Page 51 of Carver’s Crusade

She nods. “Nothing happened at first. The lights stayed on downstairs, but nobody came back out.” Her gaze flicks toward me cautiously, probably measuring how angry I am. “Eventually Tony left with two of the men.”

“Which two?”

“I’m not completely sure. It was dark.” She grimaces. “But I think one was Tyler and the other Mellor.”

I mutter a curse under my breath.

“And then?” Shield asks calmly.

“I followed Tony.”

Of course she did.

I lean back hard against the couch and scrub both hands over my face. “Jesus Christ, Raven.”

“I know.”

“No, I don’t think you do.” My voice roughens. “You followed a violent psychopath in the middle of the night by yourself.”

Her chin lifts stubbornly. “I needed information.”

“You needed backup.”

She opens her mouth to argue, but Shield cuts in first.

“Let her finish.”

I bite back the rest of my temper and gesture sharply for Raven to continue.

“He drove across town,” she says quietly. “At first I thought he might stop at a gas station or a convenience store. Maybe pick up food.” She shakes her head. “But instead, he pulled into the parking lot of a bar.”

Something about her comment makes Shield shift in his seat. He opens his mouth as if to ask her a question, but he remains silent.

“I parked in the back lot where he wouldn’t notice my car,” Raven continues. “I stayed there for a while trying to decide what to do.”

“You should’ve left,” I mutter.

She ignores me. “I thought about going inside, but…” She exhales shakily. “I figured it was too dangerous if Tony spotted me.”

A low growl leaves my throat before I can stop it. “That might’ve been your only intelligent decision that night.”

Raven winces.

“Carver,” Shield warns.

“What? She could’ve ended up dead.”

“And yelling at her now won’t change what happened.” Shield turns toward Raven again. “Go on.”

But before Raven can speak, Shield’s eyes narrow slightly.

“The bar,” he says slowly. “Was it called Check Mate?”

Raven blinks in surprise. “Yeah. How did you know?”

Shield nods once, his expression unreadable.

Every nerve in my body goes taut. “What the hell is—”