Chapter 63 Havoc
Havoc
The Tavern feels different now.
Full.
Alive.
Safe.
But underneath that?
There’s tension.
Waiting.
Building.
We all feel it.
Ace leans against the wall near the door.
Blaze is checking the gear.
Wolf’s on comms.
Trigger hasn’t moved from his post in hours.
“They’ll come back,” I say.
“Yeah,” Blaze replies.
“No way they’re done.”
I nod.
Because I know that too.
This isn’t over.
Not even close.
I glance across the room.
Aspen is helping Grandpa settle into a chair.
Dylan sits nearby.
Buddy at his side.
This is what they’re protecting.
This is what Tank died for.
And this is what I’m standing in front of now.
I shift slightly.
Pain flares.
Ignore it.
Because something else is louder.
The way she moves.
The way she looks at Dylan.
The way she holds everything together when she should be falling apart.
Yeah.
That’s the problem.
Because I see it now.
Clearer than I want to.
And I don’t know how to stop it.
“Don’t,” I mutter under my breath.
“Don’t what?” Wolf asks.
“Nothing.”
But it’s not nothing.
Not anymore.