LONDON'S POINT OF VIEW
He said it without a trace of emotion, as if he wasn't talking about his own family.
"Hasn't the Queen ever taken action against them?"
"Russia is a terrifying country. Without concrete proof, there was nothing we could do. The public was outraged during the first year, but people eventually moved on. I didn't. So I encourage Russia's enemies to do the dirty work for me."
I hadn't expected such an extravagant story. It was both shocking and heartbreaking.
"I'm sorry. I know I've already said that, but I truly mean it..."
"I know."
He placed a hand on my chest and gently stroked my skin. He stared at my lips for a moment as if he were going to kiss me, but then changed his mind and lowered his hand.
"He'll get what he deserves eventually."
"So Finley is the one who raised you?"
I understood now why they were so close.
"For the most part. He's been part of the family for a very long time."
"Do you still have any family left?"
Crewe shook his head.
"I'm the last descendant."
"That means you have to have children."
He nodded.
"Yes."
That meant he would eventually let me go. Obviously, I couldn't be his wife and give him children. He would have to marry a duchess or a princess or someone like that—but certainly not an American woman.
We looked at each other in silence, sadness lingering between us. I had lost my family far too young, but his grief went back even further. My parents hadn't been murdered, yet we shared the pain of losing them.
"I'm going to the restroom. Do you know where it is?"
I needed a moment to compose myself and think about everything he had just told me.
He placed a hand on my waist and nodded toward a hallway.
"At the end and to the left."
"Thank you."
He kissed my temple before letting me go. The unexpected touch warmed my entire body. The moment his hand left me, I felt a chill run through me. He gave me one last look before walking away, his broad shoulders swaying confidently. He ruled the room through silence alone, with his royal grace.
I watched him leave, captivated, before crossing the room and following his directions. I walked down the hallway and turned left. A man dressed as a waiter stood there, but he wasn't carrying a tray. He stared at me as if he recognized me, but I had absolutely no idea who he was, so there was no reason he should know me.
He stepped into my path, one hand behind his back.
"London Ingram?"
"Yes?"
"Follow me, please."
"Where? Why?"
"Just follow me."
He walked down the hallway and turned right, in the opposite direction of the restrooms.
Every instinct in my body screamed that this was a bad idea, that I might be walking into a trap. Yet something inside me told me to follow him because he would lead me where I needed to go. We were under the Queen's protection, and Crewe was only a room away. If anyone could help me, it was him.
So I followed.
I climbed the stairs and reached the second floor, which was completely silent. The sounds of the party faded into the distance, and my dress swept across the wooden floor beneath my heels.
"Over here."
He stopped in front of the fifth door on the left, checked the hallway to make sure no one was watching, and opened it.
"Go in. We don't have much time."
"Who are you?"
"Get inside. Quickly."
He held the door open.
Goosebumps covered my skin, and sweat formed on my forehead. My heart pounded so hard it hurt. I tried to steady my breathing and remain calm as I stepped into the room, not knowing what awaited me.
A man dressed in black stood with his back to me, his hands in his pockets as he looked out the window.
I studied him, noticing chestnut-brown hair similar to mine. His posture was familiar, the way he shifted his weight from one foot to the other. The strength of his arms reminded me of someone I had known all my life.
The waiter closed the door behind us, leaving us alone.
Joseph turned around and stared at me, his eyes scanning my face as though he hadn't seen me in twenty years.
"London..."
He walked toward me and pulled me into his arms, holding me so tightly that it felt as though he never wanted to let go.
"I'm so sorry..."
I hugged my brother back, instantly recognizing his cologne. The last time I had seen him standing on his own two feet was when he came to New York for Christmas. We had celebrated together in my tiny apartment while snow fell outside. My heater had broken down, and we spent an entire day freezing before he managed to fix it. At the time, it had been awful. But now it was a memory I cherished.
He stepped back, the same sadness still in his eyes.
"I don't have much time."
"How did you get in here?"
"No time to explain that either," he said softly. "I need to get straight to the point, London. Crewe is paranoid."
"Do you have a plan?"
He nodded.
"But you're not going to like it."
"You want me to destroy the detonator? He keeps it on him most of the time. I don't know where he puts it when he sleeps..."
But if I searched hard enough, I'd find out. He couldn't hide it forever.
