Chapter 9 #2
Scott smiled. “It sounds good.”
Tim beamed, then gestured for Scott to follow him.
Scott spent the rest of the afternoon wandering around at a casual pace, scooping leaves out of the ponds. Tim came to check on him, pointing out his favourite koi carp, which looked more like a shark. He had a deep scar running down one side of his body and was missing part of his tail fin.
“The park he was at wanted to get rid of him,” Tim explained. “Claimed he was scaring the children.”
“Does Thomas spend all his time adopting animals?”
Tim shrugged. “The deer herd were due to be culled. Fred the Fox only has three legs, and have you seen Susan the Swan?” He shook his head. “Poor girl is missing part of her beak.”
“Ouch.”
“Don’t worry, Thomas sorted her out with a prosthetic one.
She’s nesting somewhere with her mate, but be careful walking around the wildlife pond.
” Tim pointed into the distance. “It’s about half a mile in that direction.
Susan and her mate won’t give you any warning; they’ll just burst out of the bushes and go for you.
Ever heard the rumour about swans being able to break your arms? ”
“No, I can’t say I have.”
“Well, they can. I’m walking proof of it.” Tim smacked his right arm. “Broke it in five places.”
“You…fell over?”
Tim slowly shook his head. “No. It was all beak and wing action. I’d rather face a momma bear than a pissed-off swan.” He gripped Scott’s shoulder. “Repeat after me. Always pick the bear.”
“Always…pick the bear.”
“Good lad,” Tim said, letting go.
Scott looked back at the mansion. “Do you see much of Thomas?”
Tim shook his head. “He stays inside mostly. It’s a shame; he used to spend hours in the gardens before he went to prison, but he’ll message to say I’ve done a good job.”
“How does he know if he doesn’t come outside?”
“Cameras,” Tim replied, pointing a few out. “But we’re hoping with you here, he’ll come out of his shell…or his nest.” He frowned. “That’s what snakes live in, right?”
“I think with me here, I’ll have the opposite effect, and he’ll stay in his nest.” Scott sighed, then recoiled. “And what do you mean, we’re hoping? Who’s we?”
“The staff. We’ve got a separate group chat.
Me, Janice – she’s the cleaner, you’ve not met her yet – and Carly and Jay, the chefs.
Carly seemed keen on you, says you might be the one to help Thomas, says you’re handsome.
” Tim studied Scott for a long moment, then nodded. “When I squint, I can see it.”
“Thanks.” Scott snorted.
“Thomas got back from prison, and apart from the auction that we all kind of bullied him into having so he’d socialise like he used to, he’s spent most of his time inside on his own.”
“I’m not going to be much help in getting him out of the house.”
“I saw you drive off together yesterday.” Tim smiled. “That’s the first time he’s left the grounds since coming home from Brixton.”
“But did you see us come back? How furious he looked.” Scott slumped. “He’s been avoiding me ever since.”
“He can be stubborn.” Tim shook his head.
“How long have you known him?”
Tim blew out a long breath. “Must be about ten years now.”
“Ten years?” Scott counted backwards. “You knew Thomas when he was twenty-one?”
Tim nodded. “When he first moved in here.”
Scott widened his eyes. “He bought this place at twenty-one.”
“Yeah, right after the court case.”
“Court case?”
Tim eyed Scott suspiciously. “I thought you were in Brixton with Thomas?”
“I was…for three years.”
“And what do you know about him?”
Scott opened and closed his mouth a few times before blurting, “He likes snakes. He loves his tattoos, can be grumpy.”
Tim shook his head, turning away from Scott. “Dear, oh dear, I think Carly’s got it all wrong.”
“He can sing,” Scott said defensively. “I’d say his voice is world class.”
Tim paused. “You’re right about that, lad.” He checked his watch. “Six o’clock. I’m done for the day. You can keep the net; there’s always bits getting in the pond. It’ll give you something to do when Thomas locks himself away.”
Tim strolled away, whistling to himself.
Scott frowned.
Court case.
Thomas never mentioned any court case.
He never mentioned that he was rich and owned a mansion either.
Scott made his way back to the house, but instead of going to the top floor, he stayed on the bottom one, strolling into the extended part of the property home to the swimming pool.
He rested the net Tim had given him against the wall, then approached the pool. The smell of chlorine made his nose itch, and he knelt at the side to test the temperature.
It was warm.
Good for swimming, but perfect for lying on his back like a starfish and staring up at the glass roof.
Scott undressed, neatly folding his clothes, and placed them on one of the nearby loungers.
He lowered himself into the pool, swam the length a few times, then lay on his back, wondering whether he knew Thomas at all.
They were all slightly different versions of themselves inside.
Scott hadn’t told Thomas everything about himself either.
He’d touched on subjects, like his strained relationship with his sister, but he’d not gone into detail.
Hell – he hadn’t even told Thomas that the governor had spoken to him in private to deliver the news about his sister.
Thomas thought she was still alive, and Scott had been content to let him believe it, let him believe there was still a chance once Scott got released that he could reconcile with her.
Scott rolled over, took a deep a breath, then swam to the bottom of the pool. He crossed his legs and tried to remain as stationary as possible. A shadow approached from the side and hovered there, looking in.
He knew it was Thomas.
It could only be Thomas.
But for a moment, he convinced himself it might not be.
For a nanosecond, he thought he saw Warren, and it was enough of a shock for him to open his mouth and take a gasp of water.
He uncrossed his legs and kicked off from the floor of the pool, spluttering as he broke the surface.
