My eyebrows shot up. “Backup?” As the elevator closed, I pointed the gun straight at his head, jabbing the barrel into his temple. “Do you really think it’s a smart thing to piss off a woman with a gun?”

“No, actually, I don’t.” He didn’t move, just calmly watched me.

“Good. Stay by my side, and if you even think a wrong thought, I’m going to blow your brains out. How’s that?” I had no idea why he wanted to come with me, but if he was planning something, it wasn’t going to work. Lowering the gun, I waited for the door to open. The guards were just on their way upstairs when I caught up with them. They eyed James with suspicion.

“You should remain here, ma’am. The cameras don’t show any intruders, so it’s likely nothing, like the last time this one went off, but just in case...” one of the guards said.

“No, I’m going with you to check what’s going on.”

The guard blinked at me. “But ma’am...”

I lifted my hand, and that was enough for him to go quiet. As he’d said, this wasn’t the first time the alarm had malfunctioned. One part of me was hoping it was actually an intruder because I really felt like shooting something. I’d expected James to stay in the hallway and maybe take a look around, but he actually followed the guards and me upstairs.

One of the guards unlocked the door, while the other pushed it open. The lights came on automatically, and I followed the guards inside the room. It turned out we actually did have an intruder. One of the guards moved his finger over the trigger and I grabbed his arm. When his gun fired, the bullet embedded itself in the wall. The loud meow of a terrified cat as it ran for the terrace door that my maid must have accidentally left open echoed through the room, and I turned toward the guard.

“What the fuck is wrong with you? It’s just a cat,” I said.

“I’m sorry, ma’am. I thought...”

“Get someone to fix that wall. I don’t like bullet holes as decorations,” I said, and the guard nodded. “Somebody check the...” I didn’t have time to finish because I spotted James across the room. He was going straight to the terrace door, and even though one of the guards outside would’ve seen if there was someone on the terrace, or the cameras would’ve caught something, I still wasn’t entirely sure it was safe out there. So what the fuck was James doing?