This was the Friday before he had to meet his grandfather. It was the last full day before he had to start school.

He would be meeting Dave Campo and Sam Ferron at the mall. Those two would be responsible for managing his security team. It would seem that Knox did not trust him when he said that he would show him something interesting when it came to Campo.

It didn’t matter. Time would tell.

Bai Li laughed. He sat in a corner of the McPolands at the mall. His first business meeting would be here. He saw the two men come up the stairs and take a seat. There was no one else on this level.

“Hello.”

Both men wore a serious look. They were professional, but he could feel the disbelief and caution they were approaching him with. This was understandable. He was young.

Taking two envelopes out of his bag, he pushed them towards both men.

It outlined how he wanted his team to be run.

Their bodies straightened, and the aura coming out of them changed. Good. There was nothing he could do about his age. All he could use was his ability to make people around him take him seriously.

“Dave. I trust you know why I asked for you?” Bai Li asked. He saw Ferron focus.

“Yes, sir,” Dave answered without expounding.

“I don’t need to know your reason or why it happened. I only need to know that you will work to the best of your abilities for me.” Bai Li remembered finding out about this man’s past when Campo started working for Bai Tao.

Campo was affiliated with the mafia. His mother remarried an Etalian, and they moved. His younger half-brother was now the head of the family.

Campo’s history was murky, but he used to work as the head of security for his brother. When his biological father got sick, he moved back here. To pay for his father’s medical bills, he used to work part-time doing high-end heists.

He started working at Trident to be the inside man for a job. During the planning stage, his father passed away, and he pulled out of the job. It was a unique skill set.

Campo thought like a criminal, which was often much more useful. Ferron would think about how best to protect. Campo thought about how best to infiltrate. If he could only have one, he would pick Campo. He would be able to find the weakness in a system. With both of them, he would see how they worked together.

“May I ask, how did you find out?” Campo asked. He wasn’t on guard, just curious.

Bai Li understood his attitude. Even if Bai Li knew, it was because Campo admitted it himself. There was no evidence, no matter how he searched.

“It was hard. I was looking into my mother when something at the museum caught my eye.” It was a lie, but it had enough information that it seemed like the truth.

The Daris Museum job was the only one that Campo agreed he was behaving sloppily.

“I see. You are very capable.”

Bai Li laughed. “I think it is too soon to decide that. Are you willing to take on extracurricular activities? With the right planning and incentive. You are also free to say no.”

Campo smiled. It was cruel and taunting. “I like you, young master.”

Bai Li would take that as a yes.

For him, the best part was that Campo couldn’t be bought or swayed by Ping An. She had nothing to offer that he didn’t already have.

Bai Li didn’t know why the man liked to work as a security guard. He wouldn’t question it, either. He would be grateful until Campo decided to move on.

Ferron watched the whole interaction in silence. His gaze on Campo getting sharper. In the end, he looked away without saying anything. His only job was to protect Bai Li. Looking at the document in his hand, he couldn’t help but shudder. This boy was far too similar to Knox.

The envelope contained schematics for the building. Complete assessment of weak points. Instructions on finding information about the other tenants. Basically, it pointed out how they should do their job. It was a threat. The young master was saying, ‘I know how it should be done. So don’t fuck around.’ Ferron cleaned out his thoughts and decided to work diligently.

“Ferron. I will take you to meet my father.” Bai Li planned to hide a lot. That meant he would have to make his father aware of some things to take attention off of others.

Bai Tao already gave him a security team. He didn’t want the two groups to come into conflict, so it was best to introduce them to each other.

Ferron pulled out a document and business card.

Bai Li took it. He didn’t know whether to consider Knox thorough or nagging. It was documentation for a separate security company not affiliated with Trident.

“Go and sit at another table.”

Both men looked at each other before getting up.

Bai Li waited. It wasn’t long before Tobias Carpenter came up the stairs.

Without artifice, he raised a hand and signaled the man to come over.

Tobias hesitated for a second before coming over.

“Mr. Carpenter, I have an offer for you.” Bai Li thought of a million ways to approach. The only one that worked was being straightforward. All the other scenarios he ran in his head ended badly.

“Do they let children run around like this nowadays?”

Taking out another envelope, he pushed it towards Tobias. He didn’t answer. Curiosity was his best weapon. Facts and money would come next.

Tobias sat opposite him. Ignoring the envelope, he started eating. Bai Lui also pretended like it didn’t matter. He calmly looked outside the window. Thirty minutes passed before either of them moved.

Tobias gave in first. Reaching for the envelope, he pulled out the documents inside.

It was a contract. Information on the embezzler that was about to frame Carpenter. A blank check. Job title and duties. A full breakdown of Bai Li and his family members.

“I have an eye for talent, Mr. Carpenter. You are very talented. I also have a psychotic mother. Multiple real and imagined enemies. A dysfunctional family. For six months you will work as a secretary. During that time you will find and train someone to take that place. I have provided you with a list of possible candidates. After that, you will be hired as my legal counsel.”

Tobias’s hand trembled as he read through the information.

Bai Li was counting on one thing. Inexperience. Tobias didn’t have any experience or opportunities.

“Fill in the amount it would take to break the contract with the company you are working with. The money needed to pay off your family debt. The amount you think is a suitable signing bonus.” Bai Li tapped the folder in Carpenter’s hand. “Your first job is to deal with the embezzlement happening in LP electronics and the person who was going to frame you.”

“Think of it as a test.” He pointed at Campo and Ferron. “Coordinate with them.”

“I haven’t even said yes,” Tobias said in a small voice.

“Are you in a position to say no?” Bai Li took out a pen and handed it to Tobias. “After six months, I will give you a company. Under it, you will act as a corporate fixer. That is where your interests lie, isn’t it?”

Tobias looked like he saw a ghost. “How did you know?”

Bai Li only smiled. “In the future, it will be your job to know. I believe that you can do it.” Bai Li stole a fry. “Be ruthless. Just know, if you turn your fangs on me, I will rip your throat out.”

Tobias took a deep breath. Something in him was released. The stress in his face, his tense shoulders relaxed. Tobias gave a vicious smile.

Bai Li had to wonder why everyone around him had a look like that.

“Yes, boss.”

Bai Li felt reassured by those words. Bai Li didn’t have what it took to restrain Tobias Carpenter. It would never work. Instead, it would cause him to become resentful.

For a man like this, it would be best to give him a long leash. So long that he thought he was free.

Carpenter was an interesting man, but not that unique. If he hadn’t been framed for embezzlement, he would have worked for the same company until he retired.

With his skills, if he set out on his own, there was no way he wouldn’t be successful.

Bai Li was thrilled to be the excuse that Carpenter needed.

He had both Carpenter and Campo. All he needed now was a skilled hacker. He would build an IT department to hide him in.

“You have one week to take care of your little problem.” Bai Li took back the signed contract. “Get in touch with me when you are finished.”

As he left Ferron followed him and Campo approached Tobias.

Good. They were smart. He wouldn’t have to micro-manage them. Knowing how to act without being ordered was a good indicator of competence. Next, he would have to check their restraint.