46. Chapter 46
C rispin
It took a full week for Lule to stop spitting fire long enough to listen.
In the end, it had taken Crispin walking into Rahul's office-tired and pleading-and Rahul, calm and surprisingly diplomatic, agreeing to act as intermediary.
Only then did Lule, with a theatrical sigh and more than a few expletives, agree to meet him at his hotel on neutral ground.
By then, Dorian had returned to London to hold the fort and presumably attend a series of debauched dinners, leaving Crispin to juggle crisis calls from the board as he stalked Lule's whereabouts.
He'd won one battle, but his father still had a war brewing. Crispin could feel it in his bones.
He picked up the phone to call his mother once, but after a long moment of staring at the screen, he put it down again.
It could wait. He sent a short message of thanks for her support.
Now, he was sitting in the hotel lobby, tie loosened, nerves twisted like a noose in his gut. He checked the time again .
She wasn't coming.
Then, the automatic glass doors slid open, and in walked Rahul. He was clean-shaven, sharply dressed in a navy jumper, and carrying the tight-lipped weariness of someone escorting a hurricane.
Crispin stood hopefully. "Is she coming?"
"She's outside pacing."
Before Crispin could reply, Rahul turned on his heel and disappeared through the doors. A moment later, he reappeared, this time dragging Lule behind him like a sulky teenager. She had her arms crossed and was wearing a faded leather jacket over a slogan tee that read Don't test me, I bite.
Her face could curdle milk.
Rahul sat her down in her chair, firmly pushing her back down when she made to stand again.
"Can I get you anything?" Crispin asked, trying to keep his tone even.
"Coffee please," Rahul said.
"Poison for me," Lule muttered. "So, I can kill myself. "
"Lule," Rahul said in a tone that managed to be both patient and a warning.
She rolled her eyes. "Fine. Coffee. Please."
Crispin exhaled slowly, then leaned forward. "I know you don't want to be here, and I don't blame you. But I need to explain."
She arched an eyebrow. "Alright. Say what you want to say, Crispy."
He eyes widened at the nickname, but he let it slide.
He told them everything. About the boardroom battles, about Simon, about how close he'd come to losing the company, and how he might still lose it.
He didn't trust his father, but he could still sway his mother.
He explained how, through it all, he had kept messaging Aria.
About how the last few days were spent preparing for the battle before the board met.
How Aria's distance had driven him half mad.
And something in the way his voice trembled on that last word made Lule sit up a little straighter.
Picking up the slight softening of her expression, he pushed his advantage.
He reached into the inner pocket of his coat and brought out a small carved rosewood box with enamel inlays.
Gently, he opened it to reveal an ornate, antique French yellow sapphire ring, nestled in a bed of velvet, diamonds circling it like petals .
"Do you think she'd like it?" he asked, eyes not leaving Lule's face.
As if asking for her blessing.
Lule's eyes widened. "Oh, you idiot." Crispin got the impression she wasn't referring to him.
She turned to Rahul, who was already giving her a smug I-told-you-so look. She wrinkled her nose. "That's not a good look on you," she shot right back at him.
She was thoughtful for a beat before looking up. "I knew something stank," she said, then introspectively, "I should have trusted my instincts. She didn't say it, but I could feel something was off. Something happened that day you had the board meeting."
Crispin's expression hardened. "Tell me."
Lule hesitated, then haltingly, began recounting what she knew.
Aria had been shaken by what she heard over the phone that evening.
She had said little afterwards, only that he was marrying Helga.
How she had packed up and moved to Harlech.
But she remembered the odd bruises on her wrist where she had held too tight. The tears she tried to hide.
Crispin's hands curled into fists.
"Marcus," he said grimly. "He had access to my phone. He must have said something. I recently came to know Helga made my sister's life hell in secondary school. I would rather marry a viper. "
He looked at Lule, eyes burning. "Tell me where she is."
She looked at him for a long, measuring moment. "Tell you what, let's go together. It's a long drive."
Crispin shot to his feet. "I'll grab my bag."
But as he turned, Lule held up a hand. "Wait. Just...listen."
He paused, suddenly on guard at that hesitant tone from Lule.
"I think," she said, glancing at Rahul, then back to Crispin, "that you and my sister need a calm conversation. No drama, just honesty. She's fragile right now. Don't storm in like an overgrown bull."
"You lead the way." Crispin nodded solemnly. "I'm calm," he added, straightening his jacket.
Rahul snorted.
Lule raised a brow. "Famous last words."