"That won't work," Joseph said. "Even if you got your hands on it, he'd find another way around it."
"You think so?"
"Definitely. Crewe always has a backup plan. He's not a guy you can outsmart."
And yet, I had slept with him.
"So you're saying we can't do anything? We're not even going to try?"
"There's only one way out of this. And it's a plan neither of us is going to like."
He was going to ask me to kill Crewe. There was no other solution. But the thought of ending his life, of stabbing him straight through the heart, filled me with sadness. I had every right to do whatever it took to save my brother and myself, but I couldn't bring myself to murder him. Despite everything he had done to us, I didn't want to hurt Crewe.
"You have to make him fall in love with you."
I stared at him in disbelief, unsure whether he had really said those words.
"Are you crazy? That's never going to happen. I thought you were going to ask me to kill him."
"You won't be able to kill him," he said. "Crewe is too smart for that."
"And he's too hollow to have feelings—especially for me."
Crewe had countless beautiful women available to him. He could be with princesses and foreign diplomats. He could fly to Milan and come back with a supermodel. I'd never be enough to keep a man like him.
"I don't think so. He brought you to one of the biggest social events of the year. He could have taken anyone he wanted, but he chose you."
"That doesn't mean anything."
Still, I had to admit it was strange for him to show up with a boring American woman. I hadn't really understood it myself.
"We both know you're smart, funny, and beautiful."
It was the first genuine compliment Joseph had ever given me.
"The guy would be an idiot not to feel something for you. You're charming and clever—in the best possible way."
Because we were short on time, I didn't stop to smile.
"I honestly don't think it'll work. We need another plan."
"Be whatever he wants you to be. Become his fantasy. Tell him everything he wants to hear."
Easier said than done.
"The only way he'll give up that detonator is if he starts loving you. Otherwise, he'll keep holding that threat over our heads for the rest of our lives. It's the only solution for both of us."
I was willing to do anything to free my brother, even something as ridiculous as that. I didn't think it would work, but I had to try if there was no other option.
"I'll do my best..."
"Thank you."
His eyes darkened as silence settled between us. He slipped his hands into his pockets and cleared his throat.
"Does he treat you well?"
Joseph grimaced as though he didn't really want to hear the answer.
Even if Crewe had mistreated me, I would have lied.
"Yes."
"Really?" he whispered.
I nodded.
"It could be much worse. He doesn't hurt me."
Joseph suddenly looked away, as though ashamed of the thoughts running through his mind. He was probably thinking about the things Crewe did with me in bed. Ashamed that he couldn't save me, he couldn't even meet my eyes.
"He's not as bad as he seems."
I wasn't saying that to make Joseph feel better. It was the truth.
"He doesn't let his men touch me. He gives me everything I need. And he protects me. We eat dinner together and talk. I'd rather be with him a thousand times over than with Bones..."
That man was terrifying. I probably wouldn't even be alive if Crewe had let him take me away.
"I think there's a chance he's a good man despite the darkness inside him..."
Joseph lifted his gaze and met my eyes.
"Sounds like you like him."
"No," I protested. "I just think there's hope."
Now that I knew what he had lost at such a young age, I understood his need for power and control. When he was young and vulnerable, he had been unable to protect his family. He had spent years waiting until he was old enough to do something. By the time he became an adult, they had already been dead for twelve years.
I understood him much better now.
"I'll contact you again," he said. "I don't know where or when. But I'll find a solution."
"Okay."
He sighed when it was finally time for us to say goodbye.
"I'm truly sorry for dragging you into all of this."
"It's okay."
He shouldn't have been involved in that world, and he certainly shouldn't have cheated a man out of four million dollars. But the time for lectures was long gone. He had already learned his lesson.
"I would do anything to trade places with you."
"I know, Joey."
He hugged me again.
"You should go... he's going to start getting suspicious."
"I know."
I didn't want to let go of my brother yet. He was all the family I had left.
For the first time in his life, he kissed the top of my head.
"We're going to find a way out of this. I promise."
"I know."
He reluctantly stepped back.
Tears welled up in my eyes, but I forced them away. If Crewe saw them, he would ask a million questions. I didn't want him to discover what had happened.
Least of all did I want him pressing the detonator button.
To be CONTINUED....