FROM THE BOTTOM OF THE HEART.

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN.

As Mike stood on the balcony over looking Manchester from Saturn Rooms.

  Last night he had made a mistake. Last night he also made a realization. One he wasn't sure about but knew he needed it.

  Anna had made him open up now. A door he thought he closed for good.

  How the mighty have fallen...

  Wills walked up to him and leaned on the railing with the sun reflecting off his glasses. "I'm guessing last night didn't go as planned."

  Mike shook his head. "No. It didn't."

  They stood like that just staring at the skyline. The breeze playing with their hair and the music coming from inside helping the moment feel even lonelier.

  "What happened?" Wills asked in his calm tone "I said something stupid." He answered "Then it ended up with her slamming the door in my face."

  Then I stood in the rain for an hour ignoring the cold and just begging for her to open up...

  Mike didn't say that part but his eyes told Wills the rest of it.

  "I'm sorry." Wills said "It's my fault you had to go through that. If you go ba-."

  "No." Mike cut in "Don't be sorry. And I'm not going back to that stuff. I need to figure out what's up with me and how I'm going to get this thing with Anna."

  Wills was silent for a brief moment before he sighed. "I'm guessing that's the right thing to do. We're here for you and all that."

  He turned "I'm going to do somethings for the garage. If you want to talk with me you know where." He left and Mike still stared down at the city.

  As the day got dark Mike had decided to stay with Wills inside the garage and later on sleep over at his place.

  They were checking up on the Bentley and going through somethings that will be better on it.

  "I'm thinking of some better tires on it." Mike told Wills who was examining the engine "What do you think?"

  "Off road tires are good but somewhat hard for streets. I'll look for one that advances the grip maybe." He bent over a bit. "At least the engine is good."

  A car pulled up and Max stepped out with Daisy and Mike whistled as he saw their hands together. "The lone wolf has found an alpha female."

  Max flipped him the finger. "Oi, fuck you, mate. We just started this thing."

  Daisy smiled. "All thanks to you, Mike. You talked him into it."

  He bowed "All in a days work."

  Max turned to Wills. "Fred back yet?"

  "Nope." Wills told him tossing a screwdriver to a corner "He can't leave until that shit is settled. So I'm guessing it's just us now."

  Mike frowned. "Maybe I'll visit him later. Anyways." He turned to Daisy "So how's Venus?"

  "She's good. She also travelled to Greece so I guess she'll be off the radar for some time. How's Anna?"

  There was a brief silence before Mike answered her. "I don't know honestly. We haven't spoken since last night. And I don't know how I'm going to approach her..."

  Daisy frowned. "I'm sorry."

  Nobody would have spoken after that so Wills did the honors. "Hey, I'm probably going to clear these cars later for the police force to paint up and keep them. I also get a stupid amount of cash. Who thinks we can use this place for something? Like a camp?"

  Max thought on it. "That's sounding like a great idea. We'll just set it up like a man's den."

  Daisy pulled his ear. "Why don't you suggest whether I can come too?"

  Mike shrugged. "I guess that's good too. It'll be nice to hang here again."

  "Yeah." Wills said with a sarcastic tone "Considering the fact you almost roasted us the last time."

  "I did not know I was going to light the bloody forest!"

  Later as Mike was in the kitchen with Wills and Max and Daisy had gone home they decided to talk about University.

  "So which University you thinking of?" Wills asked as he searched through the fridge.

  Mike leaned against the table. "I'll be honest, mate, but I can literally go anywhere and be satisfied. You know I'm suprisingly smart."

  "Yeah." Wills agreed popping a can "I'll probably go to an engineering thing or just join the technical department for the force. Either would be good for me."

  The door opened and Wills younger cousin walked in. Her black hair packed into a ponytail, she walked up to his side and rested her head on her waist since she was half his height. "I'm hungry."

"Aren't five year olds like you meant to be trying to help in the kitchen rather than demanding?" Wills asked with a frown but she repeated the same thing and Mike just smiled.
  "Lad, I'll cook. It'll be ready before you know it. Tesha, you go stay in your room until I'm done okay?"

