Page 78 of Property of Bones

Knuckles and Crusher escort them out. The rest of us stand there, breathing hard, fury simmering just under the surface.

I flex my fingers. Blood drips.

And that’s when I feel it.

Something small. Tucked in my palm.

I open my hand to find a small folded piece of paper.

Carefully unfolding it, it reads…

Back off. Stop coming for me.

They’re everywhere.

You won’t see it coming.

They’ll kill you all.

I’m sorry, brothers.

-M

“What’s that?” Spike asks.

Passing the note over, I wait as he reads it.

“What the fuck is going on?” he sighs.

That’s a very good question.

But, my main thought is that I brought Sunny into this life. A life of violence. How could I be so fucking greedy?

There’s only one thing to do.

Chapter Twenty-Two

Sunny

Jack walks me home himself. Doesn’t say much on the way. Just that quiet, stormy look on his face that tells me not to push.

Once we’re inside, he closes the door behind us and leans against it like he’s holding the weight of the world back with his shoulders.

“Sit,” he says after walking me to the kitchen table.

I do.

He stays standing. Arms crossed. Jaw tight. There’s a red mark on his jaw and it makes me wonder what happened while I was hiding underground.

“What happened today,” he starts, “happens more than I like.”

I nod slowly. I already guessed that much.

“Sometimes it’s quiet. Sometimes it’s loud. But danger like that?” He sighs. “It’s never far. Even when it’s not right in your face.”

He looks at me then. Really looks. Like he’s trying to figure out what I’ll do with what he’s about to say.

“I brought you back here because the danger’s passed and I know what it’s like down there. But, even if the risk is small, I’d rather you be locked in a damn bunker than bleeding out on a sidewalk.”

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