navy shirt with dark jeans that highlight his slender hips. His hair looksdifferent, too, styled with product instead of frizzy from my cheap shampoo.
I don’t know where he went after we parted ways. I had assumed he was going back to Rockford Manor, but if Aaiden is still searching for him, then he has somewhere else in town he’s been staying.
He strides across the lounge, but instead of sliding onto the stool beside me, he positions his body between me and the rest of the room, standing with his back to the bar so he can watch the door.
I frown at him. “What’s going on?”
Gabriel scans the room before answering. “None of the dockworkers we have on the payroll showed up for work today.”
I stiffen. “You think Darrow got to them?”
“Someone sure as hell did,” he says, meant for my ears alone. “Tony isn’t waiting to see if the Rockfords will back off. He’s escalating for maximum fallout.”
Gabriel’s hand comes to rest on the back of my stool, fingers inches from my spine in a territorial gesture.
I stiffen, ready to tell him to back off, when Ghost slides a folded note across the bar.
Ghost’s face remains impassive, but his mismatched eyes hold mine for a beat.
I unfold the paper to read the single line of Ghost’s handwriting flowing across the page.
Bounty: $250,000 for Samuel Ortiz, alive.
My stomach drops, and when I look at Gabriel, I find no hint of shock. His lips flatten into a tight line, but he’s unsurprised by the revelation.
“How long have you known?” I demand.
Gabriel’s eyes flick to Ghost and back to me. “Sebastian intercepted the bounty notice around five this morning. I didn’t see it until around nine, though.”
My gut tightens. The phone call I interrupted when I came out of the shower.
I crumple the paper. “Were you going to mention it?”
“Yes.” His answer comes without hesitation. “But I needed to coordinate protection protocols first.”
