There were too many documents forged in my name to even attempt to go through in a single day. Evans had a preliminary list of employees involved in dealing with Sylvia—they had meetings and secret dealings. Her pockets were consistently lined with money; she also had multiple sketchy boyfriends she went out with. Who they were, I didn’t know, but I wanted to know now. Those men could be heavily involved in her schemes, or worse, leading her down this dangerous path to wealth because she was so blinded by dollar signs.

Augustus expected me to be my mother, just as he mentored her to be. It was probably the assumption that she filled me in before she died, but she didn’t, and I had no letters or documents from her to help me out. Brent’s warnings and the board had to be enough.

I felt nauseous again.

“Hello?” Kelly waved a hand in front of my face, trying to snap me out of my trance. “Are you putting these on or no?”

With a sigh, I snatched the stockings from her hand, feeling the silky fabric slip through my fingers. I could already sense the thrill of another reckless decision washing over me. But if I was going down, I was going down in style. I had the perfect touch to add to the already daring outfit waiting for me in my closet.

She scrolled through her phone while I slipped into the stockings, shimmying them up my thighs and butt. How women used to wear these daily back in the day was beyond me. True boss babes. I hastily grabbed the barely-there bodysuit and pulled it over my chest, zipping it up my back—though it barely made it halfway.

“Okay,” I muttered, taking a leap into my closet for the final pièce de résistance.

As I rummaged through the hangers, I brushed past Brent’s jacket—secretly wanting to burn it—and found what I was looking for.

I grabbed what I’d really been looking for: a floor-length sheer robe in a perfect red, the kind that whispered danger with every flutter of its fabric. Along with it, the matching red heels that promised to make even walking feel like a power play.

Making haste before Kelly noticed, I slipped into the robe, letting it glide over the bodysuit, its sheer material teasing just enough while covering nothing. I told myself if I was doing this, I was fucking doing this.

“Kel,” I called out, poking my head from behind the closet door, keeping the rest of me hidden for maximum effect. “Mind giving me a once-over? Just wanna make sure I look halfway decent.”

Her eyes flicked up, glistening with excitement. “Yes, show me!”

Her jaw fell to the floor when I slowly stepped out, donned in all red. A small twirl in a circle made her jump up and let out a scream.