“I am in his room just now; I wanted to call you first to let you know that Michael thinks it would be best for me to stay with him tonight.” The phone again is silent.
“Alanna I can’t say that I am happy about that, but giving the circumstances, it’s the right thing to do.”
“I know but I couldn’t just stay with him and not tell you first, Adrian there was also a note.”
“What did it say?”
“It said that you were a murderer and that if I didn’t leave you then I was as good as dead.”
“Right, how do feel about that?”
“Adrian I don’t know, are you?”
“I guess that’s what you can call it,” I cannot breathe, is Adrian telling me that he is a murderer. “Are you saying that it’s true?”
“Alanna I don’t really want to discuss this over the phone, but please don’t leave Michael for a second. These people are the most dangerous people you will ever come in contact with, they do not just kill people, they torture them. I don’t want to alarm you, but please you have to do everything myself and Michael tells you to do, is that understood?”
“Yes, but how can I go on thinking you have killed people.”
“I never killed ‘people’, it was just one person and I was a child. Alanna I need you forget about this for now, put it to back of your mind, I will in time tell you everything.”
How is he asking me to do this, he is straight out telling me he killed someone. How could I possibly forget? Still feeling the love for him that I do, I cannot say no.
“Yes, I understand.”
“Now, please get Michael to call me?”
“As soon as he comes back, I will tell him?”
“Where is he?”
“He went to tell Sophie that I was staying with him tonight.”
“So he left you, again?”
“He will be right back,”
“Alanna that doesn’t matter, he should never leave you alone for one second. If I was there I wouldn’t.”
“Adrian you are not here, and Michael is trying his best.”
“Are you mad me with me?”
“I am not mad at you, but you keep slating Michael, and he is the one who is here with me, not you.”
“Are you going to throw that in my face now?”
“Adrian, don’t be like that,”
“Alanna you seem to have everything covered over there, and you think that I don’t care enough about you to stay with you.”
“Adrian don’t, I didn’t mean anything by that.”
“You don’t think of how guilty I feel about this?”
“I don’t want you to feel guilty, I know that whatever happened couldn’t have been your fault, and we will get through this.”
“If anything happens to you,”
“It won’t I will be safe with Michael, please try not to worry.”
“It’s impossible for me not worry, Alanna there is stuff I need to sort out please make sure you get Michael to call me.”
“I will, I love you,”
“Yes, I know you do.” Adrian hangs up and I see Michael come in through the door.
“It’s sorted,”
“What did you tell her?”
“Does it really matter?”
“Yes it matters.”
“You annoy me Alanna,”
“Yeah well, so do you.”
“Did you call Adrian?”
“Yes he wants you to call him.”
Michael turns away and starts to dial on his black iPhone. I sit down on one of the beds and listen to what he is going to say. The phone call does not last very long and Michael hardly says a word. The conversation consists mostly of Adrian giving him orders and Michael is just agreeing with whatever he says. When he comes off the phone, he sits down on the other bed and begins to take his shoes off. Michael stretches out his long legs fully on the bed and lays back resting his head against the pillow. I never really looked fully at Michael before, but seeing him lie there; I think that he is gorgeous. His hair is so dark and his eyes are ice blue, he has a very strong jaw and dark glowing skin, he smiles and his teeth are like pearls. I would not go as far to stay that he was as good looking as Adrian, but still he is one beautiful man. I feel a little awkward sitting here in silence with him. I do not know how to act around him, since Adrian told me how he feels. This is also the first time I have seen him since he called me a little bitch. I sit further back on the bed and see Michael look over to me.
“You may as well get comfortable,” he says with no emotion on his face.
“Michael I know this is hard and I know that you and I haven’t really seen eye to eye in the past. But I really would like it if we could somehow look past all that.”
“Alanna, I am sorry for the other night.”
“I am too,”
“Why are you sorry?”
“I can sometimes push guy’s buttons, and I tend to make them angry. I don’t know how I do it but I do, so I am sorry for that.”
“You sure do have way of getting under my skin,”
“Again, sorry.”
“I like that about you,”
“Are you crazy, it gets me into trouble all the time.”
“Yes, but your feisty and I like that in a girl.”
“Then you should have met me, before,”
“Before what?”
“Before I met Adrian, I was too feisty. I never spent any time getting to know people, I judged them before I met them, and I when I met Adrian he was the first person I ever met, that I wasn’t my usual self with.”
“Has Adrian changed you?”
“Yes, and for the better.”
“You really love him, don’t you?” I feel uneasy as I say the next thing to Michael, “Yes I love him, and I have never met anyone like him.”
“Then I am happy for him, he is a lucky bloke to have someone like you.” “Now you better get some sleep,” I look at him thinking that, maybe, he is not so bad after all.
