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I laugh harder, laugh until my shoulders shake and tears leak from my eyes.
Joshua laughs too. “It wasn’tthatfunny.”
“Oh God. You have an actual sense of humor. Maybe someday you’ll be a real boy.”
“Pinocchio,” he observes, as he opens a door onto another landscaped garden with stone paths, fountains, and enormous multi-branched cacti. “So well-read.”
“Um, I was actually paraphrasing the Disney movie, not the book. But thank you for thinking I’m at least semi-literate.”
It’s midafternoon now, and the sun gilds the distant mountain-tops with a golden glow. I stand still for a moment, drinking in the beauty. There are acres and acres of landscaping surrounding the house. Flagstone pathways wind through islands of carefully sculpted mini-scapes. There are dry riverbeds with bridges over flowing streams of polished rocks that wink in the sun. Arrangements of wicker chairs with cushions in a half circle in front of an outdoor chimney. Mesquite trees with ornaments dangling from them.
“Did you design all this?” I wave my hand at the garden, then the house.
“No, I hired a decorator. Same with the house in Maine.” His fingers stroke the small of my back as we walk. “If we had a house together, what style would you pick?”
I frown in thought. “Well, it would depend on where the house was. I like a house that reflects the region it’s in, like this one. I’m also fond of the shabby chic look, myself. But if we were…hey!” I shake my head. “Nice job, planting that image in my head of us owning a house together.”
“Thank you. I pride myself in being a manipulative bastard. It’s nice to have my work acknowledged.” His eyes crinkle as he smiles.
He’s joking with me. We’re bantering. It’s so…normal. I feel a sudden flood of lightness that makes me stumble, and he catches my arm protectively.
Could it always be like this?
We stroll in silence for a little while longer. pause by a tan, three-tiered fountain bubbling with crystal-clear water. His tone is light and playful, he’s saying all the right things, but I can’t ignore the faint, haunted air that clings to him like smoke. It’s so subtle that I don’t think that anyone but me would spot it.
“Is everything all right? You seem…tired. Preoccupied. Something.”
He raises his eyebrows. “Well, Charlemagne is loose in the world again. With a hundred million dollars of mine, and a brilliant mind that is laser-focused on tearing my life apart in ways that are the most painful to me. And since you’re my only weakness, the only thing that would hurt me to lose, that laser is trained right on you. So there’s that.”
I have the feeling there’s something more to it than that, but if he doesn’t want to tell me, there’s nothing I can do to pry it out of him.
We’re coming around to the side of the house. “How long do you think we’ll be here?” I ask. I realize I’m resigning myself to staying. Even if I could get past all his security, Joshua’s right about the danger I’d face. Micah’s got insane resources, and he’d find me eventually. The thought sends a tremor of sick terror through me.
Joshua’s about to answer when we hear a scream coming from around the corner. I freeze on the spot, but Joshua keeps walking, looking perfectly calm.
It takes me a moment to realize I’m hearing shrieks of laughter. Children’s laughter. I glance at Joshua, but he just gives me a mysterious smile.
We keep walking, and when we round the corner, I see Astrid and her children. All five of them. The two sons I never met but recognize from pictures Astrid emailed me, and her three daughters.
They don’t seem upset. In fact, I’ve never seen Astrid so happy and relaxed. They’re playing basketball on a big paved-over area, and Astrid is laughing, and her kids are smiling too. Beyond the tarmac, there’s an enormous obstacle course with ropes dangling over high wooden walls.
There are four big, bulky men playing basketball with Astrid and her children. Joshua’s security guards.
“Why are they here?” I ask him. “How do you even know them?”
He shrugs. “When I was searching for you, I…had Dr. Barnard and his two sons brought to my house. I kept them safe there while Micah was on the loose. And after you were found, Astrid called me to thank me for helping to save you all.”
I look at him, frowning. “Brought to your house”?
Sounds like kidnapping. But from the looks of it, he did it in such a way that the boys, at least, thought he was helping them.
He ignores that. “When my brother escaped this morning, I notified them immediately and offered to let them stay with me. I told them they’d have 24/7 security. They jumped at the chance.” He frowns at Fletcher. “That boy can’t dunk to save his life.”
I wave that away. “He’s twelve, right? Give him time. What I’m asking is, why are you helping someone when it doesn’t benefit you? That seems to go against everything you’ve ever told me about the way your mind works.”
He smiles, and I’m struck by how much more human his smile is than Micah-Charlemagne-psycho’s.
“You know I only act in my own self-interest. If Charlemagne got them, it would hurt you. And that would be tedious for me. So I brought them here to make you happy. You’re welcome.”
