Chapter 11: Thursdays
"What do you mean you won't take the case?"
The lawyer had the grace to look flustered. "For the reasons I have just stated, Miss Devereaux. It is our firm's policy-"
Alex snorted with disdain. "Oh, so you'll defend serial murderers and pedophiles but not a smuggler who saved a man and his whole family? Not to mention the fact that he had a major part to play in bringing to light Van der Kaap's exploitative work ethos?"
"Listen, Miss Devereaux-"
"You know what? If you don't want my money, I'll go somewhere else." She shot him her best glare.
"No one will take your case, Miss Devereaux," said the lawyer, a small smirk on his lips.
"Wanna bet on that, dickhead?" she snapped, standing up abruptly.
He almost grimaced. "It's Van de Kaap we're talking about, if they want to crush your friend, they will. It's best we don't get involved."
She gave him a frosty smile. "Whatever, I've had enough of your bullshit anyway. Have a nice day. Actually, don't. I hope you trip over and get your buck teeth knocked out."
Alex stalked out of the law firm, feeling a tad better after her childish outburst. Well, she was entitled to any outburst. She had been to all the law firms she knew, and not one would take Archer's case.
"Fuck it," she said loudly, earning a disapproving glare from a passer-by. It was an exceptionally bright day, ironically. Alex paused to put her sunglasses on, then whipped out a fag and lit it, taking a deep drag.
She stood in the middle of the sidewalk, her heels giving her something of a bird's eye view of the swarming lunch crowd. A woman rudely shoved past her and she glowered at the back of her head.
Suddenly, she felt rather… small.
And she didn't like it.
She started walking, dragging her feet, her arms crossed protectively across her chest. For the first time in her life, she didn't get what she wanted. She knew from the moment that she hauled Archer onto the plane that it would not be easy, but it had not really hit home until now.
But it was so easy, just him and her. She'd actually been happy, going home every day, not to an empty house, but to him. Him watching the telly, or cooking, or doing something homely you'd think he wouldn't be caught dead doing.
Alex's hand shook a bit when she brought the cigarette up to her lips again. What was she doing? She should've known this would happen. She was falling, and there was no sign of reaching the bottom yet. Not by a long shot.
The worst thing was she knew that he was in love with someone else. She knew but she threw herself into this mess anyway. Now that Maddy Bowen had reappeared, she didn't stand a chance.
Wonderful. Abso-fucking-lutely wonderful.
Maybe it was time she got herself a boyfriend. Or a toyboy of some sort. At least that would stop her from ogling at his bare chest every time he got out of a shower.
Lost in thought, she didn't realise she was halfway out on a busy road till someone pulled her back.
Alex shrieked as a taxi raced by, missing her by inches, the driver sticking up his middle finger at her.
"Are you okay?"
Still in a daze, she looked up and blinked.
Her first instinct was to swear, but she stopped and smiled instead. If she wanted a toyboyfriend, she might have to start being nice. And this guy was definitely toyboyfriend material.
"Oh yes, I'm fine," she said, biting her lip shyly for good measure. "Thanks for bringing me back from the dead. I was- distracted."
He grinned, the corners of his green eyes crinkling merrily. "I could tell. It's very hard to miss traffic like that."
"I'm usually a bit more pulled together," she joked. "I'm Alex, by the way."
He held his hand out politely. "The name's Seth."
Alex paused, her arm half-raised pensively. The name's Seth… Jesus Christ.
"You're the guy who chatted me up outside Starbucks!" snapped Alex, snatching her hand back, and threw it upwards in disbelief. "For fuck's sake, of all the freaking male population in London…"
Seth pretended to look surprised. "Did I chat you up?"
Alex crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes at him. "Don't act dumb, buddy. You obviously remember me."
"Ah yes, you're the girl who littered just to let me know you weren't interested," he teased, flashing her an easy grin. "How could I forget?"
"Are you stalking me?" she demanded, and started to cross the road as the green man came on.
"I'd never dream of it," he said, falling in step with her. "So, you free on Saturday night?"
"I don't go out with strangers," she replied brusquely, fishing for her packet of cigarettes. She had dropped her half-smoked cigarette when Seth rescued her.
