“No, I’m not. I simply don’t want to share you with that filthy piece of shit. How can you even stand to be near him? Or did you forget what his family did to yours?”

“He was a child when my family was killed, and you know, as well as I do, that he wasn’t involved in his father’s business as much as his half-brothers were. But, if it makes you feel better, I’ll kill him if I even sense he’s a bit like his father. How about that? And I don’t have to sleep in my room at all, or I can give him a sleeping drug. There are really plenty of options.”

“I still think this is the stupidest thing you’ve ever done. I don’t know what you’re trying to prove or do, but it’s not going to work.”

“You don’t have to worry about me.”

“I’m your second-in-command, so of course I’ll worry. And we grew up together. It’s my duty to stop you from making a huge mistake.”

“Thanks for warning me, but I really...”

One of my men was running toward me, a file in his hand. “Meg sent this to you, ma’am.”

“Thank you.” I took the file and opened it. Meg was the leader of my tech team, so I assumed she had some news about our enemy’s moves. “Shit,” I said after I read through it.

“What is it?” Brent asked as I closed the file.

“It’s the Desaltis.” I tapped the file against my leg. Just when I thought we’d get a breather, my enemies reared their ugly heads. “They provided the Ezzatis’ men refuge and offered to let them join their ranks.”

“Not many survived,” he said.

“Well, yeah, but who knows how many spies and secret partners Desmond had that we don’t know of? They’ll make a move against me. That’s for sure. They don’t like that we’re taking over the Ezzatis’ territory. Some of the Ezzatis’ suppliers ran too, but some are seeking to make new deals. We need to make sure they don’t sign anything with the Desaltis. You can take care of that, right?”

He nodded. “Of course.”

I handed him the file. “Then go talk to the people Meg tracked down and convince them we’re the better choice.”

“Consider it done,” he said confidently. “But that...”

I lifted my hand. “If it’s about James, I don’t want to hear it. He’s my responsibility.”

“He doesn’t have to be. Nothing stops you from blowing his brains out. If you don’t want to do it, I can do it for you.” His gaze bored into mine.

“No, and I don’t want to talk about James anymore. You’re dismissed.”