Page 48 of Protector of Talon Mountain

She hesitates. Wipes her hands on a towel, then reaches into her coat pocket. I watch her movements. Too careful. Too practiced. She pulls out a folded piece of paper. Her fingers don’t shake, but her eyes won’t meet mine when she hands it over.

I unfold it. Printed block letters again. No signature. Same type as before.

YOU SHOULD HAVE STAYED QUIET.

This time, it’s not just a threat. It’s a reprimand. A warning shot across the bow.

I crumple the paper in my fist, jaw clenching. "When?"

She finally meets my eyes. "This morning. In the mailbox. I didn’t... I was going to wait to show you."

"No," I snap, but not at her. I step in, close the space between us until she has no choice but to feel it. My heat. My control. My protection. "You don’t get to keep this shit from me anymore. Not after last night."

Her breath catches. She nods. Small. Honest.

I cup her jaw, not rough, but firm enough to anchor her. "No more hiding. No more soft-stepping around what this is. They want you afraid, Sadie. They want you second-guessing what you deserve. That ends now."

Her eyes shine, but she holds the tears back. "I’m not used to someone standing with me."

"Then get used to it," I growl. "Because I’m not going anywhere. And anyone who touches what’s mine pays for it. In blood."

My phone buzzes. Anchorage area code. I answer it without looking.

Nate’s voice comes through, sharp and grim. "Your guy’s dirty. Brent Holloway has three LLCs tied to a shell firm based out of Sitka. All of them cycling high-volume cash deposits with no source. My guess? Laundering. We’ve been watching one of the fronts for months. Didn’t have a name until now."

I glance at Sadie. Her brows furrow, reading my expression.

"You got names on the other signatories?" I ask.

"One. Adam Holloway. You think he’s involved?"

"He’s not just involved. He’s the fucking middleman."

Nate goes quiet. Then, "Want me to keep digging?"

"No," I say. "I’ll send you what I have via a secure fax line.”

“Since when did Glacier Hollow have a secure fax line?”

“Since I made them hook us up. We’re closing this down. Now."

I hang up. Sadie hasn’t moved. But she knows. She always does.

"It’s Brent," I say. "He’s not just watching. He’s moving money. And Adam’s been running it through this town. Joe was a piece of it. The garage fire was a cleanup job."

Sadie presses a hand to the counter. "And I’m a liability."

I shake my head, stepping in. "You’re a mistake they made. The biggest one was threatening you, thinking they could scare you… thinking I wouldn’t burn the entire mountain down to keep you safe."

Her lips part. Her voice cracks just a little. "Zeke... what do we do now?"

I lean in, press a kiss to her forehead. "We end it. We hunt them down, we make it loud, and we make damn sure no one ever comes back."

“Can you do that all by yourself?” she asks, concerned.

“No, but I’m not alone. I have three former SEALs to call on. Trust me, Brent and his buddies have no idea what they’ve taken on.”

“Three?”

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