by Lulu Taylor
‘I did a lot of research and there was something I kept coming back to. Who was this guy who found Sophie’s body? A security guard, they said. Well, what was he doing there anyway? How many boarding schools have guards like that? I discovered eventually that he was a private guard, paid for by the de Lisle family to protect their precious little daughter. I devoted a few years to tracking him down and, when I did, he had some interesting things to tell me about your little gang.’ Adam’s dark hazel eyes searched her face. ‘How you went up to that attic to smoke your cigarettes. The attic just above the spot where Sophie was found. He saw her … and he saw you … both of you at the window, struggling.’
Allegra gasped and leapt to her feet. ‘Oh, God!’ She saw it again, as plain as day, and the familiar terrified sickness coiled in her belly. She stared at Adam with wild eyes. ‘It was an accident, you have to believe me!’ She was back there on that terrible night, could feel the full force of Sophie’s weight as the other girl pushed and pushed … and then the surreal lightness as she disappeared through the open window. She still remembered the stark terror in Sophie’s eyes in the split second before she fell. Eyes that were the image of Adam’s. Why on earth hadn’t she noticed it before? She’d seen those eyes so often in her nightmares.
She panted out, ‘We were in the attic, where it was strictly forbidden to go. We had a stupid argument and got carried away. Sophie and I ended up …’ Her voice cracked but she carried on. ‘… we ended up tussling, fighting … she tried to push me but I fought back and in the struggle by some awful chance, Sophie slipped and fell.’ She gave a half sob. ‘It was an accident, Adam, you have to believe me!’
He blinked at her for a moment. ‘I believe you,’ he said in a quiet voice. ‘But why didn’t you tell anyone? Why did you lie?’
Allegra dropped to her knees, wrapping her arms around herself. ‘We should have,’ she said in a broken voice. ‘It was the worst mistake of my life. We didn’t tell, and then we were caught in our silence. We couldn’t tell.’ She gazed up at him, agonised. ‘It’s haunted me all my life. You know … you’ve seen the nightmares! Maybe I was lots of things – stuck up, silly, naughty, hot-tempered, I don’t know – but I never wished harm on anyone. What happened to Sophie … Adam, it ruined my life!’
He gazed at her, calmer now as he watched her emotional outburst, and then said in a cold voice, ‘Yes. But at least you are still alive.’
The car was distinctly more crowded on the journey back, with two extra passengers. Gennaro and Marco sat in the back, muted and worried, as Malik drove them through Mayfair and towards Chelsea. It was now after three in the morning and the roads were quiet.
‘What are you going to do?’ Imogen asked in a low voice, turning her head towards Malik so he could hear her but those in the back couldn’t.
‘We’ll find out everything he knows,’ Malik replied, taking the car up a gear and increasing his speed.
‘You’re not going to hurt him, are you? He’s just a boy.’
Malik stared straight ahead and shrugged lightly. ‘That all depends. My hunch is he’ll co-operate. If he doesn’t, we’ll use any means necessary. If he’s telling the truth and tried to warn her, that will stand him in good stead.’ He slid his gaze towards Imogen for a moment. ‘Romily’s life is at stake here. We’ve got to make him help us.’
Imogen nodded, letting out a slow stream of breath. She’d had a brief glimpse into a different world, one far removed from her own comfortable safe upbringing but existing alongside it. There were different rules in this parallel world. She shivered.
They arrived back at the Chelsea house and, before they were out of the car, Malik had his phone clamped to his ear and was murmuring urgently into it. The front door opened and they were all ushered inside by Mitch’s staff. Gennaro and Marco were instantly whisked away down the hall, accompanied by three tough-looking men.
‘Where’s Allegra? Is she here?’ Imogen asked, as another dark suited, broad-shouldered man strode past her. He shot her a glance and shrugged. She turned to Malik. ‘Can you find out where she is?’
‘Sure.’ He walked off towards Mitch’s office and returned a few moments later, looking worried. ‘She’s not here. She didn’t come back.’
Imogen felt her stomach plummet. She gasped, ‘But she was due back an hour ago at least! She only went to pick up Alex …’ She ran to Malik and grabbed his arm. ‘We have to go and find them!’
