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Agonizing silence. No one says a word for a moment, but then I want to know why Charlie ended up in jail. I search Maksim’s face as I ask, expecting him to tell me. He doesn’t. He’s as impassive as ever, standing there with his arms hanging by his sides.
“We did a bank job,” Charlie says, “it went wrong and I was the only person with thekahunasto hold off the police chase. Maksim told me not to worry, that if I got caught, he’d get me out of jail, but he lied about how much control he had over his government, and I was forced to serve my sentence.”
“He-he left you in jail?”
“Yeah, he did,” Charlie says, “so I bided my time—used the time you and I had together to break you down, to make you fall for me so I... so I could teach Maksim a lesson.” He hesitates once more, I imagine gutted that he has to tell me all this. “I wanted you to hate him. I’ve wanted you to hate him for so long...”
It’s anguish to know he really was using me. Of course I’ve suspected all along but hearing it...
“When you said you wanted me from the moment you saw me...” I have to squeeze out every word because my throat is restricted with burning tears. Does he really care about me? Has he ever?
“Course I fancied you—you're a pretty girl—but I won't lie. I had an agenda, and that was to turn you against Maksim because I'd heard from every person in his inner circle that you were his most valued possession—his Achilles' heel.” Every word he says is like taking a slug to the gut. “Then I was going to send you back to torment him, whether it be physically or mentally, and I was going to leave feeling satisfied that the four years I spent in jail were redeemed. Losing you is worth far more than four years, trust me, I know...”
I’m not moved by his sweet nothing. I’m too hurt.
“Why didn't you just kill him, Charlie?” I say, striving to control this possessing urge to cry. It's the most obvious question. If Charlie is so powerful in this world and feared by so many, why not just kill Maksim and be done with it?
“He’s too calculating for that,” Maksim butts in, and I look down on him. “He fancies darker things than I do, Blaire—four years of revenge has satisfied him nicely, I will bet.”
“Death is too easy,” Charlie says eventually, sighing with aggravation. “And that motherfucker knows it—expected it.”
I'm sure Maksim did. It must have come as a surprise when Charlie asked to hire me, instead of putting a gun to his head.
“None of that matters to me now, Blaire—you have to believe me. I don't give two fucks about Maksim or what he did to me anymore. I just want you. I'm so in love with you it's insane.”
“You could have told me all this, Charlie.” My voice is breaking with tears. I feel like I can’t breathe properly. “All those times we talked in the kitchen... And you sent me home? Did you send me home to torment him, as you planned?”
“No! I told you I didn't want you to go!” he yells that with such passion, desperate to convince me. “Don't you get that?Iwant totake care of you—give you anything and everything you desire...” I hear him punch something, probably the steering wheel. “Please, don’t let him do this. I fucking care about you, Blaire! How many times do I have to tell you?”
I can feel the urgency in him—I believe him. He does care about me... And that's all I need to hear, that he loves me. If his plan was to make me hate Maksim and leave me here to torment him, he wouldn't be asking me to come back.
“I do get that,” I croak out. It's crazy how I trust him so explicitly, but he's... he's Charlie.
Keeping a suspicious eye on Maksim, who's now practically blowing steam because he can see that I’m weak to his adversary’s spell, I again tell Charlie that I want him to come and get me, that I can't live like this anymore. “I don't want to be with Maksim. I want to be with you.”
Charlie exhales down the speaker. “You don’t know how long I’ve waited to hear you say that.”
James...He pops into my mind.
“Can James come with us? Please, I can't leave him here.”
“If that's what you want, baby,” he says, and I hear that he's smiling. “I'll be with you in less than an hour—I'm already half way to London. Put that fuck down if you have to and leave your apartment. Don't pack anything. Just meet me by the river.”
“What about James? I don’t know where he is...”
“Don’t worry. I’ll have my men get a hold of him. Just get away from Maksim.”
A great sense of hope makes me smile, even through my tears. I should never have doubted him. I know he truthfully cares about me.
“Okay,” I whisper, nodding to myself, “I'm going to leave and wait for you by the river.”
“No you're not!” Maksim dashes up the staircase then. I kick him back down, knocking myself over in the process. I drop my mobile to grip the banister rails, gasping out in pain as I bump down a few steps.
Glancing back on instinct, I see Maksim unfolds his tall body from the floor and slowly gets to his feet, the look of the devil in his eyes. His hair is ruffled and his bottom lip is bleeding. Thick claret slithers down his smooth chin, dripping on the collar of his white shirt.
“You've gone too far, my little pet,” he says, his lips thin as they curl against his teeth. “I feared this day would come—the day you feel something other than the need to protect me—but this is beyond the latter.”
“And whose fault is that?” I say through gritted teeth.
