Jax
I didn't sleep much, turning Ryder's plan over in my head long after everyone else had gone quiet for the night. Careful. Secure. Daylight, real backup. All good instincts, all things I respected about the way he led this club. But every hour we spent being careful was an hour Cole spent adjusting, regrouping, finding some new angle we hadn't accounted for yet.
I found him in his office early the next morning, before most of the compound was awake, and laid it out plain.
"I get the caution," I said. "I do. But we've been reactive this entire investigation. Cole hits us, we respond. He sends a message, we scramble to figure out what it means. I'm tired of playing defense."
Ryder leaned back in his chair, studying me with the patient attention he gave every serious concern brought to
