Chapter Twenty Thiago #2
“There’s nothing between Kam and me,” I said, and I could taste the hypocrisy on my tongue.
“You son of a bitch. How dare you lie straight to my face. She told me, Thiago! The difference is you can’t stop looking at her like you want to fuck her.”
“Well, maybe I do.”
Why did I say that?
Because I was a jerk.
Because I was immature.
Because I thought I was tough when I was really a fool.
Because I wanted her for myself, but she wasn’t mine, and I could feel that killing me day in, day out.
Taylor tried to shove me, but I knocked him away. He hit the car, and the alarm went off.
“Taylor, you don’t want to take me on, and you know it,” I said. I didn’t wait for him to respond. I hurried upstairs and packed my bag for New York.
I sent Mom a message telling her I wouldn’t be home that night, strapped on my backpack and hopped on my motorcycle.
I’d finally finished repairing it the week before, but I hadn’t wanted to use it because of the snow and cold.
My leather jacket didn’t do much to keep me warm, and by the time I left the bike in the parking garage at the airport, I was shivering.
I didn’t have to check a bag, so I had a lot of time to wait.
Finally, they called for boarding, and I got on and found my seat.
I’d booked a cheap room in Brooklyn so I could reach the girl’s school on the subway without having to walk a thousand miles to get to Williamsburg.
I got to my hotel around midnight. I had Amelia Warner’s number in my phone.
I wanted to call her—I was desperate to find out as soon as possible what the hell was going on—but I knew it was best to wait until the next day.
I did send a message to one important person, though.
For once in your life, I’m begging you, listen to me and don’t trust Julian. I promise I’ll explain soon enough.
I got no response.
I had a bad feeling when I went to bed. I couldn’t stop thinking to myself that whatever I discovered the next day, it was bound to change everything.
***
The alarm sounded early. I still didn’t know how exactly I was going to convince this girl to talk to me, but I did know I’d have to get out of bed first.
The hotel was a dump, and I had tossed and turned all night; the mattress was nothing more than a jumble of springs sticking out in every direction. I got dressed and hurried out before dawn to soak up that amazing, chaotic city.
My plan was to try to intercept Amelia on her way out of school.
According to what I could find on the internet, classes ended at three.
Since I had time to kill, I took the subway to Manhattan, and in half an hour I was strolling around Central Park.
The cold had let up a bit, and at twelve, I took a seat on a bench and started reading a half-finished book.
As I did, I heard a soft voice, and I looked up to see an attractive woman talking to her son, who must have been around four or five years old.
I said son, but who knew—maybe he was her little brother? Because she was pretty young—a few years older than me at most.
“Noah, come on!” came a man’s voice further up the path. “It was supposed to be funny.”
“Don’t listen to him, Andy, we’re staying right here,” she said to the little boy. “To hell with Daddy, right?”
“Yeah, to hell with Daddy.”
Noah seemed to regret those words as soon as they came back at her from the little boy’s mouth. Her cheeks turned red, and she said, “Good lord, son, you don’t have to repeat everything that comes out of Mama’s mouth.”
“Daddy, Mama’s mad at you!” the boy yelled. I caught a glimpse of his face under his wool hat. He had striking sky-blue eyes.
“No kidding. Who’d have ever guessed?” the father said.
By now he had walked back to where they were standing.
They looked like a typical rich couple without a care in the world.
She was pretty and young and looked sweet.
He was the stereotype of a Wall Street stockbroker in his impeccable suit and polished shoes. He took hold of the little boy’s hand.
I couldn’t help but roll my eyes. Couldn’t at least one of them have been ugly or old?
“Freckles, it was a joke, OK?”
“There was nothing funny about it!” she said, showing some gall under that sweetness.
“But everyone was laughing,” the guy said, covering the kid’s ears so he wouldn’t hear them arguing.
“Yeah, laughing at me! You find that amusing, do you now?”
“They were laughing with you, babe.”
“Don’t you dare call me babe right now!” she said, pointing a finger at him. “I’m going back to the apartment right now to call all the guests and cancel that goddamned fucking party, you’d better believe it!”
“But why? Why do you care?”
