Marlowe
The ceremony date arrived on the club calendar faster than any of us had wanted, posted formally by the senior members with none of the flexibility King had spent weeks quietly trying to negotiate.
He found me in the garage the evening before the announcement became official, and I understood, watching his face, that he'd come to make one final, desperate case for something I already knew I wasn't going to agree to.
"Step back from patching," he said, no preamble. "Tell Wrench you're not ready. Buy more time, however we can manage it — reassignment, temporary leave, anything that gets you clear of that ceremony until we understand exactly what Vance is planning and how deep Reid's willing to go."
"And then what? Wait forever? There's no version of this where the ceremony just q
