CHAPTER 9

Chapter 3

The car ride was insane, and Emerson could tell they weren't slowing down even as they wove through traffic.

The growing chorus of sirens behind them made it pretty clear that slowing down wasn't happening anytime soon.

Thank god he and Anna weren't normal people—otherwise they'd both be puking their guts out by now.

But he'd made up his mind: never again. He was never getting in this psycho's car again.

He had zero interest in another death-defying joyride.

The second the car screeched to a halt at the airport, Emerson and Anna practically threw themselves out of it.

Reaper didn't even pause. The instant he heard the doors slam, he floored it and disappeared back into traffic.

No goodbyes, no nothing—the police sirens were getting way too close for that.

"Is he always like this?" Emerson asked, watching the car vanish.

"He used to be more... restrained. Maybe he was trying to impress you," Anna said, though she didn't sound convinced by her own explanation.

"Great. I'm so honored," Emerson said dryly.

"Come on, we need to move." Anna grabbed his arm and hustled toward the terminal.

Their flight was leaving soon, and they were cutting it close.

As she dragged him along, Anna couldn't resist giving him grief.

"You know, boss, if you'd told me where we were going last night instead of being all mysterious..."

"And if you hadn't taken forever coming down the mountain this morning..."

"We wouldn't be running around like idiots right now."

Emerson let himself be pulled along without a word, taking his lecture like a champ.

Anna's pointed comments made him realize that while Reaper's driving was partly his own twisted idea of showing off, it was also necessary to get them here on time.

But then it hit him—had he just been played by Reaper?

According to Anna, the guy wasn't usually quite this reckless, though he was never exactly stable.

This time, he'd probably jumped at the chance to go completely overboard.

Apparently having a poker face didn't guarantee loyalty.

Anna noticed the shift in Emerson's expression.

She'd deliberately clued him in. Since Emerson and Reaper had never met, he didn't understand what the guy was really like.

But Anna had dealt with him plenty and knew exactly what kind of madness lurked under that blank expression.

If Emerson brought him on future ops, Reaper would probably screw things up royally.

Once he snapped, he stopped caring about anything—including consequences.

The thought made Anna sigh internally.

She'd actually known Reaper for a long time. Back then, he'd gone by a different name, because whatever had been holding him back was still intact.

But once that restraint broke, he'd really earned his current nickname.

From that point on, he'd forgotten his real name and only answered to Reaper.

She didn't mention any of this to Emerson though. She had no desire to revisit those memories.

She'd found a new life now. Glancing at Emerson, who was currently grinding his teeth in frustration, she felt grateful for that.

Emerson was muttering curses about Reaper. He really hadn't expected the guy to use their first meeting to mess with him.

The incident itself wasn't a big deal, but it was about respect—and that mattered.

If he said he wasn't bothered by getting played by a subordinate he'd just met, he'd be lying.

"Look, boss, that's just how he is. Nobody takes him too seriously," Anna said, getting Emerson settled into his seat. "But aside from his attitude problems, he's actually pretty reliable."

She knew her boss could hold grudges, and if she didn't smooth things over, Reaper would definitely pay for it later.

Despite all his power and apparent death wish, Anna had no doubt that Emerson could handle him.

Even though Emerson usually seemed laid-back, Anna—who'd been pulled out of the jungle by him—knew exactly how terrifying he could be when the mask came off.

Anna's reassurance worked. After her explanation, Emerson's irritation cooled considerably.

"Can he handle the cops?" he asked.

Now that his anger had faded, Emerson found himself worried about Reaper's situation.

Even though they'd just met and the guy had pranked him, Emerson was loyal to his people.

Whatever happened, he backed his own.

"Don't worry about it. He's done this before. He'll smooth things over," Anna said, relieved that he'd really let it go.

"Done this before?" Emerson was speechless. How much trouble did Reaper usually cause? Being chased by a dozen cop cars was routine for this guy?

This really didn't fit with his low-profile approach.

"Anna, what exactly does our company do?" Emerson finally asked the question he'd been dreading.

He was genuinely embarrassed. As the supposed head of the company, not knowing his own business was pretty pathetic.

"Oh wow, the boss is actually asking about the company!" Anna immediately hit him with the sarcasm.

"Look, I've been working on this big project that's about to pay off," Emerson said vaguely. "Besides, you're handling everything perfectly. I trust you completely."

His compliment worked. After rolling her eyes, Anna still gave him an answer.

"I'm just a girl with no business skills, so I figured I'd open a security company."

Just a girl...

Security company...

Emerson's brain short-circuited. He was beyond words.

No wonder the business had grown so fast—they were in the mercenary game.

Emerson hadn't fully grasped what "security company" meant in this context.

In America, security companies were basically legal mercenaries.

Wilson alone ran at least three security companies, mainly to get permits for military-grade weapons.

"It's good business, but we might need to pivot," Emerson said.

What else could he say? He'd never managed the company for a single day, and Anna had built an empire from his pocket change.

"Pivot to what?" Anna didn't object, just looked curious.

"You'll find out when this job's done," Emerson said.

"Now get some rest. You won't get another chance once we land."

Without waiting for her response, Emerson closed his eyes.

Seeing he wasn't going to elaborate, Anna gave up and leaned back to rest.