"We're not strangers," he insisted, feigning hurt in his voice. He trotted forward and turned around so that he was facing her, walking backwards. "C'mon, give a guy a chance?"
"No."
"You were coming onto me, admit it, sweetheart."
Alex rolled her eyes. "Do me a favour and sod off, will you?"
Seth spread out his arms and stopped suddenly, and she nearly bumped into him. He gave her a lopsided smile and said pleadingly, "One date? After all, I saved your life back there."
Her lips twitched as she looked into his puppy eyes. It was not every day she was practically chased after by a guy, and he did indeed save her life.
Plus, she needed to take her mind off Archer.
She made a great show of huffing and puffing then said, "Fine. One date."
He grinned as if she just told him that Santa Claus was coming to town.
"Saturday, at nine, I'll pick you up at Camden tube station, okay?"
She arched an eyebrow. "Camden?"
"It'll be fun, I promise," he said excitedly. "And wear something you can jump in."
Before she could say anything else, he winked and jogged off into the lunch crowd.
Alex smiled at Seth's retreating back. He was actually kind of cute.
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It was a Thursday.
On Thursdays, Alex did not have lectures till two in the afternoon. She slept in while Archer got up at half past eight to do his routine jog round Hyde Park. His lungs had patched up quite well, and he could do easy jogging for an hour before he called it a day. At around ten thirty, he would be at the Waitrose around the corner to pick up groceries for the next couple of days.
On Thursdays, he always picked free range eggs, sausages with apple bits, bacon, fresh mushrooms and baked beans because that was what Alex liked for brunch.
This Thursday, he wandered along the seafood fridges and decided he should give Nigella's seafood casserole a go. If it went wrong they could always order Chinese takeaway. He swiveled the half empty cart down the baking aisle to pick up some pre-made brownie mix, then up the next one for Alex's favourite cereal with jumbo raisins. He also grabbed a few rolls of kitchen towels and washing powder since they ran out.
Archer was halfway through checkout when he realised that they might be out of onions. His hand went to the mobile phone in his pocket to ask, but stopped as he remembered that Alex would still be asleep.
He paid with the debit card Alex gave him, and punched in the pin. He still felt uneasy every time he spent money. Her money. He had thought of getting a job, but without a work visa or any visa at all, it was a bit risky. The Brits were rather anal about things like that, he'd been told. Unlike Africa.
The girl at the cashier gave him a flirty smile and brushed his hand when she gave him the receipt. He simply nodded and gathered the bags. He would have to come back later to get onions, and maybe some red wine too.
Damn, and some milk too.
He was never good with grocery shopping.
The streets were quiet per usual at this time of the morning. The dogwalker, Tom, rambled by like he always did on Thursdays and weekends, and Archer raised a hand in greeting.
"The missus having a lie-in, eh?" called out Tom with a grin, struggling to keep his hold on the three Great Danes he was walking.
"Yeah, yeah," replied Archer vaguely. Well, not exactly, but Tom didn't need to know.
Paul the doorman opened the door for him as he finally walked through the doors of the Sloane Square Mansions.
"Mornin' Paul," said Archer.
"Morning, sir," replied Paul in his impeccable English accent. "Miss Devereaux left just ten minutes before."
Archer frowned. She didn't say she had anywhere to go.
"That's alright. Thanks for letting me know."
The apartment was indeed empty when he made his way in. He kicked off his shoes and tossed the keys onto the coffee table, then put all the bags onto the kitchen counter.
A pink post-it was on the refrigerator door, on it Alex had scribbled, "I'll be back for lunch."
So no brunch today. Ah well. He quickly emptied the plastic bags and put everything in their rightful places. He opened the fridge and made a face when the smell of sour milk hit him like a wall. Both of them were too lazy to chuck out expired food produce rotting in the fridge.
He grimaced when he realised it was also laundry day. Neither had a knack for cleanliness, but since Alex was of the female kind she did make more of an effort. They had someone to give the apartment a thorough cleaning every two weeks, but in between Alex did most of the tidying up while Archer made half-assed attempts to help, like throwing out the trash when they could no longer squeeze anything else into the abused trashcan.