He stared back at her for a moment, his brown eyes unreadable, then he nodded. ‘OK. I’m not supposed to leave here without permission and you’re making me head out a second time, but I owe you for Marco. Gee, this is turning into a crazy night! Let’s go.’
‘Do you believe me?’ Allegra asked in a small voice. She sat hunched on the carpet, her knees tucked under her. She watched Alex’s peaceful sleeping face, envying his innocence and serenity, the clean slate of his life.
Adam looked down at her. He nodded and said slowly, ‘Yes, I do. It was all I wanted. The truth. I knew you could tell me, I was waiting for it. There was never any need for you to know that I was Sophie’s brother.’ He laughed joylessly. ‘But maybe you’re right. Maybe I did want you to find out. I didn’t want to live a lie, and conceal myself from the woman I love.’
She raised her head, gazing up at him. ‘You love me?’
‘Of course.’ He rubbed one hand through his short coppery hair and took another slug of whisky. ‘I can see how it looks … all those pictures of you. I found the first one of you in Sophie’s school photograph in her bedroom. I think I fell in love with you from that moment.’ He gave her a sad smile. ‘You were the most beautiful girl I’d ever seen in my life. My dream girl. After that, I learnt all I could about your family. The handy thing about aristocrats is how interested everyone is in their lives. You were often in the papers, anything you did made some gossip column or other. “Earl’s daughter buys clothes”; “Socialite goes to party”. I half expected to read “Allegra McCorquodale breathes air, eats food”.’ He shrugged. ‘The nonsense people like to read about.’
‘I totally agree with you,’ she said in a heartfelt voice.
‘I read that you’d joined your uncle, running Colette’s. By then I’d discovered that you were probably with Sophie the night she died. It felt like fate somehow. I already worked in that world myself. I followed you. Learnt about your propensity for visiting those seedy clubs and bars and taking some lucky guy home with you.’ He gave her a look that was half amused, half sad. ‘I realised then how I would get to meet you. And you were everything I’d ever dreamt of.’ He smiled softly, and for the first time that evening, she glimpsed the Adam she’d known so well and loved so much. A stab of bitter pain and regret pierced her. Yesterday morning, I stared into those eyes as he made love to me, she thought. How has it all changed like this?
‘How has this happened, Adam? How has it come to this? We were so happy,’ she said quietly.
He stood up, looking pained. ‘I didn’t want this! Yes, I wanted to know what had happened that night, but the longer we were together, the more I loved you.’ He turned to her, his eyes burning. ‘I mean it, Allegra. I love you. You know it’s true. I never wanted to hurt you.’
She nodded. She believed him. ‘I know,’ she whispered.
‘Tell me it’s not over for us,’ he begged. He sat back on the sofa and buried his head in his hands. ‘I can’t bear it if it’s finished,’ he said in a broken voice. ‘I’ve got nothing without you. You’ve been my world for so long.’ He gazed up at her. ‘Please, don’t leave me. Tell me we’re still together.’
She stood up slowly, taking a deep breath. ‘I can’t say that. I don’t know. I need time to think about it.’
‘If I’ve lost you as well as Sophie, then my life is completely pointless.’ He looked up at her desperately. ‘I don’t know what I’d do.’
She froze, absorbing the words, suddenly frightened again. Is he threatening me? ‘You said you’d never hurt me,’
she reminded him in a quiet voice.
‘I know.’ He stared back down at his feet. Then his shoulders shook and his voice came out high, jagged with tears. ‘But I need you, Allegra. And I can’t bear to think of you living without me.’
‘I love you too,’ she said gently, intent on calming him down. ‘But this is all a huge shock, you must see that.’
He nodded, sniffing.
‘If you hurt me,’ she said slowly, ‘it would make everything a million times worse … you know that, don’t you?’
‘I’ll never hurt you, I promise.’ He looked up, his cheeks wet. Then he stood up and held out his arms. ‘If you love me … come to me. Kiss me.’ He took a step towards her and she flinched. ‘See? You don’t even want me near you! I’ve lost you already, I can see that.’
