Page 20 of The Echo of Forever

“It was bigger than your brother, too.”

He chuckled and leaned back.

“And you saw firsthand how it ended for him. Do you want the same to happen to you?”

I shrugged and hit play on the video.

Ms. Pretty never moved from her spot by the door. She took the room in more than once before leaving.

Mmm.

“What’s so important on that screen?”

I spun it around for him to see.

He stared at it for a short while, lips pulling deeper and deeper into a frown before speaking.

“Isn’t that…”

“Yup…” I turned the screen back. “She’s the new broker.”

The broker title was always inherited; her father previously held the role and was known for his hot temper and ruthlessness.

“Is she part of your plans?”

I knew all there was to know about Forever James before I stopped her car in the middle of the street two weeks ago.Everything I’d done up until this point was to cross paths with her, and she’d come right to me.

The broker would never miss an opportunity to put a Cannon in the dirt, no matter who held the role.

“Only when I get her on my side,” I said, closing the laptop and standing. “You don’t have to worry about me leaving Everwood for months at a time again. All I need will come to me from now on.”

He sighed and unfolded himself from the chair, stepping in front of me as I rounded the desk.

“I’ll have compound security tighten up. More rounds at night. The younger ones probably need to be escorted to and from until further notice, too.”

I nodded.

Our family wasn’t big, but we were close. There was more than handful of underage kids to protect, though.

“Lock it down tonight. Oliver and I have a meeting just outside the city.”

We both started for the door, and I pulled it open to let him out first.

“Noted…” he turned to look at me from halfway up the hall, a worried frown pulling at his lips. “Because I know I can’t convince you to drop this, I’ll step aside from attending EG’s annual gala this week. Might be best for you and Oliver to show face.”

The Everwood Group was nothing more than a subsidiary of the Collective. Every year, they held a gala for the city’s most prominent to attend, charging five hundred a plate on the guise of making Everwoodbiggerandbetterbuttogether.

It was the only time rejectors openly shared space with society members, the only time it was acceptable.

After my uncle disappeared from view, I checked the time and headed for Oliver’s office. He’d left the compound before me this morning, and I hadn’t seen his face since.

“I have to go, Oliver,” a sultry voice echoed from his open office door as I approached.

His laughter followed until I stepped into view and lifted an eyebrow.

“I see you need more work to do around this bitch.”

The lanky woman with a fitted cap over long braids looked back and untangled herself from his lap.