Twenty-two
I wake up to Michael on his phone, no doubt talking to Adrian. I hear his words speak so fast that I cannot keep up. I sit up on the bed, reach into my pocket, and take out my phone. I see that there are several unanswered texts, from Adrian,
Alanna are you okay.
Alanna are you okay.
Alanna, why are you not replying?
Alanna please text me back.
Sorry Adrian I was sleeping I have just woke up, I am fine.
Adrian quickly replies,
Do not do that to me again, I was out my mind with worry.
Okay, were you just on the phone to Michael?
Yes, I was giving him the details of the safe house I have bought for you.
What safe house.
Alanna it is not safe for you to stay in college right now, so I must ask you to take a break from it.
I cannot I have finals coming up I really need to pass them, if I am going to graduate on time.
Alanna this is your life we are talking about, I really cannot have you staying in that college with your life at risk.
Adrian, all my friends are here and I need to graduate this year.
Alanna I will talk to the board and make sure that you still get to graduate on time.
Adrian it is not about that I am sure I could convince them myself, but I want the whole college experience. I want to be here with my friends and I cannot even bear to think of what my family would say.
Yes and I want you to live and have those experiences, but if you stay there then it is not going to happen.
Alanna, I am not asking you!
Therefore, you are telling me.
Yes it is not a case of would you like to, it is that you have to.
Adrian, I do not know what I will tell everyone.
You can tell them whatever you want.
Adrian I hate lying to everyone and I am really beginning to think that Sophie knows something is wrong.
Alanna I
know it is hard, but this is for the best, I promise you.
Okay, I will have to pack then.
I really hate to do this to you, but I am just so protective of you, that I cannot think of you being hurt in any way.
Adrian will I be alone?
No Michael will be with you and I have security that will stay with you at all times.
I have to stay with Michael.
Yes is that a problem?
No but it is a little strange, I am surprised that you are okay with this?
I am not okay with it, but it is your safety that I care about most. I know that he will not let anything happen to you. He loves you, so that would be the last thing he would want.
Adrian I need you to know that I love you, and that nothing will ever happen with Michael and me.
I know that.
As long as you do, I do not want anything to go wrong for us.
As long as I can keep you alive, that is all that I want.
I have to be okay with all this; I have to think of what I will say to everyone. I cannot tell them the truth I could not deal with everyone knowing. There is no way my family could process something like this. They would make me go straight to the police and that does not even bear thinking about.
I see that Michael has already started to pack, so I think that maybe I should be doing the same. As I go over to the door, Michael rushes over and grabs me by the arm,
“Where are you going?”
“I am going to pack is that okay?”
“Wait till I am done, I will take you.”
“Michael my room is two doors down, I think I can manage.”
“No Alanna,” “Michael, it’s just there.” “Are you going to make this difficult for me?”
“No, but I also need time to talk to Sophie and I can’t do that with you there,”
“Adrian will go nuts if he finds out that I have left you again.”
“Then he doesn’t have to know, I won’t tell him.” Michael looks frustrated with me but he opens the door and walks me along to my room.
“I will be back in five minutes to check on you.”
“Thanks,” I say giving him a smile.
I open the door and I see Sophie there with her boyfriend Dan, “There is the stop out,” Sophie’s says as she sits on Dan’s lap.
“Sophie I need to talk to you,” Sophie senses the urge in my voice and asks Dan to give us a moment.
“What’s up?”
“I am leaving college for a while.”
“Why?”
“I just need some time to relax, it’s all getting a bit much for me and after the turn I had the other day, I just don’t feel all that into it right now.”
“But finals are coming up; you need to pass them if you are to graduate.”
“I know and hopefully I can carry on studying, but I need away from here.”
“Alanna what’s going on?”
“Nothing, I just feel stressed with all the pressure, I need time away.”
“In other words, what you really need is time away in London.” I do not really like Sophie’s tone. She is being a little over the top about all this and I knew that she was going to bring up Adrian.
“Sophie, don’t start.”
“It’s true, I knew you were stupid in love with him, but come on I never thought you were stupid enough to throw your life away for him.”
“Sophie, are you listening to yourself? I am doing this for me. I need to get away; I can’t deal with all the petty dramas.”
“No Alanna that’s not the reason.”
“Then what is it, Sophie?”
“That guy is controlling you and you can’t even see it.”
“No he’s not this has nothing to do with Adrian.” Even though I am telling Sophie lies, I cannot help but feel very annoyed with her. Why does she hate Adrian so much? She does not even know him.
“Alanna don’t give me that, I saw you with him the other night. It is as if you are scared of him or something, if he moves you move. I tried I really did I even told you that I was wrong about him, but I wasn’t I don’t like him Alanna.”
“I know you don’t and Sophie I think that you are just jealous, I don’t want to talk to you any more about this, okay?”
“Jealous, you really think that low of me?”
“Yes Sophie I do, you would not be acting this way if weren’t jealous.”
