Chapter 15
***MALCOLM***
Malcolm still felt that strange tension coming from Rose as they walked toward the truck, but he chalked it up to a very long day and Thomas’s attempts to get to him.
The worst part was that it had worked. He knew that he needed to talk to Rose, tell her the truth about what he was, but he’d never taken a risk like that before, and he wanted to make completely sure she was the right one before he did.
The problem was that the weird vibe he kept getting from her was keeping him from taking that leap, leaving them in some strange middle ground, and he wasn’t quite sure what he needed to take that next step.
When Thomas stepped out from between two cars into their path, he knew it wasn’t more harassment from his enemy, but he could see by the look on the other man’s face that they were in for some more.
Rose stiffened beside him, and he put his arm around her and pulled her closer, but tried to keep walking, hoping Thomas would just go away.
He let them pass by, a look of smug amusement on his face, then started to follow them, whistling a happy song.
It was all he could do not to turn and smash his fist into Thomas’s face, but he took one step after another, wishing he’d parked the truck closer.
“Memory is a funny thing, sometimes you remember something right away and sometimes it takes a while,” he finally said.
“I was sure that I’d met Rose before, and wouldn’t you know it, I have.
It just took all this time for me to remember who she is. ”
He heard Rose gasp and looked over at her, surprised to find that her face had gone pale. “What’s he talking about?” he asked, warning bells going off in his head.
“Oh, so she didn’t tell you?” Thomas asked. “That’s interesting, and makes this even more amusing. Why don’t you tell him, sweetheart? Tell him who your stepfather is. I’m sure he’ll find it just as amusing as I do.”
“Malcolm, I was going to tell you,” Rose said, making his heart sink. “I didn’t have any choice. It wasn’t my idea to spy on you, he made me. Please let me explain.”
“Oh my God, this is even better than I thought it would be,” Thomas said, laughing.
“Not only are you dating the daughter of your enemy, he sent her here to spy on you. I couldn’t have set you up better myself.
Wait until everyone hears about this, you’re going to be so humiliated, you won’t be able to show your face in public. ”
He grabbed Rose by the arm and pulled her away from Thomas, desperate to get away from him and his laughter, especially now that it felt like his world was crashing down around him.
With each step he hoped that Rose would protest, that she’d tell him Thomas got it all wrong, but her silence told him something different.
“Rose, what’s going on?” he finally hissed at her. “Who is your stepfather? You talk about him all the time, but you’ve never mentioned his name.”
She looked up at him, her eyes full of tears, “I’m sorry, Malcolm, I didn’t know it would turn out like this, and even if I had, there really wasn’t anything else I could do,” she said. “I was getting ready to tell you, I was…then…well…”
“Who is he?” Malcolm asked, punctuating each word.
“Chet Carmichael,” she whispered. “But he’s not my father…he’s my stepfather and he…”
Betrayal, hot and bitter, filled his mouth. He spun around and walked away, afraid that he’d say or do something he’d regret, but Rose followed him. “Please, Malcolm, let me explain,” she said. “I didn’t want to do this, he threatened my sister, he was going to throw her out, he…”
“This is all about Diego and Sebastian, isn’t it?” he demanded, unable to look at her. “He sent you in here to try and find out what happened to them. I bet you were working with Thomas all along, I bet he was in on it.”
“I swear, I never met him until we came here, I don’t even know who he is,” Rose pleaded. “You have to believe me, I would never have done anything to hurt you. I was going to tell Chet that you and the other guys were innocent.”
He finally turned around and looked at her. “So, this whole thing was a setup from the very beginning?” he asked, bracing himself for the answer, but Rose didn’t answer. “I guess that’s my answer, I knew something was off. I’m such an idiot, I thought you cared about me.”
“I do care about you, and this has been eating me up inside,” she said. “Please, Malcolm, I know how angry you are, but just try to look at my side of things.”
“I can’t even look at you right now, let alone see your side,” he said, turning around again. “I think it might be better if you stayed somewhere else tonight. I’m not sure I want a spy under my roof.”
Rose let out a strangled sob. “I understand. I’ll call Vanessa, I’m sure she’ll come get me,” she said, then paused, but he didn’t budge, couldn’t bring himself to face her. “Okay, then. If you change your mind and want to talk or something, you have my number.”
He listened to her footsteps going back the way they’d come, then turned and watched until she made it back into the bar.
Heart feeling like it was going to break, he got into his truck, started it up and drove off, only realizing when he was halfway home that her stuff was still in the seat next to him.
Resisting the urge to throw it out the window, he chucked it into the backseat, promising himself that he was done with women forever.
***Rose***
Rose stumbled back through the front door of the bar, then headed down the short hallway to the bathroom, hoping it was empty.
