Page 17 of Gentle Warrior

“Chicken dinner?” Bear added with a laugh.

Moose leaned in, intrigued. “So? What’s the verdict?”

“Hold your horses.” Link grinned, running a few scans and filters. But then his smile faded as he dug deeper into the logs.

Moose rolled his eyes, “Y’all have really gone to the farm…chickens and horses!”

“Alright… this just went sideways. Elena’s not just some random off the street. She’s a witness in a Detroit gang shooting.”

Moose’s stomach tightened. “Wait, seriously?”

“Yeah,” Link said, voice low and serious now. “She got caught in the crossfire—bad luck, wrong place, wrong time. Now she’s got some serious heat on her. That’s probably why she ended up homeless.”

Moose ran a hand through his hair, the tension weighing heavily on him. “Damn… I was hoping she was just a nice homeless kid.”

Link pulled up Elena’s photo on the screen, her face sharp and clear on the monitor. Bear stepped closer, eyes narrowing as he stared at the image. “So this is something that could put everyone in danger.”

“Exactly,” Link agreed firmly. “If this is true, bringing her into your mom’s home could bring trouble knocking.”

Moose stared at the picture on the computer screen, and a sudden zing shot through his heart, an unexpected sharp pang of attraction. It caught him off guard. She was striking, but another reality hit him just as quickly. She was nearly twelve years younger than him. The thought stirred a mix of emotions—concern, protectiveness, and something deeper he wasn’t ready to name. His lungs seemed to forget how to breathe for a moment, leaving him stunned by the complexity of his feelings.

Suddenly, a hand settled on his shoulder, jolting Moose out of his daze. He startled, his body tensing involuntarily. Bear tightened his grip for a moment before releasing it, then looked askance at Moose, a subtle flicker of curiosity in his eyes.

“Looks like you’ve got your first case to work, Moose. Together, we’ll figure this out. Let’s gather more information and determine next steps.”

Moose swallowed hard and took a deep breath to steady himself. “Right. What else you got, Link?”

“Oh man, this is crazy…” Link blurted out, his eyes widening as he continued scrolling through the information. “The kid, or rather, the young man that was shot and killed was Elena’s roommate. She was standing right beside him when he was killed as they were coming out of a corner bodega.”

Moose felt a chill creep down his spine. “Awww shit! That gang will be out to eliminate her. No wonder she’s running scared, she knows she’s a target.”

Link shot a quick glance at Bear, eyes gleaming with mischief. “Uhh… initiating unauthorized probe protocol. Requesting clearance to access restricted sectors.”

Bear laughed softly, shaking his head. “You know the drill, Link. Just keep on the right side of things and leave no trace.”

Grinning, Link turned back to the screen. “Copy that. Deploying deep-dive algorithms to trace gang networks and potential links to Elena. If she’s a witness, we need intel on who’s tailing her.”

Moose nodded, feeling a mix of anxiety and determination. “Just be careful, okay? If there are people looking for her, we don’t want to draw any unwanted attention.”

“Hey! You doubt me, I’m hurt!” Link said, placing one hand over his heart with a mock look of pain, while his other hand continued flying over the keyboard. “I’ll keep it discreet and find out what’s really going on. We’ll get to the bottom of this.”

After a quiet pause, Link broke the silence. “Okay, here’s the data: the Detroit PD has officially handed this over to the DEA. Subject: Aaron Higgins, 23 years old, status—high school dropout senior year. He was a Confidential Informant for the DEA. Cross-referencing his network shows ties to a low-tier gang known as The Latin Counts, operational hub: Detroit sector.”

Moose’s stomach tightened at the news. “Wait—he was a CI?”

Link didn’t look up, fingers flying over his keyboard. “Yeah. The Latin Counts—think of them as mid-level operators in the Detroit underworld. They run drug trafficking, extortion rings—basically the full ugly package. Not the biggest crew, but fanatically protective of their turf. Aaron flipping to DEA? That’s like taping a target to your back in gangland.”

Moose’s jaw clenched, heat rising in his chest. “So they took him out to send a warning. And now she’s got that bullseye on her back.”

Link’s brow creased deeper. “Bingo. She was crashing with Aaron in that shoebox apartment. If she’s sitting on anything about Aaron’s undercover work, the gang’s gonna want her quiet. No leaks allowed.”

Bear stepped forward, arms crossed, face grim. “We gotta shield her and your mom. I say you and I head to Banner tomorrow, talk to your uncle. He needs to know what’s coming his way. Maybe bring all of them here. The Big House is empty now that Link and Sammy moved into the new place.”

Moose nodded slowly. “Bringing Mom and Elena here sounds smart. Safer for them, definitely.”

Bear’s tone stayed steady, commanding. “We’ve built a fortress here. Security’s tight, top-notch. Hell, there’s even a safe room in the house—the kids’ refuge if things go sideways. You know how these cases circle back.”

A flicker of relief passed over Moose. “Knowing they’d be protected here… that helps with the worry.”