“Alanna I don’t know who you are anymore, it’s like he has you under a spell. I really think that you should wake up and see that he is not what he seems, and break free while you still can.”
Hearing Sophie’s words, they are playing hard on my mind, this is my best friend and I am arguing with her, something that I never used to do. I cannot be in this room right now. I have a funny feeling that Sophie and I will never be friends as long as I am with Adrian. However, I cannot see myself without him; I really do not want to think about choosing between them. Because I know, that if I have to then my friendship would be over, because I would choose Adrian every time. There is no way I could live without him. He completes me and I cannot see the bad in him. I know that everyday my life is in danger; I know that would not be the situation if I were not with him. Nevertheless, it is as if I do not care, I get a buzz from knowing that he would do anything to protect me. It is as if I am the trees and he is the wind that blows through them.
I pack a suitcase consisting of mainly jeans and t-shirts. I guess I will be just hanging around some house all day, so there is no need for anything fancy. When Michael comes to the door to look for me, I can see Sophie out the corner of my eye. She is rolling her judgmental eyes at me and shaking her head. Normally I would just ask her what her problem is, but I do not want to get started with her again. I do not even look at her when I walk out. I just close the door behind me and do not look back. Michael and I walk down the hallway and into the office. I go in to talk to the Dean before I leave.
“Miss Hart, please do come in. I have been waiting for you,” I walk over and take a seat at the front of Mrs Henderson’s desk. She is a woman in her early 50’s with light auburn hair. She is also the kind of woman that you could tell, was pretty in her day. The Dean and I did not really get off to the best starts here at Columbia, but now it looks like things have changed.
“I understand that you want to take some time out,”
“Yes I feel that college is a little too much for me right now. However, I do still want to graduate on time.”
“Yes finals are coming up and I feel that if you want to graduate, then you will have to sit them. However, giving how you feel and I know you had a little scare health-wise the other day. I have no choice but to let you have a break from college life. However you must keep on studying.”
“Yes absolutely, it’s not the work that’s getting on top of me. It’s the college life that I need a break from.”
“Tell me about, it I feel like I need a vacation every time I go home.”
“Thanks Mrs. Henderson, you don’t know how much I appreciate you understanding.”
“You make sure and thank that boyfriend of yours for the donation he gave us.” “Boyfriend,”
“Mr Black, he gave us a large donation. In return, he wanted your break from college to be forgotten when it is time for graduation. You have a good one there, don’t let him go.” I smile and get up to leave the office, I turn back around to the Dean and say,
“Thanks again,” she smiles at me, and I walk briskly out of the room.
I step out the office and into the hallway, I see Michael waiting for me while he holds my suitcase and his own bags. He looks so bored standing there, I almost feel sorry for him. He must miss his family and the last thing he probably feels like doing, is to stay in a house with me. Michael and I step out onto the cold street of New York and there is a black Escalade waiting to take us to the house. Michael hands over the bags and the address of where we are going. I never stopped to think of that, I could be going anywhere I
did not know what to expect.
“Michael where is this house?” I say, as I look up at his tall dark exterior, my voice is soothing.
“Soho,”
“Do you think that Adrian is overreacting to all this?”
“No I don’t, he knows that these people are serious, and their threats are alarming.”
“Who are they?”
“Alanna don’t start with all the questions, I have no answers, and you should ask Adrian.”
“He doesn’t tell me anything,”
“He told you about his childhood, didn’t he?”
“Yes but just parts about how abusive his mom was.”
“Did he tell you about David?”
“Yes he said that David was an evil man, he told me that he made him take drugs and he used to beat him.”
“Alanna maybe there is something in that, which is the answer to your questions.”
“Is it David, that’s after me?”
“No David is dead.”
“Dead, what happened?”
“Talk to Adrian.”
I know that Michael wants to tell me more I can see it on his face. However, I do not want to push him. He has just started to talk nicely to me and I do not want to ruin it. I feel the car come to a stop, Michael quickly opens the door, and we are in Soho all right, the very place that I have always loved. The building in which we staying is white and oversized. The first thing I notice when I walk in is the two huge security guards that stand either side of the door. Michael tells me to wait over by them, as he walks over to the girl that is sitting in a reception box. She smiles at him and stares deep into his eyes. She hands over the key and Michael waves me on. As I follow him into the elevator, I feel weird as if I am doing something wrong. Like I should not be here but I know that I have to. The Condo that we have been given is right on the top floor and I am led to believe that it is, the largest one in the whole building. Michael opens the front door and I gasp in amazement. The Condo is gorgeous and so oversized. I walk in and I am still in surprise as to how lovely it is. It has been finished to the highest standard in an all-white backdrop with black furniture. There is a massive TV on the wall and a huge fireplace. The kitchen is colossal and is modern designed. Michael leads me into one of the bedrooms and places my suitcase on the bed.
Three Thousand Miles To You,(Three Thousand Miles, Series, Book #1) Page 17