  She nodded and disappeared. Wills' chuckled. "She's lazy."
 
  "It'll be alright." Mike assured him, "She's just young and all that. Plus she's like my cute nephew." He started a fire under a pot before going through the kitchen for what was available.

  Wills walked to the door "I'll go grab something. Be back."

  As Mike started the cooking his phone began to ring. He picked up the call and looked at the number. "Gerald Vonn."

  Suprised but he still picked up the call. "Vonn. Unexpected."

  "As so as me doing this." He said "I hope you heard of us stopping advances?"

  "Yeah. She said she finished stuff."

  Vonn scoffed. "Like she would."

  Mike stopped cooking and looked at the room. "What do you mean?"

  "I know you, Mike, I also recognized that Anna was uncomfortable with me ever since you gave her the evidence."

  "That's normal."

  "I could have said I had changed." Vonn told him "And continued. And to be honest, we still talk, but she wasn't the same as you came into view. As if she was sad."

  Mike leaned against the wall silently still observing the pot. "What are you getting to, Vonn. No offense, but you trying to help me never comes out well."

  "That's true." Vonn agreed. "But if you can be like this for a girl even a snake can change, don't you think?"

Mike was quiet so Vonn continued. "Go and meet her again. Tonight. And do what you have to do. I'll be watching from the sidelines."

  He hung up and at that moment Wills walked in "Heard it. You go and tell me too. Although I don't like Vonn."

  Mike sighed. "What do I have to lose?" He caught the Lamborghini keys and turned to the door. "Time to do something stupid."

  Wills watched as the car pulled a drift before Mike was off at a crazy speed. "I hope this helps." He whispered to himself "I really hope she helps him."

  As the car pulled up in front of her mansion Mike stepped out and approached the door slowly. He hesitated to knock as his knuckles over the door but it opened suddenly and the Nanny he had seen yesterday was standing here.

  "She said that I shouldn't allow you in."

  Shit.

  Mike looked around not knowing what else to do but still feeling like Vonn had played him. Then the Nanny spoke again.

  "But I know what happened. And I saw you last night." She stepped out of the way "Her room is the last door on the third floor. She's been there ever since. I'm worried."

  Mike nodded and dashed up the stairs quickly but silently not to alert the twins in case.

  He saw the door. It was the color blue with a Deer on it and a rose in its mouth. He walked up to it and softly tapped it. "Anna," he said in a low but audible tone "It's me Mike."

  No response.

  Mike sighed and sat on the ground resting his back against the door. "I'm guessing you don't want to talk to me. Or because you're confused. And I want to explain something that might help."

  He looked down and his mind flashed back to the night he had seen her at that ball.

  "I'll say that once I looked into your eyes I knew I had found something. A mystery. Something I couldn't put my tongue on but I knew it was special. I can't say that I wasn't angry over our arguments, or how you acted before, but I'll say that at one point that curiosity got the better of me...I didn't want to leave you alone. Because I've been there, I've felt that hatred that can build up and become something destructive. Turn you against one's self."

  He rested his head back still trying to zero out any sound coming from inside the room.

  "I used to hide behind that mask of a player. And it wasn't hard. Girls were always tumbling over my good looks or money. But you had both beauty and money. But you weren't perfect. You had insecurities. Like me. I was broken because I had fallen in love and gotten hurt."

  "I used the continuos girls to try and bury it deep inside myself but once it came to you my mind was open. You could see what I had tried to hide inside. You pointed it out while other girls just wanted to sleep with it. That curiosity turned to caring. I wanted to have you. I wanted you not to get hurt once I saw Vonn. Even when you made it clear I still wanted to get the evidence. And I did it all for you..."

  He paused.

  "I don't know whether that curiosity is still what I say it is...but I know tha-"

  The door opened and Mike fell back to the floor.

  Looming over him was Anna who had tears rolling down her face.

  "I need you."

  Mike rose his hand up and moved her hair out of her face and looked into those bright blue eyes.

  He loved the way they represented the night sky with the glints within them.

  And she loved the way his smile was cocky but had pain hidden within it.

  I need you...

  So as their lips connected the world slowed down so that they'll have only that moment to themselves and no one else....