Chapter 20 Time to Fight
I woke up to the sound of my phone buzzing. My hands were still sore from last night’s escape so I picked up the phone with a shaky hand. My heart is still heavy from everything we found.
Carson was already up, standing by the window and looking outside like he was expecting or ready for trouble.
“What is it?” I asked as I sat up.
“Nothing yet,” he said. “But I don’t trust quiet mornings anymore, everything seems to be a trap recently,”He added.
I stood and walked to him.
“Did you sleep at all?” I asked.
He shook his head. “No. I couldn’t. I kept thinking about what’s next.”He said.
I placed my hand on his shoulder. “We’re still standing, so everything is still okay,” I said.
He looked at me. “Barely.”
There was silence for a while, then he turned to me, looking worried.
“Please, I need to tell you something,” he said.
I frowned. “What is it?”I asked in curiosity.
He sat on the couch and signalled for me to join him, so I moved closer and sat right beside him, and he took my hands.
“You remember how I told you I worked with Greg’s partner before?” he asked.
“Yes,” I said slowly.
“Well… back then, I did more than just work with them,” he said.
“I followed orders although I didn’t know everything, but I helped them hide things. I helped them bury the truth,”He added.
“You were part of it?” I asked softly.
He nodded. “Yes, and not for long. But I did things I’m not proud of, and I lied to you at the beginning,”He said.
“So everything between us was fake?” I asked.
“No!” he stood too. “Not everything, although It started up as fake,but then I saw you,”He added.
“ I saw your pain, your strength and I started to care. I pulled away from them, I tried to protect you in my own way. That’s why I married you. I have always been watching from afar even before you came to work for me,”He added.
“You should’ve told me,” I said calmly, unsure of how to react.
“I know,” he said. “But I was scared. Scared of losing the only good thing I found.”He added.
Tears filled my eyes, but I turned away, so as not to appear weak.
“I don’t even know who to trust anymore,” I whispered.
“Trust what we’ve built,” he said. “Even if it started wrong, it grew into something real,”He said again.
Before I could answer, there was a loud knock at the door and we both flew up because we were not expecting anybody.
“Stay behind me,” Carson said.
He walked to the door and opened it slowly. It was Fred and he was looking too calm.
“Hello, Carson,” Fred said with a smirk. “Annabel.”He said again waving at me.
“What do you want?” Carson asked.
“I just came to talk,” Fred said. “Can I come in?”
“No,” Carson replied quickly.
Fred sighed. “Alright. I’ll talk here then. You two have been digging. And you’ve found things you shouldn’t have.”He said.
“Is that a threat?” I asked.
“No,” Fred said. “It’s a warning. You think you know everything, but you don’t. You’re stepping right into fire,”He added.
“We’re not scared,” Carson said.
Fred laughed. “You should be,”He said.
He looked at me. “You think your father was innocent? Maybe he was or maybe he wasn’t. But the game is bigger than just Greg and Victoria. There are others you don’t know yet. People who will kill to keep their secrets buried.”He said.
I swallowed hard. “Why are you telling us this?”I asked.
“Because I want out,” Fred said. “I’m tired. And I want a deal,”He added.
“What kind of deal?” Carson asked.
“I give you something and you help me disappear,” Fred said.
“What do you have?” Carson asked.
Fred looked around nervously, then reached into his coat and pulled out a small book.
“A list,” he said. “Names. Dates. Accounts. Everything.”
“Why now?” I asked.
Fred looked at me, and for the first time, he looked scared.
“Because they’re clearing houses,” he said. “One by one. I don’t want to be next.”
Carson took the book carefully.
“If you’re lying, we’ll find out,” he said.
“I’m not,” Fred said. “And if you’re smart, you’ll get out too. Before it’s too late.”
He turned and walked away and Carson closed the door and locked it.
“This could be what we need,” he said.
I looked at the book in his hand.
“Or it could be a trap,” I said.
Later that night, Carson sat with the book, reading each name and number while I sat beside him, still shaken.
Suddenly, he stopped and stared at one name.
“What is it?” I asked.
He pointed and It was my father’s name, and right beside it was a date, a time and a place.
And a single word on top of it: “Framed.”
“He was innocent,” I whispered.
Carson looked at me. “Yes. And this proves it,”He said.
“But that means…” I paused.
“Yes,” he said. “They knew, they knew all along. And they wanted him gone,”He added.
My heart broke all over again.
“I want to scream,” I said. “I want to burn their world down.”I said, screaming out loud.
Carson took my hand.
“And we will,” he said. “But we need to be smart, careful and strong,”He added.
This time around the fire in me was real and the pain had turned to rage.
“I’m ready,” I said.
He looked at me and smiled.
“Then let’s end this,”He said.
We had the files, we had the video and also the book.
Now we had only one mission to bring them all down and vindicate the innocent.
And this time,no more running, no more fear. Just hold the hands of whom you love and fight them together.