by Beth Abbott
“So, she blackmailed you using the video?” JT clarified. “And what was your role in the kidnapping?”
“She was supposed to be the one being kidnapped.” Harry explained. “She’d already filmed a proof-of-life video, and I was just supposed to forward it on.”
“That’s all you were supposed to do?” JT pressed.
“Well, I had to give her ten grand to pay the assholes that she brought in to do the job.” Harry scowled. “But then, of course, when the wrong people were taken, I had to send the message to Robbie rather than Alpha Company.”
“How can we be sure this isn’t all bullshit?” Robbie demanded.
“Because it ties up almost exactly with what Lizzy told us.” Matt confirmed. “There’s a slight discrepancy over the ‘fifteen’ part, because she claims he actually thought she was fifteen. That shouldn’t be too difficult to verify, if she actually did doctor the video.”
“I swear she must have. So, you see, I had to do it Robbie.” Harry pleaded. “It was nothing to do with you or Megan. I had to do it, or I’d have been finished. My reputation would have been ruined, in the worst way. A way you just don’t come back from.”
“Am I supposed to forgive and forget all this, just because it wasn’t supposed to have been Megan and Suzy that got kidnapped?” Robbie sneered. “Am I supposed to let you keep your job, because you never meant for me to be involved?”
“Robbie, I’ve only ever tried to look after you…” Harry gasped.
“Yeah, and now I’m gonna let the police look after you!” Robbie snapped. “Hannah? D’you think your police friends can pick him up when they come for Cerys?”
“David’s already called them in.” Hannah smiled.
“Then I don’t know about Suzy and Matt, but I’d like to take Meg and Evan and get the fuck out of here.” Robbie announced.
Matt turned to the teenager and smiled.
“That’s the best idea I’ve heard all day.” He nodded, looking around the room at his Alpha Company family. “Any objections if we get the hell out of here as well?”
“The police still need to take full statements from Megan and Suzy.” Hannah shrugged. “But now we’ve got all the bad guys, a motive, and plenty of evidence, I’m sure that can wait until tomorrow.”
Matt leaned down and picked Suzy up off the sofa.
“Come on, wife.” He smiled at her. “You and I have an appointment with our bed that’s gonna last at least forty-eight hours.”
Suzy’s sexy chuckle lifted a hundred-pound weight off his chest.
Chapter 74 – Evan
The drive back to Robbie’s house was completed in almost total silence, with only the music from the radio keeping them from hearing the sound of the tyres on the road.
Megan was sitting next to him, her eyes closed and the seat slightly reclined. They’d barely had any sleep last night, what with her fidgeting and fretting, so it wasn’t surprising she’d flaked out the minute the car’s heating had kicked on and she’d warmed up.
Evan glanced in the rear-view mirror and watched Robbie staring out of the window, still looking stunned at everything that had happened over the previous forty-eight hours.
As they approached the house, Evan flicked the switch and waited for the electric gates to open, allowing them in.
The car moved off the road, and the slight jostling had Megan’s eyes shooting open, as she glanced around them.
“That was quick.” She smiled up at him sleepily.
“I did ninety-five all the way.” He joked, relieved that she’d managed to relax enough to drop off for a while.
“You Ok, Robbie?” He checked the mirror as he pulled up outside the door.
“Yeah.” Robbie nodded. “I’m Ok.”
As they all climbed out of the car, Evan glanced across at Megan and noticed she was staring at her brother with a worried frown.
He guessed he wasn’t alone in thinking Robbie was far from being ‘Ok’.
Robbie opened the front door and they followed him inside, but when he made to go to his bedroom, Megan stopped him.
“Rob, could you come into the living room for a minute?” She took his hand and tugged. “I wanted to have a chat to you about some stuff.”
Robbie looked at Evan as though he would know what Megan had on her mind, but he shrugged, honestly having no clue what the ‘stuff’ was she was referring to.
