Brenton''s face turned ghostly white as he abruptly ended the call. He cast a quick nce in James''s direction, barely acknowledging him before signaling his crew of about a dozen men to clear out.


    They had stormed in and were now storming out just as fast.


    Soon, the room was calm again.


    Curtis nced at the main door, noting the time. Exactly two minutes.


    He exchanged a knowing look with Wyatt, whose surprise matched his own. Their eyes said it all: ''This guy is definitely something else.''


    "So, do I still qualify to do business with James?" Toby finally broke the silence.


    James''s lips curled into a slight smirk, amusement dancing on his handsome face. Instead of a direct answer, he remarked, "Looks like you''ve got the chops to bring down the Bishop family."


    Toby seemed to recall some old memories and advised, "Best to keep a low profile, though."


    James raised an eyebrow, casually picking up his coffee cup. He toasted the air with it, took a sip, and stood up.


    Without another word, he headed for the door.


    Curtis and Wyatt nodded at Toby and followed James out.


    Toby stayed seated, watching the three men until they disappeared from view. He let out a long sigh.


    Yep, these guys were no pushovers.


    **


    In the car.


    "Toby''s quite the character," Wyatt remarked.


    "A bastard nobody ever noticed, seemingly harmless, but his patience and discretion put the Bishop family''s other brothers to shame," Curtis noted, his usually stern face showing rare admiration.


    But...


    "Why would hee to us?" Curtis muttered, skeptical of Toby''s low-profile approach.


    "A wise man knows when to adapt. Besides, who else but the Shepherd family could he turn to?" Wyatt theorized, convinced this was the only logical exnation.


    Curtis shot him a skeptical look. He often doubted Wyatt''s reasoning, "Even if that''s true, we still need to tread carefully."


    Being cautious was second nature to Curtis-trusting others didn''te easy for him.


    Wyatt touched his nose, feeling somewhat judged.


    Curtis nced out the window before asking, "Where are we headed now?"


    This road wasn''t leading back to their vi.


    At the intersection ahead, Wyatt signaled a turn and said, "Picking up Ms. Mirabe from the library."


    Hearing that, Curtis checked the rearview mirror and decided not to pry further. But then something else came to mind, and he added, "Oh, by the way, I found out who was tailing our carst time."


    "Huh?" It took Wyatt a few seconds to process, then he turned to Curtis, "Who was it?"


    After a moment of silence, Curtis revealed, "It seems they weren''t following James... they were after Ms. Mirabe."


    "Wait, following Ms. Mirabe? What''s that got to do with her?" Wyatt was puzzled, trying to connect the dots.


    Scratching his head, Curtis exined, "The Davis family. It might not be as straightforward as the info you found before."


    James, who had been texting in the back seat, looked up, intrigued by the conversation.


    "I don''t have all the details yet; it''s a bitplicated, but let''s just say it''s not simple," Curtis said with a serious tone.