"You're not serious."
Ryan said it slowly, as if he dragged the words out long enough that they might change meaning halfway through the air.
I didn't look up from the tablet in my hands. "I'm very serious."
Clara crossed her arms, jaw set. "You're telling me Adrian Blackwood, maximum-security inmate, documented crime lord, psychological manipulator, has requested a meeting with CSI outside Hell's Watch."
"Yes."
Sophie leaned back in her chair, eyes sharp, calculating. "And not through official channels."
"No."
"And not with a written request."
"No."
Ryan let out a low, disbelieving laugh. "Let me guess, He sent someone."
I finally looked up. "Yes."
All three of them spoke at once.
"Who?"
"From where?"
"Why isn't Internal Affairs already screaming?"
I held up a hand. "One at a time."
Clara exhaled slowly. "Start with who."
"Enzo."
Silence dropped hard, and Sophie's brows lifted first. "As in Enzo Bellini?"
Ryan straightened. "As in Adrian Blackwood's external operator Enzo?"
"As in the man who never shows up unless Blackwood wants something very specific," Clara finished.
I nodded once. "The fucking same Enzo. He called me this morning, and I suggested we have a face-to-face meeting."
Ryan rubbed his face. "Oh, this just keeps getting better."
Enzo Bellini didn't walk into the CSI building like a criminal, and I knew the moment he stepped in as the receptionist had buzzed us with a tone I'd never heard before, half confusion, half alarm.
"There's… a Mr. Bellini here to see Captain Cole."
"I'll handle it, send him to the conference room," I responded immediately.
Clara had been on her feet before I finished the sentence.
Now, replaying it, my jaw tightened, and Sophie interjected. "Everything Blackwood does is a statement."
Enzo stood when I entered the conference room. "Captain Cole," he said pleasantly. "Thank you for seeing me on such short notice."
"I didn't agree to see you," I replied flatly. "You showed up."
He smiled as that amused him. "Fair."
Clara took a position to my right, Sophie to my left, and Ryan lingered near the door, arms crossed, and Enzo's eyes flicked over each of them once.
"I won't waste your time," Enzo said. "I want to know what you will do about Mr. Blackwood's request.
I folded my arms. "You don't fucking get to make requests from inside a prison."
Enzo tilted his head. "And yet, here we are."
Clara's voice cut sharply. "You're skirting very close to obstruction of justice."
Enzo didn't blink. "I'm facilitating a cooperation."
"By bypassing formal channels?"
"By respecting urgency."
I leaned forward. "Say what he fucking wants."
Enzo met my gaze directly. "Adrian Blackwood is willing to cooperate further with CSI. But he wants the first meeting conducted outside Hell's Watch."
Ryan barked a laugh. "Absolutely not."
Sophie's eyes narrowed. "Outside the gate?"
"Yes."
Clara shook her head. "That's impossible."
Enzo spread his hands slightly. "It's symbolic."
"That's not reassuring," Ryan muttered.
I didn't look away from Enzo. "Why?"
"Because," Enzo said calmly, "Hell's Watch is a performance space, and Adrian prefers negotiations conducted on neutral ground."
Clara snapped, "He doesn't get to define neutral."
"He already has," Enzo replied smoothly. "You just haven't acknowledged it yet."
Back in our office bullpen, the arguments started immediately.
"No."
"No way."
"This is insane."
Ryan paced. "You don't meet crime lords outside their cages."
Sophie countered, "You do if you want to understand how they operate."
Clara rounded on her. "Not like this."
I held up both hands. "Enough."
They stopped. Reluctantly. "He didn't fucking demand," I said. "He requested."
Ryan stared. "That's worse."
"He's testing," Sophie added. "Seeing where the line is."
Clara's voice was low. "And seeing how far you can be pulled."
That landed so hard. "He wants control of the setting," Clara continued. "That's the real ask."
Ryan pointed at me. "And he's using you as leverage."
I didn't deny it.
"Say we even consider this," Sophie said. "What does 'outside the gate' actually mean?"
I exhaled. "A secured space by the CSI"
Ryan threw up his hands. "So a fucking stage."
"Yes," Sophie said. "A deliberate one."
Clara's eyes stayed on me. "You don't go alone."
"I didn't say I would."
"You don't engage him directly."
"That's not possible."
"That's not negotiable," she snapped.
Ryan leaned in. "What did Enzo say exactly?"
I repeated it verbatim.
Sophie nodded slowly. "Blackwood wants to establish parity."
Ryan frowned. "What's the difference?"
Sophie looked at him. "Parity is more dangerous."
Enzo hadn't left immediately and was waiting when I returned to the conference room, he was seated again, hands folded, gaze relaxed.
"You took longer than expected," he observed.
"We're not agreeing," I said.
"I didn't expect you to," he replied. "Not yet."
Clara stepped forward. "You're asking for something that violates protocol."
Enzo nodded. "Yes."
Ryan added, "And common sense."
"Also, yes."
Sophie folded her arms. "What guarantee do we have that this isn't a setup?"
Enzo smiled faintly. "If Adrian wanted you harmed, Captain Cole wouldn't be standing."
That silence was heavier than the last.
I stared at him. "That's not reassuring."
"It's honest." Enzo tilted his head. "And because Adrian trusts me to speak without embellishment."
Clara said sharply, "And you expect us to trust you."
"No," Enzo replied. "I expect you to trust patterns."
Sophie's eyes sharpened. "Explain."
"Adrian does not move without intent," Enzo said. "He does not waste leverage, and this meeting is not a trap."
Ryan muttered, "That's exactly what someone setting a trap would say."
Enzo looked at him. "If it were a trap, I wouldn't be here."
I exhaled slowly. "What are his terms?"
Enzo didn't hesitate. "He wants to meet in a hotel."
Clara blinked. "That's… specific."
"Adrian appreciates clarity."
Ryan squinted. "What does he get?"
Enzo's gaze returned to me. "He gets to be heard."
Sophie frowned. "And you think that's all he wants?"
"No," Enzo said honestly. "But it's where he wants to begin."
I asked, "And if we refuse?"
Enzo stood. "Then he'll continue cooperating at the minimum level required and fucking nothing more."
Clara's jaw tightened. "Blackmail."
"Negotiation."
Ryan swore under his breath.
Clara said quietly, "Nate."
"I know."
Enzo added, "He believes Captain Cole values structure, and this is his way of offering it."
Sophie's voice was almost impressed. "He's courting the system."
"No," Enzo corrected. "He's challenging it."
When Enzo left, the room stayed silent.
Finally, Ryan said, "You say no."
Clara nodded. "You shut this down."
Sophie hesitated. "Or… you control it."
All eyes turned to her.
She met my gaze. "If you refuse, he escalates elsewhere."
Ryan groaned. "I hate that you're right."
Clara looked at me. "This is your call."
I exhaled slowly, feeling the weight of it settle. Adrian Blackwood wanted to step outside his cage, and for the first time since this began, he wasn't pushing; he was actually asking.
"Draft conditions," I said finally.
Clara stiffened. "Nate"
"Draft them," I repeated. "Tighter than his."
Ryan stared. "You're agreeing?"
"I'm engaging," I corrected.
Sophie nodded. "There's a difference."
Clara searched my face. "You're sure?"
I wasn't, but I said it anyway. "Yes."