be drinking expensive whiskey with them and imagining all the ways I'm going to slaughter each and every one of them. “Her house is being watched around the clock. Discreetly, of course,” Jay assures from behind me. Doesn’t feel good enough. Something I learned from when she was just a girl getting undressed in her room, while I watched from afar through her window. I knew her skin was as soft as silk and that her pussy would feel like fucking paradise. But being so far away and only just watching—it wasn’t good enough. And now, her safety feels precarious. I have the best men in the world watching out for her, but if the Society were to send someone after her—they wouldn’t hire some low-life off the streets. They’d hire someone just as trained to hunt and kill as the men circling the perimeter of her house. I spare a glance at Jay through the mirror, his shaggy black hair curled around his pale face as he fiddles with the plastic red rose on my nightstand. I don’t feel particularly comfortable having him in my personal space, but Jay decided he didn’t care and walked into my bedroom and sat on the bed anyway. Addie hasn’t even gotten the chance to come here yet. I'll have to rectify that soon. I walk over to him and snatch the rose from his hand, his fingernails painted black today. Every time I see them, they’re a different color. Never one to shy away, Jay prods. “Is that personal? Where did you get it?” I cock a brow at him, but he just stares up at me with faux innocence in his hazel eyes, patiently waiting. Whatever. “My mother gave it to me a long time ago. She loved roses and had them all over the house. She gave this to me to always remember her by.” My tone suggests that Jay keep his mouth shut. So, he does. I twirl the rose, getting lost in the memory of my mother. She was beautiful. Long, black hair with eyes as dark as my right eye—nearly black. But she carried a shroud of sunlight around her. Dad always joked that she kept herself in the shadows so everyone else could shine. She was selfless and kind, always giving but never taking. Deep down, I know my mother would be incredibly proud of what I’m doing. She may not approve of my methods, but I think she would’ve found a place with the girls I save. Helping them and taking care of them. She would’ve been happy. Setting the rose down, I turn and glance one last time at the mirror. I make sure my three-piece suit doesn’t have a wrinkle in sight. The Armani suit has been