She tells them a short version about the bar on Capitol Hill, the alley, and the third man. The calls that started six weeks after she came home. The photo at the back door of the diner. The second photo on my porch. The warrant Reeves is getting signed.
She doesn’t go into shooting. I don’t blame her for leaving that part out. “So here we are.”
Mason hasn’t moved. Not even sure he’s blinked. “You kept all of this from us for… years?”
Sophie crosses her arms. The two have never looked more alike. “I was scared.”
“Fuck.” Jesse scrubs his face. “That’s why you have us, so you don’t have to be scared.”
Mason puts a hand at the back of his neck and looks at the ceiling. “I need a minute.”
He goes out the back door. He doesn’t slam it. Mason Wilde doesn’t slam doors.
Jesse stays. “Nora…”
“It’s okay if you tell her. I know you don’t keep secrets from each other.”
“I will, but not tonight. She’s due in two weeks, and I don’t want her to worry.”
“I understand,” she says. “I don’t want anything to hurt Nora and the baby.”
Jesse looks at me. “Is she sleeping here tonight?”
I nod. “I’ll keep her safe.”
“I’m staying tonight,” Eli says. “Couch works.”
I shake my head. “Unnecessary. Two county units have been called in to do rotations. You being here is a third body in this house. If you’re at the store with the lights on and your truck visible, that’s two more eyes I have in town. Go home. Watch the front of Main. And Jesse, make sure Nora goes nowhere alone.”
Eli looks at me, then at Sophie and nods once.
Mason returns, and his expression is different from five minutes ago. He stops three feet away. “You hurt her again, King, and I’ll bury you on the ridge.”
“If that happens, you can use my shovel.”
Mason’s lips thin. “And if anything happens to her…”
Sophie sighs. “I’m right here, guys.”
“This is between me and King,” Mason says. “If that asshole touches my sister…”
My chest juts forward. “Not happening on my watch.”
Mason picks up the knife Sophie set on the counter, turns it over once, and puts it back in place. “Sunday dinner, Soph.”
She rolls her eyes. “Maybe.”
“Be there, or I’ll drag your sorry ass there myself.” He gives her a one-armed hug, and both appear uncomfortable, but I get the feeling the two need more hugs.
Jesse rubs his palms on his thighs, then stands. “You need more backup I can call the others.”
The others mean the men who live on the Ridge, ex-military and Special Forces guys who’d probably love taking someone like Volkov apart limb by limb. “I know. And I won’t hesitate to let you know if I need more hands.”
Jesse and Mason exchange a glance. Jesse kisses Sophie’s cheek. “Be careful.”
Then the two Wilde brothers head out.
Eli stops at the door. “Take care of her. She won’t ask for what she needs but be patient with her. Have a feeling she needs a lot of that right now.”
