Chapter Twenty-One #2
“Always,” Maximus replied. He took the fingers of my left hand and brought them to his lips, kissing my wedding ring. “You’re breathtaking.”
I sucked in a breath, hiding my turbulent emotions behind a smile. “Shall we go? I love the opera.”
My words were true, but tonight I didn’t feel like going anywhere.
There was something wrong, and in the past few weeks I had learned to read Maximus’ reactions.
Trouble was brewing, and we were right in the eye of the storm.
For the first time in my life, I had someone who meant everything to me, and I was terrified of losing him.
He was dressed in a black tuxedo, a black shirt, and a deep red tie. He reminded me of the dangerous creatures in the paranormal romances I read. He would have fitted into a vampire novel with eternal creatures who drank blood, and turned into bats.
I watched as he checked the security system in his new routine, going back to check the kitchen door into the garden.
“I thought no one knew you lived here,” I said when he re-entered the hall.
“No one is supposed to know I live here, but we both know that in our world, knowledge is power.” He stopped to stare at me, and there was a foreign emotion in his eyes.
“Should we move out of here for a while?” I asked. “Until the threat has eased.”
“No.” He shook his head. “I refuse to let them think they’re winning.”
When he was at work earlier, I had taken the time to finally search this house, finding hiding places as I had in Papa’s house.
Panic rooms were on the plans of houses, and with enough effort could be breached.
I had watched videos on YouTube which showed people breaking into them using specialised tools, and if there was enough money on the table that was inspiration to make sure you did your research.
A long time ago, when I was visiting my Grandma in England, she spent days teaching me how to hide myself in strange and unusual places. That lesson was now coming into practice as I wandered through every room, moving pieces of furniture slightly to create areas hidden from view.
“They’re winning when you need to check the door twice,” I replied, watching his reaction.
“I didn’t realise you’d noticed that,” Maximus said. “My way of coping with a problem is to overcompensate.”
“The extra security cameras were probably enough,” I commented on the way to the front door. “The new locks on the windows were maybe a little too far since I imagine the bogeyman will smash the window before he takes time to fiddle with the locks.”
Maximus chuckled, shaking his head. “You’re worse than Jake,” he said. “Next you’ll be telling me how to run my business.”
“Not your business,” I replied. “But I live here too, and I preferred it when it was a home and not a prison.”
He stopped, his hand on the door. “I’m trying to protect you.”
“And who protects you?” I queried.
“This is my life,” Maximus replied slowly. “You know that, Livvie. It is the world you’ve lived in your whole life.”
He turned fully to face me, his eyes bright with a burning intensity as he searched my face.
“I know what this life entails,” I said, my fingers touching his hand. “Which is why I’m asking who protects you.”
There was no way I could confess that I was terrified he would be harmed. My stomach cramped at the thought of losing Maximus, and our life together. Our marriage had been created from a deal, but it felt real to me.
He had come to mean more to me than I could admit.
“I do the protecting in this family, and I have no intention of letting our enemies see any weakness,” he said, leading me outside into the night air.
There was a huge lavender plant just outside the front door, the scent of it washing over us.
We didn’t have any lavender at my childhood home, and I had begun to associate this scent with home.
I trailed my fingers through it in a habit that I had acquired, releasing the aroma further, and bringing it with me into the car.
City lights flashed past us as Maximus drove us toward the Opera, all the while trepidation churned deep in my stomach.
My logical mind told me that he was always in control, planning everything with precision.
My heart whispered that no one could control everything, and we had enemies waiting behind every door.
In the entrance hall, I saw Jake standing chatting to someone, his body language easy even though he kept looking around the room. It felt like every eye was on me as we walked towards the staircase. This had never happened to me before, with someone else always being the focus of attention.
Maximus’ hand on the base of my spine settled my nerves, his presence beside me solid and reassuring. He stopped occasionally to speak to people as we moved through, and to the casual observer nothing was bothering Maximus.
I caught the end of his conversation with a man I didn’t recognise. “Thank you, it doesn’t take long to arrange a wedding when you know you’re marrying the right woman.”
I snaked my arm through his, smiling in the appropriate place. This was the part of the game I understood – the socialite who knew when to smile, laugh, and nod when required. Mama taught us these lessons from an early age.
