Because trust won't stop bullets, but power might.
Asher stood by the stone fountain outside the Greyson estate, the morning fog curling around his legs like smoke.
The air tasted like rain and tension.
He adjusted the collar of his black coat, sharp and tailored, the fabric stiff around his broader shoulders.
Another reminder of how much he had changed.
He was no longer the fifth-born shadow that the Greyson family ignored.
Footsteps approached behind him.
"Car's ready," Tristan said, his voice low and precise.
Asher turned around to face Tristan.
The older man was dressed in his usual uniform of charcoal slacks, pressed coat, and gloves despite the mild weather.
There was nothing flashy about Tristan but there was something exact and very deliberate.
"You pulled strings for this, didn't you?" Asher asked.
Tristan merely nodded his head.
"He doesn't meet with children. You are the exception."