Page 123 of Implode

I walk Asher out, but before I allow my workers back in, I triple-check that I have everything in its place. We take the stairs, me walking a bit faster than usual. I am anxious and worn out from the stress. I just want to get to my girl and take her home where I know she will be safe. If I could whisk her away to some island out in the middle of nowhere, I would.

When we get to the floor my office is on, everything is calm. Brenna is still off since my coming to the office today was a last-minute decision.

“Does your assistant have access to this office?” Asher asks, watching me unlock my door.

“Not a key if that is what you are referring to,” I answer. Does he think Brenna is capable of double-crossing me? Being thorough is what makes people in this field the best of the best, and it isn’t like I haven’t thought it myself. “She is being watched though and is most likely involved. She has connections to Eugene and seems to be flirting with Dan while at work.”

Asher gives me a look. “That seems mighty suspicious.”

“It does. I am working on it. And it seems like the list of people trying to ruin my life is growing as we speak.”

I lock the door and move to the wall where I hit a switch under my desk to reveal a hidden compartment where I have the security features that only Graham and Collins know about. Not even Tyler was made privy to just how anal I am when it comes to my security techniques here at HH. Yet there are still breaches, and I’m over it.

I manually change the settings and allow for the sensors to provide feedback during work hours—instead of my previous schedule which only ran after hours.

“Any action?” he asks.

I look down at my phone. “None. Maybe they need more time to turn on.”

“Or maybe they were all discovered and shut off at the source,” he adds.

I allow his words to penetrate. “I think you are right. We have a mole, and it has to be someone who works security for me to be able to watch me close enough to know my next move.”

“I’m going to just meander around the building if you don’t mind and see what I can get access to during the workday and test out your checkpoints.”

I nod, grabbing my Glock 48 that I keep locked up in a metal box in my closet. I tuck it into the waistband of my pants. It’s been a while since I actively carried, and just feeling it against my skin puts me into a dark mental state.

“I’m going to lock up and go get Claire. I’m going to convince her to go back to Hillsboro until I figure out this gigantic mess. I need her one hundred percent safe until Graham is back from his honeymoon to help. Then I’ll come back here to brainstorm more with you. If I have to shut down the entire building, so be it.”

“Speaking of Claire,” Asher says, turning toward me at the door to my office. “Well done, man. She is lovely.”

I nod. “Thank you. Took us a while to get to this place, but I am thrilled that we both came to our senses.”

“Good, I know how pigheaded you can be.”

“Gee, thanks.”

“You’re welcome,” he replies, exiting to go explore.

I pull up Claire’s number on my phone and give her a ring to see if she is still waiting for me in her office. Surely, she’s finished her list of tasks and is just hanging out with Tyler, driving him nuts with a bunch of questions.

When she doesn’t answer, I resort to text.

Nic: Baby? You still waiting for me?

Nic: I need to talk to you

Then I try Tyler’s number.

Nic: On my way to Plus None. Everything okay?

Within seconds, I get a kickback message saying that what I sent was undelivered with an error. That’s weird.

I can’t wait for the day where I’m not second-guessing everything. Today is not that day.

I jog out of my office and see Brenna’s panicked face as she gets off the elevator. She looks like she is sick.

“I wasn’t expecting you yet.” My words come out a bit harsh. I don’t know whether or not to trust her. I know she’s holding something back.

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