La route rouge

"Lily." I shook my head and quickened my pace. "Lily!" There it was again. Perhaps I was losing my mind after all. Paranoia. Not an unlikely side effect of my situation. "Lily!" I pulled a headphone out of my ear, doubting it, looking at the black button in my hand. The singer's voice floated to the fast beat, rough and strong, every word filled with sentiment. "Lily!" I bit my lip. There it was again. "Lily!" Was she really singing my name?

No. The voice reached my back.

Uncertain I shifted my weight from one leg to the other, turning on my toes like a graceful ballerina, at least I hoped to pass the comparison of a dancer. Although I probably looked more like a clumsy oaf. The raindrops splashed from the sides of my umbrella, like single bullets. I prepared myself for curses and insults. But nothing came. The street was... empty.

I looked around in all directions. What was wrong?

There was just...

"Elodie?" Surprised, I looked at the deadly pale face of the protagonist. Her steps seemed uncertain, hectic. She looked a bit as if she had just climbed out of a puddle, trembling and gnashing her teeth, soaked to the bone. There was a terror in her eyes, changing in a fraction of a second to stupefaction. But the layer of panic remained. Yes, she seemed deeply shaken. I stopped and tilted my head. What else could I do? The situation was more than strange. The street seemed peaceful and quiet in twilight. Houses cast their long shadows, the first lanterns were lit, casting orange light while the wind hissed. It was still too early for night's business, the music, the colourful lights, the girls who loll around in front of their shop doors in tight dresses even in such terrible weather, all to lure customers in, to a warm parlour. Men who were only looking for quick satisfaction or a little scattering on La route rouge, all of them worked themselves to death in their glass cloud castles or were probably still lying in their warm beds by now. Only after nightfall the first glittering lights would light up on the brick houses on La route rouge, and the music and laughter would return. However, even for this period of time it was still unusually calm, almost ghostly. Was it because of the weather?

Tonight I would also have preferred to stay in my bed. Especially on this particular day off, wearing only my old and warm pyjama!

If only there wasn't this precarious problem.

Plan A was officially dead. And plan B was still in development, how could I have expected that the super brilliant bombastic plan A would say Sayonara because of that. But the worst problem was still this guy. Alexandre de Valois. What role did he play in this story?

In no case he would play a supporting role. He was a damn hot eye candy. This argument was convincing enough. But what was his role? ML, 2nd ML or villain. If time hadn't pressed in my shoes, or more specifically, if Alexandre de Valois wouldn't be sticking in my neck, well then...

"Lily!" I stared at her and there it was again, this feeling, this premonition, that everything today would not be as easy as I dreamed it would be.

Elodie? What did she need?

From me?

Shouldn't her shift start any second? A gust of wind caused me to tremble. The cold crept under my coat. Before I knew it, my legs had already started moving.

Oh my God!

I could only gasp in shock as she was already lying in my arms. Clutching at me as if I were her last saving straw. "W-what...?"

And then she collapsed. Sobs rained down on her body almost every second. She was having trouble breathing. Yet her fingers buried themselves deeper and deeper into the sleeve of my coat.

Hesitantly, I put my hand on her head. "Breathe... Elodie breathe... Shhh... A-all is going to be g-good...again?"

But her sobbing only got louder. What was happening here? "Shhh..." I patted her hair and hoped that we wouldn't soon be surrounded by a crowd of gawpers. Otherwise, all this would only become even more unpleasant. For me, of course! Elodie was kinda already at the end of all sanity.

"Excuse me?" I raised my head to the unknown voice as my gaze was caught in his eyes. He was big, almost as big as this blackmailer who suddenly wanted to destroy my life and had ruined plan A for the next four years. He was all in black. Black coat with collar turned up, black trousers, black jacket, even the shirt underneath was pitch black. All tailor-made, of course. Even the black umbrella, which covered up half of his face, it was worth pathetic thousands of dollars. With that umbrella my rent would have been covered for half of a year at least. What great decadence!

His hair was black, it fell slightly over his collar in a daring way. His skin golden browned, as if he had just got off the plane, back from his Caribbean holiday. Black stubbles were casting a dark shadow over his high cheeks and prominent chin, which somehow seemed familiar. Where had I seen it before?

