And between us, we wait, eating take-out food and drinking endless coffee.
The news that Charlotte is alive and free has revived Elizabeth. And since she seems able to sleep at last, I’ve banished her to bed, simply keeping the door open a little in case she calls.
And if I’m honest, it has given me my life back too.
How could I have lived with that kind of knowledge, that degree of guilt?
But as to James and Michael….
James seems to be coping the better of the two. I'd expected it would be the other way around. He leans back in his seat, hands clasped behind his head.
“Try not to worry,” I say. “She’s resourceful, and braver than, I think, any of us realised.”
But as his face swings my way, James doesn’t looked stressed, more thoughtful. “Actually, I'm not worrying now. She’s on the move. She’s functioning, and she seems to be thinking clearly. I am frustrated at having to wait, not being able to help.”
“What are you thinking about then?”
Is he blushing?
Yes, he is….
“Something that's actually none of my business….” He shrugs, trying to brush away the conversation.
As though we have anything better to do than talk….
“Being?”
Still he hesitates.
“Come on, James. Spit it out. We’re friends, aren’t we? And are we ever going to be in a tighter situation together than this?”
He rolls eyes. “Alright, since you insist. I was wondering…. Given your situation, why you decided to enter a contract with the hotel cleaner? Beth's a beauty, but you could have taken your pick.”
For a moment, my blood boils.
No wonder he hesitated….
up a hand.
suppose it’s natural
down again, seeing the
It really is none of your business, but in fact, I have also wondered about something that is
James looks intrigued. His head tilts.
you and Michael meet? The two of you seem unlikely
scratching an ear. “Okay, fair enough. I'll tell you mine. You tell me yours. Michael
You mean the kind of club where I saw the three
nose. “Yes, those sorts of clubs. We brushed by each other a few times, then one evening we ended up scening together. Afterwards, we went for a drink and discovered that we got on well outside the clubs too. We hit it off immediately. I became involved in
He did?
did? At his
I put up the money for Michael to expand. He paid
kind of business
um… eight years back now. We’ve been good friends ever since. Come on, your turn.
I did. And every single time, I landed myself with some money-grubbing gold-digger. The last one, Adele, was a vindictive bitch to boot. It wasn’t going anywhere, but I was trying
a bottle of scotch from a cupboard and pours a couple of
Imperial in the penthouse. I'd gone out with, let's say, high hopes for
my drink,
in a helluva mood when I returned to the apartment. Anyway, I went to use the
hard time
turned round and saw her. She tried to cover up, and all she
are crinkling. “Judging by what I’ve heard from
the fact that I work every hour God sends and who…. who…” I reach for the words. “She's beautiful, intelligent, biddable. Everything I needed in the woman on my arm. So, I proposed a contract…. She would be…. just that…. the woman on my arm. In
chews on a lip. “Sounds weirdly
own lives. To have choices. Money is
more. So, what
the lifestyle that brought her. It was more than that. But it wasn't
was this danger? The previous abduction you
it was Adele….” His eyes widen, “…. working with an ex-employee who had an axe to grind. They both blamed Elizabeth for situations that were entirely of their own making, and tried to revenge themselves on me by kidnapping her. However, they were amateurs. The whole thing only lasted a few hours before we caught up
Adele and her cohort couldn’t be