Explicit Memory

by Scarlett Finn

  ‘It is not a sexual contract,’ Antoine said, undeterred. ‘I am not interested in your body.’

  Though from the way his eyes skulked over her figure, Flick wasn’t sure she believed that claim. ‘You disgust me.’

  ‘I care not about that,’ he said, with an unaffected shake of his head

  ‘I won’t,’ Flick said, regaining her senses. ‘I won’t give you that opportunity.’

  ‘Then you are useless to us. Your life will be taken, as will young Tawny’s, and then we shall have Rushe comply with our wishes. Serendipity will be disposed of. It causes very little disruption to us.’

  ‘You want me to come home, to live with you here, and to give you access to my acquaintances.’

  ‘You will not be mistreated,’ Antoine said. ‘No one will be injured.’

  ‘And Rushe, what happens to him?’

  ‘We shall still expect him to comply with our request. Though we may allow our cousin to imply she was too traumatised to remember the events of her sexual violation accurately.’

  ‘I won’t leave him and give you an in here.’

  ‘You have a choice,’ he said, reaching up to stroke her shoulder. ‘You give the police your statement, stand up in court against him, and lose Rushe, a man who would rather be with another woman anyway. Or you come here, lose Rushe, and prove to your family that you are dedicated to me.’

  ‘No.’

  ‘Then you die. Serendipity will die. Tawny will die, and Rushe will go to jail.’

  In coming to negotiate with Antoine, Flick had appreciated that compromise may be required. They would all have to sacrifice something, but this seemed impossible.

  ‘It won’t work. You can’t pin this on him.’

  ‘With three more dead and the murder weapon in Rushe’s possession, he will go to jail.’

  ‘You want to frame him for that too?’ she asked. ‘They’ll never let him out.’

  ‘That would not mean a great loss for the world.’

  If Flick wasn’t around to fight Rushe’s corner, she didn’t know how far he would go to fight for himself. He was so used to fighting for everyone else that he never prioritised himself. The horrible truth was that without her, and Tawny, Rushe would blame himself for the deaths and would no doubt give up, believing in some warped way that he deserved to be incarcerated.

  ‘You are thinking about it.’

  She despised the pleasure in Antoine’s tone. ‘No, no I’m not.’

  ‘Tell me how else this can end? What do you wish to offer? Do you think that we can walk away, just forget how you disrespected us?’

  ‘We can give you your money back, we can pay back everything—‘

  Antoine laughed again. ‘This is beyond money, your disruption of our cash flow is not what brought us here. You have embarrassed my family, just as you embarrassed your own. You are selfish and irresponsible. You cannot presume that others will pay for your mistakes, and Rushe is paying, Serendipity too.’

  She couldn’t expect Antoine to surrender victory, walk away, and receive nothing in return. But if he would not accept monetary reparation then every other price was, in her eyes, too high. There was still a chance that they could prove their case legitimately, but as Eric had pointed out, if the cops got Rushe in their custody he’d be vulnerable to investigation beyond the Victor case.

  Flick had come here to negotiate with Antoine, not to give in to his commands or to beg his forgiveness. She had to keep her head. He had made an offer and now she had to counter it, which was how negotiations worked. Antoine asked for the most that he wanted, and now Flick had to offer him the least that she could.

  ‘I’ll testify against the others,’ she said, and Antoine’s expression became curious. ‘I won’t testify against Rushe, but I will give a statement as to what happened. I can incriminate Skeeve, Victor, all of the rest of them.’

  Leaving Rushe out of her testimony wouldn’t be too difficult, because no one alive had seen them together. Events in the basement of Victor’s mansion were open to interpretation, and none of the abducted women knew anything of her and Rushe’s relationship.

  At the time, after events had unfolded, Flick had been ready to give a statement. But at Rushe and Jansen’s urging, she had not. They had highlighted that if she did say anything unfavourable that the Merciers, or corrupt cops, might want to come after her. But here she was in this situation anyway.

