Chapter 48
Ace
The candles are still burning.
That’s the first thing I notice.
Not the message. Not the flowers.
The candles.
Which means whoever did this—
They were here for a while.
Lighting them. Placing everything. Taking their time.
And they weren’t in a hurry to leave.
My jaw tightens as I scan the room again.
Too clean.
Too controlled.
“They were waiting for us,” Tessa says quietly behind me.
I don’t answer right away.
I move through the room again. Check corners. Shadows. Entry points.
Nothing.
“We missed them by minutes,” I say finally.
“Not missed,” she says. “They wanted that.”
That stops me.
I turn to her.
“They wanted us to see this,” she continues, gesturing around the room. “The flowers. The candles. The note. This wasn’t rushed. This was staged.”
She’s right.
“This wasn’t about fear,” she adds. “It was about control.”
The word lands hard.
I step closer.
“They don’t have it,” I say.
She meets my eyes.
“They think they do.”
Something shifts in me.
Something colder.
“Not for long.”
Blaze steps in, scanning the space.
“Nothing left behind,” he mutters. “No prints. No devices. Clean.”
“Too clean,” Trigger adds.
“Professional,” Beast says.
Yeah.
We’re not dealing with amateurs anymore.
Tessa moves back toward the table.
The flowers.
She studies them carefully.
Focused.
Then—
“These aren’t from here,” she says.
I look at her. “What?”
She points to a few stems. “These. They don’t grow around Eagle River. Not naturally.”
Blaze steps in immediately. “You sure?”
“Yes.”
No hesitation.
That matters.
“They’re imported,” she adds. “Or grown in controlled environments.”
A beat.
“They wanted me to notice.”
I study the arrangement again.
Not as decoration.
As a message.
Every piece placed with intent.
“They’re giving us a lead,” I say.
Blaze nods. “Or they want us to think they are.”
Either way—
We take it.
Tessa straightens slightly.
Not overwhelmed anymore.
Focused.
“They’re not just watching us,” she says. “They’re playing a game.”
I step closer.
“So we stop playing.”
She looks at me—really looks.
“You’re not shutting me out,” she says.
Not a question.
A line drawn.
I exhale slowly.
“Not anymore.”
Her shoulders ease just slightly.
That matters more than it should.
I step in closer.
Close enough to feel the shift between us.
“You stay with me,” I say quietly.
Her voice softens. “I always do.”
Yeah.
She does.
And I’m starting to realize—
It’s not just about protecting her anymore.
It’s about trusting her.
That’s new.
And dangerous in a different way.
My hand lifts before I can stop it.
Brushes her cheek.
Just once.
Then I drop it.
Because this isn’t over.
Not even close.
Blaze clears his throat.
“I’ve got something.”
We both step back.
Reality snapping back in.
“What?” I ask.
He turns the tablet toward us.
“I cross-referenced the flowers. There’s only one place nearby that carries all of them.”
Tessa goes still.
“Where?”
He taps the screen.
“A private greenhouse just outside town.”
Silence settles.
Then—
“That’s not a coincidence,” she says.
“No,” I agree. “It’s not.”
Finally—
A lead.
And this time?
We’re not reacting.
We’re going straight to the source.