Page 69 of Ascension

“I’m asking you to make him irrelevant,” I replied evenly.

Something dark and approving flickered in his eyes. “Then I’ll make the right calls. Quiet ones.”

I exhaled. “Thank you.”

“Don’t thank me yet.” He stepped closer, the air between us tightening. “When I’m done, his name won’t be salvageable. No one will touch him again, business or otherwise, and that kind of ruin has splashback.”

“I’m not afraid of getting dirty,” I said. “He’s been throwing mud at my whole life; it’s time he drowned in it.”

He studied me for a long moment, then nodded. “You’ve got your father’s cunning, but none of his cowardice, I respect that.”

“I don’t want his legacy,” I said quietly. “I’m building my own, and the foundation of it won’t be pain.”

Lennox’s smile was all teeth. “Then let me help you bury his.”

He reached into his jacket pocket, pulled out a small black USB drive, and slid it across the desk. “Digital backup. Every transaction, every name, every photo, keep it off your network.”

As I reached for it, his fingers brushed mine, a spark, unintentional and far too deliberate all at once.

“You’ve got fire in you, Black,” he murmured. “It’s no wonder men either follow you or fear you.”

I held hisgaze. “I prefer when they do both.”

He grinned, stepping back toward the door. “Fair enough.”

Pausing at the threshold, glancing over his shoulder. “I’ll be in touch.”

When the door shut behind him, I let out a breath I didn’t know I’d been holding. My father was cornered, desperate, unraveling, and I had the proof of his decay sitting on my desk.

For the first time in my life, I didn’t feel fear, nor did I feel small in my father’s shadow; I wasn’t backing down. I was prepared to bully the bully.

If nothing, I pitied him.

Because men like him only destroy themselves, all you had to do was hand them the match, and Lennox Jackson just gave me the flame.

Finally making it home, I continued to dig through the dossier Lennox had given me, and if his legal transgressions didn’t land him in jail, his personal affairs would. Apparently, he’d fathered multiple children throughout his marriage with our mother. He was nearly seven figures in child support arrears, and the women were growing more relentless by the day in collecting what they were owed. I didn’t blame them, but also, that was their burden to bear when you created a family with a married man.

As I savored my glass of wine, both James and Amiyah danced crossed my mind, and I smiled as I grabbed my phone, unlocking it as my thumb hovered over the group chat.

Me: Thinking about both of you tonight.

A pause. Then a second message.

Me: And before either of you overthink it, yes, exactly the way it sounds.

Three dots appeared, disappeared, and appeared again. A smile curved my mouth, slow and dangerous.

I poured myself another glass of wine and leaned back against the counter, the dossier still within reach but no longer commanding my attention.

I thought I would delight in Sr.’s life withering away like a diseased organ, every secret revealing a man unraveling. The paternity suits, failed shell companies, a gold-digging wife eating through his assets faster than he could launder them, instead, I just felt… tired. Tired of him doing harm when he has had the means and power to do good and be good. Tired of the realization that there was nothing good about this man, that I was supposed to love and look up to, making me feel the exact opposite.

The only comfort that came from this was knowing that my mother, siblings, and I were goodness personified, further proving how you live your life, how you treat others is always a choice. The gala had been a success, a blur of champagne, sharp smiles, and whispers behind masks. I played my part, the quiet but powerful girl boss wrapped in silk, but underneath it all, I couldn’t stop thinking about them. The way Amiyah had looked at me across the dance floor. The way James had hovered protectively nearby, his touch low on my back like he owned the air I breathed.

I was still thinking about it when my phone buzzed against the counter.

James: I can be there in 20 minutes or less, just give me the command?

I smirked, my nipples hardening at his willingness to always submit to me.