I never did like the old house. It was cold, dark, everything a bachelor might appreciate. But this—this was different. The windows, the light, everything I’d craved for my reading, all right here in front of me.
“Thank you, Father. I love you.” I hug him tightly.
“I love you too, sugarplum.”
A knock on my window breaks me from the memory, and I wipe away the single tear that has slipped down my cheek. I miss my father dearly—the man he was before Barbra, the snake with venom. I glance out the window to see Maximus standing beside my blacked-out Charger.
Maximus had always been like an uncle to me. At thirty-five, he was found by my father on the streets when he was just fifteen, back when my father was a single man, just starting Onyx with small security jobs. Maximus loves to tell me about the day myfather asked him if he knew how to hold a gun and take a punch, because he had a sugarplum who needed protection.
Maximus’s fifteen-year-old brain thought my father was talking about a dog, but when he realized what my father meant, he understood his role: to protect the heir of what would soon become the largest security agency in Vegas.
I climb out of my car, and he pulls me into a hug. He always knows when I’m struggling with the loss.
Maximus is the only one who never judged me for coming off as cold and heartless after my father’s death.
But no one knew that in this life, you have to grieve in small moments over time, never letting it consume you, or everything will crumble.
“How are you doing, Selene?” He releases me, looking at me with concern.
“I’m okay, Max. Just another moment. Are you and the team ready for tonight?”
Like my father, I always addressed the inner circle professionally in front of outsiders or team members to avoid making them feel lesser.
“Yes, everything is ready. You sure it’ll be fine with just five of us on the field?”
We start heading inside, and I nod, glancing at him.
“I don’t think we need much more. The Italians just asked for an extraction. It can’t be too hard. The club will be packed.”
“Okay, I’ll leave you to get ready then. We’ll meet here at eight.”
As we walk into the foyer, I check the time—it’s only two, giving me plenty of time to get some things done before I prepare.
“Is, uh, Lily coming here to work, or is she staying at her place?” I look over at Max and smile, knowing he’s smitten with my best friend but feels it’s unprofessional to make a move.
“She’ll be working from here. She enjoys her larger office and the quiet when you and I are in the field, you know this.”
I give him a wink, and he blushes a little.
He nods and takes his leave, heading to his part of the house on the east end, which includes his office, bedroom, and bathroom.
I remove my black heels from lunch and make my way up the marble staircase to my rooms. Once inside my bedroom, I drop face-first onto my bed. Today has gone exactly as I needed it to, minus the visit from Barbra. Hopefully, my luck will continue into the evening as The Wraith.
The Wraith is my code name. I earned it when, at seventeen, I discovered an intruder on the property during my midnight soak in the hot tub. He was trying to sneak up the side of the house to my father’s bedroom. I stalked him through the shadows and ended him before he could reach the balcony. It was messy but swift. When I walked into my father’s bedroom, covered in blood and explaining my first kill, I was no longer his sugarplum.
Since then, I’ve worked in the darker side of Onyx, offering services to people involved in less-than-legal endeavors.
Barbra never knew who The Wraith was. No one did, except Maximus and Lily, for my safety. My father always said it was better that way. To Barbra, I was just a spoiled kid with tattoos, piercings, and a bad attitude. I never did get to ask my father what he saw in her, but I was fine with her judgment of me. It made her underestimate me—something she’d soon regret.
My phone buzzes with an email notification from Lily: copies of the documents she signed. That means the originals are with my lawyer. I get off my bed and head into my study down the hall. Flipping on the lights, I head to my desk and turn on my laptop. My study is at the front corner of the house, with floor-to-ceiling windows offering a view of the long driveway.
Once my computer powers on, I print out the copies of the documents and put them in the top drawer of my black desk. Just as I do, my company phone rings. I glance at the unknown number and hope it’s not the Italians wanting to go over the plan one more time, they are occasionally annoying to work with. I decide to take the call, Onyx-issued phones can’t be bugged or traced, thanks to Lily’s work.
I swipe the phone to answer, putting it on speaker while texting Max to head over.
“Hello, this is Selene.”
“Well, I didn’t expect an assistant to answer The Reaper’s personal line.”
