Natalie was gone when Levi woke up the next morning. He reached for his phone on the end table and called her, but she didn't pick up.He sent her a text. She read it but didn't respond.Frowning, he rolled out of bed and strolled to the bathroom to take a leak, thinking back to last night.Sure, the romantic evening he'd planned didn't pan out so well, but they'd kissed and made up, so he couldn't understand why she'd just up and leave him in bed, especially when they were going to the same office.With his most urgent business out of the way, he headed back to the master bedroom and called Angela to check Natalie's whereabouts."Yes, Mr Van Holt, she's at work. I just saw her now in the elevator with her friend," his assistant assured him."Thanks, Angela. I'm meeting my parents shortly; I'll head to the office straight after."Forty minutes later, Levi sat in his parents' suite at The Empress, the animosity between him and his father palpable as he updated them up on Colleen's case
Angela was waiting for Levi at Rise after he left his parents, and they spent an unnecessarily long time trying to decide what to get Natalie for lunch."What does she like?" Angela asked."Ice cream, pizza and wine, Alfredo pasta and mutton curry," he rattled off everything Amber had told him, happy to put his gruelling confrontation with his parents aside and focus on something mundane, like ordering lunch for his girlfriend.He knew he'd have to deal with all their revelations at some point, but until Linda Swartz's receptionist got back to him, he'd have to neatly compartmentalise his feelings in a mental box and try not to peek inside."—Well, they don't sell any of that, sir," Angela informed him as she looked through the menu. "How about a chocolate croissant or a bran muffin?"Levi looked at her doubtfully, but agreed, adding a few more items."We'll be working on the third floor today," he told her as they made their way to the office."I don't think that's a good idea," Ange
Levi spent the rest of his morning with the developers sorting out the patch. He was eyeballs deep in code when Mark came to pick him, and they set off for Riversands.Seth had decided to stay behind and follow up on Aunty Viv's other properties.Mark sat behind the wheel for a large part of their six-hour drive, and Levi was grouchy the whole time. He still thought a chopper would have saved them both a lot of time."Where's the element of surprise?" Mark asked softly.Levi pulled his attention away from the laptop long enough to throw him a concerned look.Ever since he told him about the meeting with his parents, Mark had slipped into some far off place, and no matter how hard Levi tried to reach him, he couldn't.But he had to try again. Otherwise, it would just eat away at his partner away if they didn't get it off his chest, so he asked him, "Do you want to talk about it? The stuff with Colleen?"Mark shook his head, and they drove in silence for some time until Levi screamed an
"Oh, Snap!" Emily couldn't hide her excitement when they walked into Levi's penthouse Wednesday evening."Mr Scissors doesn't fuck around!" she gushed as she dumped her bag on the couch and ran up the glass staircase to the entertainment room on the first floor.Natalie ran after her. "Em, I don't think we're supposed to be here."She'd only been up here once when Levi took her on the tour of the house. They usually spent most of their time downstairs, in the master bedroom, situation room, or open plan living area."What do you mean you're not supposed to be here?" Emily giggled as she jumped on the massage chair and turned it on. "This is your house."Natalie shook her head. As much as she'd love to call it hers, she still felt like a guest. But it wasn't Levi's fault. He'd gone out of his way to make her comfortable. She just wasn't used to his life. Everything was expensive and fancy, and she was afraid if she so much as touched something, it would break.Emily, though, had no issu
They left work earlier than usual, and Emily complained the whole time they drove to the meeting spot, an industrial town two hours away.It wasn't Natalie's idea. She'd wanted to pass along the information to Levi and Mark and let them follow up on the lead. But Colleen had made it clear she'd only talk face to face and only with her.If Natalie so much as tried something stupid like call the police or involve third parties, Colleen had threatened to vanish without a trace again. She'd done it before and had no problem doing it again.Caught between a rock and a hard place, Natalie had agreed to her demands.Hunched over the steering wheel, Emily asked. "So, what's the plan?"Natalie shrugged. There wasn't a plan. But convincing Colleen to return to Rock Union seemed like a solid start. If all went well, they'd be back in Green Point by 10:00 PM latest."I think we're walking into a trap. This has Paul written all over it," Emily said for the hundredth time since they left Chassis.T
They were silent for some time, processing Colleen's announcement.Having had her fair share of run-ins with the owner of Dreams, Natalie couldn't say she was surprised, though.But Emily...Emily really seemed to be struggling."What do you mean Aunty Viv wants you dead?"Colleen laughed, but her eyes remained limp, and the sound splattering through her cracked lips wasn't cheerful at all. "I'd get out if I were you. No matter what Aunty Viv says, don't trust her."Sensing a meltdown looming, Natalie tried to redirect the conversation to a less stressful topic. She couldn't have Colleen getting agitated again. Aunty Viv was clearly a sore subject for her. "Why did you want to meet with me?""I wanted to see Paul's other victim. I was curious to see the idiot posting about brass knuckles and a plastic surgeon on a forum where Paul can easily find you," Colleen said as she ran her hand through her tangled hair."I'm not a victim. I'm a survivor," Natalie said with conviction. It took h
"He's an asshole, but he's not bad—" Colleen tried to say. Natalie cut her off, though. She'd listen to everything, but that. After watching him kill Ethan in cold blood, she refused to be an Andrei sympathiser.She shook her head incredulously. "He pulled a gun on your brother, and you say he's not bad?""When?" Colleen turned ashen at her announcement."Levi will tell you when you see him, but I sure as hell hope you've cut all ties with Andrei.""There's no love lost between us, but I'm still alive because of him. He helped me get away from Aunty Viv, and he brings me supplies every month.""Why? What does he want from you? What does he get out of this?""Indigo," Colleen replied. "Half of it.""Jesus Christ." Natalie couldn't believe her ears. "For fuck's sake, he's the fucking mob, do you honestly think—""I know who he is!" Colleen held up her hand. "Don't you lecture me about Andrei! I grew up with him, and you know what, between him and Aunty Viv, I'll take my chances with him
They spent half the night trying to convince Colleen to return to Rock Union with them.Colleen admitted she missed her family, especially her twin, but the risk of damaging their reputation was too high. She couldn't, wouldn't destroy her father's life's work."So you plan to live this way for the rest of your life?" Emily asked, making a point of roaming her eyes over the shabby living conditions."Andrei asked me to sit tight while he figures something out about Dreams.""What is he planning to do?" Emily was brimming with questions."I don't know much," Colleen shrugged. "But I know he's trying to offload his shares at Dreams, and once he has, what comes after won't be anything good for Aunty Viv and Paul.""So basically, there is no plan, and you trusted Andrei's word?" Natalie was totally flabbergasted."We both need time to figure things out," Colleen retorted sharply."We can go to the police," Natalie said, stunning them all with her suggestion.The thought had never crossed