"Do you need one?"
Hector held out a gun to James as he was getting ready.
"Yeah, but let's hope there's not going to be a shootout." He grabbed it from him and tucked it into his belt.
"If he brings a whole squad with him, we dip as fast as we arrived." Hector smirked, opening the door for James.
James adjusted his black suit, then stepped out of the room.
As he walked down the staircase toward the door, his mother was there, watching him with worry in her eyes.
"Do you really need to go?" She gently touched his face.
"It's just a meeting, Mom. Nothing more." He hugged her before stepping away, but before he could leave, Charlotte came running, grabbing his suit and pulling on it.
James turned back and saw tears in her eyes.
"Charlotte?"
"Come back!" She hugged him tightly.
James stayed still for a moment, reflecting on how his life had changed in an instant, more brutal, more bloodied…but more importantly, he now had one more reason to live.
