His IA instincts said document everything, trust no one, follow protocol. His counter-intelligence training said build a team, leverage assets, adapt to conditions on the ground.
If he was going to have any chance to rescue his brother, he needed all the help he could get.
He looked at Cara.
She stood beside him, still holding that broken spoon. Her face was smudged with flour dust and exhaustion. But her eyes were clear. Steady.
She'd been with him through every step of this investigation. She'd faced down whoever trashed her bakery. She'd trusted him with pieces of herself she didn't show anyone else.
Now he was about to drag more people into danger.
He raised his eyebrows slightly. A question.
Cara glanced at the others. Tom with his quiet competence. Wade with his watchful intensity. Reagan who'd beentracking the same patterns David had died investigating. Piper who'd shown up to help without being asked.
Then back to Gabe.
She nodded once. Certain.
"Actually." Gabe closed the laptop. Looked at each person in turn. "Before anyone goes anywhere, Cara and I need to talk to all of you."
He felt Cara shift beside him. A unified front.
"We've been followed," he continued. "Multiple times. Different vehicles. Whoever killed Ruiz and trashed this bakery knows we're investigating."
The room went still.
"I have forty-six hours before my boss fires me and this whole thing disappears into bureaucracy. David left me everything. Proof of what my father died investigating. But it's massive. Complex. And I can't move without being watched."
He met Tom's eyes. Then Wade's. Reagan's. Piper's.
"I need help. Real help. And I think you all have skills that might make the difference between finding my brother and losing him forever." He let that land. "But you need to know what you're getting into. These people have killed. They will kill again. If you're not willing to risk that, walk away now. No judgment."
Nobody moved, but Gabe felt them all confer silently, some kind of Haven Cove ESP.
Tom stepped forward. "What do you need?"
22
Gabe waitedto fully explain until everyone settled around Cara's kitchen table. Tom brought his own computer. Wade positioned himself where he could monitor the front windows. Reagan set her server's notebook beside Gabe's laptop. Piper pulled up something on her phone without being asked.
Operational assets assembling for a briefing. His IA training had taught him to suspect everyone. Five years of investigating colleagues who'd violated their oaths. Five years of turning over rocks and finding corruption underneath.
These were people with training they weren't discussing.
Just like Cara.
He hadn't run a team in five years. Hadn't needed these instincts since Philadelphia pulled him out of counterintelligence and stuck him behind an IA desk. Now they flooded back, sharp and immediate.
"David left audio files." He clicked play on the first recording, trying not to wince as his brother's voice filled the small space.
When it finished, nobody spoke for a long moment.
Tom broke the silence. "How much documentation?"
"Months. Maybe years." Gabe opened folders. "Manifests. Financial records. Surveillance photos. Audio recordings. Shell corporation filings. It's comprehensive but I don't know where to start."
"I can help organize." Tom leaned forward. "Cross-reference dates and names. Build a timeline. Find patterns."
