(Ridge)
I watched Ben until Dane walked him back from the gate and the sound of it closing settled into place.
He’d done what he came to do. Said enough, held back what he didn’t need to say, and left with his teeth still in his mouth. That was more than most men got when they showed up uninvited asking for names tied to this place.
Knox stayed beside me.
“You want him watched?” he asked.
“Not now.”
“You trust him?”
“I trust what he didn’t say more than what he did.”
Knox nodded once, filing that away like he always did. He didn’t waste time asking the wrong questions, which was why I kept him close when things started shifting.
Dane came back from the gate and stopped in front of us.
“He’s gone,” he said.
“Good.”
The three of us stood there a second, all thinking the same thin
