"It's sad Cynthia couldn't be here tonight." I let out as I served Simon and Ronnie a plate with the help of William.
"She had to clean up her flat. I will take a lot of space." He responds with the happiest grin on his face as he finally takes a seat at the table next to me.
"I still can't believe you are leaving me, mate... What will I do without you?" Simon tries to get our pity, but his little act makes me laugh.
"I think you've been good all week without me, don't start complaining. The only reason why you don't want to see me leave is that you want somebody to wipe your arse."
William's response makes me grin at Simon, and it makes Ronnie choke on her food. "What?"
"I'm sure you've noticed as you have been living with him this week. He doesn't cook. He doesn't do his laundry. He hates responsibilities." William tells her, still mocking his twin as I'm sure it's all true.
"Are you saying he does that all the time?" Ronnie asks innocently. Will nods, and she looks straight to Si with narrowed eyes. It makes me smile even more. "You said you had a tough week at work, you cocky shit!"
She takes her napkin and throws it at my brother's face. It seems to amuse Simon to have played her that way. But with a smile hiding on her lips, I see that Ronnie doesn't mind that much. I'm sure despite all of that, they had fun being together. Maybe it has given Ronnie the desire to spend more time with him. I know how much he is infatuated with her.
"Fortunately for you, I'm in dire need of a new flatmate. And I'm willing to go to great lengths to make you a deal." My brother looks at Ronnie with his most desirable traits. He's such a charmer, Simon could sell glasses to a blind man.
"Don't try to fool me, Simon. I did your shit last week. I'm not about to do any more."
"You might like the deal I have in mind..."
Simon is looking at Ronnie in a very intense way that makes me both excited and awkward to be in the middle of their erotic romance. I really hope they get together, so I am letting this game continue. Clearly, William doesn't share my enthusiasm.
"You had all week to flirt. Please don't do this now that you have a public. How about you tell us what you've done about Steeve. Is that taken care of, or is he still bothering Ronnie?" William changes the subject, but it doesn't feel like it is any better than the last. It makes me feel anxious.
Simon sighs and drops his fork to bring both of his elbows on the table to lean on. He looks up at Ronnie a second and sighs again.
"It's been one hell of a week." He only responds. He looks down at the table a second. I can see his eyes moving to the rhythm of his thoughts. What happened? He looks back up at me before continuing. "I'm so happy you left him, and the truth got out. He's a fucked up son a bitch, that lad. Hell, Grace! I can't believe you were with him for that long."
Simon's reaction is harsh but not rude. He seems hurt, and I feel terribly bad to have involved him. I look to Ronnie since she's been his latest victim and feels even worse. I shouldn't have involved them both. She looks down, and every trace of the fun we've just had is now gone.
"I'm so sorry. Nothing of this should have happened. You didn't deserve his wrath. I did. I upset him." I apologise to her, but Simon reacts immediately.
"Nobody ever deserves to be treated that way. Steeve is sick. You shouldn't have to feel guilty for him or feel like it's all on you because it isn't. That lad has a problem. A problem that none of us can fix."
"What did he do, Simon?" I ask him calmly but extremely worried to learn about the gravity of the situation.
I look over at Ronnie, but I don't get an answer. She keeps her eyes on Si as if they've been through hell together. I pinch my lips and hold back my tears. What has our lives come to? I can't believe I've put my brothers and my best friend through that, whatever it might have been.
He doesn't answer me, which scares me even more because I see another way to look at things. Blood freezes in my veins when I lean more towards him, demanding his sight to cross mine.
"Si? What did you do?" I ask again calmly, but being terrified inside because I know just how impulsive my brother can be.
His eyes don't leave mine for an instant until he shakes his head and looks down. He only looks up to find Ronnie. Still not answering me. I'm losing my patience. Anxiety is killing me right now. I want to know what happened, what can we do to fix the situation, and when can we fix it.
