Battl

turned the

he guest bedroom. The sheets were

dn't co

rk clothes, locked the door, and d

desk, his sharp eyes behind rimless glasses focused squarely on his diagno

e doorframe and stepped insi

ful eyes, the entire tuning circuit wrote me off as a washed-up ghost. Only Connor quietly pres

ng to pull out a leather chair. "Did you bri

the heavy manila enve

out a low breath. "Paperwork is clean. The state registry transfer will clear in ex

nly, my voice devoid of emotion. "I'm serving hi

the right call. Anyone who grinds down your worth isn't worth keeping around. Wi

a fai

. He's the financial backer behind the Oakland tech facility and the President of the Iro

t's

putation had rea

ion airborne equipment. After his discharge, he returned to California and dismantled every rival syndicate along the transit corridor with ruthless

man was already there, leaning against the

ng an aura of lethal, quiet discipline. Hearing

cut into me so sharply that m

nd, his gaze drifted past me, l

the designer behind the micro-injection powertrain architecture, Jolene Battle-known in t

oused hand. "Pleasure to meet you, Mr. Lynch

an was undeniable. His jawline was ra

on an entirely different level. Dressed in a dark tactical shirt buttoned straight t

t me, his voice smooth, low, and completely

the brief awkwardness, a

gned yet, but I can personally vouch that once Jo

witched with f

pped forward, placing a thick leather

this line of work, safeguarding proprietary schematic

and a three percent equity cut of all production engines built on my micro-injection architecture. The penalty clauses were

exceptional, an

gned my name on the final execution line. I slid the folde

oo

scrawled his sharp, authoritat

shifted over the table as

six-foot-three-taller an

e overhead lights. His ice-grey eyes pinned mine with total focus. "Get your

firmly. "Thank

vy texture of a man used to handling firearms. The instant our palms br

lert tone sliced through the room as the overhe