“Because you didn’t even bother to fucking ask me, Nicolas! What would you think if I decided to open an account in your name with a million dollars in it, huh?”
Dumbstruck, I was dying to know what he’d say. But just then the strapping man seemed to notice I was staring at them. He took his eyes off his wife just long enough to give me a nasty look before turning back to her.
“Could you keep your voice down, please? Are you trying to get robbed?”
I stuck my nose back in my book, pretending like I couldn’t hear a thing…
“If somebody comes along and steals that indulgent sum of money from the account you set up in my name, all the better!”
“Oh, God,” he said, picking his son up in his arms and pulling the woman toward him. “That money is yours, whether you like it or not, my love. Don’t waste your time arguing with me about it.” Just when she was about to fire something back, he planted a kiss on her lips.
I watched them out of the corner of my eye.
You didn’t have to be a genius to see there was something real there.
That’s how it could be with Kam and me. Maybe I’d never be able to open her an account with a million dollars in it, but I knew I could get under her skin like that, and a thousand other ways too.
“Don’t think one kiss is enough to get you out of the doghouse, mister,” the woman said.
“Yeah, mister,” the kid said. He was clearly enjoying all this.
“I’ve got to go see Cortez now. But I promise tonight I’ll make it up to you—you’ll forgive me for giving you a million dollars.”
Noah crossed her arms, and a smile appeared on her gorgeous lips. “You’re unbelievable.”
“You love me, though, don’t you?” the guy said.
I didn’t get to hear her response because he’d started kissing her again.
I couldn’t take it anymore, so I got up and left.
It wasn’t long before I’d need to catch a train back to Brooklyn, so I decided to grab a bite at a sandwich joint and think over what I was going to say to the girl before she literally sent me packing.
I got to Williamsburg twenty minutes before school let out, and I leaned against the building across the street, watching people come and go. When the bell rang and school ended, I had to look at the photo of Amelia a few times to make sure I’d recognize her as she walked out.
Eventually a thin girl with light-brown hair came out wearing the school uniform.
She was chatting and laughing with a group of friends.
I knew it was going to be weird if some random man stopped them to talk, so I tried to be as polite as possible, walking up to them in the middle of the street.
Amelia had a girl on either side of her, all wearing the same pleated green and navy-blue skirt with matching shirt and jacket.
“Excuse me,” I said to them. “I’m sorry to interrupt.” I tried to smile in a friendly way.
“Can we help you?” Amelia asked as the three of them looked back and forth at each other. Fuck. I didn’t expect such a nice response and such a quick one.
One of her friends whispered something to the other one, and they both blushed. Did they think I was cute or something? Well, that could actually work in my favor.
“Yeah, I was actually looking for you,” I said, pointing at Amelia. She was a typical pretty girl: long straight hair, full lips, and striking green eyes. She was gorgeous…and she knew it. Actually, she reminded me of Kam.
“Me?” she asked, seeming flattered.
“Yeah. It’s about something… Look, I know this is weird, but could I possibly buy you a coffee?”
She hesitated, and one of her friends nudged her with her elbow, trying to be sly about it. I saw it, but I pretended I hadn’t.
“I don’t even know you,” she said. At least now I knew she wasn’t dumb enough to go off with some stranger.
“Just a coffee. At that Starbucks right over there. I’ll buy,” I added using my most seductive smile.
Amelia thought it over a few seconds and then agreed. “Fine,” she said, and turned to her friends. “I’ll see you later. If I don’t text you in the next two hours, call the police.” She was joking, I knew, but that still put me on edge.
When her friends left, turning back repeatedly to stare at us, I gestured for Amelia to follow me. Inside, she ordered a mocha, and I told her to have a seat. I ordered the same, and five minutes later I was sitting across from her, each of us with our own paper cup.
“So, for starters, my name’s Thiago Di Bianco. Sorry I didn’t mention that before. I flew up from Carsville to talk to you. I need to know anything you can tell me about Jules Murphy. Anything.”
Amelia was just about to take a sip, but she froze. Panic appeared in her green eyes. And I knew I’d been right to make the trip.
Julian Murphy was dangerous.
And I was about to find out why.