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“And you should have told me you were leaving.” Pain flashes through Daisy’s eyes. I hate that I’m the cause of it. How do I explain to her that I loved her too much to put her in harm’s way? How could she possibly understand? Hell, she’s probably got a fella waiting for her at home. I think finding out that her best friend was secretly in love with her for the entirety of the friendship might be too much, especially in these circumstances. It’s a complicated shitty mess as is.
“Betty would have come for you sooner, you know that.” I hope she can see the pleading in my eyes. I need her to understand it was for her own good.
“I would have gone with you.” Oh, God, my heart is clenching so hard. I can only imagine how different the last six years would have been if I’d had Daisy with me. I shake my head rapidly.
“No way. You had your life. You’d escaped and were free to live the life you wanted. I could never have dragged you into this.” I see her open her mouth and clench her fist. She looks like she wants to strangle me. I’ve never seen her look so frustrated. Finally, she snaps her mouth shut and breathes heavily out her nose.
“It doesn’t matter now. We have to work together.”
“How?” For the life of me, I can’t see what we would do to end it all. Betty’s reach is far too long. Even if I did leak the black book, there are too many ways for her to discredit it.
“I have all the evidence we need. That, along with whatever it is you took, should be enough. We have to try, Cal. You deserve to come home and have a life.” My throat seizes. I haven’t entertained the idea of going home in years. It always hurt too much to think about it.
“What evidence?”
“Their ignorance is going to be their downfall.” When Daisy says “Their” I know she’s talking about Betty and her dad. Watching someone you love be dismissed because they’re different is awful. I wanted to weep for Daisy on a daily basis growing up. Her dad, or sperm donor as he should be called, treated her like she was nothing. All because she is deaf.
“What do you mean?”
“Treating me the way they did was cruel. Ignoring me was a mistake. It’s amazing what I was able to pick up from them. They thought that because I couldn’t hear their conversations, I didn’t understand. Oh, how very wrong they were. Callie, I collected as much shit about Betty and her entire operation as I could. For two years, I smuggled information into my own virtual vault.”
My mouth is hanging open. I can feel it. I’m shocked and surprisingly turned on by what Daisy has just said. I always knew she was a formidable person but this… Daisy Simpson is a fucking ninja spy. “How… What… How?” She laughs at me. Her eyes light up and I want to take her face in my hand and kiss her. It’s ridiculous how those feelings I so carefully tucked away are now spilling out.
“What did you take from her?” She asks me.
“Her little black book.”
“Are you kidding me?”
I shake my head. “No, I found it seven months before I left. I was already planning on running, but I held on until I knew I could secure it as some insurance.”
“Callie, we can do this. We can take her down.” I love her enthusiasm, but it isn’t as easy as she’s making it sound. Betty’s empire stretches across all of England. I read her book, I know the names of her colleagues and they are not to be trifled with. Presenting the police with a book and whatever Daisy has isn’t going to suffice. We need to cut off several heads (metaphorically speaking) before her reign will end permanently.
“Daisy, we are three people. She has an army. Her goons might be meatheads, but they will fuck us up if they find us. What about Daniel? She won’t hesitate to kill him.”
“Daniel made his bed. He chose that life. Callie, she has to be stopped. You will never be safe… and… I need you safe. I need you home.”
One good thing out of this conversation is that I am one hundred percent sure Daisy is not a threat. As for everything else, I don’t even know where to begin. I drink some more coffee and gaze out the window. Daisy doesn’t interrupt me. She knows I’m processing.
Okay, the facts are that together we have enough ammunition to dismantle the biggest crime family in English history. That being said, we need to do it right. Get the information into the right hands. There is no point handing our treasure trove over to some Beat Bobby.
Bloody hell, am I actually entertaining that we form a team and attempt this?
Fuck, I could never say no to Daisy.
Chapter 8
Daisy
Her mind is busy working, I can see it. She used to gaze off into the distance whenever she was thinking a problem through. I don’t mind; it allows me time to sit and drink her in.
I wish I could caress her hair, it’s so vibrant and soft. I remember once when we were seventeen. We were chilling in one of the many fields that surrounds the village. I was leaning against a big oak tree and Callie had her head in my lap. I had absentmindedly started stroking her hair, and it was the best sensation in the world. At the time, though, I panicked because I was sure that Callie would pick up on my attraction. She didn’t.
How I wish we could go back. I would tell her everything that I knew and then I would have run away with her. I understand that she didn’t tell me because she was worried, but if she knew how much I loved her, maybe she would understand that her leaving me behind was a kind of torture that even Betty couldn’t upstage.
Why would she believe me, though? I left her behind first. Callie would love Edinburgh. Maybe once this is over she will come back with me. I’m getting ahead of myself, I know, but I can’t help it. I know we can do this. If we are together, we can bring that old witch to her knees. I must be patient. If I push too hard, Callie will retreat. A small smile blooms on my face. Even after all this time, I still know her. She’s still my Callie.
I said that I would tell her how I feel about her, but I’m putting that on the back burner. Not sure it’s the best idea to add more complication to an already fraught situation, and I’m a complete and utter chicken shit. If she rejected me, I think I would die. Not literally, I’m not that dramatic. I think the part of me that still believes in happily ever after would die. Callie has always been that for me. So, for a little while longer, I will keep my fairy tale as is. Unmarred and safe in my heart.