Archer took a quick shower and like a good boy dumped all of his dirty clothes, which had been residing in a corner for the past week, into the washing machine. Scratching his back, he swaggered across the living room and stopped in front of Alex's door.
He blinked and wondered if he should go in and take her dirty laundry out.
It was not like he had not been inside her room before. Well, rarely, since they did almost everything in front of the TV. Their rooms were the only source of privacy they had.
They. Us.
Archer thought wryly that they made the most unlikely couple. Somehow they ended up in the same apartment in the middle of London, and had been living together for a little more than a month since he was discharged from medical attention.
A real fucked up charity case.
Archer never lived with anyone before. Hell he never even really lived anywhere, not in one goddamn place anyway. Not since his 'rents died. Even during his mercenary days he moved from camp to camp and he never bothered making any friends. Who needed them, right? Then it was one dump to another dingy hotel room. In a back alley. Under a table in a bar. He woke up and he went. Alone.
And now? He was cohabiting with a girl too young for him, living off her, wondering if he should go into her room to get her dirty lingerie so he could start the fucking washing machine.
He was going insane. Or worse, he was going soft.
If he were anything like his old self, he would have taken off a long, long time ago. He never owed anyone anything. Well, sometimes he did, but he always ran off before they realised.
Why the fuck was he still here? Humdrum day-to-day routine wasn't for Danny Archer. Fuck no.
The shrill ring of the telephone jerked him from his thoughts, and he hurried to answer it.
"Hello?"
There was silence on the other side, then a familiar voice. "Archer?"
"Hello Maddy."
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They agreed to meet at the Starbucks near the Bond Street tube station.
Archer stood outside the glass windows for a moment, staring at Maddy, who sat comfortably in an armchair, perusing a magazine. It had been almost a fortnight since that night at the ball, and God knew how long since they said goodbye on the phone.
You know, when they both thought he was going to die.
Maddy looked up suddenly and stared straight at him, as if she knew he had been gazing at her all along. She grinned and Archer shuffled his feet, not quite sure how to act.
He strutted into the café, and hoped for the best.
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"Alex!"
She didn't need to turn around to know who that voice belonged to.
"What is it, asshole day?" she grumbled under her breath and kept walking.
"Alex, I need to talk to you!"
"I don't need to listen, sod off Ben!" she shot back, barging straight into the lift, hoping he wouldn't follow.
The stupid lift didn't close its doors fast enough, so Alex found herself stuck with Benjamin Cooper for the ride to the sixth floor.
Alex glared at her childhood friend, and he grinned.
"Why so hostile, my dear? I just want to help you out," he said condescendingly.
"With what?" she snapped.
The lift doors slid open with a ping and Alex made to exit.
"Danny Archer."
She stopped.
She could practically feel Ben's smug smirk on the back of her neck as he drawled, "I'll take the liberty to presume that you failed to find anyone willing to take the case."
"What's it to you?" she spun around with a vicious snarl.
"I can help you." He smiled serenely. "But first, I want some Earl Grey."
With that, he swept out of the lift.
Alex followed, marching past him to open the door.
"Don't make yourself at home," she sniped.
To her chagrin, Ben Cooper chuckled and proceeded to ignore her advice.
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"You should have contacted me. If I knew, I would have held back the article."
Archer shrugged, looking at his sneakers as they trudged along.
He looked up and smiled into her eyes. "Does it matter now?"
"I don't know," admitted Maddy. "The what-ifs really bother me."
What if he died?
What if he parted ways with Alex in Australia?
What if he went to Maddy instead?
Then she brightened and said, "So, what have you been up to? Other than coming back from the dead and all that."
He gave her a lopsided grin. "Not much, babysitting Alex takes up most of my time."
Maddy seemed to stand a bit straighter at the mention of Alex. She shoved her hands into her jeans' pockets and asked quietly, "Are you and Alex… in a relationship?"
The question literally threw Archer off his course. "No, no," he said quickly, too quickly. Shit. He really was losing his touch. "We're just very good friends."
He frowned and ran a hand through his hair.
Maddy just kept on walking.
"You wanna come up to the apartment for a sit? I can make us some lunch," he suggested, carefully keeping his tone light.
