The night was still thick with adrenaline. The echoes of roaring engines and flashing sirens had long faded, leaving only the four of them in the dimly lit warehouse lot. Ghost leaned against his bike, arms crossed, that same unreadable smirk playing on his lips.

Erin was still trying to wrap her head around what he had just said. "You owed Jamie?"

Ghost met her gaze without hesitation. "Yeah."

Dax stepped closer, his posture tense. "How?"

Ghost sighed, running a hand through his dark hair. "Not here." He glanced around, as if expecting someone to be listening in. "This isn't a conversation for the middle of the street."

Jinx scoffed. "Oh yeah, because this is so top secret. What, was Jamie some kind of undercover agent now?"

Ghost didn't take the bait. Instead, he looked at Erin. "You want to hear it or not?"

Erin hesitated. She could feel Dax's protective energy radiating off him, the way he watched Ghost like he was sizing up a threat. Jinx was more amused than anything, but she could tell even he was curious.

She exhaled. "Fine. Where to?"

Ghost jerked his head toward his bike. "Follow me. I know a place."

Dax's frown deepened. "Not happening. You tell us here or not at all."

Ghost met his glare with a level gaze. "Look, you don't know me, I get it. But I just got you out of a tight spot, so maybe try trusting me for ten minutes?"

Erin glanced between them. She could see the way Dax's jaw tightened, his instinct to protect warring with his curiosity. She made the call for him.

"Let's go."

Dax clenched his teeth but didn't argue. He just turned toward his Supra, muttering something about it being a bad idea. Jinx grinned and clapped Ghost on the back as he passed. "If this turns into a murder mystery, I'm blaming you."

Ghost chuckled. "Fair enough."

Twenty minutes later, they pulled up outside an old diner on the outskirts of the city. The neon OPEN sign flickered, the parking lot half-empty. It was the kind of place truckers and night owls drifted through, cheap coffee and quiet corners.

Inside, they took a booth near the back. The waitress, a tired-looking woman in her fifties, barely glanced at them as she poured coffee. Ghost stirred his absentmindedly before speaking.

"Jamie was good to me," he started. "Back when I first started running, I was reckless. Thought I was untouchable. That kind of thinking gets you in trouble fast."

Erin leaned forward, elbows on the table. "What kind of trouble?"

Ghost exhaled. "I owed money. To people you don't want to owe money to." He tapped his fingers against the table. "Jamie bailed me out. Not with cash, he didn't have that kind of money, but with a deal. He called in a favour with someone who did."

Erin's stomach twisted. Jamie had never told her anything like this. "Who?"

Ghost shook his head. "Not important anymore. Point is, I never forgot. I would've done anything to pay him back, but then..." He trailed off, expression darkening.

No one needed him to finish that sentence.

Ghost looked at Erin. "I was at his funeral."

Her breath caught.

"I stayed at the back. Didn't talk to anyone. Figured I didn't deserve to." He shrugged. "But I saw you there. And when I heard you left for LA... I figured that was the end of it."

Silence settled over the booth.

Jinx, for once, didn't have a joke lined up. Even Dax looked like he wasn't sure what to say.

Finally, Erin spoke. "Why help us tonight?"

Ghost took a sip of his coffee. "Because I saw your car. I knew it had to be you." He set the mug down. "And because you're Jamie's sister. That means something."

Erin swallowed hard.

Dax, still wary, crossed his arms. "So what now? You expect us to trust you just because you have a history with Jamie?"

Ghost met his gaze evenly. "No. But I think you should."

Jinx leaned back in the booth, stretching. "Well, I dunno about trust, but I like the guy. Saved my ass tonight, so I'll buy him a damn burger."

Ghost smirked. "Appreciate that."

Erin wasn't sure what to think. Ghost was a wildcard, someone from Jamie's past that she had never known about. But he had saved them tonight. That had to count for something.

She picked up her coffee and took a sip, meeting Ghost's eyes across the table.

"Guess we'll see if you're worth keeping around."

Ghost chuckled. "Guess we will."

Erin watched Ghost carefully over the rim of her coffee mug. He was unreadable, calm, confident, like he had all the time in the world. But there was something underneath it, something she couldn't quite put her finger on. And that made her curious.

Dax, on the other hand, wasn't nearly as patient. He still sat stiffly next to her, arms crossed, jaw tight. He had already decided he didn't trust Ghost, and Erin knew that look well enough to recognise that it wasn't changing anytime soon.

Jinx, being Jinx, had already relaxed into the booth like they weren't in the middle of questioning some mystery biker with ties to Jamie. He waved at the waitress, ordering a round of burgers like this was just another night out.

Erin, however, leaned in a little closer to Ghost. "So, if Jamie helped you out, why didn't you ever come around when we were younger? If you were so grateful, why didn't I know your name until tonight?"

Dax exhaled sharply. "Erin—"

She ignored him.

Ghost didn't flinch. "Jamie kept things separate. That was his way."

Erin frowned. "Separate from what?"

Ghost took another sip of his coffee, weighing his words. "Your brother had a lot of friends, Erin. But he also had a lot of people depending on him for different reasons. He kept me out of his personal life because he didn't want you getting mixed up in things that weren't your problem."

That answer didn't sit right with her. "So, you were one of the people he was protecting me from?"

Ghost let out a quiet chuckle. "I wouldn't say that. More like... I was one of the people he didn't want you worrying about. Jamie had his own way of doing things, and that meant keeping people in their own lanes."

Erin glanced at Dax, who looked like he was barely holding back from shutting the conversation down completely. She could feel his frustration radiating off him, but she wasn't done yet.

"Okay, but what exactly were you into back then?" Erin pressed. "You said you were reckless. What kind of reckless are we talking about?"

Ghost smirked, shaking his head. "You're persistent."

Jinx, now halfway through his burger, grinned. "Oh, you have no idea, mate."

Ghost leaned back in his seat. "I rode with a crew. We ran the streets, did some racing, some courier work, some..." He hesitated before shrugging. "Let's just say, not everything we did was legal."

Dax muttered something under his breath and ran a hand down his face. "Oh, for... Erin, does it really matter?"

She turned to him. "Yeah, it does."

Dax's eyes darkened. "Why? What difference does it make what he did ten years ago?"

Erin exhaled. "Because Jamie was my brother, and I want to know who he really was. I want to know about the things he kept from me."

Dax looked away, clearly biting back whatever he really wanted to say.

Ghost, watching the tension between them, finally spoke up. "Jamie was your hero, huh?"

Erin turned back to him. "He was my brother. That's all that mattered."

Ghost nodded slowly. "Then you should know he wasn't perfect. He made mistakes, same as the rest of us."

Something about the way he said it made Erin's stomach twist.

Before she could ask anything else, Dax suddenly stood. "I think we're done here."

Erin blinked. "Dax..."

He grabbed his jacket. "We've got work in the morning. Jinx, finish your damn burger, we're leaving."

Jinx made a face but shoved the last few bites into his mouth. "Damn, alright."

Erin hesitated. Ghost just watched her, something knowing in his expression.

"You've got more questions," he said.

She nodded.

He smirked. "Then I guess we'll be seeing each other again."

Dax clenched his jaw but didn't say anything.

As they left the diner, Erin could feel Dax's frustration boiling beneath the surface. The drive back was going to be a long one.