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Her voice, while not as great as Mirabel’s, was sweet and tuneful, and I wanted to scream at myself for not being arty or talented. I had nothing to offer but my body.
That was all.
I hadn’t even kept up with my course. I’d been too busy spending time with Drake and falling head over heels.
Chapter 20
Drake
Ididmybestto ignore Manon at Gaia’s opening, despite the odd sneaky peek, and as I helped Brooke set up, I felt Manon’s eyes all over me. I couldn’t even bring myself to smile at her.
I missed her like mad, and I stayed busy to quash any memories of us together. Night was worse. I missed spooning her soft, warm body.
It wasn’t just the sex, either, despite how hot we were together. I just liked her close.
Since I was back to working two jobs, I had plenty to distract me.
It was my fifth night at Salon Soir since returning. Crisp had taken me back with open arms. Maybe that bullet I’d nearly worn for him had something to do with how easy it had been to return.
Manon didn’t even come up. No ultimatum. Just “Good to have you back. Remember what happens here, stays here.”
I’d already seen that paunchy bald guy from the photo Caroline had shown me, and even spotted him having a heart-to-heart with Crisp.
That photo I’d snapped of them on my phone had proved tricky. I wanted to be useful. Standing at doorways always felt like a dead-end career that one day, after I paid all my debts, I would walk away from.
But at that moment, I just wanted to find dirt on Crisp. Whether it was so Manon didn’t marry him, I couldn’t say. I was still shitty with her for refusing to explain why she would destroy what we had for that old dick.
Iwasoneweekinto my casino gig when something significant happened. It was 2:00 a.m., and just as I was about to leave, a van arrived. The casino normally shut its doors at one, despite patrons connected to Crisp continuing on. The man was a vampire. I imagined he slept during the day.
The van pulled up behind the venue in a dark spot.
I quickly grabbed my backpack, and just as I headed over to Crisp, someone whispered in his ear.
I waved to show him I was leaving, and he nodded in acknowledgment.
Curious about that van, I went the back way, which meant crossing the forest. There were no lights, and wearing black meant I could sneak around unnoticed.
I reached for my phone and positioned myself behind a tree, where I had a good view of the two guys standing by the van. Another car arrived, parked next to the van, from which two men stepped out.
The four men started to push and shove each other in what look like a heated exchange. One man from the car then brandished a gun, which was on a silencer. He shot dead the man from the van, then his partner took a bullet in the back while bolting off.
The remaining two men then opened the back of the van, removed sports bags, and tossed them into the boot of the car before driving off in the unmarked black SUV.
Next minute, Alec and Goran arrived and walked around the van, yelling something then bending down to check the victims’ necks.
It all happened in a matter of minutes, even seconds, and I filmed it. My hands trembled holding the phone. I’d never witnessed anyone being shot before. I just stood there and froze. Severely shocked, I was almost drunk from the horror of seeing men fall to their deaths with such efficient speed. At least the Serbian brothers dealt with the bodies, because I was about to run over and see if they were still breathing.
At least I hadn’t made my presence known, having just scored some compelling evidence of crooked activity.
As I traipsed through the dark forest, I kept looking over my shoulder while stumbling along with branches tearing into me. With the night moonless, it took some time for my eyes to adjust. I wanted to avoid using my phone torch. Rustling came from scurrying creatures, which had me on alert. Only nature wasn’t about to kill me. Unless a hungry wolf had roamed into unfamiliar territory, but those furry monsters didn’t freak me out as much as evil human ones did.
After watching my back all the way through that noisy, dark forest, I was relieved to be home one hour later. I’d left my bike at the casino, and if Crisp commented, I would just tell him that the tyre was flat or some other bullshit story.
It was quite a walk to the village, but I didn’t mind, because it gave me a chance to clear my head. I tried to think of nice things, like the way Manon’s eyes filled with lust when I entered her. Or the way her soft lips felt on mine. Also unwelcome thoughts in the end, given that I was trying to shake her off.
It was like Manon lived permanently in my head and body.
When I got home, I got myself a beer, stretched out on the sofa, removed my shoes, and pressed play on my phone.
