Secrets (Lords of the City)

by Alice Ward

  “I’m in the living room of our hotel room. What’s going on? Are you okay?”

  “I’m fine. Listen, Chels… where’s Drake?”

  The urgency in her voice sent my heart racing.

  “He’s asleep in the other room. It’s six o’clock in the morning here, Stace.”

  “Chelsea, I need you to trust me. I have something to tell you, but I think it’s best that you leave the hotel first. Get dressed, get your passport, and take a taxi to the airport. Oliver’s already booked you on the next flight to New York.”

  What the hell is going on? Why would I leave Hong Kong? This doesn’t make any sense.

  “You’re scaring me. Please, just tell me what’s going on. I’m not going to get on a plane and leave Drake without knowing why,” I insisted.

  She blew out a breath, the force of the air sending crackles over the line. “I just got off the phone with a woman in Denmark. That’s all I’m going to say right now. Get out of that hotel, Chelsea. Call me from the taxi… wait a second… Oliver says if we don’t hear from you in twenty minutes, he’s calling one of his Hong Kong contacts to come pick you up.”

  The line went dead before I had a chance to respond. I stood in the middle of the living room, completely dumbstruck.

  What the hell happened in Denmark? And why are Oliver and Stacey so insistent that I get away from Drake? What kind of danger do they think I’m in?

  If it had just been Stacey who insisted I rush away from the hotel, I probably would have ignored her. But the fact that Oliver shared her opinion had me worried. If he was taking some sort of stand against Drake, something serious must have happened. I tiptoed back to the bedroom and studied Drake as he slept. He looked so peaceful, so happy, and the last thing I wanted to do was leave him.

  I’ll get my purse and passport and I’ll get in the taxi. That doesn’t mean I have to get on the plane. I’ll listen to what Stacey and Oliver have to say and then decide what to do from there.

  I pulled on a pair of yoga pants, a jogging bra, and a t-shirt, and then stuffed my feet into tennis shoes. I rifled through my luggage for my passport, shoved it into my purse, and crept out of the room. I made my way to the lobby, my anxiety growing heavier with every step. Finally, I made it outside and found a taxi. As the car pulled away from the curb, I pulled out my phone and dialed Stacey’s number.

  “Chelsea? You’re on speakerphone. Oliver and I are both here. Are you out of the hotel?” she asked, sounding more nervous than I did.

  “Yes. Will you please tell me what’s going on? What did the woman from Denmark tell you? The way you demanded that I leave the hotel made me think that you were worried about my safety.”

  “We weren’t worried about you, sis,” Oliver piped in. “We were worried about what you’d do to Drake if you were anywhere near him when you heard this.”

  Panic rose in my chest until I felt like I was going to suffocate. “Please,” I begged again. “Will one of you just tell me what the fuck has happened?”

  “There’s no easy way to say this, Chelsea,” Stacey began slowly. “A few hours after you left the apartment Friday, I got an email from the records office in Denmark. It had all of Alex’s basic info in it, nothing we hadn’t found on our own all ready. But this afternoon, I got a call from a woman named Anna who works in the office. She told me that several years ago, her boss took a large bribe in exchange for ‘losing’ some vital records. Anna doesn’t think much of her boss and she thinks even less of the rich blonde American who paid her off.”

  Oh my God. That night at the gala… Alex told Drake, “You were free to screw around with whoever you want. But you aren’t free to get married.”

  I felt like I was taking a punch to the gut as the truth started clicking together in my head. “What did Rebecca pay the clerk to bury?” I asked, hoping my assumption was wrong.

  Stacey took a deep breath. “Alex is Drake’s wife, Chelsea. They were married six years ago in Denmark.”

  “I’m so sorry we’re telling you like this, sis,” Oliver broke in. “I wanted to jump on a plane and tell you in person.”

  “But I couldn’t stand the thought of you spending one more second with that son of a bitch,” Stacey added.

  “Chelsea…? Chelsea, are you there?” Oliver asked, his voice rising.

  “I’m here,” I finally choked out.

  “Oh, you’re crying. Damn it, now I’m crying. I hate that bastard,” Stacey sobbed, overwhelmed with frustration and pregnancy hormones.

