“It’s for you,” he said and walked off, back into his room
Confused, I went to the door and looked out.
Louisa was standing there, looking angry. I’d never seen her look so fucking angry before, and for half a second it turned me on. I wondered what could possibly piss her off so much, and what she would be like to fuck while she was in such a state.
Smile on my face, I pulled open the door. “Good evening, Louisa,” I said.
“Inside.” She pushed in past me without so much as a greeting.
Frowning, I closed the door behind her and followed her in.
“Drink?” I asked, pouring myself one.
She whirled on me. “Fuck you, Wyatt.”
That was confusing. “Well okay, if you insist.”
“You asshole. Was this a setup the whole time?”
“Now you’ve lost me.” I sipped my drink and took a closer look at her.
She was clearly exhausted and sweaty. I knew that the attack on the ship was tonight, but as far as I knew, she was safe back in her house the whole time. Instead, she was wearing a combat outfit, and I was pretty sure she had blood splattered on her pants.
“The ship was a decoy,” she said. “It was a fucking trap.”
“What?” I nearly dropped my glass.
“It was a trap,” she repeated. “Do you now how many people we lost tonight?”
“No,” I said softly.
“Too many.”
“Is that your blood?”
She glanced down at herself. “No, it’s not.”
“Louisa.” I stepped toward her.
She recoiled from me. “Don’t come near me, you bastard.”
“Do you think I had something to do with this?”
“You’ve been working with my father for a long time, Wyatt. He’s given you a lot of money. I trusted you, but this? It’s too convenient.”
“I had nothing to do with this,” I said simple. “I’m not working for Arturo. Everything I’ve told you is true.”
“Bullshit. How could he set this trap up? You’re the only person that told us about this.”
“Louisa, listen to yourself. Why would I risk all that I’ve risked just to send you to some stupid trap that didn’t even catch you?”
“Because you’re a stupid, petty man only interested in himself.”
I clenched my jaw. “You’re going too far.”
“Too far? I lost lives tonight, Wyatt.”
“Arturo lied to me. How he knew that I was working with you, I have no idea. But he must have figured it out, because I had nothing to do with this trap.”
She stepped toward me, anger still in her eyes. “Everything you’ve told me to do has been wrong. Everything. The men, the money, the guns, it was all wrong. We were better off before you showed up.”
I knocked back my drink then put it down on the table. “You’re wrong,” I said. “You had no chance of beating your father without me. I got you manpower, I got you money, I got you guns, and I gave you a good plan. I couldn’t have foreseen this, but you’re not beaten yet.”
“No, we’re not. But we’re not going to have anything to do with you.”
I stared at her, shocked and angry.
I couldn’t believe she was accusing me of this. It was absurd and fucking insane that she would think I had anything to do with setting her up. Arturo must have known that I was working with the Spiders somehow, or maybe the ship was always meant to be a trap for them. Maybe I was just one bait among many.
Either way, I risked myself for them. I exposed myself to Arturo. He knows that I’m a spy now, and I’m going to have to run. I can’t stand up against the whole mafia on my own, even as an elected official.
And clearly Louisa wasn’t going to help me now, either. I was betrayed by Arturo and I was betrayed by Louisa, all because of a misunderstanding.
She didn’t even want me to explain. I could see it in her eyes. She wasn’t going to listen no matter what I said. As far as she was concerned, I was the enemy, and that was the end of it.
“Okay Louisa,” I said to her. “If that’s all you have to say, then please leave.”
That seemed to surprise her. She shook her head after a second. “Of course. That’s enough of an admission for me,”
“Don’t misunderstand,” I said forcefully. “I had nothing to do with Arturo. But now he knows I was working with you, and I need to get the fuck out of town before he kills me.”
“I don’t believe you.”
“I know. But do me a favor and leave so that I can save myself, since you’ve decided to betray me.”
She opened her mouth to speak then thought better of it. “Okay Wyatt,” she said, calmer than before. “Good luck to you.”