He was at least three metres away from us. But the distance decreased in no time at all.

"Do you know her?" He stopped right in front of us. Elodie immediately stiffened. I blinked at the rapid change in her posture.

"Yes..."

Slowly he lifted the umbrella, overshadowing Elodie and me. His face was not only familiar to me, it was the spitting image of him. I had the feeling my head was steaming, like an overheated pressure cooker, just before the explosion. He had said he would give me time. Obviously? Why was I even trusting Alexandre's word. He had made clear what he wanted from me during our nice conversation. What he expected from a marriage with me. What a bastard!

And this guy, looked like his... brother...?

Almost imperceptibly he nodded. "She isn't well." His almost black eyes were fixed on me. At me? No, it couldn't be! I blinked. At Elodie?

"I can see that!"

Sceptically, his gaze wandered towards me. "You don't look like you can help her."

"Oh! And you can help her?"

"I could at least take her to a hospital."

Elodie buried her nails deeper into the fabric of my sleeve, lifted her head slightly, looking at me, direct and unmistakable. With these big puppy eyes, glassy and red. So gentle. "I don't... want..."

"You heard her. She doesn't want to go to a hospital."

He gave me a hard look, his eyes were freezing from one second to the next. "And you think that even in this state she should decide what is good for her. Look at her..."

"What kind of state!"

"She obviously has a problem with drugs."

"Drugs! Did you drug her?" My throat was tight as his gaze swept to the side. Somewhere in the distance and then returning.

"No..."

"Then why the hell do you talk about drugs? Elodie doesn't touch drugs!" That was no incident!

He turned his face away. "I...", he hesitantly moved the tip of his tongue over his lips. "I've been in a similar situation before..."

Cold swept across my face. "And then you thought you would be her perfect knight on a white horse! Somehow, I can't believe that." My eyes were burning. "I'm sure you're not a selfless gentleman." My eyes rolled across La route rouge. "Otherwise, you wouldn't come to a place like this." I held my gaze fixed on him. I didn't know what had got into me, fighting with that guy. Even though a deeper acquaintance meant trouble. I didn't know what his connection with Alexandre de Valois was, nor how far he was aware of our nice intimidating conversation. Just how far I was able to lean out of the window without being in danger. Because one thing was certain. This man was probably as deadly to my normal life as his look-alike. Actually, I should be saving my own skin right now. And not holding my head under the guillotine for the protagonist, after all she would get her happy ending anyway. Whether I interfered or not. I could only pray that I didn't was messing up with the ML or the villain of the novel right now. Someone please tell me I haven't come up with a new way to beg for death! No! No...

"Hey, kiddo, he just wants to help... no reason is necessary."

And there was already the next problem. I gritted my teeth and tried to return his cold and arrogant gaze. "Excuse me for asking sceptically. But Elodie seems to have run away from something that frightens her. And this guy is chasing her. And he's talking about drugs." Today I was especially fond of death!

There was a sparkle of mockery in his steel-blue eyes. With a careless movement he stroked the ice blond hair behind his ear as he bent down beside me. His skin was almost as pale as mine, just dusted with a touch of amber. He was hardly older than the man next to him, in his mid-twenties, early thirties, probably the same age. But his charisma was a few degrees cooler. Chilly and intimidating.

His lips curled into a fine sneering smile. He probably knew it. In panic, I pressed Elodie closer.

"Look at her." With his long fingers, he tried to grab Elodie's chin, I slapped it away.

"Fuck it." He hissed and pushed me down. "Fuck off, whore, before I change my mind and don't show your face ever again!"

I stumbled, I staggered, I fell to the street. Elodie right on top of me. As all the air was squeezed out of my lungs. Rain whipped in my face. Cold wetness moved into the fabric of my trousers. His face right above me. Disparagingly he twisted his mouth. There was nothing but contempt in his eyes. It scared me.

He grabbed the other one by his coat and dragged him with a jerk back towards the club.

Fuck!

The other cursed, hanging with his eyes on us for seconds. No, Elodie. Before his eyes closed and turned away.

But... in his gaze... I couldn't figure it out... Anyway, I would be somewhere else tomorrow anyway!