  “I am crying,” I admitted. “But I’m fine. I’m going to tell the driver to turn this taxi around and I’m going to fucking kill my fiancé.”

  “See, this is why we made you leave,” Oliver said firmly. “And while I agree that homicide is a perfectly acceptable reaction to this situation, I don’t think it’s the way to go. You wouldn’t last long in a Chinese prison, peanut. Get on the plane and get home. I’ll take care of that lying piece of shit when he gets back to the city.”

  Home… I don’t have a home. I can’t go back to the apartment. Not after the way I talked to Piper. Why did I have to be so damn stubborn? Why didn’t I listen to her?

  “You’re coming here once you land,” Stacey added, as if she was reading my mind. “I won’t take no for an answer.”

  “Thank you,” I said, still trying to process what was happening. “Drake is going to wake up soon. He’s going to panic once he realizes I’m gone. You’re the first person he’s going to call, Ollie.”

  “What do you want me to tell him?”

  “Tell him you have no idea where I am.”

  “You got it,” he agreed. “But I’m going to have to call Mom and Dad. They’ll panic if Drake calls and tells them you’re missing.”

  “Fine,” I replied with a reluctant sigh. “Just don’t give them any specific details. Tell them Drake and I had a fight and I’m not ready to talk to him.”

  “I’ll be incredibly vague, I promise. I wish you didn’t have to fly home alone, Chelsea. I’m so sorry this happened to you.”

  “You have nothing to apologize for. This was my own damn fault.”

  ***

  My flight home took sixteen hours, but with the time change I only lost four. I landed in New York City at noon and found Stacey and Oliver waiting as promised.

  “Chelsea, I’ve been so worried about you,” Stacy said, rushing to wrap her arms around me. “I didn’t sleep at all last night. I just keep thinking about all of the times I pushed you towards Drake. You shouldn’t have listened to me. You should have listened to your gut.”

  “This isn’t your fault, Stace,” I assured her as I pulled away. Oliver draped an arm over my shoulders and we started for the exit.

  “How was your flight?” he asked.

  “Long,” I replied with a snort. “I’ve made quite a mess of things, Oliver. I quit my job. I gave up my house. I don’t know how to start putting things back together.”

  “Maybe you should start with Piper,” Stacey suggested softly.

  I shook my head, stepping out into the hot sun. “I know that has to be a priority. But I just don’t have the energy for it right now. I can’t face her… not yet.”

  “You don’t have to do anything you’re not ready for,” Oliver told me. He pulled out his car keys and unlocked the doors as we approached his BMW. Stacey slid into the backseat with me while he settled in behind the wheel.

  “How many times has Drake called?” I asked, addressing the elephant in the car.

  “Eight,” Oliver said with a sigh. “And Mom and Dad now know the whole story.”

  “Damn it, Oliver!” I groaned.

  “I’m sorry,” he said, holding up his hands as he rolled to a stop at the ticket booth. He paid for parking and pulled out into traffic.

  “I managed to get a hold of them before he did and I kept things vague like I promised. They promised not to tell him where you were. But after the fourth time Drake called them, Mom started to feel sorry for him. T
elling her the whole story was the only way to keep her quiet,” he explained.

  “I’ve never heard your mother so pissed off,” Stacey added, cradling her stomach. “I can imagine exactly what she’d like to do to Drake right now. She told me to have you call her as soon as you were home. I think she just needs to hear that you’re okay.”

  “I’m not okay, Stacey. I don’t know what I am. Would you call her for me? Tell her I’m home, I’m safe, and I just need some time to process all of this before I talk about it?”

  “I’ll take care of it as soon as we get to the house,” she promised.

  We rode through the city in silence, my heart growing wearier with every block. I finally gave in to the urge I’d fought since the moment my plane had touched down. I pulled my phone from my purse and turned it on. It chimed nonstop as voicemails and text messages came through.

  “Chelsea, I don’t know if you should look at that right now,” Stacey warned. Before I could reply, Oliver’s phone rang.

  “It’s Piper,” he announced.

