Page 32 of Duty Unbound

She exhaled slowly, turning back toward the house. “Good,” she murmured, more to herself than to me.

I watched her walk away, my chest tightening in a way I didn’t particularly like.

She was right to be worried.

Inside the main house, Jace worked methodically, supervising as workers installed exterior doors with steel cores, ensuring they’d hold against anything short of a battering ram. Ty double-checked as a different trusted company installed the biometric access system, confirming only authorized personnel would be able to get through doors.

Multiple fail-safes was the plan—if one system went down, another would kick in.

The windows were another disaster waiting to happen, but not anymore. We’d already overseen the installation of shatterproof laminate, along with secondary locking mechanisms to prevent forced entry. Logan had just finished setting up the RFID system for vehicle access, which meant no more rogue delivery drivers bypassing security.

“I’ve coded the access to the team only,” Logan told me, showing me the system on his tablet. “Even if someone clones the signal, it won’t work without our encryption key.”

I gave a nod of approval. “Good. Keep testing for vulnerabilities.”

Logan’s lips quirked up at the corner. “As if I’d do anything else.”

It had been a productive, if expensive, day. The businesses we’d used for all the installations were trustworthy, but we’d still made sure to directly oversee and test everything ourselves.

Controlled chaos.

We were just wrapping up when Nova came storming out onto the patio, arms crossed, lips pursed in annoyance.

“This is ridiculous,” she announced, sweeping a hand toward the team. “I get that we need security, but this many non-creatives on the property is ruining my energy. You’re throwing off the vibe.”

I exhaled slowly, shoving my hands in my pockets to keep from saying something I’d regret.

Mel, evidently already anticipating the conflict, stepped forward. “Nova, they’re almost done. Let’s just?—”

I cut her off before she could smooth things over.

“Mel, don’t,” I said, keeping my voice firm but even. “I don’t want you running interference for me.”

I turned to Nova directly. “All or nothing,” I said. “We don’t cater to whims when it comes to safety. Vibes are of secondary importance to staying alive.”

She huffed out a breath, flipping her hair over one shoulder. “I knew hiring security would be a nightmare.”

“Then you should’ve hired someone else,” I said flatly. “But you didn’t. And now you’re stuck with me.”

Her eyes narrowed, but she didn’t argue.

Because she knew I was right.

Mel sighed, pressing her fingers to her temple like she had a headache forming. “Nova, go inside. Please. Everyone will be gone soon, and things will feel much more like normal.”

Nova gave an exaggerated groan, but she spun on her heel and stomped back toward the house.

I glanced at Mel. “She always like that?”

Mel gave a small, wry smile. “Only when she’s awake.”

I huffed out a quiet laugh before turning back to the team.

We weren’t here to make friends. We were here to keep them alive. And nothing was going to get in our way—not even Nova.

“We need to make staff changes,” I told Mel as we walked around the perimeter. “Starting with Ron at the front gate.”

Her head snapped up, eyes immediately defensive. “Ron has been with us for years. He’s like family.”

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