“And did you catch up enough to have a discussion about turning up at Sophie’s door.”
One of them shook his head. “Nah. We were intercepted.”
“What do you mean, intercepted?”
“The Hand. Fuckers came at us from the west, like they expected us to be there. Indie reckons that had been the plan all along. Draw us out there. Take us out on the road.”
“Fuck.” I pushed a hand through my hair where it now lay loose around my shoulders.
“Mate. There’s something else…”
I felt the atmosphere tilt then, and the other twin shifted. Chaos. Now I knew which fucker was which. He hadn’t said a word yet. Just stood there, weight settling back on one leg, arms loose at his sides like he was relaxed. But I saw it. The slight tension in his shoulders. The way his eyes tracked me, not the room. Not the door leading out into the hallway, and the room where Sophie lay sleeping. Me.
Comfortable enough to be here. Not comfortable enough to forget what I was.
“Fucking spit it out,” I snapped.
“Sophie…”
“Sophie, what?”
“You sure you trust her?”
My jaw tightened.
“This about her dad?”
A look passed between them.
“Ex-copper,” Chaos shrugged. “Not just any, either. You know what he was like with clubs. Still drinks with half the force. Still has ears in places we don’t.”
“And you think she’s what? Feeding him?” My voice dropped, colder now.
“We’re saying it’s a risk,” Carnage cut in, stepping forward. “You’ve got the Notorious sniffing round her house. The Handwaiting on the road like they knew we’d be there. And now she’s in your bed.”
I held his gaze. Didn’t move.
“The club had a leak before she ever came back,” I said, slow, deliberate. “Before she stepped foot anywhere near us. So don’t start tying her into something that was already there.”
Silence settled for a moment.
“She’s not that,” I added, quieter, but no less certain.
Chaos scrubbed a hand over his jaw, exhaling.
“Aye… alright, mate. We’ll follow your judgement.” He glanced at Carnage. “Magnet said the same to Indie anyway. But you know what Barry the Blade’s like.”
I did.
And that was the fucking problem.
Chapter Twenty Five
Something woke me. Not a noise. Not properly. More a feeling.
Heat.
Too much of it. Pressed into my back, wrapped around me, heavy and unfamiliar in a way that dragged me up from sleep before I could settle back into it. For a moment I lay still, caught between now and something older. A memory scratching at the edges.