“Christ, Scott,” Thomas growled, dropping to his knees at the edge. He grabbed Scott’s arm and helped haul him out.
Scott vomited up pool water onto the tiles on his hands and knees. A warm towel was thrown over his back, and he shot Thomas what he hoped was a grateful smile, but his eyes and his nose were both burning.
“Were you trying to drown yourself?” Thomas asked.
Scott banged his fist into his chest, clearing the last of the water he’d swallowed.
“What gave it away?”
Thomas steadied him as he got to his feet.
“Idiot,” Thomas hissed, leading him over to the loungers. “Good job I was spying on you.”
“Spying?”
Thomas pointed at the camera in the corner of the room. “I’d hate to think what might have happened if I didn’t know you were in here.”
Scott decided not to mention to Thomas that the reason he almost drowned was, in fact, because he was there, providing a distorted shadow at the edge of the pool that Scott’s messed-up brain changed into someone else for a split second.
Scott kept the towel loosely around himself as he sat down, and Thomas huffed as he collapsed onto the lounger beside him.
“You didn’t come up for dinner,” Thomas said eventually.
“Would you have eaten it with me?”
Thomas shuffled. “Probably not.”
Scott closed his eyes. “Look, I’m sorry about yesterday. I really was trying to help.”
“How is almost getting a tattoo trying to help?”
“Jealousy is sometimes a great motivator.”
Thomas tilted his head and looked at Scott like he’d slipped into another language.
“Russell,” Scott explained. “I thought he might get jealous if he saw us together, all loved up. I’ve… I’ve had it before with clients.”
“I’m not your damn client.”
“I know, I know,” Scott said, holding his hands up in surrender. “But it works. I thought if Russell saw you were interested in me, he might…you know, make his interest in you known, make a move, or at least text you. I don’t know what your deal is, but there’s clearly something there.”
Thomas looked away. “We were…involved before I got sentenced.”
Scott flung himself upright. “He’s your ex?”
“Not an ex exactly, we were never official, but we…had fun together, and it looked as if things might go in that direction eventually, you know, exclusivity.”
Thomas’s idea of ‘fun together’ differed from Scott’s. Most of Scott’s clients were after vanilla sex, but Thomas preferred to keep a distance with his lovers. He liked to use toys to bring pleasure without getting his private parts acquainted with someone else.
“What happened?” Scott asked.
“I disappeared for three years.”
Scott frowned. “By disappeared, you mean went to prison?”
Thomas nodded.
“And you…didn’t tell him? You ghosted him.”
“I told him I was moving to Spain.”
Scott clutched his forehead. “Why? Why would you do that when you so obviously like him?”
“I didn’t want him to know about the tax evasion.”
“You mean the bill you could’ve easily paid.”
Thomas’s nostrils flared. “He would’ve asked questions. Questions that I don’t want to answer.”
“Questions like what?”
“How I became this rich. The real reason, not the reason I told him.”
Scott glanced Thomas’s way. “And what did you tell him?”
“It was a lottery win.”
“And what’s the real reason?”
Thomas stiffened his jaw. “I’m not comfortable discussing it.”
Scott bit his tongue to stop himself from asking about the court case Tim had hinted at.
“I texted Russell to say I’d moved back, but he ignored me. Then I invited him to the auction, but he brought a guest…”
“A guest?” Scott asked tentatively.
“Some guy he’s mucking about with.” Thomas shrugged. “I had my chance with him, but I didn’t…”
“Didn’t?”
“Trust him enough. With all of me. This Thomas, the one from before, and every Thomas in between. It’s my fault it wasn’t more than two sexually compatible people messing about with toys and coming a lot.”
Scott reached over and squeezed Thomas’s thigh. “I’m sorry, and I really do mean that.”
Thomas nodded, then shifted in his chair to face Scott. His face stayed blank. “But maybe there’s still hope.”
“Hope?”
“He texted me. We were texting for a few hours.”
Scott beamed. “See, told you my plan would work.”
“We reminisced, talked about better times.”
“That involved dildos and fleshlights.”
“Something like that.” Thomas’s expression remained unreadable. “He wants to meet.”
“Don’t be too eager,” Scott warned. “Play it cool.”
“I told him I was too busy at the moment.”
Scott nodded. “Good plan.”
“He asked me what I was doing, and I replied I was filming amateur porn for your profile so you can earn 100K.”
“Wow. Okay.” Scott blinked a few times in quick succession. “And how did he respond to that?”
“He hasn’t replied yet.”
“I see…”
“Did you really…do that for me?”
“Do what?”
Thomas rolled his eye. “Drag me into the tattoo shop to make him jealous.”
“Well, I didn’t do it for myself, did I?” Scott snorted. “I mean, did you see the snake I picked? Talk about a close call.” He looked back at the pool. “Fancy a swim?”
Thomas narrowed his eyes. “Can you swim?”
“Yes, most of the time.”
“I don’t have my shorts,” Thomas said.
“Neither do I, and Zara’s not here to make you feel self-conscious.” Scott got up and dropped his towel.
Thomas scoffed and snatched it up off the floor to lay on the lounger. “Animal.”
“Hey, Thomas…do snakes like water?”
“Some of them do.”
Scott sighed as he lowered himself back into the pool. “Then show me.”
He shot Thomas a wink, expecting him to stay fully dressed in his chair, glaring at Scott as he lay on his back watching as the sky darkened through the windows, but Thomas stood up and took off his clothes.