‘You haven’t lost me,’ she said, filled with a rush of pity and tenderness for him.
‘Haven’t I?’ He stared at her beseechingly. ‘Then do it … kiss me.’ He walked towards her.
She felt the nearness of him and suddenly yearned for his embrace and the comfort of his kiss. She truly did love him. He had given her a peace she’d never found anywhere else in her entire life. She lifted her face to his and he wrapped his arms around her, taking her against the security of his body and kissing her passionately. Yes, she thought. It feels right. Even after everything that’s happened. This is where I’m supposed to be.
Then there was a strange cracking sound at the window followed instantaneously by a high whizzing sounds and the next moment Adam had jerked, staggered, thrown up his arms, his face utterly astonished, and then collapsed to the floor as though his legs had been kicked away from under him.
As Allegra stared, frozen in shock, she saw a stain of dark blood pool out across his thighs.
Chapter 65
AS THE PRIVATE plane soared across the Atlantic, Mitch stayed in constant contact with his London operation. Every contact possible had been used in the underworld. Someone, somewhere, must know who had pulled off Romily’s kidnap and where she was.
He waved away the attentions of the cabin crew with their offers of champagne and smoked salmon, accepting only a steady supply of black coffee to keep him going.
It was hard to bear the sensations of constant fear and panic that resolved themselves into an overpowering feeling of angry impotence. He and Romily had become so engrossed in their own machinations, the expansion of their empire and her secret participation, that they’d taken their eyes off the ball. They’d forgotten that her existence was hardly a secret and that her immense wealth was an irresistible lure to criminals. Her security was supposed to be rock solid but somewhere it had failed. The guard was gone too – either overpowered and now dead or else part of the whole operation.
He didn’t buy for a moment this crazy guy Allegra was jabbering on about. One lone British man against an SAS-trained guard, a driver and a custom-built, top-of-the-range, armoured Mercedes? Uh-uh. Couldn’t happen. No way.
The gorgeous cabin attendant came up with another pot of fresh coffee and he accepted a top up. Jesus, I’ll be buzzing like a fucking bee if I carry on like this.
He lay back in his chair, watching through the porthole as they flew into the day ahead. Allegra drifted into his mind. She was a fascinating girl, there was no doubt about it. She was a heady mix of hot sexiness and aristocratic froideur, and if he wasn’t already very much in love with Romily he’d have a hard on for her, absolutely. But he and Romily had sworn they’d bring her down for what she’d done to them, taking away what she prized most and in the most painful way – becoming her competitors, buying the business out from under her, trampling on her dreams.
And yet, on the very day she lost everything, she decided to help him.
Why?
His Blackberry went again and he picked up another message, listing contacts now doing investigative work throughout the world. Still nothing. He swore under his breath.
He tried to transmit his love and strength to Romily, wherever she was. I’m coming for you, baby. I owe you everything. I can’t live without you. I’m not going to let anybody hurt you.
He’d kill with his bare hands anyone who’d touched her.
They landed at JFK in good time, the day already well advanced, bright and clear. A car was waiting to whisk Mitch away from the airport and into Manhattan.
He’d left a poor chef, with three hundred dollars to his name and a couple of black eyes. Now he was coming back, rich, successful and important. He’d left the city by bus for his economy flight. He returned in a private jet with his chauffeur-driven limo waiting.
And all to see the guy who’d given him those black eyes.
*
This is one hell of a trip down Memory Lane! thought Mitch, as he strode into the Greywell Brasserie. His associate-cum-bodyguard followed a few paces behind, on full alert, casing the restaurant as they went in. He remembered the guy he’d once been: a two-bit chef doped out on heroin half the time, cooking like a demon the rest of it – when he wasn’t fucking waitresses. A loser.
Mitch approached the back table respectfully. As he neared it, the man sitting there flanked by two heavies stood up to greet him. He’d aged, Mitch noted, a trifle more stooped, the hair slightly more grey, the face more deeply wrinkled. But then, it was some years since they’d last met.
‘Mr Panciello,’ he said, holding out his hand. ‘Thank you for agreeing to see me.’
