“That's me making sure someone I might work with doesn't get himself killed doing something stupid.” His voice carried challenge. “There's a difference between calculated risk and suicide by investigator.”
“You think I'm suicidal?”
“I think you're willing to die if it means bringing Harrow down. Which makes you either the best ally possible or the worst.” His gaze stayed level. “I'm here to figure out which.” He leaned forward slightly. “Here's the thing, Cal. I'm not going to sit on my hands while Harrow tightens the noose. I'm not going to play it safe while he buys silence and closes access points. But I'm also not going to charge in recklessly just because action feels better than patience.”
“So what are you going to do?”
“Be smart. Be strategic. Take risks worth taking and avoid risks that serve nothing except ego.” His gaze held mine. “And if we do this—if I agree to work with you—I'm going to make sure you do the same. Because I don't sign up for partnerships that end with preventable deaths.”
“You don't understand what happens when men like Harrow decide you're inconvenient.”
“Don't I? I've worked for Adrian long enough to see how powerful men operate. How they isolate threats. How they destroy people systematically.” His voice went harder. “I understand exactly what we're up against. Which is why we need to be smarter than them instead of just angrier.”
“Smarter gets you dead when you're fighting people who rewrite rules.”
“Angrier gets you dead faster.” He didn't blink. “If we do this, I need to know you'll fight in ways that let you survive long enough to actually win.”
The server brought lamb that smelled like heaven. We ate in silence for a few minutes, the weight of his assessment settling between us.
“What if I can't?” I asked finally. “What if sustainable isn't in my nature?”
“Then this conversation ends here, and you keep hunting Harrow alone until he buries you.” Dom's voice stayed level. “I'm not interested in watching someone destroy themselves. Been there. Done that. Not doing it again.”
“And what's the alternative? Play it safe while Harrow keeps destroying people?”
“The alternative is finding someone who can cover your weaknesses while you cover theirs. Someone who can pull you back when you're about to do something irreversibly stupid.” His jaw set. “That's what I'm looking for. Not a martyr. A partner.”
“I don't need?—”
“Everyone needs something. Question is whether you're smart enough to admit it before it kills you.” He pushed his plate aside. “I'm not here because I pity you or because I think you need saving. I'm here because you're brilliant and reckless andmight actually have a chance at bringing Harrow down. If you don't destroy yourself first.”
I stared at him. “That's the sales pitch? 'Work with me or die alone'?”
“That's reality.” But his mouth curved slightly. “Come on. There's somewhere I want to show you before I make my decision.”
Dom droveus along the Thames to Tower Bridge, parked illegally, and led me toward the railing where the river stretched black and glittering beneath city lights. The air smelled like water and diesel and the particular scent of London at night—old stone and new money and history refusing to stay buried.
“Why are we here?” I asked.
“Because I needed to think. And this is where I do that.” He leaned against the railing, looking out over water that had seen centuries of London's ugliest moments. “When things feel overwhelming, I come here. Reminds me that the city's survived worse. That problems that feel permanent are actually just temporary.”
“That's surprisingly philosophical for someone who solves problems with violence.”
“Violence is a tool. Philosophy is what decides when to use it.” He glanced at me. “What are you actually afraid of, Cal?”
The question landed like a punch. “What?”
“You heard me. What scares you more than Harrow? More than dying?”
I should have deflected. Should have made a joke or changed the subject. But standing there in the dark with Dom beside me,exhausted enough that my defences had worn thin, the truth slipped out before I could stop it.
“Mattering to someone. Becoming someone's weakness. Giving people leverage that'll get them killed when Harrow decides to use it.”
Dom was quiet for a long moment. “That's why you work alone. Why you're running yourself into the ground. You're trying to make yourself indestructible by making yourself untouchable.”
“I'm trying not to become a liability.”
“You're trying not to be human.” His voice stayed gentle but carried weight. “But you can't fight like this forever, Cal. Eventually you'll need someone.”