  “Shit, Drake probably called her too,” I realized out loud.

  “I can’t believe we didn’t think about that,” Stacey groaned. “You have to answer it, Ollie. She’s probably panicked.”

  “Just stay quiet,” Oliver instructed, tapping a button on his dash. “Hello?”

  “Oliver,” Piper’s voice boomed through the car’s speakers. “I’m freaking the fuck out. Drake keeps calling me. He said Chelsea is missing. Oliver, I’m afraid he’s done something to her. I’ve seen shit like this on those true crime shows. That bastard took her out of the country and we’re never going to see her again.”

  “Piper, calm down. Chelsea is fine, she’s safe. She left Drake. That’s all I can say right now,” Oliver said firmly.

  “What the fuck do you mean that’s all you can say right now? What happened? That asshole must have really done it this time, if she’s actually come to her senses and left him.”

  Oliver and I locked eyes in the rearview mirror and I gave him a slight nod.

  “Drake and Alex are married. A woman in Denmark called yesterday and told us. Chelsea flew home as soon as we told her without telling Drake where she was going. We all agreed he deserved to squirm for a little while. She’s not ready to talk about this yet, Piper.”

  Piper let out a long sigh and cleared her throat. “Someone should probably tell Drake she’s safe before he launches an international search party. Tell Chelsea that I love her and remind her that home is actually New Jersey.”

  “I’ll let her know,” Oliver promised. The line went dead and I brushed a tear from my cheek.

  “See, she loves you,” Stacey said softly.

  “I know. I’ll call her in a little while. She was probably right about Drake. If he hasn’t already alerted the local cops, it probably won’t be long. I don’t want this to turn into some sort of international incident.”

  I looked down at my phone, scanning through the text messages. Each one was more panicked than the last, with Drake pleading for me to let him know I was okay. I couldn’t bring myself to listen to the voicemails. I typed “FUCK OFF” and hit send.

  “That’s short and to the point,” Stacey said with a smile.

  Almost immediately, my phone rang and Drake’s picture popped up on the screen. I hit ignore and thirty seconds later, Oliver’s phone chimed.

  “Don’t answer,” I insisted. Oliver let the call go to voicemail and then played the message over the radio.

  “Oliver, I just got a message from Chelsea’s phone. I think someone else sent it. I’m calling in every contact I have trying to get the GPS records pulled. I think it’s time that you and your parents got over here. I have a pilot on standby with one of our jets. Call me as soon as possible.”

  “I have an idea,” Stacey said as soon as the message ended. She pulled out her phone and tapped at the screen. “Anna emailed me a copy of Drake and Alex’s marriage license. I’ll forward it to you and you can forward it to him. That will explain everything without you having to say a word.”

  I tossed my phone on her lap. “I can’t bear to look at that. Will you forward it from my phone?”

  “Of course,” she quickly agreed. She finished sending the message just as Oliver pulled up outside their building.

  “You two go on up,” he insisted. “I’ll park the car and meet you upstairs.”

  As Stacey and I stepped into the lobby, my phone chimed again. “He replied?” I asked, my heart racing.

  She nodded and handed me my phone.

  I’m so sorry. I can explain this. I’m heading to the airport right now.

  I stopped dead in my tracks. “I can’t stay here,” I insisted, worried panic choking my voice. “I don’t want to see him. I have to go somewhere he won’t think to look for me.”

  “We have plenty of time before Drake gets back to the city,” Stacey insisted. “Come upstairs. We’ll figure something out.”

  I took a deep breath and let her lead me up to the apartment.

  “Why don’t you go take a long, hot shower,” Stacey suggested, tossing her purse on the living room sofa. “You can use the master bath, the water pressure is better in there. I’ll lay out some of my pre-pregnancy clothes for you to put on when you get out. Are you hungry? I can have Oliver pick something up at the deli down the block.”

  “That would be great, thank you,” I said, padding down the hallway. I walked through the master and into the small but elegant bathroom. I eyed the claw foot tub for a moment before deciding that a long, hot shower was just what I needed. I stripped out of my clothes, stepped into the tile stall, and turned on the hot spray. As the water washed over me, I finally let myself break down. I leaned against the shower wall, my body trembling with my sobs. I cried for everything Drake had done to me, for every lost dream he had shattered with his lies. I cried for the person I’d been before him, the person I could never hope to be again. And I cried in shame because I still loved him and longed for him to make it all okay.

