“I need you to be strong,” Emilian speaks up now. “Not just for yourself but… for my daughter, too.”
I glare at him and he sighs, rubbing his temples before speaking up again.
“Dexter, what happened was an unmistakable tragedy. I know you will need years to return to normal. But you need to stay strong. You need to be the man your parents raised you to be. And Lily Anna… I am still willing to go through with the marriage we’ve arranged between the two of you. But you need to pick yourself up a little, along with her. I can’t allow my daughter to waste away because of you. Do you understand?”
My lips form a thin line as I regard the handsome older man before me.
Yeah, I do understand. Lily Anna doesn’t deserve to suffer. I should try harder because of her.
I end up giving Emilian a curt nod, and he smiles at me in relief.
“I think it’s time you went home,” he says gently, touching my shoulder. “Your butler, Anders, is waiting for you downstairs in the car. He will help you get your bearings and recover from what happened. I’ll get your things. Will you come with me?”
After a moment’s hesitation, I find myself nodding again.
Maybe Oakes is right.
Maybe it is time to go back home.
We walk downstairs together. Every member of the hospital staff we meet on the way avert their eyes from mine. Good. I don’t feel like looking at any-fucking-one.
Outside, a black limo is waiting with the driver in the front seat, and Anders leaning against the car. He moves toward me the moment he sees me, but stops in his tracks a moment later, as if he’s unsure how he’s supposed to treat me after everything that’s happened.
“I’m so sorry,” he finally speaks up, and I can tell from his tone he really is.
He was a close friend of my father, a decade-long confidant. I know this has hit him hard, too.
I nod at Anders and he helps me get in the car. Oakes waves me goodbye, and moments later, we’re driving back to my home, though I don’t know if I’ll ever feel at home there again.
Anders is quiet for most of the journey, watching the landscape change through the window. Finally, he turns toward me with a heavy expression on his weather-beaten face.
“Master Booth, there’s something we must discuss,” he speaks up in a grave tone.
“What is it?” I ask, staring at him, emotionless.
Whatever he’s about to say – and I have a feeling it won’t be happy news – won’t hurt me as much as everything else already has. My heart is numb. Nothing can cut through the pain I feel already.
“It’s about Emilian Oakes,” Anders says, fidgeting with the cufflinks of his shirt.
“What about him?”
“I… I found out something,” he speaks up, looking into my eyes gravely. “I wanted to tell you – it might not be my place, but I would not forgive myself if I didn’t speak up… I was close with your father, Master Booth. I need you to know I’m telling you the truth.”
“What is it?” I demand, my heart starting to hammer in my chest.
“Master Booth, I…” Anders glances around nervously, though the driver can’t hear us as the glass partition is up. “I have reason to believe the fire wasn’t an accident.”
“What do you mean?” I demand. “A police officer came to see me a few days ago. He said there were ca
ndles burning in my mother’s atelier… he said that’s what set the fire.”
“I know,” Anders mutters. “I… I believe he was bribed to say that.”
“What?” I bark, narrowing my eyes at him. “What makes you say that?”
“I have a connection in the police force, too, and he tipped me off,” Anders admits.
“Who could set the fire?” I question his words. “The only people who were there were Lily Anna and me.”