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“As Roxanne said,” Dan continues, his voice more even now that he’s calmed down. “The cabaret used to be run without any problems, so it’s clear that this is Karl’s doing. We just need to prove it and send his ass to jail once and for all.”
“I agree, but don’t forget that my dad might be involved as well,” I add quickly. I’d love to see Karl go to jail. But my father… despite all his shortcomings… well, he’s still my dad, and I love him. I’d rather not see him go to jail. “He didn’t outright say that he was, but he was very happy about sharing the news with me.”
Andries looks disturbed by this, but he is still mute, and I wonder what exactly he’s thinking. He stands again, this time discreetly enough for Dan not to catch him, walks to the small bar cart, and pours himself a glass of whiskey. It’s more than two fingers, and maybe it’s because my nerves are so frayed by everything that has happened today, but I lose my cool about it.
“I can’t believe you’re drinking again!” I exclaim. “Did you not just recover from being black-out drunk the other night after your little sailing escapade?”
This snaps Andries out of his silence. “It’s just one damn glass, Elise!” he blurts out, all but stomping to his seat and sitting back down. Through my annoyance with him, I notice that he doesn’t once look Roxanne’s way.
“Now that everything is out in the open, we need to come up with a plan of attack,” Dan proceeds, bringing our focus back to him. “Karl, and whoever else is working with him, has managed to catch us unaware, but we can’t let that happen again. Once we get back to Amsterdam, we’ve got to hit the ground running, and give him no chance to get one over us again.”
Agreeing with his statement, Roxanne asks, “What do you suggest, then?”
Dan takes the reins of the conversation now, his control comforting my raw emotions and how out of control I feel. Putting my trust in him helps me focus, and by the way, Roxanne turns her entire body towards Dan as he speaks, I get the impression that she feels exactly the same. All of this feels like chaos, and his offering to bring it all into order is like a safe port in a storm.
“There’s four––” he looks over at Andries, who is holding his whiskey glass and looking away from all of us, sulking. “Three or four of us, depending on Andries’ mood, apparently, so we all need to be tackling the problem from different angles. Roxie, your job is the most obvious. I assume you already know what you need to do, considering that you’re no stranger to being lambasted in the media.”
She nods, confidence creeping back in. “I’ll do an interview and showcase an unarguable statement about not being involved with any of the scandals that have happened. I can provide the completely clean history of Bar Rouge over the past years. If I can get even an inkling of proof that Karl is involved, I think I can turn the tide of public opinion, considering that Karl has so recently been in trouble because of everything that happened with Patricia.”
“That’s perfect. Elise?” He shifts his attention to me. “You're closer to Karl than the rest of us are since you work with him, so your goal will be to get as much information from him as possible. Play nice if you want, I trust you to handle it.”
“I can do that, no problem.” I almost glow under his praise, especially when he gives me a subtle wink after checking that my brother is still looking elsewhere.
“I’ll write up a testimony as a previous patron of Bar Rouge, just in case Roxanne goes to trial. Maybe I can even get a few of my friends that have also attended regularly to do the same, as sort of a character witness.”
“That’s good.” Roxie nods. “But what about submitting something written to the media as a former patron beforehand? I’d like to avoid a trial if at all possible.”
“Possibly. I’ll look into it. I have some contacts in the media here and there that might be helpful. Do you two know anyone in particular that you have in mind?”
With that, we all dive into the discussion of how to tackle the Bar Rouge scandal when we get home. I think it’s best that Roxie talk to at least one reporter before we return, just so the pressure is lessened somewhat and there won’t be as many journalists hounding her to get the very first interview from Roxanne Feng. Roxie herself isn’t quite sold on the idea, and I get the feeling that she wants a break from the reality of this horrible situation. I can agree with the sentiment… I’d love to stop thinking about it all, too.
Even if it’s tough to talk about, I feel like an enormous weight has been lifted now that everything’s out in the open, and making these plans for the upcoming week makes all of it feel much more manageable. I keep glancing over at my brother, and then back to his fiancée, noticing that the two of them still seem pretty weighed down by their own things, though. For Roxanne, I suspect it’s guilt and fear of the future, and for Andries, it’s because of the break in Roxanne’s loyalty and the fact that none of us are really on his side. My brother never seems to care if he’s the only one with his specific opinion, no matter what the subject is, so instead of coming to the conclusion that he might just be wrong, he’ll just pout and be pissed off instead. He has a really hard time admitting that his worldview isn’t the perfect one.
I think about his friendship with Dan, and see it in a new light now. The dynamic between the two of them has always been a hedonistic, easy-going Dan and a buttoned-up, broody Andries, which has led people to believe that Andries was the more mature of the two. Seeing how both men handle this situation, though, makes it clear that Dan is not only the older friend in age, but he’s also the more mature of the two by a mile. He might have a goofy streak, but Dan is sharply intelligent and capable. His petty issues with Johan have blinded me to that side of him as of late, but now I think it’s only because the love he’s feeling towards me is a totally new emotion for Dan, and he’s still coming to terms with how strong it really is.
I feel pretty strongly for him, too, so when am I going to come to terms with that myself..?
Dan catches my eye and jerks his chin toward the door. I catch his drift right away and stand. “Dan and I are going to leave the two of you. I’m sure you have a lot to talk about.”
Andries tries to stand, saying, “I’ve got nothing to say,” which makes Roxanne flinch. Dan prevents him from getting up with a forceful hand on his shoulder, pushing Andries firmly back into his seat. Once my brother relents and falls back into his chair, Dan lets up and pats him on the shoulder instead, as if encouraging the resigned man.
He comes around the table to me, and we escape the room and all the tension there within, shutting the door behind us. I let out a massive breath once we are alone in the hall, happily allowing Dan to lace his fingers through mine as we depart in the direction of both of our suites. I don’t even care where we are going, just that it’s away from the troubled couple and the ocean of issues they have to work through.
We end up in Dan’s suite, and once he shuts us inside, I kick off my sandals, not even caring where they end up. I throw myself on the bed, arms akimbo, and Dan lands beside me. I giggle, rolling over to face him, and it feels like a whole new day, even though the sun is bright outside.
“It’s finally over,” I marvel as my eyes lock in his. “I feel like I can breathe again.”
“I know what you mean,” he smiles, relaxed.
“I just have to say, I’m so proud of you for the way you stood up to my brother when he threatened to storm off. I was really into you at that moment, as inappropriate as the timing may have been.”
His smile turns sharper as he grabs me by the hips and pulls me closer. “Into me how?”
“Like this,” I purr, closing the distance between us until my lips touch his. It's so exciting, so electric every time we kiss that it’s almost impossible not to get lost in him completely. But we’re behind closed doors, and the hardest things that have been plaguing us are all over, so there’s no better time than now to get a little lost.
I take my time, going slow before I touch the seam of his lips with my tongue. Right as Dan opens up for me and we deepen the kiss, we hear the sound of the dining room door opening down the hall. We both instinctually pause and then flinch when the door is slammed shut hard.
“See? This is why I kept saying they shouldn't get married. My brother is too immature. I’d just like to point out I’ve been saying this from the beginning and no one listened to me.” I may sound a little bit smug, but deep down I do feel awful that Andries just ran out on Roxanne like that.
