Scarlet Rose

Chapter 54

Alice Diamond has always relied to herself for her whole life till the present. Yes, she may had been the lover of Charles MacDonald but it wasn't as if this was a weak woman taking refuge under the protection of one of the most powerful mob bosses in London.

He had taken her out of prison. Had paid handsomely and may I add, secretly top Beat officials to make it happen. Alice's fame preceded her. Charles was on top of his game. A lot of women had passed from his bed but the Diamond lass had piqued his interest. In his mind, this relationship was bound to happen. They both came from the same rough streets of a darker London which bore no resemblance to the rich, elegant, frivolous lives of those  who had the means to live as such. Fired up with the same ambition, to rise above, to survive, and survive they did with such mastery, they had no other to challenge them.

He had courted her relentlessly. At the start, she dismissed him. She didn't need a man in her life. Relationships made life complicated; feelings made a person weak. But he hadn't backed down. Charles always managed to get what he wanted. In the end she knew she would give in. She had fallen head over heals for the bastard, but she pretended not to matter. Instead she watched him, secretly taking pleasure to the knowledge she had wrapped a man of such power around her little finger. He may not have been a matinee idol in regards to his looks. He was a man having done some tough living while growing up without having two pennies to rub together at the slumps of London.

Like a moth attracted to the fire she was around him. She was aware he was a dangerous man, but it didn't matter. They became lovers and he treated her like a queen. The rush of adrenaline she felt with him, she hadn't felt with anyone else, apart from...

She turned and stared at the clock, ticking the night away. It had been well past one in the morning and he hadn't come to bed yet. Yes, lately, there had been one other man who competed in her mind against Charles. This hadn't been something she expected, nor did she seek for it. But his actions weren't of any other man she knew. He came from a different world from her own but the way he behaved reminded her so much of herself. He didn't need to have this secret life, being a criminal, the infamous Raven but somehow life had pushed him to carve this identity for him, for reasons she did not know but was suspecting already. Just like him, Alice Diamond was a persona she had created to deal with everything that took place around her. Just like her, Christian loved and hated being who he was. When he was brought in front of MacDonald and was beaten up just for the reason that he wanted out...He spoke to her heart.

She had mentioned it to Charles about them perhaps retiring from such a life. Get a cottage somewhere far, plant some veggies in the garden, start a family. He did want a family, but not on Alice's terms however. And that was the crack that kept widening in their relationship.

In the midst of all that took place, she found herself tied to Christian. His fate dictated hers. She touched her lips. It had been a day since he had kissed her, strictly for "business" as he had put it. The misfortune with the knife wasn't a laughing matter and that bloody copper was on their tail. She was worried even more because he didn't show signs of knowing exactly how deep they were sinking. His mind had been completely elsewhere.

She turned the other way; sighed. Charles was still in his study downstairs and she wasn't going to fall asleep any time soon. She got up. Threw her robe over her shoulders. Tiptoed down the stairs. The light shone through the cracks of the closed door. She reached it. Though his voice was low, she realised he was speaking to someone over the phone.

"He's more of a risk than a gain at this point Billy."

"It's only a matter of time..."

"What do you mean he sure will have a plan? Have you spoken to him at all?"

"Exactly! His mind isn't in this, neither his will."