“For her,” I say coldly to him. “That’s the only reason you’re still standing.”
I adjust my stance.
Not kill.
Control.
Harder fight.
“Drop it.”
Slowly—
He raises his hands.
Too easy.
I don’t trust it.
“Trigger.”
“On it.”
Trigger moves in. Beast closes from the other side.
Boxed in.
No exits.
Tessa steps forward.
Too close.
I tense—but I don’t pull her back.
Not this time.
“Who was she connected to?” she asks.
He watches her.
And something shifts.
Interest.
“Better,” he says softly.
I shift closer to her.
Warning.
She doesn’t stop.
“Answer me.”
He exhales slowly.
“Your friend wasn’t just in the wrong place,” he says. “She was moving money.”