  During the ordeal, Flick hadn’t known anything about anyone bankrolling the operation, because she thought Victor was in charge. So it wouldn’t be difficult to maintain that line with the police now. Flick could plead ignorance to anything beyond Victor’s regime.

  ‘We can put everything on Victor, you don’t need Rushe.’

  ‘That may ensure Rushe’s freedom,’ he said. ‘But we gain nothing, it’s not enough.’

  Flick swallowed the wail that lodged in her throat. She didn’t have any aces up her sleeve, this was it, all she had. She could testify against the others and keep the Mercier family name out of the equation; it was a name she hadn’t learned until Antoine showed up here anyway.

  ‘I thought you were a business man,’ Flick said. ‘Open to negotiation. If you try to extract testimony from me under duress, it will not be favourable for you. If you try to force me to testify against Rushe I’ll be sure to include your name, and your cousin’s, and your uncle’s. If he goes down, then you do too.’

  ‘Spirited,’ Antoine said, on a smiling exhale. ‘We shall consider it, your compliance in court to incriminate Victor, and use of your connections here.’

  He wanted not only her testimony, but also her family. Sacrificing her relationship with Rushe would be a lifelong price for her, and a cost for Rushe too. Maybe Antoine saw that as punishment enough for Rushe.

  Antoine could usurp Rushe’s woman. The concept of outdoing the man who had undermined him could be tempting for the Frenchman. Or it could just be about money, her family had access to a lot of it, and they could help Antoine accumulate his own through their vast network.

  ‘No.’

  ‘Then we shall expect your statement with the police within a week, and you will be accessible to our lawyers.’

  ‘You can’t expect me to—‘

  ‘No! You cannot expect us to! You wish to negotiate, and these are the terms. Do not frolic with the big boys if you cannot afford the stakes.’

  Her hatred burned into him with the same fire he returned on her, but the door opened and her mother entered with her father not too far behind. The couple examined her and Antoine’s proximity, and the curious concern on her mother’s face became delight.

  ‘Are you two getting properly acquainted?’

  ‘I’m going to bed,’ Flick said, unwilling, or maybe unable, to spend any more time in Antoine’s company. But before she could get past him, Antoine took her hand and brought it up to his mouth.

  ‘You have many things to consider,’ he said, with too practised a smile.

  ‘Goodnight,’ she said, conveying her displeasure enough that he released her.

  ‘No, stay up some more,’ Beverly said, as Flick went toward the exit.

  ‘No,’ Flick said, noticing how her mother’s attention kept flitting back and forth between her and Antoine. ‘Goodnight.’

  Chapter Seventeen

  ‘I’ve never seen you so quiet.’

  ‘What?’ Flick asked, rolling her head on the headrest of her seat to look at Eric, who sat in the driver’s seat.

  ‘We’ve been in the car for more than an hour, and you’ve barely said two words. You haven’t even asked about what I found out.’

  ‘I’m sorry,’ she said.

  ‘It didn’t go well then?’ Eric asked.

  ‘Which part? The negotiations with Antoine? The telephone conversation with Hayden? Or the part where my mother hijacked me this morning to tell me that it was time to get over my rebellious phase?’

  ‘Isn’t twenty-seven a bit old to be in a rebellious phase?’
Eric asked. ‘Are you a late bloomer?’

  ‘I’ve been rebelling against my mother since I was four years old,’ Flick said. ‘At least that’s what she would tell you. She hasn’t realised yet that this is just my personality.’

  ‘What? Awkward?’

  ‘Non-compliant,’ Flick said, smiling for the first time since before her discussion with Antoine the night before.

  The last time she’d smiled was before dinner, during her telephone conversation with Rushe. He’d called her on the Hughes’ library line for an update, not that she’d had one then. But it had been bolstering to hear his voice.

  ‘Right,’ Eric said.

  ‘I’m not even sure that she wants me home, she just doesn’t like to explain where the youngest Hughes daughter disappeared to. It’s not easy to explain that I ran off to live my life independent of the privilege they offered.’

  ‘And then you brought home Rushe.’

  ‘Yeah,’ Flick said, appreciating Eric’s smile. ‘Maybe I was switched at birth.’