  How the hell did I get here? How did I let this happen? I was such a fool… such a stupid happy fool.

  I lowered myself to the floor and sat cross-legged under the hot spray. I stayed there contemplating my next move until the water turned cold. I stepped out of the shower, toweled off quickly, and found a blue jogging suit waiting on Oliver and Stacey’s bed. I pulled it on and walked out into the kitchen. Oliver was at the island, bent over his laptop. Stacey was buttering a bagel fresh out of the toaster.

  “Feel better?” she asked as I reached for a coffee mug.

  “A little. I still have no idea what to do.”

  “Don’t worry,” she said with a grin. “We’ve figured out where you can hide while you figure it out.”

  ***

  I spent the next three days in the quiet solitude of Oliver and Stacey’s house in the Hamptons. After Stacey dropped me off, I slept for twenty straight hours, waking up to dozens of messages from my mother, Piper, and Drake. I blocked Drake’s number, ate a sandwich, and went back to bed.

  On Tuesday, I finally called my mother. Stacey had underestimated how upset Mom was at Drake. She ranted and raved about all of the ways she’d like to torture him until I finally broke down and confessed that I still loved him.

  “Of course you still love him, sweetheart,” she said warmly. “Drake swept you off your feet and made you believe he was everything you ever wanted. Feelings like that don’t go away immediately. But they will with time.”

  “I’m afraid to see him, Mom,” I sobbed. “Not because he hurt me, but because I don’t trust myself with him. I’m afraid I’ll believe whatever explanation he gives me and take him back.”

  “Listen to me, Chelsea,” she replied, her voice firm. “I know you wanted to give Drake the benefit of the doubt. You wanted to trust your feelings for him. But now it’s time to trust your brain. If you’re afraid to see Drake, don’t see him.”

  “I’m trying, Mom. Drake has n
o idea where I am. Oliver told him that I emptied my savings and went on a trip.”

  “I can’t believe your brother is still working for that man,” Mom interrupted.

  “Oliver wanted to put in his notice. I talked him out of it. Staying with Drake means he can work from home and have time with Stacey and the baby. I want them to have that.”

  “Chelsea… does part of you want Oliver to work for Drake so you still have some sort of connection to him?”

  Yes.

  “Of course not, Mother. Listen, my battery is about to go dead. I’ll call you tomorrow.”

  “Okay, sweetheart. Call me before then, if you need me. I love you.”

  “Love you too.”

  I ended the call and spent the rest of the day on the deck, staring out at the ocean.

  I’m not sure if it was the sun, the salty air, or the time I’d had to think, but I woke up Wednesday morning feeling more like myself than I had in days. I lingered in the bathtub, took time to do my hair and makeup, and took a walk up to the nearby open market. I walked around the stands, collecting fresh spinach, leeks, tomatoes, and scallops. I loaded everything in a tote bag I’d found in the hall closet and enjoyed a leisurely walk home.

  When I reached the house, I stuck the entire tote bag in the refrigerator, grabbed The Complete Works of Flannery O’Conner from the bookshelf, and settled in on the deck lounge. I read for hours, until an unexpected shadow covered the pages. I glanced up to see Drake staring down at me.

  “Chelsea, you have to let me explain,” he insisted.

  I jumped up and moved for the door. “How the hell did you find me?” I snapped.

  “You used your debit card at the market.”

  “You put a fucking trace on my bank accounts? That’s against the law!” I shouted, infuriated by his audacity.

  “You used the card linked to my account, Chelsea. I got in the car the moment the charge came through. You have no idea what I went through when I woke up in Hong Kong and you were gone. I thought you’d been in an accident, or kidnapped, or worse.”

  I spun on my heel, burning with rage. “I have no idea what you went through? Are you fucking kidding me right now? What about what I went through, Drake? Did you stop to think about what it felt like to find out you’re married to another woman?”