Page 31 of Falcon's Prey

I threw the collar at him. “Here, Fido, got you some accessories.”

His face became stony the moment he caught the spiked collar. I walked past him smiling to myself. Before I could close the elevator door, he was there.

Bummer.

“Where to?”

“Headquarters.”

The ride to Remington’s headquarters was quiet on my end. Not that Ren tried to engage me in conversation.

I knew how things worked, and with my father in a coma, the board would make a move for temporary control over our assets. Even when something was yours, it was still conditional. Men craved power, and they seized opportunities.

Once Ren parked the Maybach, I got out and smiled because I knew this close to downtown, someone would always be watching.

Ren gave me a funny look. The doors to my family’s empire opened, and the employee there greeted me.

“Good morning, Miss Reming—”

“Fuck off,” I told him as I made my way to the elevators.

“You’re a delight this morning,” Ren commented.

When the elevator to the top floor of headquarters opened, I walked in like I owned the place. I was used to the looks—you know, the ones jealous people give you. The whole “she was born into this, she didn’t deserve it” bullshit. Well, I believed I’d paid for my entitlement—every day at the cost of my life or when I kneeled for my family. There were things I did that they had no idea about.

“You can come into the room, but you have to stay in the back. Do not talk,” I told Ren without waiting for his response.

I pushed open the doors to the meeting room and strutted inside. The men at the oval table looked at me, some with disdain, others with lust, all of them with hate.

“You’re late,” Mattias, the head of the board of trustees, said as I walked in.

“Sorry. While you were too busy sitting here contemplating a way to remove my father from power, I was out there making the snake necklace a best seller. You know, the one I said was too basic and you shouldn’t produce in the first place?”

His jaw went hard, and he sent a look toward Silas, who was sitting at the head where my father should have been. But right now, he was too busyalmostdying.

“Please sit down, Ember,” Silas said between gritted teeth.

Rolling my eyes at him, I did as he said and took a seat next to him.

“So, what’s your big play?” I directed my question toward Mattias.

“Remington’s annual gala is fast approaching, and with your father indisposed, we need to move fast before investors sense weakness. We took a vote, and for all of our best interest, we decided that while your father recuperates, I should take the lead for the company.”

I looked over to Silas, who was eerily quiet.

“Excuse me,” I said in a sweet voice. “But I think I missed the part where your last name was Remington.”

“You may carry the name, but don’t forget this company would be under if it wasn’t for the shareholders,” Mattias said as others silently agreed.

“First of all, that was a long time ago. Don’t sit there like you haven’t made back your investment five times over already. Second of all, we have the mines in South Africa, Canada, and Brazil. Let’s not forget we have the Ember. So if we were to part ways, guess who wins?”

“That’s enough, Ember!” Silas yelled.

I sent him a reproachful look. It was like he didn’t care.

“You’re right; this is enough.” I got up, not sure why I’d bothered to come in the first place. “You’re all going to do whatever the fuck you want either way.”

I started to walk away, but got pulled by my arm.

---