Kai didn't sleep.
The information from earlier kept replaying in his head, not because it shocked him—but because it confirmed something he'd been avoiding.
This wasn't random anymore.
Whatever was moving behind the scenes had finally drawn a clear line, and Kai was standing on the wrong side of it.
Morning came quietly. Too quietly.
Kai was halfway through cleaning his weapon when his phone vibrated. One message. No caller ID.
> Unknown:
You're running out of space.
Kai stared at the screen. No threat. No explanation. Just a statement.
He deleted the message, stood up, and grabbed his jacket.
---
The café wasn't part of the plan. That was why he chose it.
Small. Crowded. Ordinary people. The kind of place where nothing was supposed to happen.
Jax was already there, seated near the window, hoodie up, coffee untouched.
"You look like hell," Jax said as Kai sat down.
"Didn't ask for a review," Kai replied.
Jax smirked, then leaned forward. "You're being watched."
Kai didn't react. "I know."
"Not the usual kind," Jax added. "Different pattern. Cleaner."
That got Kai's attention.
"Meaning?"
"Meaning whoever's tracking you isn't sloppy. No panic moves. No mistakes." Jax lowered his voice. "They're confident."
Kai exhaled slowly. "So it's real."
Jax nodded once. "Yeah. And it's bigger than the guys you've been dodging."
A waitress approached. Kai ordered without looking at the menu.
As she walked away, Jax spoke again. "You need to decide something."
Kai met his eyes. "Decide what?"
"Whether you're still reacting," Jax said, "or if you're finally going to move first."
The words settled heavy between them.
That was the question, wasn't it?
---
They left separately.
Two blocks away, Kai felt it—the subtle shift in rhythm behind him. Not footsteps. Presence.
He turned into an alley, slow, deliberate.
Nothing.
Then a voice came from the shadows.
"You're calm for someone this deep in trouble."
Kai didn't reach for his weapon. "Depends who's talking."
A man stepped forward. Late thirties. No mask. No rush. Hands visible.
"That's new," Kai said. "Usually people hide."
The man smiled faintly. "We don't need to."
We.
Kai noted it.
"You've been interfering," the man continued. "Pulling threads you don't understand."
"Then explain them," Kai replied.
The man shook his head. "Not how this works."
Silence stretched.
Finally, Kai spoke. "So why talk at all?"
"Because this is your warning," the man said. "After today, things escalate."
Kai's jaw tightened. "Escalate to what?"
The man stepped back into the shadows. "To consequences."
Then he was gone.
No chase.
No attack.
That was worse.
---
Back at his place, Kai locked the door and leaned against it, breathing hard.
This wasn't about survival anymore.
It was about control.
Someone was shaping the board, and Kai had been reacting move by move. That ended now.
He pulled out a notebook he hadn't used in months and wrote three words at the top of the page:
Find the source.
Not the messengers.
Not the muscle.
The mind behind it.
His phone buzzed again—this time from Jax.
> Jax:
Heard something moved today.
You okay?
Kai typed back.
> Kai:
Yeah.
But I'm done running.
He closed the notebook.
For the first time since this started, Kai wasn't waiting to be hunted.
He was preparing to hunt back.