Chapter 20
Thought of the day…
You are the main character in your own life.
Don’t let anyone make you take a supporting role.
(No matter how hot they are.)
As I stepped into the ruby-red, silk chiffon Grecian-cut gown, careful not to snag the hem on my strappy gold heels, I was grateful for the foresight to pack it. Yes, I had to contort myself to zip it up, but when I stood in front of the full-length mirror, that was forgotten.
It was gorgeous.
And not to toot my own horn too much, but step one of my plan to fix Julian’s mess – look fantastic – had a big fat tick against it.
In fact, I hadn’t looked this good since I attended the BAFTAs last year and that took an entire team – hair, makeup, stylist…
This was me on my own working with what I’d brought to Aetheria.
Still, I wasn’t the spokesperson for an ethical luxury makeup brand for nothing. I knew my way around a palette, and I’d achieved that soft ethereal look Ariana Grande tends to favour. And my hair was in shiny barrel curls that cascaded down my back – like Barbie’s.
Ex-wife Influencer Barbie – coming to a John Lewis near you this Christmas. Hah!
And if Tommy’s jaw just happened to drop when he saw me? That would be the cherry on top.
My stomach aflutter with nerves – understandable, considering I was about to step into a real-life Bond film – I loaded up my gold clutch with the essentials: a compact and lipstick (for touch-ups), my phone (obvs), tissues (always), and condoms (you never know).
I closed it with a satisfying snap, downed the rest of my getting-ready wine, then went to wait on the porch for Christos to collect me and take me to the helipad.
As I waited in the dusk light, its orange hue setting the sky alight, it struck me how odd it was that this was my life. And I sort-of stepped outside of myself and observed her, the Divorced Diva. Well, me.
Here stands the thirty-something, thrice-divorced woman, David Attenborough said inside my head, excited, yet nervous about the night ahead. Can she help save ex-husband number three from imminent jeopardy? And what about ex-husband number one? Is there enough between them to warrant another try?
I lingered on the last thought for several moments, hovering between hope and despair.
Then Attenborough’s voice returned: Should she have slipped some pepper spray into that gold clutch?
My stomach soured. Would I be in danger? Surely not – or Tommy would have said.
Before I could ponder this further, Christos pulled up in the golf cart.
‘You look fricking great,’ he said candidly.
‘Are you supposed to talk to guests like that?’ I asked, faking a chastising side-eye.
‘God no, but doesn’t mean it isn’t true. Here,’ he said, getting out of the cart and offering me his hand.
I took it and gingerly stepped onto the path (I was wearing five-inch heels). Christos led me around the cart and helped me into it, lifting the hem of my dress and tucking it neatly inside. He grinned at me, then jogged around the cart and got in the driver’s seat.
‘Ready?’ he asked.
‘Yes,’ I replied, even though that worrying question was now playing on repeat inside my head.
Am I in danger?
Somewhere between the villa and the helipad, I settled on absolutely not. I would be surrounded by people I knew and while Kovalec may have had questionable political affiliations, he was a tech billionaire, not an evil mastermind. Right?
‘Ally!’ Julian strode over, looking very dapper in a dark suit, white shirt, and pocket square – no tie. ‘May I?’ He offered his hand and helped me out of the golf cart, then Christos drove off at speed.
‘You look nice, Mr Cushing,’ I said, studying him for signs of nerves. He’d seemed perfectly at ease yesterday, but now I knew more about what was going on, there had to be some trace of apprehension?
‘And you look incredible, Former Mrs Cushing.’ He took a step back to eye me up and down. If Julian was nervous, he was doing an excellent job of hiding it.
I did a little curtsey, masking my own nerves. ‘Why thank you, kind sir.’ We exchanged warm smiles. ‘Where are the others?’ I asked, looking about.
‘Well, Christos is collecting Dale and Trudy, so they’ll be here momentarily.’
‘And what about Ivan Kovalec?’
‘Oh, he’ll meet us on Ally’s Odyssey,’ Julian replied, emphasising the name of the yacht.
‘Jules,’ I chided.
‘Couldn’t resist. However, I will change the name, I promise. Any suggestions?’
‘How about Midlife Crisis?’ I teased.
‘A brutal slur,’ he replied, clutching his chest.
‘Jules, joking aside, tonight is a big deal for you, isn’t it?’
He sobered instantly, a fissure appearing in his otherwise calm exterior. ‘Ah, yes, yes it is.’
‘Well, I promise to do everything in my power to charm the pants off Kovalec,’ I assured him.
‘I don’t imagine that would take much coaxing – they’ll probably fall off the instant he claps eyes on you,’ he said cheekily.
