Charlotte After Dark

Chapter 47: Things Just Got Complicated

                  

Author's Note: I am so, so sorry for the long break between updates. I had a lot of writer's block with this chapter (as you can see with all the breaks) but I hope you enjoy it. Since a couple people said they had forgotten what led up to this chapter....

Previously on Charlotte After Dark... In an attempt to satisfy Luca's desire for Charlotte to at least seem like she wants to be a part of the family, she asks Joaquin for dancing lessons after being impressed by his skill when he saved her from Valentina's wrath. Against his better judgment, Joaquin agrees to teach her even after she tries to pry into his past and the picture of the mysterious girl on his mantle piece. After he convinces her to think about the life she left behind, Charlotte tries to call home but hangs up as soon as she hears her sister's voice.

At their first lesson Charlotte unsuccessfully attempts to garner more information about Joaquin's past. After an uneventful lesson cut short by Luca's demand to see Joaquin about a surveillance video, Charlotte encounters Malcolm Darrow and lies to him about coming to the empty parlor to read. Luca reprimands Charlotte for being in the west wing of the house and warns her about the consequences of being deceptive in his house. Luca seems more tense than usual.

Charlotte meets Cormac in the park of Lycaon's Corner where he informs her that Audra has gone missing after attending dinner at Luca's house. Charlotte tells Cormac about Audra's warning and they discuss their relationship. They rekindle their relationship, even if there is a possibility it may only be temporary. Cormac leaves Charlotte with a warning: you are being watched...

And now, on Charlotte After Dark....

A deep thirst woke me in the middle of the day with such force that I soon found myself walking down the stairs to the lower portion of the house. I hoped, and prayed, that Valentina wouldn't find herself afflicted with the same thirst, as I was walking the halls in my pajamas--something that was expressly forbidden by her.

I heard muffled voices coming from Luca's study as I passed the large wooden doors on my journey to the kitchen. One door was ajar, spilling a faint amount of light into the otherwise dark hallway around me. Luca was speaking, the anger ever-apparent in his voice, but I felt something else as he spoke. Apprehension, maybe. Concern? It couldn't have been, because Luca didn't have a concerned bone in his entire body. A small sliver of light emitted into the dark hallway from the slightly askew door.

"I'm telling you, Luca, there is nothing on the videos," I heard Joaquin say. His voice sounded tired, like he had been woken from a deep sleep, or hadn't even had the chance to sleep yet. He lacked his characteristic sarcastic tone, perhaps only because he was talking to Luca.

"Then how the hell do you explain these pictures of her?" Luca said as he slammed something on the desk.

"What did the note say?" Joaquin asked.

"Read for yourself," Luca said, his temper coming clear through his voice. He wasn't even directing his ire at me, and it still sent chills up and down my spine from behind the door. I heard the tumble of paper as he must have thrown them across the desk at Joaquin.

After a few moments of silence, Joaquin let out an embittered sigh before he spoke. "We will tighten up the grounds, hire more men--"

"I don't care what you do, just do it. Whatever security you have on her now, I want it doubled. She does get out of bed without someone knowing," Luca interrupted.

"I'm just going to warn you that she is not going to take that lightly," Joaquin offered.

"She doesn't have a choice, and I would appreciate it if you stopped giving her the idea that she does," Luca said.