“Well then. Go on. Get ready, and be quick. I don’t like to wait.” I picked a jacket from my closet and shrugged it on, then left the room briefly to get more weapons. When I came back, James was ready to go. “Follow me. And hurry.”

His brow furrowed as we strode through the hallways and toward one of the exits in the part of the building where I hadn’t taken him before. As I punched in the code for my special elevator, scanned my finger, and waited for the retina scanner to do its job, James leaned against the wall next to me.

“Why aren’t we using the main door?” he asked.

“What does it matter?”

I glanced behind us to make sure no one was coming, because if anyone saw us here, I was sure they’d try to convince me I was doing the wrong thing, and even if I told them I’d do whatever the hell I wanted, they’d still go find Brent or send someone after me, which could put parts of our business at risk, and I didn’t want that.

Sure, my death would also put business at risk, but Brent could probably continue it under his own name. It might not be easy for him to gain the prestige my name carried, but I was sure the business would remain good. I had no idea why I was thinking about this, though, since I definitely had no intention of dying tonight.

Once we were inside the elevator, James was still giving me a look full of suspicion. The door opened, and I peeked out into the hallway. When no guards were in sight, I motioned for him to hurry after me. We went through the back exit, and I placed my hand on his shoulder.

“Keep your head down,” I whispered. The guards spotted us a moment later, but it was dark outside, and I waved at them so they wouldn’t pay too much attention to me. Of course, they’d know I’d gone somewhere, but they didn’t have to know that James was with me. They could believe it was Brent or some guard. Then again, it was the guards inside who usually had to worry about who would go with me and who’d stay, and all those outside had to care about were any intruders that might try to sneak inside the house.

“Get in the car,” I said to James when we reached my black Ferrari in the parking lot. When I brought the engine to life, I was glad that no one had come outside looking for me. I headed for the gates, and the guards only waved at me as they opened them. Then I sped away from there. My phone rang a couple of minutes later, but I hoped it wasn’t anything important.

“Where are your guards?” James asked.