Megan pulled Robbie to the big sofa, and made him sit next to her, while Evan sat in an armchair opposite them.
“Is this one of those ‘intervention’ type things I’ve heard so much about?” Robbie smiled tiredly. “Honest, sis, I don’t have a problem with drink or drugs!”
Megan grinned at him.
“No, but you do have a problem with being a smartass!” She smacked him on the arm.
Evan watched the two of them grinning at each other, and marvelled that he’d never made the connection before. They were like two peas in a pod, even down to their mannerisms.
Robbie rolled his eyes at being treated like an eight-year-old.
“So, what’s up?” He shrugged.
“I’m worried about you.” Megan admitted. “You’ve kicked Cerys out, not before time, mind you, and you’ve ditched your agent, all in one afternoon, and that comes on top of a pretty stressful twenty-four hours. That’s a lot for a person to handle.”
“I kicked out the sister who’s been scrounging off me for longer than I can remember, as well as making my home life a misery by treating my house worse than squatters would.” Robbie pointed out. “That’s hardly a cause for concern. In fact, it actually means I’ll be much better off, because I can cancel the standing order paying five thousand a month into her bank account. That’s a win in my books, every which way you look at it.”
“Ok, I guess I can’t see much of a downside to that part of it.” Megan conceded. “But what about Harry? He’s been your agent for three years, and you guys have been close.”
“It’s true, we have been close.” Robbie nodded. “And he’s right in saying that if it had just been him getting caught with a sex tape circulating, I’d have been pissed at him for embarrassing me, but I wouldn’t have sacked him. After all, if he chooses to go to sex-clubs to get his kicks, that’s entirely up to him. What he does in his private life with other consenting adults is none of my business.”
“That’s a very mature attitude to take.” Evan nodded. “I doubt your dad would have come to the same conclusion.”
“It’s just sex, Ev!” Robbie protested, blushing. “It’s not like he’s drug-trafficking or match-fixing! It’s legal, for one thing.”
“That’s true.” Megan nodded. “But what about the kidnapping part? What are your thoughts there?”
“As soon as that woman blackmailed him, he should have come to me.” Robbie insisted. “If he’d have told me the truth, I’d have backed him, and helped him go to the police. I would have stuck by him, especially as what that woman was planning was to extort money out of Alpha Company. Matt’s always been really nice to me, so the last thing I would’ve wanted was for them to get shafted.”
“He was caught in a sting, though.” Megan pointed out. “Being accused of having sex with a minor is a whole different level of serious. It would have gotten him labelled a paedophile for a start. People don’t just shake that off, not even if they’re subsequently found to be innocent. It’s a terrible stigma to live with.”
“He should have gone to the police.” Robbie shook his head adamantly. “I understand what you’re saying, Meg, but my reaction to this isn’t about what happened at the sex club, it’s about his actions afterwards. It was bad enough that he didn’t turn that woman in when she was going to have herself kidnapped. But when you and Suzy were taken, he never said a word, even though he knows that you’re the most important person in my life. He even forwarded the message straight to my phone, and then sat there patting my back while my heart was breaking. If you think there’s ever gonna be a hope o
f me forgiving him, you’re mistaken. It’s never gonna happen.”
Evan wondered if Robbie realised the impact of his words on his sister.
Telling her that she was the most important person in his life was probably the sweetest thing the kid could’ve done, and he probably wasn’t even aware that he’d done it.
Megan stared at her brother for a few moments, before she leaned forward and wrapped her arms around his neck, hugging him tightly.
Whether Robbie was surprised or not Evan couldn’t tell, but he wasn’t above being cwtched by his big sister.
“I’m sorry he did that to you.” Robbie murmured as he hugged Megan back. “I could kill him for letting you be hurt.”
Megan squeezed tighter before eventually letting him go.
“I wasn’t hurt, sweetheart.” She managed a smile, even though tears were running down her cheeks. “Scared maybe, but not hurt.”
“So, what happens now?” Evan asked Robbie. “No Cerys, no Harry… you have to think about what you do next.”
