The following morning I’m sitting on the patio with a coffee warming my hands, the early light still soft and quiet enough that the packhouse feels almost normal, when the sound of tyres on gravel pulls my attention forward and I see Alpha David’s brother Daniel pulling up out the front of the house. As soon as he gets out of the car he looks at me strangely, his gaze locking on like he’d expected to find me right there, and he slowly walks up the stairs of the packhouse, keeping his eyes on me the entire time in a way that makes my shoulders tense.
I keep my face neutral as Daniel climbs the last step and steps onto the patio, because the way he looks at me makes it clear this isn’t a coincidence and it isn’t a courtesy call either, and even though my instincts are screaming at me to get
