Page 241

“They stopped men who attacked our property.”

“Same difference.”

“It isn’t.”

I stand with the backpack pressed against me.

“Are you going to introduce us?”

Sean looks at Hayley.

She shrugs.

“I told you she gets it from you.”

He mutters something beneath his breath and steps into the hallway.

Hayley and I follow.

Three unfamiliar men stand near the kitchen island.

All of them are tall.

All of them look dangerous.

And all three are staring at the empty pastry tray.

The man closest to us has dark hair and a cut above his eye. Dried blood runs along his temple.

Beside him stands a man with broad shoulders, brown hair, and a bruise forming along his jaw.

The third is leaning against the counter. He is the quietest of them, but something about the way he watches the room tells me he misses nothing.

Sean motions toward the man with the cut.

“Kane Bishop.”

Kane looks at me.

Not through me.

Not over me.

At me.

“You must be Sage.”

“Yes.”

“I’ve heard a lot about you.”

“From who?”

“Everyone.”

“I met them three days ago.”

“That was apparently enough time.”