I position myself at the head of the room, wheelchair and all, and force myself to meet their eyes.
"Update me," I say, voice harder than I feel. "Everything. Vipers, territory, finances, all of it."
Jackie goes first. "The Vipers have taken three more blocks on the east side. Hit two of our protection clients—one paid them instead of us, the other closed up shop entirely rather than deal with either side."
"Casualties?"
"Zay got grazed in a shootout last night. Everyone else is walking wounded but alive." She pauses. "For now. But they're getting bolder. More coordinated. Someone's giving them real-time intelligence on our movements."
"The leak," I say, and it's not a question.
"Has to be." George leans forward. "The timing is too perfect. They know where we'll be before we get there."
"Then we cut off the leak." I look around the room. "Who has access to operational details?"
"Everyone in this room," Asher says quietly. "Plus a handful of prospects who do logistics."
"Then we compartmentalize. Different people get different pieces of information. We see which pieces the Vipers act on, trace it back to the source." I turn to Jackie. "Can you coordinate that?"
She nods. "I'll have a system in place by tonight."
"Good." I take a breath, feeling the weight of leadership settling back onto shoulders that aren't quite ready for it. "Now. Talia."
The room goes quiet.
"She's been embedded with the Vipers for weeks. Feeding them information in exchange for—what? Revenge? A sense of purpose?" I shake my head. "Doesn't matter. She's Asher’s sister. . She's family. And we're getting her out."
"How?" George asks. "She's deep in their organization by now. They're not going to just let her walk away."
"We're not asking permission." I look at Jackie. "The Vipers have their annual party tomorrow night. Big event, everyone will be there, security will be spread thin trying to cover too much ground." I pause. "That's when we extract her."
Jackie's eyes widen. "Xavier?—"
"I know it's risky. I know it could go sideways in about six different ways. But we're running out of time. The longer she's inthere, the more danger she's in. The more damage she can do—intentionally or not." I meet her eyes. "We get her out tomorrow. You're in charge of the operation. Pick your team. Plan the extraction. Do whatever you need to do."
She's quiet for a moment, emotion warring with professionalism on her face. Then she nods. “I’ll do my best.”you."
I look around the room. "Anyone have objections?"
Silence.
"Then we move tomorrow night. Jackie will coordinate. Everyone else—business as usual until then. Don't give the Vipers any reason to think something's coming." I pause. "That's all. Dismissed."
They file out slowly, leaving me alone with Asher and Zay.
I wait until the door closes before speaking. "Asher. I need Valentina's address."
He goes very still. "Why?"
"Because the Vipers will know we're extracting Talia. They have to—if they're getting real-time intel, they know we'll make a move eventually. Which means they'll be watching us, tracking our people." I meet his eyes. "Which means Valentina is vulnerable. She's alone, unprotected, and if they want leverage against us, she's an easy target."
"She's not our responsibility anymore," Asher says carefully. "You made that clear months ago."
The words hit like a slap. "I know what I said."
"Do you?" There's steel in Asher's voice now. "Because from where I'm sitting, you don't get to kick her out and then decideyou're her protector when it's convenient. You don't get to destroy her and then swoop in to save her when it serves your purposes."
"That's not what this is?—"