Past — When Rowan Was Fourteen
Rowan met Kade for the first time on a day that didn't feel important.
That was the problem.
He was fourteen—too old to be invisible, too young to matter. Sitting on the cold steps outside the estate, knuckles scraped, school bag abandoned at his feet. He hadn't cried. He'd learned early that tears didn't change outcomes.
Footsteps approached.
Slow. Unhurried.
Rowan looked up.
Kade stood there—nineteen, tall, dressed too neatly for the place. His presence didn't announce itself loudly. It settled. Like a shadow deciding where it belonged.
Kade:- said, "You're blocking the entrance."
Rowan scrambled to his feet instantly.
Rowan:- said, "Sorry. I—I didn't know anyone was coming."
Kade's eyes flicked over him once.
Uniform. Bruised knuckles. Too-alert posture.
Kade:- said, "You're his kid?"
Rowan nodded quickly.
Rowan:- said, "Yes. Rowan."
Kade didn't offer his name.
He stepped past him, keys turning in the lock, then paused.
Kade:- said, "You don't look like him."
Rowan blinked.
Rowan:- said, "Is that… good?"
Kade turned then, finally facing him fully. His gaze was sharp—not cruel, but disinterested. Like Rowan was a puzzle he didn't feel like solving.
Kade:- said, "Depends on what you're trying to become."
Rowan didn't understand. But he smiled anyway.
Rowan:- said, "I heard you're really smart."
That earned him a look. One eyebrow raised slightly.
Kade:- said, "Who told you that?"
Rowan:- said, "Everyone."
Kade exhaled through his nose—almost a laugh, but not quite.
Kade:- said, "Everyone lies."
He opened the door again.
Something in Rowan panicked at the thought of being left behind.
Rowan:- said, "Do you—do you come here often?"
Kade stopped, hand still on the handle.
Kade:- said, "Often enough to know you shouldn't ask questions you're not prepared for."
Rowan swallowed.
Rowan:- said, "I just thought…
maybe you could teach me things."
Kade studied him now. Really looked.
"Why?" he asked.
Rowan hesitated.
Rowan:- said, "Because you don't look scared of anything."
That did it.
Something dark flickered behind Kade's eyes—not anger.
Recognition.
Kade:- said, "That's not a compliment."
Rowan frowned.
Rowan:- said, "It isn't?"
Kade leaned down slightly, voice lowering—not to threaten, but to cut.
Kade:- said, "People who aren't scared usually haven't learned enough yet. Or they've learned too much."
Rowan didn't move.
Rowan:- said, "Which one are you?"
Kade straightened slowly.
Kade:- said, "Neither."
A lie. But Rowan didn't know that yet.
From inside the house, a voice called Kade's name.
Kade turned away.
Before stepping inside, he added—
Kade:- said, "You should stop looking for brothers in places like this."
Rowan's chest tightened.
Rowan:- said, "Why?"
Kade paused just long enough to answer.
Kade:- said, "Because boys who want brothers usually end up becoming weapons."
The door closed.
Rowan stood there alone, heart pounding—not afraid.
Inspired.
For the first time, he didn't feel small.
He felt chosen.
And Kade, walking down the hall, thought only one thing—
This kid is going to be a problem.
Years later, neither of them would remember this moment the same way.
One would call it admiration.
The other—
A warning he should have listened to....