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I frowned and stared at the dark house where my parents slept. “How do you know that?”
“Because Cem Kara explicitly said you were not to be prosecuted for keeping me alive when he couldn’t. He...he’s made friends in high places. He’s already got them on his side.”
Ice frosted over my lungs. “What? How?”
“He knows who you are, Neri. He knows about Jack and Anna. He deliberately made an impressive donation on your behalf, so you won’t suffer the consequences of taking me in. I’ve seen his statements and signature myself.”
“But...why would he do that?”
“So you’re left alone and at his mercy.”
“I don’t understand—”
“If you’re prosecuted, he can’t get to you. This way...you’re his.”
Sickness splashed on my tongue. “W-What are you saying?”
“I’m saying that he probably knows everything about you. He knows I know, and he’s using you to send me a message.”
My knees threatened to give out. “A message that he can kill us if you try to run again?”
Aslan cursed under his breath. “Exactly. He’s trapped me, canim. I’m alone in my homeland, and I’m fucking petrified because I’m too far away to stop him from hurting you. He could do anything. His men could be on their way to hurt you right now and—”
“Don’t worry about us. Just worry about yourself.”
“I can’t. Don’t you see?” A rustling as if he moved away from a noisy part of the street. “I had plans of smuggling myself out again. I have no idea how. I don’t have contacts. I don’t know who to approach. I have no money, for fuck’s sake, but...I was going to ask you to fly to London. To find a way to help me get to Europe. I was going to be selfish enough to see if you’d stay true to your promise and live with me in a different country.” His voice lowered. “We could’ve hidden in Asia or vanished into America. As long as we were together, I didn’t care where we lived.”
Tears crackled in his voice as he snarled, “I would’ve gone anywhere with you, Neri. I was willing to fight—”
“Why are you speaking in past tense?” I marched toward the sliding door leading to the kitchen. I was going to pack. I was going to throw everything I needed into a suitcase in five seconds and then book a flight. “I’ll leave right now. I’ll wire you some money somehow. I’ll call whoever I need to and find some guy with a boat to get you out of there—”
“You can’t,” he said quietly, morosely. “If I go missing, Cem will come after you.”
I tripped on a raised nail of the deck, my hand slapping against the sliding door. “He wouldn’t. He knows you’re there, not here. Why would he—”
“He would hurt you to get to me. If he went to this much trouble to protect you, it wasn’t out of the goodness of his heart but because you’re his leash on me.”
“A leash that you don’t have to wear, Aslan. Don’t worry about us. We’re fine. We can take care of ourselves. Just worry about yourself and come home to me.”
“He could take away your livelihood. Just because the government is appeased at the moment doesn’t mean they won’t still prosecute.”
“Who cares!?” I snarled in the night. “Do you honestly think I care if I get a criminal record? Do you think Dad or Mum care? We love you. We would do anything for you. If it’s a matter of dealing with the choices we made or keeping you alive, I can speak for everyone involved that we’ll do absolutely anything.”
“And that makes me love you even more, but—”
“But nothing. Hide, Aslan. Go wherever you can to hide. Give me an hour, okay? Give me an hour to book a flight and—”
“You can’t come here—”
“I know. I’ll do what you said and fly to London. If I have to rent an entire yacht to come and collect you, I will. Just...stay hidden, and we can get through this, okay?”
Someone laughed in the background. “Hang on, I’ll just get somewhere quieter.”
“No. Don’t.” I froze with fresh fear. “Stay in the crowds.”
He came back on the line. “If we’re going to do this, Neri, I need you to clear it with Jack and Anna first. I refuse to die. I refuse to lose you. I’m selfish enough to say I’ll fucking swim to Europe to keep you, but...Jack and Anna have to know the danger they’re in. They should go away for a while. Go somewhere—” He grunted as if someone had bumped into him. “Fucking hell, it’s a madhouse here tonight.”
I pictured him surrounded by tourists in a brightly lit street. Of lanterns and quaint shops. Of music and enticing aromas. Such a blissful picture ruined by his homicidal father stalking him.
Sighing heavily, I stepped into the house. “I’ll go wake Mum and Dad right now, and they can tell you exactly what I just did. We’re in this together, Aslan. You’re family. We’ll do anything for you...okay?”
