I put one hand up and feel the welts where Christophe was choking me. “I got into a little fight. But I’m fine.” I grab her and give her a hug. “The important thing is that you’re fine.”
“You should have seen it,” she says, her eyes shining. “I was trying to figure out how to get out of there, you know? I could see that we were going to the airport, and there was no way I was getting on a plane with these guys, guns or no guns. We parked the car on the blacktop next to this little plane, and the next thing I know bullets are flying all over the place and Griffon is pulling me into a car.” She shakes her head, and I can tell she’s overwhelmed by everything that’s happened tonight. “It was so crazy.”
I look past her to Janine and Sue standing in the doorway. I can hear deeper voices talking out by the front door. “Is everyone okay?”
“On our side, yes,” Janine says, walking into the room. “But we had to eliminate the kidnappers.” She nods to Sue. “Luckily, this one still knows how to handle a gun.”
Sue smiles at her. “We were able to recover some of the files from Veronique’s office and what appears to be all of the formula that she’d already made. Everything was wrapped up in a suitcase, but we’re still trying to figure out where they were going.”
“And who they were meeting,” Janine says. I can see her eyes on the bruise on my neck.
“Did Giselle tell you what happened?” I ask.
“She did,” Sue says. “So hard to believe Christophe turned. If you hadn’t been there, he’d have gotten away with it. They all would have.”
Drew walks over and pulls me to him. “I can’t believe I was only two floors away when that bastard was trying to kill you.” I can hear a hitch in his voice as he speaks. “I’m never letting you out of my sight again.” He bends down to kiss me and I lean into him, grateful to be able to relax at last.
“Um, I’m going to help Giselle and the guys deal with the safe room,” Griffon says from the doorway. He glances quickly at the two of us and then focuses on Janine. “Do you need me for anything?”
“No,” says Janine. “That’s a good idea. We’ll have a briefing in the morning.”
“Right,” he says, not looking back at me before he turns to go downstairs.
A tall grandfather clock in the corner starts to chime, and I realize it’s already midnight. “Why don’t you come stay over at my house tonight?” I ask Rayne. Even though it looks like the kidnappers have all been killed, I’m uncomfortable leaving her alone. “My parents will be less pissed that I’m late if you’re with me.” It’s almost funny that I’m worried about my parents after what went on here tonight.
Rayne looks down at my dress. “How are you going to explain the fanciness?”
“Your other clothes are in my car,” Drew says. “You can change here and I’ll drive you home.” He kisses me quickly again. “Unless I can persuade you to come stay at my place?”
I can feel Janine’s eyes on me. Even though I know she’s not my mom and wouldn’t say a word about it, I still feel funny talking about this in front of her. “Not tonight. It’ll be okay. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“And the tomorrow after that?” he asks, a bright smile bursting through the concern on his face.
“Yes,” I say. “I promise.”
Thirty
I curl up on my side and stare out the window of Drew’s apartment, unable to shake the inexplicable feelings of helplessness and dread that have been following me for days. The afternoon fog is rolling in, tucking itself around the skyscrapers, and the damp gray light outside matches my mood much better than the summer sunlight we’ve been having. I know I shouldn’t be depressed—Rayne is safe, the formula was recovered, and all Drew wants is to make me happy. But still I feel a heaviness in my chest that I just can’t loosen. I play with the knot on the scarf I’ve been wearing to cover up the bruises on my neck. In a few days they’ll be gone completely. I wish the memories of that night could go with them.
Drew’s next to me on the couch, talking on the phone. “How much?” he asks the person on the other end. “Twenty million? I was thinking more like fifteen. That should be enough to get them started.” Another pause. “Screw that. Tell them it’s take it or leave it. If they can’t come to some sort of an agreement, there are plenty of start-ups who can.” Drew scrolls through pages and pages of numbers on his tablet faster than I can see them. He stops abruptly and peers at one page. “What about ADM?” He listens to whoever is on the other end. “Good. Put fifty percent of that back in the company. Hold the other fifty.” Drew’s fingers play with mine absentmindedly as he wraps up his conversation. “Is that it? I’ll talk to you in the morning.” Drew pulls the headset off and tosses it on the table.
I put my book down and lean back against him. “Two truths and a lie.”
Drew keeps tapping on the screen. “What?”
“Two truths and a lie,” I say, poking him in the side. “It’s a game.”
He sighs, not taking his eyes off the tablet. “I’m no good at games.”
I slide over to the end of the couch as I feel hot tears at the back of my eyes for no reason at all. So what if Drew hates games? He’s busy, and it’s stupid. So why am I crying?
“What’s wrong?” he asks, looking surprised.
“Nothing,” I sniffle. “It’s just been a rough few weeks.”
Drew puts the tablet down and reaches for me. “Thank God all of this Sekhem business is over and we can get on with our lives.”
I lift my head up to look at him. “What do you mean, over? I’m still going to work with Janine. They need me. They need what I can do.”
He looks confused. “But it’s dangerous, you saw that. And you’re not obligated to help them anymore.”
I can tell this conversation isn’t going my way. “Well, I’m still going to see Janine.”
“Fine,” he says, but I can tell he doesn’t really agree. “But I don’t want you doing any more dangerous assignments.” He kisses me. “I need you here, in one piece.” Drew sits back on the couch and I lean against his arm. “I told Sandoval I’m buying the boat,” he says. “So I think we should run away to an island somewhere until you turn eighteen. You won’t have to do anything except lie in the sun and swim in the water, surrounded by tropical fish.”
I snort. “Sure. That would be great, but what about school? I’m going to be a senior this year. I have to finish.”
“Quit!” Drew’s eyes light up. “Just bail on all of it! Why do you need to finish?” He looks like he really doesn’t understand the concept. “Don’t you get it? From now on, you don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do. I have more money than we can spend in a lifetime. A high-school diploma isn’t going to give you anything I can’t.” I can tell he’s getting excited about the possibilities. “Anywhere you want to go. Europe, the South Pacific . . . maybe Thailand. I’ll do a little bit of work here and there, but the rest of the time we can just hang out together playing duets and watching the sun set.”
“But what about my family? The studio?”
“Once they see that you’re fine, they’ll forgive us. Parents always do.” Drew lifts my left hand and kisses the scar that runs down the length of my forearm. “I’ll buy you your own studio,” he says. “I’ll stock it with the finest instruments in the world. You can teach, you can perform, you can even tour if you want. You won’t have to work for a thing.”