“Getting rid of Cerys is cause for celebration.” Robbie smirked. “As for not having an agent, well, I guess I can live without one for a little while. My contract is all settled for the next few years, and I think Matt has all the details for the summer tour, meeting with the kids and stuff. I can probably find someone to step in and take care of the organisational side of things, at least until I’m ready to sign with a new agent.”
“So, nothing to worry about for now.” Evan confirmed. “You can just concentrate on your football.”
“Well, there is one thing I’d like to get settled.” Robbie frowned. “A certain someone did say she’d come and stay here for a while. I’d just like to establish how long she thinks a while might last.”
Evan looked over at Megan and grinned.
“What do you think, Meg?” He winked at her. “How long do you think you can put up with us for?”
“Can I just say, before you decide anything, that I have plenty of space, so you guys can have some privacy. Plus, I’ve got an indoor pool, a bowling alley, and an oven that actually works.” Robbie grinned. “I also have every intention of hiring a cleaner once Cerys’ shit is out of here, and I wouldn’t be ashamed to have someone in, so you don’t have to worry that you’re here to skivvy for us. You work hard enough already without having to come home and look after the house.”
Megan looked between the two men, and Evan guessed it must be like looking at a pair of over-anxious puppies, because as much as Robbie wanted this, Evan wanted it more.
“Ok, the fact that you have a working oven is a big selling point …” She grinned at them. “But it’s not the deciding factor when making my decision.”
“It’s the swimming pool that’s tempting you, isn’t it?” Robbie chuckled.
Megan grinned.
“If I’m honest, the thought of the swimming pool is pretty nice.” She admitted. “But the thought that neither of us will be lonely any more is nicer.”
Evan watched Robbie pick up Megan’s hand and squeeze it.
“I’ve been on my own a long time.” Megan glanced up at Evan, but there was no accusation in her voice, only regret. “If it hadn’t been for Cerys moving in with you, I’d have been happy if you’d have wanted to come and live with me when you came to Birmingham, although in hindsight, looking around this place, I can see why my pokey little flat wouldn’t have been quite what you were looking for.”
“I’d have slept on your sofa if you’d have offered it.” Robbie smiled. “I still would, if that was the only way to spend time with you.”
“Well, I’m sure you’ll be glad to know that won’t be necessary.” Megan smiled. “I’ll be happy to move in here, but there are going to have to be some changes.”
“Name it.” Robbie didn’t hesitate, and Evan nodded his agreement with whatever she was gonna propose.
“Ok, firstly, there’s my job.” Megan shrugged. “I’m going to reduce the number of shifts I work.”
“Quit altogether if you like.” Robbie shrugged. “It’s not like I can’t afford to keep you.”
Evan was just about to protest that Robbie didn’t need to keep Megan, when she put up her hands to silence them both.
“I don’t want to give up work, Rob, because I actually like what I do, and it would be a waste of all my training to chuck it in now.” Megan shook her head. “But I’ve worked all the shifts available for so long because I didn’t have anything else to do, or anyone to come home to, and as of now, I do. I also have to take account of where you live, and how far away it is from the hospital. I don’t want to spend two or three hours commuting every day.”
“You could cut it down to just two or three shifts a week.” Evan suggested. “That’s still almost the equivalent of a normal full-time job.”
“That would work.” Megan nodded. “And I’d want to contribute towards the bills.”
“Me, too.” Evan nodded. “I mean, I wouldn’t be staying necessarily to look after Robbie anymore, would I?”
“So, in what capacity would you be staying?” Robbie teased. “If you’re not my protection officer, I mean.”
“Funnily enough, I was mulling this over earlier, what Megan and I should call each other when we’re introduced to each other’s friends.” Evan admitted. “I settled on introducing Megan as ‘the woman I’m going to marry again when she’ll let me’, so that would make you, ‘the brother of the woman I’m going to marry again when she’ll let me’.”
