Chapter 242

#109

Lucia meets them at the door the next morning already dressed in a dark jacket zipped to her chin and her hair pulled back tight.

David stops in front of her, taking in the outfit with an expression that isn’t quite surprise. “Where exactly do you think you’re going?”

“With you,” she replies. “Obviously.”

“No.”

Lucia squares her shoulders. “I wasn’t joking yesterday when I said I wanted a seat at the table.”

“And I wasn’t joking when I gave you one,” David responds levelly, unbothered by the challenge in her voice. “That seat just isn’t out in the field.”

She frowns. “What the hell does that–”

“You have a sharp eye,” David interrupts. “Better attention to detail than half the men in that command room, honestly, and that’s not flattery, it’s an assessment. That skill set is worth considerably more to me on the comms than it is standing in a doorway getting shot at.”

Lucia’s expression remains skeptical.

“You’ll have the buildi