Kiss me if you dare [ENGLISH]

Chapter 8

Charmey

She was quick to wipe the bloody knife and wring out the rag over the sink. The floor was spotlessly clean - a vast difference from how it looked a quarter of an hour ago. Charmey wished she had received a warning about the uncle's violence before she entered the house. It had been tough to manage to get the heavy body on the floor, especially since he was also carrying dangerous tools. Not that the screwdriver had caused as much damage as her knife, but it had left a massive bruise on her inner thigh.

She tied a tight knot on the black plastic bag and then ran an exhausted hand across her forehead. Her signature that covered the yellow wallpaper had dried and wouldn't come off with ordinary water and soap. The real estate agents would have a tough time trying to sell the run-down cottage.

Perhaps she could bury the bag in the garden next to the sunflowers and the place where his dead dog was buried. The client who had called this morning hadn't put much thought into where she should hide him, and Charmey didn't like coming up with on-the-spot solutions. Of course, she could leave the body where it lay in the old kitchen. After all, the wall was already painted in red, and when the police arrived, they would understand what had happened, even without any fleshly evidence.

In the calm of silence, she felt her phone vibrate nearby and realized she had left it in the bathroom - a sloppily done act. Charmey was never sloppy.

She got up and dragged herself into the hallway where the bathroom was located. The ceiling lamp was on, casting a mint-green glow on the tiled walls. Painful memories from childhood flickered through her field of vision and disrupted her balance without warning, causing her to grab onto the sink to stay upright. When she then looked into the round mirror above, she met her reflection for the first time in a long while. In the ice-blue irises, she no longer saw herself but a child - pale and gaunt. Before she knew it, her fingers had gripped the porcelain edge so tightly that her knuckles bled, and the screams that echoed in her head triggered a reaction. Her arm swept across the sink, knocking over toothpaste tubes, soap bottles, and a dirty glass of water in the process, leaving Charmey breathing heavily and devoid of the strange emotions that had been present just moments ago.

The mobile phone was still vibrating, and she glanced down at the screen out of curiosity. The name that popped up distracted her for a moment and fortunately got her thinking about something else.

"Yes?"

"Hello, I just wanted to let you know that I've found his address. When can we meet?"

Charmey smiled and ran her bloody hand through her hair. It occurred to her that she would have to clean up the shards of glass on the floor and thoroughly search for fingerprints and other evidence that could, hypothetically, incriminate her.

"Have you?" She tried to sound surprised but had expected the call sooner or later and was not at all taken aback.

"I guess you were right when you mentioned that he must have saved a copy. I have all the information documented about the case in front of me."

Charmey let out a sigh of relief. "What luck! You should know that I'm incredibly grateful that you took the time. James deserves nothing less than justice."

She fell silent, and Charmey didn't hear a sound for a while, almost convinced that she had hung up.

"Yes, he does," she finally replied.

"I'm quite busy right now, but what do you say about coming over tonight around half-past seven?"

"That won't work, I'm afraid. A friend invited me to dinner. Now that I think about it, you might know him since you were involved in the same investigation. His name is Gabriel."

A pang shot through her body. If Fleur still chose to prioritize trivial, unimportant matters like family relationships over finding Urban, it would require more trust. Moreover, Gabriel's presence could raise suspicions or, in the worst case, expose her smokescreen. But Charmey would get what she wanted. She always did, one way or another.

"Oh yes, Gabriel. I haven't talked to him much, but he is very well-liked by many."

"I'm sure he is."

Charmey found an octagonal piece of glass and angled it toward the light so that the beam hit her directly in the eye. "How do you know each other?"

Another delay. "He had good contact with my dad."

Even worse. If anything went wrong, Charmey would have to kill him, and that could have enormous consequences. Furthermore, she needed to adapt to the tight deadline Urban had given her. Otherwise, she would face more threats, and it typically took weeks to plan a feasible escape with an unknown identity.

"I understand. Our meeting can wait. Are you possibly free tomorrow night?"

"Yes, I think so."

"Excellent. You can come to me then."

"Sounds good."

The subsequent beeping sounds indicated that Fleur had hung up, leaving Charmey alone in the uncomfortable room. How could anyone even think of choosing such a dreadful color? She didn't understand it as a child, and she didn't understand it now. Adults tended to believe that colors were the solution to all the problems children struggled with. What a mistake.

When she finally left the bathroom, she caught sight of the black bag again, reminding her once more that she needed to dispose of the body.

The garden was perfect.

***

Charmey had once lived in a brick house - never again. Everything associated with the past was off-limits, and she preferred to stay away. However, she couldn't help but be fascinated by the endlessly long row of brick houses lining the street. It seemed to go on forever.

The moon was at its peak, and the night was creeping in even though it was only eight o'clock. A bark sounded somewhere nearby, and apart from the encroaching winter chill, it was dead calm. Charmey was hidden as she stood behind the shrubbery, and the dark coat blended perfectly with the surroundings. Although the spiky branches were a problem, she still had a clear view of the courtyard and the elongated kitchen window.

She didn't understand why she was here. There were more rewarding ways to spend a Thursday evening, but for some reason, she couldn't shake the thought of Fleur rejecting her offer. And for what? A simple dinner invitation with Europe's most uninteresting couple?

Charmey was easily bored, but the three figures she sensed in the kitchen window's yellow glow hadn't moved from their spots for over an hour. The dining table was beautifully set, but with such hideous porcelain plates that she understood no one had a sense of style. The scent of the cooked chicken wafted through the air, and she noticed that the woman sitting next to Fleur wasn't spending much time participating in the conversation. If she read her clenched facial expressions correctly, she probably hoped the dinner would be over as soon as possible. On the other hand, Gabriel was maintaining good manners as he gestured with his arms in all directions and never stopped talking. She also noted that Fleur occasionally smiled, even though her emotional state wasn't at its best. Something tugged at Charmey as she observed the laughter and loving looks, but she pushed aside the unwanted longing.

No, killing Gabriel might cause more harm than good given their close relationship. Exposing Fleur to more unfortunate deaths could jeopardize the entire plan. However, she needed to figure out what to do if he got on her trail. The risk of being discovered was high, but on the other hand, she enjoyed challenges as long as she could somehow guarantee her safety - which she often did. Nine years of experience in the profession had brought benefits that manifested not only in money but also in skill.

Her phone beeped in her pocket, and she took her eyes off Fleur for a moment. She wasn't exactly surprised when she saw that the message was from Urban.

》25 days left. Tick tock, tick tock...《