Chapter 7 #2
I don’t want to be out of their sights even for a moment right now. Logically, I know it’s silly. I’m safe here, but the thought of being alone with my thoughts after the past few days is a hard no.
‘Think Sauvage will try to hug her?’ Blake asks, rolling his eyes and I give him a questioning look.
'The French fuck was actually really worried about you. I think the psychotic asshole actually likes you.'
'I know,' I say with a snort, ‘but I'm sure the fact that I’m the only one who can make Envy has a lot to do with it.'
Mav, Shade, and Blake share one of their looks and my eyes widen because I think I actually understand this one.
‘You guys aren’t jealous of Sauvage, are you?’ I ask.
‘No,’ mumbles Blake.
‘Of course not,’ Shade scoffs.
I laugh. 'You definitely don’t have anything to worry about with Pierre Sauvage where I’m concerned.’
Mav looks dubious.
‘He has a soft spot for me. That’s all. It’s a very platonic vibe.’
The guys don’t say anything more, but I find myself chuckling about it as the elevator rises.
When the doors open, we're in the long corridor lined with plants that leads to Sauvage’s office where two of his guys are standing guard. Thomas, Sauvage’s right hand man, is there and I give him a small wave.
'Glad you're back, ma'am,' he says.
‘Me too,’ I mutter.
We go in, and as soon as the door opens, Sauvage is standing up.
'Ma petite fleur,' he says.
I think for a moment that he is actually going to hug me and I'm not sure how I feel about that because I don't really know him well enough for close physical touch. But, instead, he takes both my hands and smiles at me, I think, genuinely.
'I have missed you, chéri,' he says. 'You are well? You are all right?'
He steps back and surveys my person as if he thinks I might have lost a limb or be harboring some secret injury.
'I'm fine,' I say, and it's not quite a lie because I'm sure I don't have any more trauma from this, hopefully final, stint at The Heath than I was left with last time.
He squeezes my hands very gently and leads me over to one of the chairs in front of his desk.
'You said you wanted to see us,' Shade says, sitting.
The others stand just behind us and Sauvage goes behind his desk but doesn't sit himself.
'My condolences for the death of your father. I thought it best for us to speak about this detective before tomorrow. Anders. I am told she is young and full of hope,' he spits, rolling his eyes. 'She will not do as she is told, not even for payment.’
Mon Dieu!’ he exclaims dramatically. ‘Save me from these starry-eyed children!'
Then, he glowers at everyone in the room.
'So, we give her une cible a target. The stalker, the murderer,' he says.
'Either one. The true criminal, or un bouc émissaire a scapegoat. It does not matter. But she will be vigilant if she is not given a win.’ He points at the guys.
‘Pierre Sauvage will not be toppled because of this bêtises enfantines childish nonsense. '
He gives the room a long-suffering look as he sits down.
'It is true what they say. No good deed goes unpunished,' he mutters, picking up a pen.
'You interview with the detective tomorrow, oui?’ he asks.
Shade nods. 'Oui. She sent me a message. Asked for a meeting at nine at the precinct in Richmond.'
Savage nods. 'Her superiors. They are, how you say, riding her ass. She is not a fresh face, but she is young enough to still have her ideals, even in this place. Tell her as much as you can.’
Pierre puts his pen down and sits back in his chair, his eyes on Shade unwavering. ‘Throw her un os a bone. Make her believe that you are telling her everything.'
Blake's hands come to rest on my shoulders, and I can’t help but nuzzle against his arm.
'How much do we tell her about Daisy? And if we tell her that we took your jet and she subpoenas you for your travel itineraries and the names on the manifests, will that implicate you in any other crimes?' Shade asks.
Sauvage raises a brow at him and thinks for a moment.
'Non,' he says. 'I do not let just anyone on my plane and all of my trips are either to London or the European continent. Other than that, my son has taken it to the Dolomites and Banff for skiing. There will be nothing for her to find.’
‘Then we'll tell her that we took Daisy on a trip to London. That should ensure we aren't implicated in my father’s and Joseph's deaths if she is suspicious that they weren't actually an accident.'
'And the rest?' Sauvage asks. ‘She will not end her interrogation there. Joe Banderville’s death in my club,' he shrugs. 'New York may technically be out of her jurisdiction, but the Banderville’s are not. She will create problems for us, this detective, if we let her.'
He looks down at me and I wince.
'I'm sorry,' I say immediately, but he waves a hand.