“Yeah, I think you should work on that one.” Robbie frowned. “It’s a bit of a mouthful.”
“I thought so, too.” Evan nodded. “I’m working on getting to ‘fiancée’ in the very near future, but you can’t rush these things, apparently.”
“True.” Robbie agreed. “Besides, you gotta get the girl a rock that she’ll be proud to wear. No point in asking if you don’t have the bling ready.”
“Hello?” Megan folded her arms across her more than ample chest. “I am still in the room you know.”
Robbie snorted a laugh.
“And so am I.” He stood up and waved to them both. “And as three’s a crowd, I’m going to find me some black bin-liners and start packing all of Cerys’ crap up, ready to send down to my dad. I’ve been looking forward to doing this for so long, it’s like Christmas in January!”
Evan watched Robbie walk out of the room whistling, before getting up from the chair and moving to the sofa to sit beside Megan.
“He’s gonna be Ok, y’know.” He smiled. “Especially now he’ll have you here, fussing over him.”
“I know.” She nodded. “I was worried about him being alone when you go back to your Guardians duties. With Cerys gone, I’m quite looking forward to us spending some quiet family time together.”
“About that…” Evan frowned. “I’ve signed up to the Guardians for at least two years. We all have. But like now, there’s gonna be a lot of down-time between operations, when we’re back doing work for Alpha Company.”
“You explained that Matt needed more help up here because of the contracts with the clubs.” Megan nodded.
“Well, I was thinking of speaking to Matt and asking if I could spend all my down-time working out of the Birmingham office.” Evan explained. “That way, I’d only be down in London during the prep time for any new operation, and, of course, and wherever they send us while any op is actually underway. A couple of weeks, maybe a month at most, every few months. How would that sound?”
“I think it sounds pretty good.” Megan smiled.
“And if, at the end of the two years, we found I was spending too much time away from home, maybe I could switch back from the Guardians and work for Alpha in Birmingham, full-time.” Evan suggested. “How would that sound?”
“That sounds like a decision you need to make at the end of the two years.” Megan smiled.
“But you wouldn’t be opposed to the idea.” Evan needed the reassurance.
Megan leaned fo
rward so she could take his hand.
“I love the idea.” She smiled. “But I also know you love your job, so I don’t want you making me any promises, just because you think it’s what I need to hear. We’re here now, starting a new future together. Why don’t we just see how things go, hmm?”
“There are only one of two ways this is going to go, Meg.” Evan frowned. “Either you’re gonna kick me out, once and for all… or you’re gonna marry me. Simple as.”
“Is that so?” Megan smirked. “And is there a deadline for me to decide which?”
Evan thought about it for a moment.
“March first.” He announced. “You have to make up your mind whether I’m in or out by the first of March.
“You’d choose a sacred day like St David’s day, our very own patron saint’s day, for me to make such a momentous decision?” Megan gasped.
“I’m relying on your sense of Welshness on such a special date, for you to admit you can’t live without me.” Evan grinned.
“And if I kick you out?” She teased.
Evan leaned forward until they were nose-to-nose.
“We both know that’s never gonna happen.” He smiled seductively. “I’ve got eight weeks to love you so well you’ll never want to let me go. I’m gonna make it up to you for every moment of sadness I caused you. I’m gonna kiss you a dozen times for each tear I caused you to shed. And I’m gonna give you a dozen orgasms for every Christmas, birthday and anniversary I missed spending with you for the last decade.”
Evan watched as Megan’s entire body seemed to shudder at his words.
“It does sound like you plan on making yourself quite… indispensable.” She smiled.
“You have no idea, baby.” He murmured.
“Eight weeks?” She whispered, touching her lips softly to his.
“Fifty-six days.” He murmured back, before deepening the kiss.
One thousand, three hundred and forty-four hours until she was his.
Forever!
Chapter 75 – Matt
There were only so many ways you could say you were sorry before it sounded old and tired, and the reality of it was that words were cheap.