The Bodyguard

Chapter 32

  "What's going on here?!"

 "Adam?" I jump up from the couch and Jamie does the same. 

 "Why is this place so damn cold?" That's all he cares about?! Wait... does that mean he didn't see us? If Adam didn't see us, that's a relief. I don't want to give him any ideas and if he finds out I've made him a cheater... 

 "The heater is broken, sir." 

 "Then why the hell aren't you fixing it?"

 "The closest heating company is 50 miles out, and they won't be able to get here until tomorrow." 

 Adam rolls his eyes and tosses his briefcase on the kitchen table. He only notices I'm there by nodding in my direction. Smug bastard. 

Jamie and I look at each other, and it's clear neither one of us has an idea why Adam is here. "Do you have any updates on who's threatening her?" 

 Adam shakes his head. "The police are basically useless." 

 "So, I'm still in danger?" I ask, raising my eyebrows. 

 "Well, maybe not as much as before, now that you've been declared successfully dead." 

 Should I ask him why this happened? "Yes, let's talk about that, shall we? Why the FUCK was I declared dead Adam?!" 

 "Nobody goes looking for dead people. Isn't it clear to you?" 

 "So it was YOUR idea?!"

 "No, of course not babe!" I could tell Jamie hated the way he called me babe. "The cops wanted to fake your death. It took a week or so, but they found a person with no ID and no friends or family so they used her to stage your death. They slid your ring on her finger, planted her in our street and lit it on fire." 

 I shiver and step back, bumping into Jamie. I'd almost forgotten he was there until his arms gripped my shoulders to steady me. "But that's..." 

 "Don't look so shocked. It worked, right? I haven't had a single threat in 2 weeks." 

 I can't help but feel angry yet hopeful at his words. "Does this mean I can go home?" 

 Adam's eyes harden as he looks at me. "No. Not until after the election." 

 "What? Why so long? Are you seriously going to let people think I'm dead for 2 more weeks?!"

 He shrugged. "Yes." 

 "Can't you at least tell Hannah and my family that I'm ALIVE?!" 

 "Why the fuck would I do that for you?" 

 "Are you serious?" I clenched my fists but Jamie grabbed my wrists behind my back without Adam noticing. "They think I'm dead, you bastard! They're probably devastated! They..." 

"Enough! Don't pull that sympathy shit with me, Charlotte. Your family wants nothing to do with you, or have you forgotten that too?" Tears slid down my face, shocked at the words he's saying right now. "They hate you, and you hate them." 

 I couldn't make eye contact with him any longer so I turned around and buried my face into Jamie's chest. He looked Adam square in the eyes and scowled. "What the fuck is wrong with you?" 

 He laughed. "They couldn't care less if she lives or dies."

 "No. YOU couldn't care less because ALL you care about is your arrogant self." 

 "Excuse me?" 

 "You heard me."

 "I'm the only one who loves her. I'm the only one who cares. You don't even care about her or like her." 

 "I got some news for you, Adam. I don't like her. I FUCKING love her." 

 Oh my god, he just said he loves me! He immediately kept his mouth shut once he realized what he said. "Like you'd give her the world."

 "I'm not a smug dog bastard like you. I'd be 100% committed to her, so fuck you." 

 "I came because I was worried about you, Charlotte. I wanted to explain why I did what I did. I..." 

 I turned around and scowled at him. "Save it. I don't want to hear your shit." 

 "I'm only concerned for your saf..."

 "No. Jamie cares about me more than you EVER have. He's been watching the area this whole time and he never found anything suspicious."

 "I learned long ago if you want to get something done right, you do it yourself." 

 "Leave him out of this. He protected me more than you EVER did!" 

 "Anyways, I wanted you to move back again in 2 days." 

 "Like HELL I will!" 

 He scowled and walked up to me with a scowl on his face. "You're coming whether you like it or not." 

 "NO!"  He slapped me across the face as hard as he could. I turned to Jamie with pure shock. "When did you decide this?" I asked, scowling.

 "We spoke about it before we left to come here. It's smart to keep you moving. Staying in one place is too dangerous."

 "Exactly. You get comfortable and start to slip up." 

 Scowling, I slipped out of Jamie's grasp and went outside, slamming the door behind me. "Charlotte! Get back here!" Ignoring both of them, I took the path through the woods to go into town.