"Can somebody please answer me!? What happened!?"
"Ronnie called me the night of the argument when Steeve happened to see if I could come over. She told me that Steeve had stormed in the restaurant looking for her to talk trash about you." He finally explains, Ronnie quickly adds something.
"George threw him out of the restaurant and banned him for life."
William and I both look at her and listen to them without saying anything. I don't even know how to feel about that. I've known about it for a while. But I was dealing with so much that I had pushed it aside without ever really dealing with it.
"When I got to Nando's, she was crying. The restaurant had fired her, and her car had been vandalised."
"They fired you?!" I react instantly, not remembering this part of the story. I look now at Ronnie, but Simon continues. I don't know if it's for the better or for worse...
"They did. It appears that he had done the same thing in the past, and the boss didn't want it to happen again. And it happened. So they fired her because it had upset and scared the clients. I let the dust settle and handled it with the manager. I made sure a picture of him was put on the door to keep him from entering. I've also gotten her the job back. She had no right to be a victim twice, and certainly since she hadn't done anything wrong. I contacted the owner of the building and told him to throw Steeve out. I told him he was banned from the Nando's and was seen harassing and abusing an employee. The owner didn't need much more encouragement. It appears he didn't pay last month's rent on time."
"Good riddance." William lets out, smiling at his brother. But I don't know if we can smile just yet.
"Are you saying we are done with him?"
"He has until the end of the month to leave, but after that, I don't think we'll hear from him again. Thankfully we have the law on our side, and we have footage of him keying Ronnie's car. If he ever comes back to haunt us, I've told him that he was going to jail. Maybe I exaggerated a little, but he doesn't know that." Simon smiles at his twin and Ronnie, taking her hand on the table to give it a little squeeze.
I will not lie. I'm incredibly thankful to my brother for handling this situation both for my sake and Ronnie's sake, but thinking of throwing Steeve out on the streets isn't an idea that pleases me. Maybe it's because there's a part of me still manipulated by him, or a better and kinder part of me that finds it a little extreme. I don't let this thought bother me so much. I'm happy we can finally move on from him and move forward.
And yet, just as I felt somehow a little bit freer, another thought popped into my mind. It makes me sigh and sad that we can't savour this victory a little longer.
"What about Marcel?" I ask gently, not wanting to ruin the mood, and for Ronnie, it doesn't, but I don't like the way a shadow appears in Simon's eyes. What has he learned? What does he know?
"Marcel? What has he done now?" Ronnie jokes with a smirk on her lips, but depending on what my brother will tell me, it won't be of laughing matter.
"Killed his father," I respond and look thoroughly at Simon to see if he will agree to this statement or not, but the others' reactions are immediate.
"What?!" Ronnie lets out.
"You're not serious," Will exclaims at the same time, exasperation on his traits since he knows a lot about all the ups and downs Marcel and I have been through. We've talked a lot on this trip to Edinburgh. I've never felt closer to my brother, yet it's because another of my relationships is crashing and burning.
I feel like I must defend Marcel at all costs right now because if my brothers make up their minds that I shouldn't be with Marcel, they will make it impossible for me. And I love him. I will not abandon him again like every other person in his life did. If I give up, it gives room for Kate to feed on his innocence again. It makes her win.
"So?!" I press Simon to answer, nerves eating me alive.
I feel that he is innocent in my body, yet I know how easily manipulated I am. The same applies to Mace, but he wouldn't be violent to anyone he loves. He proved that with me. Yes, he has violent tendencies when faced with injustice or sex, but he isn't violent. I don't think he had these issues when his father was alive. His death unveiled that new side of him. But what can his record say about him? Does he have one?
"The guy is clean. I haven't found anything on him, not even a parking ticket. The only thing I learned about him is the murder of Andrew Wright."
"Do you know what happened?" I immediately cut him, impatient to finally know what happened to his father to understand what he has been through.
"They were walking in Camden at 20:15, on February 14th."