  ‘Your mom’s probably praying for that.’

  Flick laughed and sighed out her despondency. ‘What did you find out?’

  ‘You were right that the girl remembered you,’ Eric said. ‘No one’s been near her, so I assume that they don’t know about her. They can’t be expecting you to build your own case.’

  ‘That’s good.’

  ‘How did things go with Hayden?’

  ‘I called him yesterday afternoon,’ Flick said. ‘To say that he was surprised to hear from me is an understatement. I didn’t tell him what was going on, but he remembered Rushe, and us together, so that’s something. He’s a stand-up guy, so I don’t see him lying to the police, or to anyone for that matter.’

  ‘So we can build a case?’

  ‘We have witnesses who can speak to our version of events,’ Flick said, letting her head roll back so that she could look out the passenger window at her side.

  ‘What happened with Antoine?’

  ‘I don’t know what to do... I don’t know how to fix this.’

  ‘Have you spoken to Rushe?’

  ‘On the phone,’ Flick said. ‘He called me last night.’

  ‘Did you give him the specifics?’

  ‘No,’ Flick said, sure that Eric was curious for the details himself. ‘We spoke before my conversation with Antoine, which worked out for the best because if I’d told Rushe... he needs to be where he is for now. There will be time to talk when I get back to him.’

  ‘Liam has the details of the captains; do you want me to talk to them?’

  ‘I don’t know,’ Flick said, appreciating that although Eric had said he wouldn’t go near the cops, he was offering now. ‘I don’t know anything anymore.’

  ‘Hey now, don’t you think about losing it. You’ve been keeping us all going, giving out the orders and demanding that we comply. You’re a strong woman.’

  ‘Maybe I don’t want to be strong anymore,’ Flick said.

  ‘You want to walk out on this? On Rushe?’

  Even if she did, she would have nowhere to go, and none of them would be any safer. This was a problem that wasn’t going away. It didn’t matter how far they ran, they would still be found eventually. Antoine had threatened Tawny now too, and they still had Serendipity in captivity. No amount of fighting would change the fact that they were in a weakened position. The Merciers held all of the aces now.

  ‘You don’t walk out on Rushe,’ she said. ‘I couldn’t walk out on him.’

  ‘I don’t think he’d let you.’

  ‘I really thought that I could make things better by talking to Antoine,’ Flick said.

  ‘You haven’t been in this game long, have you? You don’t reason with the bad guy, he’s not interested in helping you out. He’s interested in helping himself. Did you make him a counteroffer?’

  ‘Yeah.’

  ‘And?’

  ‘He countered it,’ she said, turning to him again. ‘But if I tell Rushe the specifics, it will only make things worse. I can’t lie to him, I don’t want to lie, but... it’s within my power to make this go away.’

  ‘That’s great, then why are you so...? Isn’t that what you wanted?’

  ‘Yes,’ she said, admitting at least to herself that in a lot of ways Antoine’s proposal was a godsend, especially if it didn’t involve sex, which was what he had implied.

  ‘Have you got to murder someone?’

  ‘No, no one has to die.’

  ‘Rushe goes to prison?’ Flick shook her head and gazed at the passing scenery. ‘Then what’s the problem?’

  ‘He won’t let it happen, he just won’t.’

  ‘Rushe? But if he knows it saves everyone’s hide...’

  ‘I’m all he has.’

  ‘A few weeks ago you were telling me that the job was all he had,’ Eric said.

  ‘Things have changed since then.’

  ‘Yeah, dying will do that to a guy,’ Eric said.

  The future promised between her and Rushe was not one of romance and innocent bliss. But it had been a future she was sure of. Since they had admitted their love and Rushe told her that he would do anything to make her happy, Flick had known exactly what she wanted her future to hold – Rushe.

  The only thing that could have prevented them from being together was each other, if their feelings had failed, and she had been confident that wouldn’t happen. The idea that an outside influence could tear them apart, and beyond that, keep them apart, made her ill. But if it meant keeping everyone alive, and keeping everyone free...

  Flick had always promised that she would do anything for Rushe, but convincing him to let her do this would not be an easy task.

