Page 44 of Toy No More

My lungs tug as I forget to breathe, too focused on the moving gears in my head as I’m trying to figure out what answer can get me killed and what answer will be the preferable one. “Of course, sir,” I say, unable to hide the loud gulp that follows. There’s a tight knot inside my throat, making it hard to inhale fully.

Fuck.He asked me towatch overhis son.Steer him in the right direction, I believe his words were.

Is that why I’m here? Because I haven’t snitched well enough? Or at all?

Shit.This man can’t expect me to have any kind of sway over the violent, manic force of nature that is Jasper, can he? Glancing across the room for a moment, I finally brave meeting Solomon Zane’s eyes again.

“Sir, I’m afraid that Jasper doesn’t share his plans with me, or give me any information beforehand. He…keeps me at arm’s length, which is his right. I’m still fairly new here, I know that. So I get where he’s coming from. I…I apologize if—”

“It is alright,” he interrupts me, voice strangely gentle, almost as if he’s speaking to a child. “It would be naïve to expect Jasper to divulge his inner thoughts to just anyone.” Yes, yes, it would. It took Mr. Wilson well over a year to start slipping things. Even more so before he began asking for my feedback. And he wasmuchdifferent in temperament than Jasper. “I admit I was, perhaps foolishly, hoping you two would click a little better, but fear not…you aren’t in trouble.”

My brows twitch together at his words and my stomach twists.

What does he mean by that?

An uncomfortable, gnawing realization I don’t quite want to accept invades my mind. It’s only an idea. It can’t be what he meant, right? Still…did he choose me to be Jasper’s driver because I’m an omega? Hoping that I would somehow seduce him and then be able to deliver information? He must know about Apollo. Has he tried this on him as well but didn’t succeed, I wonder?

A brief wave of nausea passes over me. I refuse to entertain that possibility. No, Solomon Zane sees me as a person, not just an omega. That was the feeling I got when we first met, but maybe I was the naïve one. Stupid little omega who thought he would be seen for his actions and not just as a tool to be used.

Even as everything inside me screams in frustration, I put up an unaffected, confident front. “I’m sorry I couldn’t be of more use, sir. If there is anything I can do…”

He waves his hand, again acting like this is no big deal. The pheromones he sends in my face with the movement are as placating and clear as his demeanor.

“As I said, I hold nothing against you. From what I’ve been told, you’ve been a useful, hardworking part of the operation, and I hope you remain that way. All I ask is…that you continue to keep your ear out. My son…is restless. So if you hear any whispers or hints of any rash decisions possibly in the making, I implore you to let me know right away,” he says, leaning toward me over the table with an intimately focused expression.

I know when an alpha is trying to sway me. Manipulate me. But this concerns me less than the fact he seems to think Jasper is planning to do something that worries him so much he had to get me here to nearly beg me to keep an eye out for him.

“Absolutely, sir,” I say with a firm nod.

He isn’t wrong, and with the risky moves Jasper has been making, I’m not as opposed to giving his father the information he needs if it means a more peaceful existence overall. Being put in this position still makes me feel like a bug, stuck between the feet of two warring giants, threatened to be squished at any moment, but that’s a risk I have to live with.

“Wonderful. I knew I could count on you, Kobe.” With a satisfied smile, Solomon Zane leans back into his chair. He reaches into one drawer and takes out a box of cigars. “Now, you should probably return to your work. I’m afraid my son isn’t known for his patience,” he notes with a smirk.

It’s stupid, but I briefly wonder about what Jasper was like as a child. It’s almost impossible to imagine him small and helpless and innocent…

I stand sharply and I wish I could admit that I’d rather stay here with him than go to a possibly very grumpy Jasper waiting in the car. “Thank you for checking up with me, sir. Good night,” I say with a slight bow before leaving the room.

I feel his gaze on me as I walk away, and catch the faintest scent of the lit cigar as I’m heading down the end of the hallway.

Once I step outside, the crisp evening air greets me, so fresh and so lovely. It makes me let out a sigh of relief after being stuck in that stuffy office. And as nice as the house is, the atmosphere there is anything but light.

Ahead, I see Jasper in the back seat of the car, his face illuminated by the screen of his phone that he seems to scroll on with boredom. Pulling all that invigorating oxygen into my lungs, I steady myself a little before returning. He’s going to ask me why his father wanted to speak to me, of course. He’ll be rightfully paranoid and distrustful. I just hope it won’t cause too much trouble. Especially…all the other things considered.

I go right for the driver’s door. The keys are already in the ignition, so I get in.

“I’m sorry for you having to wait, boss,” I say, quickly getting behind the wheel instead of wasting any more time. Jasper makes some sort of annoyed huff but says nothing else. I don’t doubt he will ask me soon, though, so I steel myself.

It doesn’t take long. Maybe five minutes into the drive, I feel his icy gaze peering at me from the back seat. I glance up toward the rearview mirror, inviting him to speak.

“What did my father want with you?” He’s real blunt.Better than dancing around it, I guess.

“He wanted to ask how I’m getting on. We…talked about my old boss, Carlos Wilson, a bit. He shared some stories.” I prepared that answer, repeating it in my head as we drove in silence. It came out well, confident. At least I hope it did.

Jasper twists his lips into a smirk and hums like he’s bored by it.

Good. Bored’s good.

“My father’s always been too damn sentimental,” he mutters, almost to himself, before leaning back into the seat. The tone he uses indicates the conversation is over, so I let out a quiet exhale while flexing my fingers around the wheel.

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