"Valentine's Day." Ronnie realises and shares.
"That was about ten years ago, maybe more. They had just stopped by to get flowers for his mum, and they were walking back to the car, a 2006 Bentley Continental GT, parked a couple of streets away. As they were headed to their respective door, a man took hold of Marcel and put a blade to his neck. There were no witnesses to help. The man wanted the car and Andrew's wallet. That's what Marcel explained to the police during the interrogation. He was a suspect, yes, but the car and the wallet never got found. So he couldn't have hidden it very far by the time the paramedics arrived. And the boy didn't know how to drive at the time. Also, Andrew's skull had been crushed with a brick at a strength Marcel couldn't have had."
"But what happened?" I'm sadly shocked to finally learn the truth about his innocence. Edith will need to know about this, but I want to know what Marcel's been through. I want to know every detail of that terrible night.
"Marcel tried to free himself from the man, so he got stabbed," Simon speaks calmly and very carefully. His eyes are sunk into mine, searching for any sign to stop telling these atrocious details Marcel has been through. "He got stabbed close to his neck and collapsed to the ground. That alone could have killed him. But Andrew rushed to the man and got stabbed in the chest. Marcel then jumped on the perp's back to free his father. He got thrown to the ground and got stabbed two other times, under his right scapula and on his back, but I can't remember where."
My blood freezes and chills run through my entire being. I remember those three little scars. I've kissed them and caressed them plenty of times. Never could I have imagined such a wicked and terrifying thing would be the reason for them.
"Even that wounded, he kept the fight to free the man from his weapon. Andrew knocked the man to the ground, and he kept hitting him until the man got a hold of brick and fractured his skull with one swing. The man stood up, took the wallet from Andrew's pocket and fled with the Bentley. The flowers had been scattered all over the scene of the crime. Andrew apparently couldn't move his legs, but luckily he got the chance to reach his cellphone to call the emergencies. He begged the officers to take his son to the hospital first, even though his injuries were more critical. He died on the scene. They never caught the killer. There were no cameras, no witnesses. The only evidence they have is the brick and the knife. There were no prints. The man must have worn gloves."
"Could it have been premeditated?" I ask him, trying my best to not seem as shaken as I am. I want justice to be served, and clearly, something is wrong with this situation.
"They ruled it was a robbery gone wrong."
"But the guy was wearing gloves."
"It was in the middle of winter, Grace. The only way to prove otherwise is if, and it's a big if, we find the wallet. A robber would have taken the credit cards and the money and thrown the rest. But for that, we need to find the wallet first, and they never did." Simon calmly adds, and I sigh, resilient to find a solution so that Marcel can finally grieve and move forward. He seems to be still stuck in his past.
"You seem to know the case pretty well." Will comments.
I only want right now to drive back to London and be by Mace's side.
I let Paul come in between us when I should have trusted my gut and believed the man I love. I got scared that Marcel was developing some violent tendencies. I didn't want to get back in the same kind of relationship I had just gotten out of. But Marcel isn't Steeve. I should have never compared the two. Marcel is tortured by his past, and it has resolved in having issues. Steeve's problem was his need for power because he had shit esteem of himself. Everyone that was more intelligent than him he bullied because he felt threatened. I wish I knew that then. I wish I wouldn't have let myself be so easily played. I am so much more confident now. And that's because of Marcel. He helped me own my shit and see what I deserve.
I can remember Steeve being so supportive of my story. He read it, and he never reads. That, to me, meant everything. And maybe he was so happy and supportive about my book deal in London just because it meant more money or more time alone to fuck his whore with strawberry condoms.
I feel anxious just thinking about him. Thankfully, because of Simon, it might all be behind us right now. I might never have to see Steeve again, nor have to hear his name.
"I've spent the whole day studying this case and him. I thought we would be dealing with another psycho case like Steeve, but this lad seems legit. He's clean." Simon sighs as if of relief. For Simon, it's as close as I will get for approval.
