Only then did he turn to Avery. “Now you understand why we’re not taking chances.”
Avery stiffened. “Because of me?”
Stone nodded once. “We don’t wait around when someone threatens one of ours.”
Avery blinked. “One ofyours?”
Rook went still beside her, the words landing hard enough she could feel the change in him. He rested a hand on her knee under the table, warm and grounding. “Yeah, Aves. You’re ours.”
Across from them, Grim leaned back, arms crossed. Havoc tapped his fork against his plate, restless energy rolling off him. Ledger already had a tablet in hand, eyes sharp behind his glasses. And in the corner, half in shadow, sat Fish watching everything with that unblinking, unsettling calm.
Ledger turned the tablet so the table could see. A map of the county lit up, dotted with red markers.
“These are confirmed Reaper sightings in the last six weeks,” he said. “Mostly small stuff…bar fights, intimidation, recruiting attempts. But they’re moving closer to our territory.”
Grim’s jaw tightened. “Too close.”
Havoc stabbed a piece of bacon with unnecessary force. “They’re testing boundaries. Seeing how far they can push before we push back.”
Stone’s voice was calm, but steel threaded through it. “They want a foothold here. They’re not getting one.”
Avery swallowed. “But… why me? Why the bakery?”
Ledger exchanged a look with Rook before answering. “Most likely because Rook’s been spending time there.”
Avery’s stomach dropped. “So this is because of him?”
Rook’s voice was low, dangerous. “This is because they’re cowards who go after what they think matters.”
Stone nodded. “The Reapers don’t fight clean. They don’t fight fair. They don’t go after the strongest man in the room. They go after what the strongest man cares about.”
Avery sucked in a shaky breath. “Me.”
Rook didn’t deny it.
Grim added, “They saw him helping you. That’s enough for them to take notice.”
Avery hesitated.
Her fingers tightened around her mug.
Rook noticed immediately. His hand on her knee stilled. “What?” he asked quietly.
Avery swallowed. “I… I didn’t want you to think I was being dramatic. I thought I was imagining it.”
Rook’s entire body went rigid.
Avery continued, voice small. “A couple times… when I was cleaning the bakery… I thought I saw someone across the street. Just standing there. Watching.”
Rook’s jaw tightened, a slow grind of muscle she felt more than heard.
Avery’s voice dropped even lower. “And then… the other day, when I was running errands… I kept seeing the same dark sedan. I thought it was following me, but every time I tried to look directly at it, it turned off or disappeared.”
Rook went still, the muscle in his jaw ticking once, sharp and controlled.
“I told myself I was being paranoid,” she whispered. “But it didn’t feel like nothing.”
The table went silent.