She turned, cocking her head to one side. "You cook?"
Archer arched an eyebrow and mirrored her movements. "Why, can't you?"
She laughed, and he smiled. "Why not?"
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Alex stared at him, shell-shocked.
It wasn't a feeling that Alex liked.
When she finally managed to speak, she choked out, "Are you fucking out of your mind?"
Ben just smiled at her. "No."
"You're fucking insane."
It was a statement, and Ben obviously took it as a compliment, judging from the wide grin on his face.
"Maybe, but that doesn't make me wrong. So, are you in?"
So, are you in?
What the fuck did he think this was, a game of tag?
She must have said it out loud, because Ben laughed noisily and shook his head. "Of course not, Alex. Nothing's a game when it comes to you."
"Well, it fucking sounds like one to me!" she yelled.
He actually had the nerve to lean forward and held her hand in his. "I'm the only one who can help- who will help, Alex."
She knew he was right. Damnit.
She snatched her hand back and glowered at him.
"Sleep on it. I didn't expect an immediate answer," he said easily and got onto his feet. "But know that Van de Kaap will be making a move soon, and you need help. He needs help."
She stubbornly stared straight ahead. "Get out."
Ben didn't even bat an eyelash. She hated to admit it, but he was probably the only man who could handle her taunts without losing his temper.
"I'll see myself out," he smiled and spun on his heel to leave.
She heard the door open, then, to her surprise, Archer's voice.
"What the fuck are you doing here?"
"Mr. Archer, Miss Bowen-"
Alex twisted round so fast that she nearly pulled a muscle. Indeed, it was Mr. Archer and Miss Bowen.
She shot Archer a look, then turned to Maddy.
"Maddy," she said with a forced smile. "How are you? I didn't know you were coming up."
"I'm sorry if we caught you by surprise, but Archer offered to make lunch and I couldn't refuse," she replied apologetically.
Alex barely managed to catch herself before she could snort.
"We were just talking about you, Mr. Archer," Ben cut in smoothly.
Archer gave her a look, and she shrugged. He deadpanned, "Fascinating, I'm sure."
If she didn't know Ben as well as she (unfortunately) did, she would not have noticed Ben subtly sizing Archer up. His green eyes flickered to hers.
He knew what Archer was to her.
A sly smile tugged at one end of his lips. He made a show of checking the time, and said, "Well, I guess I'll run along now-"
The lift outside rumbled to a stop and Alex heard the sound of the doors opening, and heavy footsteps followed.
She gaped at the four policemen that showed up in her line of vision.
"Mr. Archer," said the one in front, staring straight at him. He took out a pair of handcuffs and drawled as if he would rather be doing something much more interesting than arresting someone. "You're under arrest for defamation and illegal entry into the country. You don't have to say anything, but it may harm your defence if you do not mention, when questioned, something which you later rely on in court. Anything you do say may be given in evidence. We're taking you to the station now."
Alex was still in a daze when a second policeman turned to her.
"Miss Devereaux, you are arrested on counts of assisting Mr. Archer to enter the country illegally and passport forgery. You're coming with us too."
Alex barely had the time to squeak an indignant "What?" before the officer crumpled to the ground. It registered that it was Archer's mean right hook that had caught the officer's nose in a painful clash.
Alex was not sure who screamed, but suddenly all hell broke loose. Above Maddy's frantic attempts to subdue Archer and Ben's efforts to hold him back, he punched another officer before he was wrestled to the floor, his hands behind his back. He grimaced when the sound of handcuffs sliced the uneasy silence that had settled like a blanket.
Awkwardly, Alex gave the officer with the bleeding nose a tissue as Archer was brought roughly to his feet.
Their eyes met and she bit her lip.
"Uh, let's all go along for the ride?" she suggested hesitantly.
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I realised that I like writing in short, broken sentences, and I think it suits the story. As suggested by a reviewer, this chapter delved deeper into Archer's thoughts, and I really enjoyed writing it. So the pieces are set in motion, and new people are coming into the picture. Hopefully the story will move quicker from now on. I hope you enjoyed it, and thanks very much for the wonderful reviews. I really appreciate them! I hope everyone is enjoying their summer as much as I am!