I smile at him gently and extend my hand to give it a squeeze. I thank him for what he has done for me today. He probably doesn't know how relieved I am and how thankful I am to know the truth once and for all. I know what happened, and nothing could ever make me doubt Marcel again.
We finish dinner, and the whole time I'm cleaning up, I'm thinking about whether I should text him before it's too late. I don't know if he feels as miserable as I feel without him. I long simply to smell him or to hear his voice. He has such a beautiful voice.
I leave the kitchen for the bathroom and lock the door behind me. I take my phone to listen to Frank Sinatra's Funny Valentine. I get shivers from my legs to the back of my neck. Marcel sings it so beautifully.
In the middle of my song, my phone vibrates, and a message appears. True! I almost forgot! I have an appointment tomorrow at the clinic for my contraceptive shot. They called Friday afternoon. They usually call two days in advance, but they called Friday for my Tuesday appointment because of the weekend. I'll need to stop at the pharmacy for my medicine. The song finishes, and I decide to look through all my reminders. I have my photoshoot with Marcel scheduled for Wednesday. I wonder if he'll be there or if our break-up will make him avoid me. I don't think he could ever do that. He's too professional.
I make my way back to the others again to ask them if I can stay the night instead of driving me to the bus station like Sophie did when we went down to Manchester this afternoon. Her relationship too is crashing and burning. She did not really want to talk about it, which I respected, but I'll definitely ask her more about it when I get home.
I found it weird when Will offered me to sleep in his room, but I must admit that I'm happier sleeping with my brother than by myself in the living room. He talks to me about memories that happened when I moved out of the house. He tells me that Mum and Dad got in the biggest argument he had ever witnessed. It surprises me because my parents never fight. He tells me about the time Simon brought a girl to the flat and moaned the wrong name. Will says he has never laughed so hard when he saw Si arse naked running after the girl leaving their flat. Simon must have been so embarrassed. Will tells me he didn't invite a girl home for a month after that. He was too scared to make the same mistake again.
And then he questions me on what I'll do with Marcel. I tell him the truth that I'll try to win him back, that I shouldn't have doubted him, that I had insecurities that got the best of me, that it was never his fault.
"I'm happy you've found somebody who seems to make you happy and treat you right."
"I wish you could have met him this weekend, but he arrived late and left early," I tell him and roll my eyes, thinking back on all the drama that happened in only four days.
"I've always felt a little guilty about your relationship with Steeve." He admits slowly, readjusting his head on the pillow to be more comfortable as it seems to weigh on him.
"Why would you?"
"Dad told me something one day I will never forget. We were discussing your move with Steeve. I disagreed with your decision to be in a relationship with him. He said to me that every decision I make, I make it three times. I make it for myself. I make it for Simon that makes the same decision after watching me do it. And I make it a third time for you, making again the same decision you've seen us do. The way I treated Simon showed him how to treat you, and that's how you would always expect to be treated for the rest of your life, even in your relationships. It hit me hard, and I felt guilty. Maybe you have always accepted being bullied because of the tough way we've been with you growing up... I know Steeve has bullied you all your life, and I feel even more guilty now knowing what he's done to you now. I know I haven't been the best brother, Simon and I were always playing tough, and you got caught in it. You were an easy target. I will always regret the things that I made you endure."
It's true. My brothers did bother me when I was young. I realise that maybe I submit so easily because of my brothers' dominance towards me. I think I might have always submitted to men in general because of that. I never challenged their authority because of that. Marcel was the first one I stood up to in my life.
"In any way, William, I don't hold any grudge. What happened had to happen for me to find who I am and be confident about myself. Maybe it took a long time and lots of suffering, but you know what, I've never been happier to be myself. And the best part is, a wonderful man loves me for what I am for the first time in my life. Don't feel guilty because I feel thankful for what I've achieved and who I have become."