Panciello stared at him for a moment with cold eyes. Then a smile spread across his face and he held open his arms. ‘Come here!’ he said. Mitch went to him and the older man embraced him, kissing him on both cheeks. ‘Now sit down,’ he ordered, and they all took their places at the table.
Mitch felt emboldened by this affectionate greeting. He hadn’t expected it. ‘Sir,’ he said, ‘I don’t want to waste your time. I’ll say what I’ve got to say and leave you to enjoy your lunch. I’ve come here for two reasons. The first is to thank you. Six years ago, you taught me a lesson that turned out to be the most valuable of my life.’ He grinned at the old man. ‘Not that I exactly thought so at the time!’
Everyone chuckled, and Mitch continued talking.
‘But you taught me that I should always be aware of what is going on and keep in mind who the powerful, important people are. Remaining ignorant of that is total foolishness. I was a total fool. More than that, you taught me that the only kind of person to be is exactly that: powerful and important. You said “Be an owner” – and now I am. So I most sincerely want to thank you for that, sir.’
Panciello gazed back at him, nodding. ‘Yes,’ he said, his voice hoarser with age now. ‘You’re right. And you know what, kid, I knew this would happen. That one day you’d come back and show me what you’d done with your life. I had every faith.’ His eyes twinkled. ‘That’s why I told my boys not to rough you up too bad. You still had to be able to go out there and make your mark on the world.’
They all laughed. Panciello said, ‘Seriously – you were fucking up. Wasting your life. You were going to smoke yourself to death with that shit, or step on the toes of someone less merciful than myself. Then you’d wind up dead, that talent of yours screwed up and tossed away. So I tried to teach you the right way.’
‘And you did, sir,’ Mitch said earnestly. He folded his hands together on the table in front of him. ‘But I have something else to be grateful for. You, Mr Panciello, are also responsible for my meeting my wife. The night I was … taught my lesson … I wound up in the alley behind her place, and she came to my rescue. Later, we met again, fell in love and got married. With her support, I’ve become the man I am today, with my own restaurant empire, just as I’d always planned.’
‘And kept well away from mine!’ quipped Mr Panciello. His associates laughed again, keen to show their appreciation of their boss’s wit.
‘And now, despite how much I owe you, I’ve come to ask a great favour.’ Mitch grew serious and the mood around the table sobered. ‘My wife
has been kidnapped. A huge ransom is being demanded or she will be killed. I believe the people holding her are renegades, stupid amateurs in a world they don’t understand. I also believe that someone connected knows something. They’ve had professional help from somewhere.’ Mitch bent forward across the snowy tablecloth, his eyes pleading. ‘Sir, your contacts are second to none. You know everything that is going on around the globe. Your influence is a thousand times greater than mine. If word gets out that you are against these people, they will be denounced and I will be able to deal with them and bring my wife home where she belongs. But time is running out. I desperately need your help, sir. Will you help me one more time? I’ll be forever in your debt.’
Panciello stared back across the table, his liver-spotted hands clutching the cloth. He took a long slow drink of water from the glass in front of him. At last he opened his mouth.
‘Go back to London,’ he said hoarsely. ‘Go back. If I can help, you’ll find what you want waiting for you there.’
Elation surged through Mitch. ‘Thank you, sir!’ he said. ‘My God, thank you!’ He leapt to his feet.
A shadowy smile crossed Panciello’s face. ‘Well, having gone to the trouble of finding you a wife, I can hardly let her be taken away, now can I?’ He nodded to the door. ‘Now go. And remember me, like I’ll remember you.’
‘Yes, sir.’ Mitch turned and left as quickly as he could.
Romily could sense that the people guarding her were becoming increasingly fearful.
How long have I been here?
It was hard to know now that she was blindfolded. The hours passed by, each as black as the next, with no clue as to what time it was. She’d been taken to the loo three more times, and been given water and sandwiches twice. Did that mean she’d been gone twenty-four hours? Or longer?
On one of her journeys to the loo, she had heard Carlo arguing with someone, perhaps Rocco. It made her feel sick to think that these men, who knew her so intimately, had betrayed her like this.