I tutted, pretending to be appalled, right as the golf cart pulled up with Trudy and Dale.
Thank goodness – having Trudy by my side tonight helped shave off some of my mounting nerves. She was walking sunshine.
‘Ally, what a lovely surprise,’ she said, and I shot a look at Julian. I would have thought he’d tell her I was coming but never mind.
I stepped closer for a cheek kiss. ‘You look gorgeous,’ I told her. And she did in an apple-green swing dress with billowing sleeves. Her hair was up, with curly tendrils falling around her face, and her coral lipstick added a striking pop of colour.
‘Oh,’ she said, batting away the compliment modestly.
Julian and Dale shook hands, and Dale gave me a friendly smile.
‘So, where’s this helicopter then?’ asked Dale, sending his eyes skyward.
Right on cue, the sounds of a rotor filled the dusk air and a moment later it was hovering above us.
‘Way to summon it, hun,’ said Trudy with a wink.
When we boarded, Trudy sat next to me and just before we lifted off, she leaned close and said, ‘I’m glad you came tonight, Ally. You can keep me company.’
‘That’s what Julian said. I’ve got this vision of the menfolk retiring to the library with brandy and cigars while the wives are left to drink sherry and gossip.’
She smirked, then put her headset on and I did the same.
* * *
Dinner was being served on the flybridge, and the crew had gone all out.
Upbeat instrumental music played softly from popup speakers, while blue light from the still jacuzzi cast a shimmering hue across the deck, candles bobbing gently on its surface.
The table – a striking centrepiece – was set with a white linen tablecloth and napkins, fine china with a gold rim, gold-plated cutlery, crystal glassware, and gold candlesticks with off-white tapers that were already lit, adding a warm glow to the ambiance.
A steward circulated with canapés – well, as much as one can when there are only a handful of guests. They were delicious morsels, and I tasted Dimitra’s deft hand in each bite. Though, I only had three – a nervous tum, you see.
I was only pretending that everything was perfectly normal and Julian wasn’t about to implicate himself in some sort of (still unknown) nefarious scheme and I hadn’t insinuated myself into the middle of it.
I wandered over to the railing and stared across the water at Naxos. It may have been a Tuesday night but to the people onshore, it appeared to be a Saturday. Joyous voices, laughter, and music carried across the water, somewhat imposing on the carefully curated atmosphere aboard Ally’s Odyssey.
Julian really had to change the name.
I was about to take another sip of champers, but suddenly remembered that I should keep my wits about me. I lowered the glass, then inhaled deeply, drawing in the warm, briny air. God, I adored being in the Aegean.
The sound of a motor drew my attention. The yacht’s tender had pulled up alongside us and I watched as a short, stocky middle-aged man with wiry salt-and-pepper hair disembarked onto a lower deck. He was dressed similarly to Julian in a very expensive, well-fitting suit. Kovalec.
‘I should have guessed.’
I jumped, finding Tommy standing beside me. I glanced over, barely moving my head. He was dressed in crew whites and smelled like sunshine and lemons and being on holiday – delicious, but also distracting and I needed to focus.
‘Hello, Tommy,’ I replied quietly. ‘I thought this yacht already had a skipper,’ I added with a smirk.
‘That’s not— I’m working security.’
I hadn’t expected that and angled my body towards him. ‘Julian has you on security detail?’ I whispered. ‘Really?’
‘It’s a small staff, Ally. Everyone on Aetheria has double duties.’ That’s what Christos had told me, but security? Oh god, maybe this was dangerous. ‘So, you’re here now,’ he continued, ‘and there’s nothing I can do about that. But can you at least do your best to stay out of the way?’
Stung, I swallowed hard and squared my shoulders. ‘I can be useful, you know. I can talk to anyone – if you need Kovalec to implicate himself… I can do that. I could wear a wire or—’
‘Ally, no. All of that’s taken care of. Just—’
‘Ally, darling,’ said Julian, ‘come meet Ivan.’
Gah! I’d have to pin Tommy down later and convince him to let me help.
I gave Tommy a smile – hopefully it wouldn’t seem too odd that he and I had been chatting – then headed over to Julian and Kovalec, who openly leered at me. I pretended not to notice.
‘Ally, this is Ivan Kovalec. Ivan, this is Ally, my ex-wife.’
Kovalec’s eyebrows leapt an entire centimetre. ‘That’s strange – being on good terms with your ex-husband,’ he said accusingly.
‘I understand that’s true for some people, but Julian’s a treasured friend.’
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Julian beam at me, but I kept my eyes fixed on Kovalec. I’d encountered men like him before – the sort who believed everyone shared their world view. Or should.
