Intrigue

Chapter 67

Malcolm's POV

"Hello?" I said into the phone.

"Malcolm! Merry Christmas," Alice said cheerfully.

"Hey! Merry Christmas to you too," I said warmly. "How are you?"

"Good, good. You? Are you with Sean?"

"Yes, you kind of ruined a little moment, in fact," I said suggestively.

"Noooo! Sorry."

I laughed. "It's fine, Alice." I paused. "So. How was your date with Officer Clark?" I asked her.

"How did you know?" she shrieked.

"Clark told Sean and Sean told me," I said. "So? How was it?"

"Really good. We actually went out again yesterday. He's the sweetest."

"Yeah, he's nice. I'm happy for you."

"Me too. Say thank you to Sean because it was thanks to him that I met him."

I laughed. "So no thank you to me?" I asked. "Because it was I who-" I stopped, hearing commotion from inside Sean's apartment. "One sec, Alice." I left her on the line as I pushed my ear to the door.

"You couldn't stop until you ruined it all for me, could you?"

I didn't recognise the deep male voice that was yelling.

"I didn't do anything!" This was Sean's voice now. "How the hell did you get in here?"

"Oh, you've always underestimated me, my dear Sean," the voice said.

I felt my heart sink. From the way the voice was speaking, I had a good feeling that this was Cole.

"Malcolm?" Alice asked on the phone.

"Alice, please stay on the line," I said softly. "There's something I may need you to listen to."

"Okay," she mumbled.

I peeked into the apartment. Sean was standing, his back against the door, next to the kitchen counter. Another man was standing opposite him, backcombed hair, brown eyes, chiselled face, tall. I recognised him from the photo Christine had shown me, of the new partner that the Michigans had in their companies.

Ex partner, now. Sean's father had asked him to step down. And he'd come for Sean, like he'd been worried that he'd do to him.

"You said something to your father, you must have, otherwise he'd never have removed me from a partner after working with him for fifteen years. I warned you Sean, to shut up about this, I warned you-" Cole's voice had risen now, but Sean cut him off.

"Warned me? As if not all of this is on you! You, Cole, did so much to me, you ruined my life." Sean was yelling back now. "For three years, you forced yourself on me, you forced your drugs on me-"

"Oh cut it out. You were into it as much as I was."

"You know that's not true. I was fifteen years old and you were twenty-seven, and you raped me, repeatedly."

I felt my heart flip. So it hadn't been consensual. My first instinct had been correct.

Cole lurched towards Sean now, grabbing him by the collar of his shirt. "Don't you dare use that word again, you son of a bitch." He pulled him towards him. "I will be avenged, I can promise you that. And if you want to know what rape means, I can show you right now." And he lunged a fist towards him whilst retaining his grip on him.