Chapter 55 Going to War

***Gideon***

I sink back into my chair slowly, the weight of it pressing down on my chest.

“I don’t do this,” I say quietly. “I don’t… need people.”

Max shrugs. “Everyone needs someone.”

“I replace people,” I snap. “That’s how this works.”

“And yet,” he says, gesturing toward the glass, “she’s irreplaceable.”

I swallow.

“She makes everything work,” I mutter. “The company. My schedule. My life.”