35. Champagne and Whiskey #2
Daniel stopped the car in front of the building and opened the door for me. Since the accident, he had always been with me, accompanying me everywhere. He was the head of Bastian’s security and made it his life mission to never get me out of his sight.
I heard the bodyguards talking the other day about how Daniel felt personally responsible for my disappearance and for the accident as well.
It wasn’t his fault, and I felt the need to tell him that, but every time I tried to speak to him, he completely changed the subject.
I stopped bringing it up because I didn’t want to push him into the conversation.
We all suffered differently.
Rolling my eyes at myself in the elevator, I buttoned my blouse.
It was the same blouse that caused trouble with my boss the first time we met, and the memory brought a smirk to my lips.
It was one of those memories that, at the beginning, was absolutely dreadful but turned into a funny moment as our relationship continued.
I entered a spacious hall and walked through another corridor.
There was no one there. I would’ve thought his PA stayed at work or at least one of his associates, but the floor was empty.
Many people claimed it was hard to get a meeting with Andreas, but it wasn’t a difficult task if he was often left alone in his firm without a security guard or receptionist who would stop unwelcome visitors.
I found his office quickly and entered without knocking because the door was open. From the threshold, I only saw his shiny shoes as he was lying on the couch. I came closer quietly because I didn’t want to wake him if he was sleeping, and I almost burst out laughing.
He was lying on his stomach, holding a leather cushion over his head, like he was trying to eliminate outside voices. It wasn’t the position I found him in that made me smile; it was the shower of curses and profanities mumbled into the sofa that made me giggle. He’d obviously had a bad day.
“Am I interrupting?” I asked, fighting against a broad smile that threatened to stretch across my face. I never thought I would see him like this.
He mumbled something incoherent under his breath and lifted himself, looking disheveled and annoyed.
His black hair was messy, his usually longer stubble had almost turned into a full-grown beard in just two days, during which I didn’t see him, and his loose dark blue tie and rumpled white shirt only complemented the “I need a drink” look.
“Just my favorite person I craved to see with all my heart,” he deadpanned, rubbing his eyes.
“I’m not ecstatic to be here either, sunshine,” I replied, sitting beside him. “Do I want to know what happened?”
He shot me a glance, which screamed, seriously ?
“You mean between Bastian’s coma, the lawsuit, my divorce, and Peter’s custody fight?” He scratched his chin, faking confusion. “Not much, really. Everything is peachy.”
“Obviously.” I sucked my lower lip into my mouth to suppress a smile. I didn’t want to mock him, but it was hard work. This was a perfect opportunity to have some fun on his account. However, I instead chose a more adult approach.
“Police want to talk to me,” I declared, leaning into the sofa and crossing my legs. “I told the officer I had to find out how busy you are because I refused to talk to them without you.”
“Good girl,” he praised, standing and knocking the air out of my lungs. My eyes widened, and I stared at him in shock, but he didn’t notice my reaction. There was nothing hidden behind his words. They sure didn’t have the same meaning for him as they did for me.
“I’m overwhelmed with work. I’ll be available probably in December,” he grimaced, turning the pages of the tiny brown leather notebook.
“It’s August, Andreas,” I reminded him, unsure if he was serious. He continued scanning the pages, frowning.
“Already?” He threw the small book on his desk, plopped down into his office chair, and placed his feet on the table. He clapped his hands in front of his face and closed his eyes. “Pour us a drink, Electra. God knows we deserve it.”
“Of course, Your Highness,” I teased, walking to the cabinet and hearing him exhale exasperatedly.
Inside were bottles of alcohol more expensive than my monthly salary.
I touched the Dom Pèrigmon, shaking my head over the value of the bottles, and took out the one that was opened.
Hennessy Richard was Bastian’s favorite, too.
“Do you have any news about Sarah and the lawsuit?” I asked, placing a generously filled glass on the black oak desk before I sat opposite him in the black armchair. There was a complete silence between us for a few moments until he decided to reply.
“My investigators claim there is another woman with the same story,” Andreas finally said, squeezing the glass in his hand. “We don’t know who she is yet, but if it goes out, it’ll be huge.”
I sucked in a breath, and my entire body tensed. He warned me there would be something shady behind this, but I wasn’t prepared for this.
“Why didn’t she go public with it already?
” I inquired, doing my best to stay calm, yet my voice trembled, and a big lump formed in my throat.
It wasn’t just huge; it was a monstrous beast threatening to eat Bastian alive.
And we were left to fight it without him saying to the world that he wasn’t a sexual predator.
“She is waiting for the right moment,” Andreas answered, sipping his drink.
“Sarah isn’t stupid; she knows her whole life is at stake here, so she has to be one hundred percent sure before she does something.
Which makes me think.” His eyes narrowed, and I practically saw the wheels in his brain turning.
