“Stone.”
Clinton’s voice was soft, precise. He stepped out of the shadowed hall, too close, smile measured.
Stone tossed the man a hard glance, silently portraying boredom, unimportance.
“You think Dave tells you everything? About the bunkers. About Law. About Titus. About what the President asks of him.”
Stone’s jaw ticked. “He tells me what I need to know.”
Clinton’s smile thinned. “Exactly. What youneedto know. Not everything.” He let the silence stretch. “You’ve been at his side for years, but some things… he keeps in Washington. With me.”
Stone hated that the words carried weight.
“Don’t let it blindside you,” Clinton added, voice almost sympathetic. “Dave will always need me.”
Then he was gone, leaving Stone in the empty corridor, pulse tight, a seed of doubt lodged where it didn’t belong.
It was later, almost sunset, when Dave’s phone buzzed in his pocket.
He stepped out of the office he used at the ranch and walked outside. The sun was sinking in the west.
The message was encrypted, Sparrow’s signature embedded in the code.
California breached. More strongholds at risk. Eyes on the coast. Proceed carefully.
Dave’s jaw set. The weight doubled—Nevada’s threat on one side, California now tugging hard from the other.
A low breath escaped him. His informant, Sparrow, never sent warnings unless the ground was already shifting beneath their feet.
This had to be connected to the bunkers already compromised.
Dave quickly found Viper and explained the situation, and then sought out Stone in the bunkhouse.
Stone glanced up immediately when he entered.
“Walk with me,” Dave said and stepped back outside.
The Nevada sky burned with streaks of orange as the sun slipped west, clouds lit like embers. Dave crossed the paddockwith Stone beside him, the air warm with hay and horses, the hush of crickets threading through the night.
Stone finally broke it. “You’re awfully quiet.”
Dave stopped at the fence, fingers resting against the worn wood.
“Sparrow reached out.” He didn’t need to explain Sparrow to Stone. Stone knew pretty much everybody and everything associated with him.
“And…” Stone’s voice sounded tight with strain.
“And California bunkers may be compromised as well as the one here in Nevada.”
Stone’s eyes snapped toward him. “So, what now?”
“I’ve got to go back to California,” Dave said simply.
Stone frowned. “Why can’t you handle things from here?”
Dave turned to meet his eyes, steady. “I run everything from my estate. You know that. I can’t sit here while Sparrow’s flagging California.”
And he didn’t add—that watching Stone and Law circle each other again wasn’t something he was ready for.