'I knew what I was doing, chéri,' he says. 'I am no spring chicken. I hoped I would be able to bribe her, offer her some shiny thing, but, no,' he mutters. 'Usually, I would use blackmail and be done with it, but she is squeaky clean, a paragon of virtue and justice. So, we must placate her.’
He snorts. 'The police were dirtier twenty years ago. Much easier.'
‘What does she know about Joe Banderville’s death?’ Shade asks.
‘No more than the NYPD. She will be interested in where you were the night he was killed, but I have given the police all the footage for my club and, of course, none of you are on it.
However, the death of Joseph Banderville may work in our favor.
I have heard the second son is not as sorrowful as one would expect after the deaths of his brother and father. '
Mav lets out a humorless chuckle. 'Of course he's not. Fucker's always wanted the reins of the Banderville family. He never thought he'd get them, but now that Big Brother and Daddy Dearest are dead, he's next to inherit the Banderville estates, fortunes, and businesses.’
Sauvage nods. ‘Oui. Perhaps he will take the heat off us then. Tell her what you know of him. Give her seeds that will grow.’
Shade nods and Sauvage stands.
'You are tired, rest now,' Sauvage says, looking at me specifically.
Shade gets to his feet and takes my hand, guiding me up. We leave Sauvage's office and go up to the penthouse. As soon as I enter our room, I relax a little more.
We're all inside, the guys sit down on the couch and turn on the TV.
'You're not tired?' I ask.
Shade shakes his head. 'My body isn't sure what time it is.’
'Mine either.'
I look behind me, checking the clock on the wall. 3:30.
'It's 8:30 in the UK,' I say. 'I thought I could sleep, but now that we’re up here…’
Shade’s eyes move over me slowly.
'Come here,' he commands quietly.
I walk to the couch and sink down next to him, conscious that Mav and Blake are observing.
Shade immediately pulls me into his lap, cuddling me close.
'You need to tell us what happened at The Heath,' he murmurs.
I frown at him. ‘You want to talk about The Heath?’ I ask. 'Now?’
'You have something else in mind?' he asks.
I look up at him. 'I can think of a thousand things I'd rather do than talk about The Heath.'
Shade just stares at me and I sigh dramatically. ‘They didn't hurt me.'
Mav sits down next to us, and his fingertip grazes my cheek.
I wince.
‘Except that,’ I amend.
‘Who did that?' he asks.
‘One of the Blanks,’ I say, 'but, in fairness, I think I broke his nose first.'
‘What else?’ Blake asks.
'I got zapped a few times, of course, but it was nothing compared to Joe's Stinger. So, it's sort of a footnote in the whole thing,' I say airily.
'But there's more,' Shade says.
It's not a question, and I let out a long breath.
'Fine. If we really have to do this right now…’
I lean against him and stare up at the ceiling. It’ll be easier to talk if I’m not looking at their faces.
‘Going back there… When I first came out, I was glad that they had cured me. I was even grateful to Stoke for the years I had been there, for making sure that I had learned all the important rules I was supposed to know.'
'But, then, once I was out, I realized I wasn't cured at all, and all those silly rules they made me learn… They weren't really for me, they were so that all the people around me would be comfortable. They made me change who I was so that other people would be happy.'
I glance around at them and see they’re all listening intently to my words.
'When I woke up and I was back there,’ I continue, ‘I recalled how the first year was for me. My mom left. I thought she was coming back. She never did. I got no mail, no phone calls. I was so lonely.'
I stop for a moment, swallowing hard, and Mav holds out a bottle of water, which I gratefully accept if only to have something to do while I think about what to say next.
'They broke me down,' I say quietly after I take a few gulps.
'Weeks and weeks of learning their rules.
From how to sit and stand, to when to speak and what to say.
I was punished when I didn't follow them.
I lost desserts or outside privileges. I got zapped.
Other things, too. I was put in the cells downstairs if I talked back or spoke up, or if I got angry.
And I wasn't the only one. After that, it got better. Once I became their perfect little resident, they eased up. I was rarely corrected. I was allowed out on runs, and to do online courses.’
I look back up at the ceiling.
'So, I guess, I forgot how awful it was. I was there for all the rest of those years, and it wasn't so bad, you know? It was just normal. I’d learned all the rules and I knew what I had to do.’
‘So, what happened this time to change it?’ Mav asks. ‘Did they try to break you down again?’
‘I little,’ I shrug, ‘but it wasn’t really me. There was a teenage boy there. William. New. He didn't know what to do. The way they treated him…’
I shake my head.