“Why not let this news explode like a nuclear bomb now? It’s the perfect moment.
” He finished his drink while my stomach twisted with dread.
“Bastian is incapable of fighting,” Andreas continued, moving leisurely to the cabinet with alcohol to fill his glass. “In her eyes, you’re just a gold-digging nobody, but still, she’s not trying to bury you under the pile of lies and fabricated nonsense. Why?”
“Because she is scared?” I shot blindly, earning a chuckle from him.
“Sarah is many things, Electra, but she isn’t afraid of a war with us,” he lectured, bringing the bottle with him.
I watched him pour some honey-brown liquid into my glass and return to his seat.
The deep scowl on his face was making me nervous.
“She needs a bulletproof story, a woman who will be a perfect victim. Someone who will turn the public on her side. ”
“You said she has someone,” I pointed out, frowning because, in my head, his remarks didn’t make any sense. He was trying to tell me something, but I was never good at riddles while he was a master.
“Does she?” He lifted an elegant eyebrow at me, flashing me a charming smile. “I don’t think her victim is prepared to play her part.”
“Prepared?” I echoed, blinking in confusion. He only chuckled, finishing his glass again.
“Yes, Mrs. Thorn,” he nodded, leaning back into his chair, “prepared is the right word. It has to be.”
“Andreas, you’re losing me. I have no idea what you’re talking about.” I shrugged, feeling useless in helping him come up with something, yet he looked like he had everything sorted out.
“Bastian would never in his life force any woman to do anything,” he stated confidently.
He took a deep breath, staring at the wall behind me, where the TV was turned on, but the sound was muted.
“Sarah has to train that woman to put on one hell of a show for the judge and the public. She has to say the exact words and phrases and cry at the right time. It has to be perfect.”
“You’re talking about it like she’s training someone for a match,” I remarked, feeling slightly tipsy from all the alcohol I had drunk.
“Exactly.” He winked at me, a victorious smile appearing on his lips. “She has a woman willing to confirm her story, but because she didn’t experience it, she needs to be able to handle everything exactly by the book of a victim of sexual assault. And it requires time.”
“Do you have any idea how crazy this sounds?” I asked, shaking my head in disbelief. It was too much for my liking. Too many assumptions and speculations.
“It’s the only explanation,” he replied, scanning my face. “Otherwise, we would’ve already drowned under a pile of shit.”
“Okay, let’s just say you’re right,” I uttered, still not entirely agreeing with him. “What’s the plan?”
He was quiet for many minutes. We drank our drinks; my first was nothing compared to his fourth. He was deep in thought, and I didn’t want to interrupt him while he was plotting our next move, so I was musing about my responsibilities.
“Arrange me a meeting with Zoe Botegga,” he said out of the blue, making me flinch. I was thinking about my morning exercise and an upcoming lunch with Derek, and for a moment, I forgot I was still in Andreas’ office.
“How do you know Zoe?” I asked, surprised that he knew about my best friend. “And for what?” I added when he only flashed me a secretive smile.
“You’ll see, Mrs. Thorn,” he responded with a wink, teasing me with my new last name.
I couldn’t get used to people calling me that, and he couldn’t pass up the opportunity to remind me they were talking to me when I didn’t react the right way.
“But we need some place private where no one would expect us to talk about it.”
“Ideas?” I raised my eyebrows, expecting him to give me an address for some of his properties. But as was very often the case with him, I was mistaken.
“Bastian’s club, at eleven tonight.” He checked his watch, opening the laptop on the right side of his table. “I have some work; meet me there with her.”
“In the BDSM club?” I confirmed just to be sure I heard him correctly. It had to be a misunderstanding. He wouldn’t want to meet with a police officer and his brother’s wife in his brother’s kinky club.
“Yes, there. Now go, please. I must finish this.” He waved at me with his right hand already tapping on the keyboard. I rose to my feet, flabbergasted by this turnaround. I was already on the threshold, ready to call Zoe to ask her about Andreas’ weird demand when he called my name again.
“I forgot to thank you, Electra,” he said, and I frowned, not understanding his words once more.
I often felt stupid around him, but it was starting to get really annoying.
He noticed my confusion, so he at least bothered with a simple explanation.
“Thank you for coming here today and helping me with Sarah. You have no idea how much I appreciate it.”
“To have someone who absolutely doesn’t understand how your brain works listen to you?” I teased, and he chuckled, shaking his head .
“What can I do? I’m uniquely impressive. You should’ve already known that.” He winked at me and returned to his computer while I sighed theatrically, leaving him and his monstrous ego to work.
I had an interesting job to do. My best friend and I never had secrets, and I knew about her boyfriends, loves, and one-night flings. However, there was something in Andreas’ look that made me wonder.
Was there something I didn’t know about?