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“I haven’t seen her in years ever since she ran away after almost killing me,” he said, pointing to his right leg which Arthur noticed was wasted. “And selling my baby.”
Arthur was thunder-struck. What was he talking about? Carmen had told him a completely different story while this man was claiming the truth was something else. Carmen remained quiet; her head bowed which meant only one thing.
The weight of the betrayal made him stagger back. “Why?” he asked. “Why did you lie?”
“Don’t expect any truth out of her,” the man said. “If she can betray her own husband, she is capable of anything.”
He turned to Carmen. “I need to hear it from you. Does this man speak the truth?”
“Yes, but he spoke the truth in parts.”
“Is he your husband?”
She stayed silent for a minute before saying, “Yes, but—"
He cut her off. “I trusted you.” He had come here to take her back, to accept his follies and she wasn’t even the person he thought she was. Something froze inside him, and his resolve strengthened. “Never show me your face again,” he said coldly. “If I find you near me or my daughter, I’ll have you arrested.”
Carmen’s mouth moved as if she wanted to stop him, but she remained in the other man’s embrace as he walked away.
* * *
Carmen was numb. She wanted to call out to Arthur, to tell him the truth about everything. But then there was a chance that Jaxon would discover her daughter’s identity and try to hurt her, or even Arthur if he had the inkling of the truth. It was better to let him and Nora go. At least they would be safe without her.
“Have you been fucking him?” Jaxon asked with a sneer. Carmen remained silent. “No wonder he came looking for you here, all moon-eyed. You’ve got him all wrapped around your little finger.”
Carmen’s eyes snapped. Could it be? Could she really mean something to Arthur? But just as soon as she realized that even if there was a possibility that he had feelings for him, she had effectively killed them by choosing to stay with Jaxon. But he had left her no choice.
Her fist tightened. She knew what she needed to do. “Take me,” she said. “Take me and leave the others alone, even Lily. They did nothing to face your wrath. It’s me you want.”
A gleeful smile came over his face. “Ah, but you’re so wrong. I want to hurt every inch of you and the best way to do it is by hurting the people you love.”
“I’ll never see them again,” she said. “I promise you. You can have your revenge.”
“Where is my daughter?” Jaxon asked. Carmen’s blood froze and she knew she had to be careful. She smoothed her features so that she inadvertently didn’t give anything away.
“I don’t know. You took her away from me and I’ve been looking for her ever since.”
“If you’re lying to me, Carmen…”
She thought briefly of Nora. She would never let the child find out about her real father; she would never let him lay a single finger on her even if that meant that she had to go far away from her. “I’m not,” she snapped. “I’m telling the truth.”
“Fine,” Jaxon said. “You’ll take me back to your home and let me stay there for the night. I have nowhere else to go.” When Carmen began to protest, he started pulling out the gun from his jacket, which stopped her.
“Fine,” she said. “You can come.” She thought of the pandemonium that would ensure at his arrival and sure enough when they returned back to the music hall, the women were shocked to see her walk through the door with a man. “He’ll stay here for tonight,” Carmen explained simply. She didn’t have the heart to tell them that she would be leaving with him come tomorrow. She knew to what extent Jaxon could go if that meant causing her hurt.
Lily came down the staircase just then and as soon as she saw Jaxon, her eyes widened, and her face went pale. Carmen saw her friend teether on one of the steps and ran forward to support her, putting her arms under her shoulder. “W-what is he doing here?” Lily stammered.
Carmen winced. “I’ll explain everything to you.”
“But Jaxon, he-he…” Lily stammered. The man had treated her as poorly as he had treated Carmen.
“I had no choice. He says he has nowhere to go. But don’t worry, it’s just for tonight.” Because tomorrow, she would be leaving with him. She didn’t know how to tell her that without putting her in danger. She would have to bargain for her life.
Lily nodded. “I trust you.”
“Bring some blankets for him,” Carmen said. She glanced at her back to see the other women throwing Jaxon looks of obvious distrust. She led him to a small room that had single bedding. “You can sleep here.” Just as she turned around to leave, Jaxon caught her by the wrist and twisted it behind him. “No funny business with me. If you try anything, remember I’m always one step ahead of you.”
Carmen nodded, her throat closing up at the threat. She wasn’t concerned about herself any longer, but many lives were at stake here including those of the rest of the women. When she came out of the room, the others crowded around her with questions.Who is he? Why is he here?