Maximus’s hand covered mine on his arm. “Olivia, this is Howard, he is one of my business partners.”
I smiled again. “Pleased to meet you, I hope you enjoy the opera.”
He rolled his eyes, and smiled ruefully. “I’m afraid I’m only here because my wife Hannah is a fan of the leading lady. She tells me that she is the best opera singer in the world.”
“Well, if that’s the case, then I’m sure you’ll enjoy it,” I replied. “The right person can elevate the entire performance.” I leant against Maximus as I finished my statement.
“There she is,” Howard said, nodding toward a woman in a deep emerald-green dress. “I must go before she scolds me for being late.”
Maximus laughed as he waved him away.
“Have enough people seen that you don’t give a fuck?” I asked when we were left alone.
Maximus leaned back to stare down. “What makes you think that?”
“Because after dealing with people all day, you prefer time in your own space,” I replied. “We are here tonight to prove a point.”
He pursed his lips together for a moment. “You’re too observant,” he commented before he led me toward the main auditorium. “I’m not sure if that’s good or bad.”
I nudged him with my hip. “It’s a good thing,” I replied. “Better a curious wife than a bored wife with a credit card.”
His deep laugh washed over me. “I have no problem with a credit card bill, I’m quite looking forward to the damage you can do.”
He had reserved a box overlooking the stage, another couple were already seated in the box.
“Willow!” Maximus greeted his sister, tugging her close for a hug. “I’m glad you and Gabriel could make it tonight.”
“I would love to say we were in the area, but we both know I’d be lying,” Gabriel said as he stood to shake Maximus’ hand. “Willow wanted to be close by for Poppy, and I can’t refuse her anything.”
Willow gave me a gentle hug, her smile faint. “I intend to be here for Poppy since I missed her wedding.”
We all took our seats, Maximus and Gabriel taking the outside seats to leave me and Willow in the middle.
The lights behind us flashed on and off, directing everyone to their seats.
“Are you a fan of the opera?” Willow asked.
“Grandmama used to take me to Rome when I stayed with her in the holidays. She said it needed to be experienced there for me to learn to appreciate it,” I replied. “I remember her crying the first time we visited.”
Willow watched me solemnly, her eyes haunted by the past. “Emotions can be tricky. They find strange times to expose themselves.”
“Music was created to allow those who play it, and those who hear it, to experience the full range of emotions.”
She nodded thoughtfully. “I used to sing songs I remembered, until I got the words wrong, and the colour left them.”
I had heard her story, and it would have broken the average person. I grasped her hand in mine for a moment. “We put the words we need to hear in the lyrics, to allow ourselves to survive each chapter of our lives.”
“I never thought of it like that before,” she admitted.
“I used to be terrified of thunder storms, and Mama sat and sang to me as they raged outside, her song filled with promises of rainbows and blue skies.” I couldn’t help but smile at the memory.
“You suit smiling,” Willow said. “I’ve only seen your fake smile, but your natural smile shows your beauty.”
She turned her attention to the stage as the orchestra started to warm up, leaving me reeling from her words. No one had ever noticed my smile was fake before, which left me wondering when I had stopped smiling.
The lights lowered, and the music commenced, drawing my attention away from my thoughts as I lost myself in the music and words, the emotion of the characters transporting me into the world on stage.
We were half way through act two when I excused myself to visit the bathroom. I had avoided them at the intermission, since there was always a queue at the ladies.
“I’ll be back in a moment,” I whispered to Maximus, pushing myself to my feet. “Toilet,” I said as he went to stand up to accompany me.
I had been going to the toilet myself since I was two years old.
Some people still wandered around the corridors, messaging on their phones, and not paying attention to anyone else.
I was washing my hands when a women dressed in black trousers and a matching jacket walked in. She stopped at the sink beside mine, running her finger under her eye, tutting.
“I swear I need better mascara for when I come to the opera,” she said, pouting at herself in the mirror. “I’m a crier.”
I nodded politely, and moved to dry my hands as I had no intention of missing anymore of the opera than I had to. There was movement in the mirror beside me, alerting me to her actions a split second before she would have plunged the knife she had into me.