After locking herself in a stall, she stopped holding back the tears and let them run down her cheeks while she dug out her phone and scrolled through her contacts.
She still didn’t cry while the call was connecting, or when it began to ring, but when Vanessa picked up, she couldn’t hold back.
“Malcolm and I had a fight,” she sobbed. “I know it’s late, but could you come pick me up?”
“That asshole,” she said. “Where did he leave you?”
“I’m at that bar where he likes to play pool,” she sobbed. “It wasn’t his fault, I’ll explain when you get here, I promise.”
“Okay, I’m on my way,” Vanessa said. “But if he hurt you, I’m going to kill him.”
“I’ll wait for you out front,” she said, fighting to stop crying. “Thank you for being there for me.”
“Anytime, just sit tight,” Vanessa said. “You can tell me all about it over a gallon of ice cream. I’ve got rocky road stashed for just this kind of occasion.”
That made her laugh, and she felt a little better. “Sounds good to me,” she said. “I’ll see you soon.”
After taking a few minutes to calm down, she came out of the stall and splashed cold water on her face, reminding herself that it wasn’t the end of the world.
Malcolm was just a man, there were plenty more out there if that’s what she wanted.
Just because he made her feel things she’d never felt before didn’t mean someone else couldn’t do so as well.
It wasn’t meant to be between them; she’d been na?ve to ever think that it could have worked.
She’d been sent there to spy on him; their entire friendship had been based on a lie.
It was not much of a foundation for a good relationship.
She’d just have to put it behind her, take the entire experience as a lesson learned, and move on.
There were choices to make, a world out there to explore, a job that she could keep if she wanted to; the options were unlimited.
Feeling better, she dried her face and hands, then ran a brush through her hair, calculating in her head how much longer it would take Vanessa to get there.
When she couldn’t think of anything else to kill time, she straightened her shoulders and left the bathroom, relieved to see that no one was looking at her.
Her mad dash to the bathroom had clearly gone unnoticed, and she walked by the doorman with a wave, then stepped outside to wait like she’d promised.
It wasn’t until she was standing at the curb that she realized she didn’t know what Vanessa’s car looked like, wishing she’d suggested they location share until her friend got there, she dug out her phone.
Just as she was about to call Vanessa, a car pulled up to the curb, the window on the passenger side slowly slid down, and she saw someone waving to her.
Stuffing her phone back into her pocket, she walked over to the car and opened the door, but when she looked inside, it wasn’t Vanessa; instead, Sandra was grinning at her, a gun in her hand.
“Get in before I blow your head off right here,” she purred, cocking the gun. “I’m only going to ask once.”
She looked around, but there was no one to help her. She was on her own. “Sandra, let’s talk about this,” she said. “You’re not in too much trouble, but if you…”
“I said get in…” Sandra screamed, pointing the gun at her with two hands. “I’ve got nothing to lose, I’ve lost everything, killing you won’t make it any worse.”
“That’s not true…” she tried again, but to her horror, Sandra pulled the trigger on the gun, firing over her shoulder into the air and cutting off her words.
“Get in the car or the next one won’t miss,” Sandra growled. “You’ve ruined my life bitch, I’m going to get even.”
She slipped into the front seat of the car and, shaking with fear, closed the door. “Put on your seatbelt,” Sandra barked. “I’m not getting stopped for some stupid reason like that.”
Trying to stall, she fumbled with the buckle, only half pretending she was having trouble with it, then was finally forced to click it home when Sandra pressed the gun up against her temple.
After letting out a satisfied grunt, she put the car in gear and sped out of the parking lot, a mad gleam in her eyes that frightened Rose more than the gun she was holding.
“What are you going to do with me?” she finally asked, trying to think of a way to escape. “You won’t get away with it.”
“Don’t be so sure,” Sandra said, grinning at her, the madness in her eyes making them look like they were glowing.
“I have some friends who have…unusual tastes, a little gem like you is just what they’ve been looking for, and when they’re done with you, no one will be able to trace it back to me.
Even better, they’re willing to pay me for my trouble, so it’s a win-win situation.
I get out of debt with some very scary people, and you aren’t there to get in between Roger and me. ”
“Get in between you?” she asked, confused. “I’m not…”
“Don’t play innocent with me, I know your game,” Sandra hissed at her. “Well, you’re not going to get Roger, he’s mine, and you’ll never get your filthy little hands on him.”
“I don’t want him, I swear, I want Malcolm,” she pleaded, noticing that they’d left town and were speeding down a dark road. “Sandra, you have to believe me, I don’t want Roger.”
“No more talking,” Sandra screamed, pointing her gun at her and taking her eyes off the road, causing them to swerve and almost wreck. “You’re nothing but a spoiled little rich girl, and now you’re going to learn not to touch other people’s things.”