He rose, careful. “Stay here.”
“No, not a chance.” I followed, glass crunching under my boots. Air poured through the broken pane; curtains whipped like wings.
A sheet of notebook paper lay near the brick, tied with horse twine. Austin stared at it, jaw tight.
“What is it?”
He hesitated, then read it aloud. Thick black letters scrawled across the page:
YOU SHOULD HAVE LEFT WHEN YOU HAD THE CHANCE.
Everything slowed—the smell of dust and coffee, the sting of glass in my palms, the realization that we weren’t safe after all.
Austin’s voice came low. “Call Levi. Tell him we’ve had a breach.”
I swallowed. “And you?”
“I’ll review the cameras. And don’t touch a thing.”
The brick sat between us. The comfort we’d built that morning slipped away.
Five minutes later, Levi arrived first, eyes sweeping the yard. Mason followed. They moved through the house like a cleanup crew, slicing through the mess.
“Anyone hurt?” Levi asked.
“We’re fine,” I said, though my hands still shook. “Austin went to review the cameras.”
Just as I said his name, Austin appeared in the doorway. “Nothing on the cameras.” Then Austin pointed to the note.
Mason read it, cursed, then pulled out his phone, fingers moving like lightning across the screen.
Levi crouched by the brick. “Classic intimidation. They wanted noise, not blood.”
“Still feels personal,” I said.
“It is,” Austin murmured.
He looked wired tight, every muscle humming.
I could feel his frustration building. The tension in the room was palpable. Below Austin’s t-shirt, I could see his muscles flexing and relaxing as he fisted and relaxed his hands.
“It’s okay, Austin. We’ll figure this out,” I said, moving to face him, then reached up and rested my palms on his chest. Austin exhaled, looking a little more relaxed. He reached up and held my hands, still resting against his chest.
“I know, I just hate that I can’t control this.”
Mrs. Winslow arrived in a bathrobe, baseball bat in hand. “I knew it!”
“It’s alright, you can go home, Mrs. Winslow,” Mason said, chuckling.
“Can’t. Surveillance detail.” She peered out the window.
Austin and I both took in her attire, and when Mrs. Winslow moved to the window, Austin turned to me and mouthed, “bathrobe?”
I stifled a laugh and had to turn before she saw.
Levi rubbed his temple. “We’ll sweep the area. Stay inside.”
When they left, the house felt hollow. Wind whistled through the cracked pane.
