Tane followed, heavier in build, dark eyes that didn’t blink much.He carried his silence like a blade.Interrogation was his gift—Kai had seen him break men twice his size with nothing but a stare.His arms were corded with ink, black sharks curling down to his knuckles.He didn’t smile, but he touched his forehead to Kai’s briefly.It was enough.
Luca came next, tall and wiry, pale against the others, his tattooed forearms were European rather than island-born.One looked like the Sistine Chapel roof and the Colosseum beneath it, and the other held gladiators fighting, a lion in the background, shields, and swords.Local, not native.His grin was sharp.“Pretend we haven’t met?”he asked Hogan, extending a hand.
Hogan frowned.“We haven’t.”
Kai cut in before Luca could twist it further.“He knows, Luca.No need to fake it.”
“Good,” Luca said, shaking Hogan’s hand firmly.“Because for someone with a photographic memory, it’s hard to forget a face.Even when I should.”His accent carried hints of Italy, though his Hawaiian slang was fluent.
Last came Keanu, quiet as always.Built like a wall, skin bronzed deep, hair cropped close.His tattoos were heavier than the others, thick lines like armor.He gave Hogan a nod, then Kai a gentle clasp of the hand.Words weren’t his gift, but his presence spoke volumes.
With greetings exchanged, Black Tide moved like a tide indeed—fluid, practiced.They swung the vans into formation with a precision that came from years of repetition, U-shaped around the concrete pad like it was muscle memory.Within minutes, tables, folding seats, crates of food and drink were spilling into the space between.Someone strung lights from van to van, warm glow spilling across the pad, chasing back the jungle-dark.The smell of food rose with the night breeze—kalua pork,rice,poke, taro.Bottles clinked as they were set in ice.
Music followed, island rhythms Kai hadn’t heard in months but knew like his own heartbeat.Hogan leaned against the side of their van, brow furrowed.The familiar guitar licks of Maoli’sEvery Night, Every Morningdrifted out, followed by Fiji’sSweet Darlin.Hogan’s lips moved, half-singing along, confusion shadowing his expression.He knew the words.Kai’s throat tightened.He was remembering, piece by piece, the soundtrack Kai had introduced him to over three years ago.
They gathered around the tables once plates were filled, laughter threading through the glow of string lights.Hogan sat close to Kai, Kael across from them, the others spread wide.Luca teased Keanu for piling his plate highest, Niko traded jokes with Tane that drew actual snorts of amusement from the usually stoic man.For a moment, it felt like any family dinner, loud and alive.
Conversation meandered as the food disappeared.Luca leaned back, licking sauce from his thumb, and asked, “So this Ridge—you all really set up shop in Wyoming?Helping vets?Sounds like a sweet set up.Not what I expected from a bunch of ghosts and mercs.”
Niko grinned.“Yeah, I heard it’s half rehab center, half fortress.That true?”
Hogan glanced at Kai, then answered.“It’s both but it works.The rehab piece came when one of my brothers lost a leg.”
Kael whistle low.“Damn, poor guy, that would be hard to come back from.”
Hogan smiled.“Yeah, but Marsh not only came back stronger, he’s now also a lot faster, fitter, can run longer than he could with his two real legs, and he found his forever soulmate in the rehab therapist who came to the Ridge to work with him.”
Keanu rumbled low.“Perfect.I love hearing stories like that, and places where people can go to heal.We didn’t have that.”
Tane’s eyes flicked to Hogan.“You Pathfinder boys built something solid there.Respect.”
Luca smirked.“None of us ever wore a uniform, but we’ve run missions.Different kind, but missions none the less.Some left impressions, others left scars, some changed the world for good, and others just changed the lives of a few.”He toyed with his fork, leaving it at that.
Hogan leaned forward, curiosity flashing.“What kind of missions?”
Before Luca could answer, Kai cut in quickly, redirecting.“Later.Not tonight.Tonight we talk about what matters.”He pushed the conversation firmly forward.
Kael’s easy grin faded as he leaned forward, voice low.“Kavaci’s moving men onto the islands.Quiet, but steady.They’re using harbors, old fishing boats, cash that doesn’t trace.I think it’s time we bring in the Pathfinders.”
Hogan didn’t hesitate.“Agreed.This isn’t small-time.If they’re trafficking kids through Hawai’i Nei, it stops now.The more support and firepower we have here to counter it, the better.”His voice carried weight, sharp enough to cut through the laughter still lingering at the edges.
The others nodded, jaws tight.Tane’s fists flexed on the table.Keanu’s stare was flint.Even Luca’s easy grin faltered.
Then the call came.Kael’s phone buzzed, the sound sharp against the hum of conversation.He stepped away, listened, his face going still.When he returned, his eyes were wide, shocked.“The workshop.The garage.Our place.It’s gone.Explosion took everything—the gear, the quarters.No one died, but there’s nothing left.”
Shock hit the table like a wave.For a moment, no one moved.
Then anger replaced it, quick and hot.Luca cursed, voice snapping sharp in Italian.Niko slammed a fist against the table.Keanu’s jaw flexed like stone.Tane muttered something low, lethal.
Kai swallowed hard.Home.Years of building, gone in one evening.He looked at Kael, at his brothers, then at Hogan.His chest burned, not from his wounds but from fury.
They weren’t safe.Not here.Not anywhere.And the war had just gotten that little bit more personal.
****
The Rolls-Royce idledon the far side of the street, engine purring like a predator at rest.Inside, Sergei Antonov watched through the open window as flames devoured the workshop that had once been Black Tide’s home.Heat shimmered in the night air, painting his face with a glow that felt like triumph.
It was exhilarating.Satisfaction rolled through him as he took in the collapsing roofline, the frantic spray of water from fire hoses arriving much too late to matter.Black Tide’s sanctuary was gone.Years of their building a home, reduced to ash in minutes.A message delivered, loud and clear.