  ‘And she’s back,’ Cody said, when Flick walked into the brothel reception after Eric dropped her off.

  Lilah sat behind the desk, and Candy was at her side with her arm in a sling. Flick cringed and lowered her bag to her side.

  ‘Candy, you’re back too.’

  ‘I hope you didn’t bring any of your friends with you.’

  ‘I am so sorry,’ Flick said. ‘For what happened, I really didn’t mean... I’m sorry.’

  Being shot wasn’t something that an apology could really make up for. But Flick couldn’t drop to her knees and beg for forgiveness, because it wasn’t like she was the one who had pulled the trigger. She also couldn’t explain to everyone exactly who Simone was and what she had been doing here that day.

  Looking at the three faces, which were all looking at her, Flick began to speculate as to who the mole could be. Antoine knew things that could only have come from someone here.

  ‘Is Rushe here?’ Flick asked.

  ‘Over at Silver’s,’ Cody said. ‘He’ll be back later.’

  Flick nodded and dragged herself and her bag toward the curtain. ‘Hey.’ She stopped at the sound of Lilah’s voice and was confused by the frown that the madam wore. ‘You ok?’

  ‘Yeah,’ Flick said, making herself smile, but she knew it was half-hearted.

  If she couldn’t convince these complete strangers that she wasn’t troubled, then she wouldn’t succeed in convincing Rushe. But he wasn’t here, and so she had some time to gather herself together. Except she’d had the whole car journey with Eric and hadn’t managed it yet.

  They had stopped at Liam’s on the way back to retrieve the information on the police captains, and Flick had every intention of discussing surveillance with Rushe. Eric promised to check out the guys’ addresses that night to give her an idea of any immediate worries, and she’d arranged to call him from the library tomorrow to get his report.

  Eric had been very dedicated to helping, and she wasn’t sure why. But she knew he had been grateful to Rushe for what he did on the last job, and things had very nearly gone very wrong. If Rushe was right that Eric was soft, by Rushe’s definition, then he no doubt felt guilt that she and Rushe had experienced most of the peril.

  The brothel hadn’t seemed like much when Rush
e first brought her here, but Flick was surprisingly glad to be back. The first thing she noticed on entering their bedroom was that her adopted red and black shirt was laid on the bed, and that made her smile. The gift was Rushe’s equivalent of moonlight and roses, and it gave her great comfort.

  Daylight was fading, and it had been a long couple of days, so she showered her family and the Frenchman off her body and tried to rid them from her thoughts. Then crawling into that shirt, she snuggled into the bed and inhaled the scent of her lover that lingered on his pillow. He’d be back soon, and she was certain that his presence would help her regain her buoyancy.

  Awareness of the weight of his body came after she registered his mouth on hers. Sighing out, Flick stretched her arms to the side then brought them out up and around his neck.

  ‘Just a dream, Kit, go back to sleep.’

  ‘No,’ she mumbled, rocking her head from side to side while still enjoying the short, frequent kisses he pressed to her lips. ‘I don’t want to sleep through this.’

  ‘I didn’t want to wake you. It’s late, and I have to go out again.’

  ‘Rushe,’ she griped, but still didn’t open her eyes.

  He lifted his hips enough to cup her inner thigh and pull her legs apart. She lay on top of the covers because it was warm, but the denim of his jeans scraped her sensitive flesh and the metal of his belt buckle dug in deep, so she knew he wasn’t preparing her for his entry. This was just a better, more reassuring position for them to be in. Reiterating that reassurance was the track of his erection that nestled in her centre.

  ‘You shouldn’t have started if you weren’t going to finish,’ she said, touching her tongue to his lip.

  ‘Couldn’t help myself,’ he said. ‘You’re too sweet a package to be left lying here untouched.’

  ‘You left me a present lying out. Thank you for my shirt.’

  It was important for her to acknowledge that he had done such a simple, nice thing for her, because giving gifts or being romantic wasn’t in his nature. Reinforcing the positive behaviour would hopefully lead to a repeat of it in the future.