He stared at me a beat longer, then broke into false, bellowing laughter. Julian and I joined in out of politeness. When the laughter died down, I excused myself and joined Trudy – far safer waters (so to speak).
‘What’s he like?’ she asked quietly.
‘Exactly as you’d expect.’
‘Ugh,’ she said with a shudder. ‘I hope I don’t have to sit next to him at dinner.’
We both glanced at the table – no place cards.
I hooked my arm through hers. ‘We’ll just have to stick together then.’
‘Agreed.’
‘Can I ask,’ I said, ‘if you’re not here to meet Kovalec, then why?’
‘Why did we accept the invitation to dinner?’
I nodded.
‘A favour to Julian. Besides, Dale’s in the same field and I suspect there’s an innate curiosity about one of the world’s richest men.’
I looked over to where Dale had joined Julian and Kovalec.
They were talking animatedly and Kovalec seemed to be cracking jokes – hilarious ones if measured by the laughter.
I peered more closely at Julian, who was facing me, spotting the lines of tension around his eyes.
Oh god, he was nervous. My stomach knotted again.
I had to talk to Tommy. Whatever was going down, he’d know how best to protect Julian. I just had to convince him to do it.
‘Excuse me,’ I said to Trudy. ‘I need the loo.’
‘I’ll save you the seat next to mine,’ she said.
I left Trudy, depositing my half-drunk champers on a nearby table, then approached the staircase leading to the deck below. With every step, I kept Tommy in my periphery, willing him to look in my direction so I could signal for him to follow.
Just as I reached the top of the staircase, I finally caught his eye and with a subtle jerk of my head, I summoned him, then descended.
At the bottom of the stairs, I ducked into an alcove and waited. And waited. In tense times, seconds can feel like minutes and minutes like hours. This felt like days, but eventually I saw Tommy’s feet on the stairs, then the rest of him.
Wordlessly, I slipped into the salon through the sliding door, keeping an eye out for crew. Seeing no one, I crossed to the day head, an ornate half-bathroom off the salon. I entered, leaving the door slightly ajar.
Tommy came in seconds behind me.
‘You’re being reckless,’ he scolded.
‘Yes, yes, your stance on my presence is crystal clear but we don’t have time for that. How do you plan to keep Julian safe?’
‘Safe? He’s not in any physical dang—’
‘From prosecution, Tommy. Surely you can nab Kovalec without Julian ending up as collateral damage?’
‘I don’t have the authority to—’
‘Are you being obtuse on purpose?’ I asked. ‘I mean you as in MI6.’
He shook his head. ‘I don’t work for MI6. I told you, I’m not a spy.’
‘Well, whoever then. Can’t you make a phone call or something? Make sure Julian’s given immunity for cooperating?’
‘Ally, I can’t share any of the details of this operation with you.’
‘What if I wore a wire?’ I offered again, now desperate. ‘Kovalec has already been leering at me. I could probably—’
‘Ally,’ Tommy whispered sharply, cutting me off. ‘You don’t need to wear a wire – the entire yacht is bugged.’
‘Even here?’ I asked, looking around.
‘Yes.’
‘Oh. Wait – how do you know that?’
He sighed, exasperated. ‘Where do you think I was all day?’
‘Well, I don’t know, Tommy,’ I snapped. ‘This may come as a surprise, but I wasn’t sitting about pining over you. I was busy.’
The part about being busy was a lie. I’d spent most of the day inventing ways to distract myself so I wouldn’t spiral over Julian’s predicament.
‘Regardless,’ he said, clearly having lost his last shred of patience with me (if he had any to begin with), ‘there’s no need for you to get involved. More involved.’
I frowned at him, starting to feel the true futility of my situation.
‘In fact,’ he said, ‘you need to promise me that when Dale, Julian, and Kovalec go inside after dinner, you’ll steer clear.’
‘Why, what happens then?’
He sighed, clearly weighing up how much he could tell me. ‘That’s when they’re making the deal. Julian’s tech in exchange for a lot of money.’
‘Oh god.’
‘So, stay out of it, all right?’
I gulped. ‘All right,’ I said, my voice small. But I couldn’t let that be that. I had to make one last-ditch effort to help Julian. ‘As long as you promise to ask about immunity for Julian – or at least clemency. Please, Tommy.’
His eyes held mine, his expression troubled. ‘I’ll see what I can do.’
I nodded, my throat too dry to speak.
‘Now, you’d better get back or it will start to look suspicious,’ he added.
Heart pounding, I left Tommy to rejoin the others. We hadn’t even sat down to eat and it was already the most bizarre dinner I’d ever attended.