Marlowe
Everything in the room shifted at once, the fragile, careful negotiation King had been building collapsing instantly into chaos as Teller's men leveled their weapons at Grant's back and Bear's hand moved toward his own holstered gun in immediate, instinctive response.
"Nobody move," Teller barked, all his earlier calculated calm replaced by sharp, genuine alarm. "I said nobody was supposed to be outside this room. Explain yourselves, or things get considerably worse for everyone very quickly."
"He's my cousin," I said fast, desperate to defuse the sudden spike in violence threatening to erupt. "He wasn't part of the plan, he followed us because he's scared for his parents, that's all this is."
"Doesn't matter what his reasons were." Teller's eyes darted between his own men and
