Chapter 41

Sophie

EIGHTEEN MONTHS AGO

"Sophie, what is this?"

Marcus leaned against the doorway, beer in hand, looking at the disaster that was his living room floor. Boxes piled upon boxes, bags toppling over other bags. Sophie chewed her lip as she looked around the mess.

"Oh, just a few knickknacks," she said. "Nothing crazy."

"Really?" He asked. "Because I think I can see the two hundred pound Christmas tree I said was crazy, behind the box of giant nutcrackers I said were tacky."

Sophie followed his gaze, feeling nerves bubbling in the pit of her stomach.

Okay, so Marcus had told her they were on a tight budget, and there was probably a purchase or two she didn't need, but she had a vision in mind for Christmas day and she couldn't resist.

"Is money really that important, Marcus?" She asked. "Or would you prefer to make memories with me?"

"Memories, every time," he said without hesitation. "But we don't need a two-hundred-pound tree to make memories."

"So it is about the money," she said, folding her arms.

"Sweetheart," Marcus said in a tone that was far too patient. "I know you want the perfect Christmas, but we have to live within our means, too."

"But—"

"No buts." His tone was firm, leaving no room for argument. Sophie bit the inside of her lip to stop herself from arguing. "Look, love, there's no point having all this fancy stuff if we don't have a house to keep it in. "

"But I hate that we even have to think about that," Sophie said with a pout. "I hate that we're keeping track of every penny to make sure we can pay rent on a shitty flat that we hate."

"I know. But one day—"

"One day, what, Marcus? You keep saying that. One day, one day, blah, blah, blah. One day you might be fucking useful and actually provide for us."

Silence fell between them as Sophie's cheeks flushed. She couldn't believe she'd said that out loud. Of course, she wasn't wrong. Marcus was so focused on his stupid drama class tour, that he didn't bother to look at the normal jobs that might bring in some money!

It didn't help that her new boss brought his wife to work. Erin, or Erica, or something. Dressed head to toe in designer brands, Sophie had gone on a jealous fuelled shopping spree.

She bet Erica didn't have to budget for a Christmas tree.

Oh, but he looked so crushed. Like she had genuinely hurt him with her words. It would serve him right, though. Maybe it was the kick up the ass he needed to finally get a real fucking job.

"I don't understand how you can be so cruel when I ask for nothing from you," Marcus said, his voice void of emotion. "All the money you earn is yours to keep. You don't pay rent, you don't buy groceries. I ask for nothing."

"But I wouldn't need a job if you had a better income. You've forced me to work."

"I've forced you?" Marcus frowned and sighed heavily. Scoffing slightly, he turned away from her, heading back out the door. He looked over his shoulder, speaking quietly. "It really fucking sucks that you're already labelling me a failure and I haven't even had time to fail yet."

"No, what sucks, Marcus, is you thinking that living payday to payday is acceptable." She turned back to her shopping and shrugged. "I have standards, and you're not meeting them. And only you can fix that, Marcus.

"So, what's it going to be?"

PRESENT DAY

"We're here with Lord Provost, Angus MacFarlane and owner of popular tourist attraction Phantom Footsteps , Marcus Crowe."

Sophie looked up from her magazine, positive she heard wrong. Glancing at the TV, her eyes widened to see Marcus and Erica on her screen.

What the fuck?

Abandoning the magazine altogether, she grabbed the TV remote, turning the volume up as she leaned forward in her chair.

"...senseless act of vandalism," Angus said, shaking his head gravely. "Marcus' walking tour is one of our most popular tourist attractions and I won't stand for someone trying to destroy that."

As the old man waffled on, the camera panned to the battered garage door, painted with Marcus' logo. Since when did he have a garage? The last time she bothered to pay attention to his business, he was stressing over which microphone would best amplify his voice.

Why did he need a garage?

"... the tour bus was my partner's idea, and we've only had it a month or so," Marcus said, shrugging his shoulders.

Tour bus? Business must be booming. Well, good for him. About time too.

Frowning, Sophie drowned out whatever was being said, running a critical eye over Marcus. Or at least, what she could see of him. Reluctantly, she had to admit he looked good. Too good, in fact. It wasn't just a physical thing either, (although, had he been working out?!) but even the way he stood and held himself was different. He looked more confident, more… at peace.

She wrinkled her nose at the thought. Wasn't he supposed to be devastated over losing her?

Still, he was looking better than ever, and despite whatever happened to his tour bus, his business had become quite a little money maker. Who would have thought it? It seemed their marriage ending was the best thing that could have happened to him. But that couldn't be true, could it?

"Sophie, what is this?"

Shaking the thought from her head, and muting the tv, she forced herself to focus on Alex as he walked into the room.

"One hundred and fifty-three pounds at Harrods? What the fuck are you buying from Harrods?" Sophie's stomach dropped as she realised Alex was holding the bank statement. He'd given her free rein on his card months ago and he had never brought up her purchases.

Why now?

She couldn't tell him she'd spent a small fortune on their baby. That would completely ruin the surprise! It took everything she had not to drop her hand to her stomach and cradle her growing child. She still couldn't believe there was life growing inside her, or that she had kept the news to herself. It was quite nice having a secret all her own, but she couldn't wait to tell Alex.

Maybe then he wouldn't look quite so angry at her purchases.

"Eighty-six pounds at Mama's and Papa's? Who do we know who is having a baby, and why do we like them eighty-six pounds worth?"

"I didn't realise we were counting pennies," she said, desperate to move his thoughts away from that particular store. Although she couldn't wait to show him the beautiful luxury bedding set she'd bought for the baby.

"I just don't understand—"

"Did you see Marcus and Erica on the TV?" She said, interrupting him.

"What?" He frowned, glancing at the screen. "What the… Turn it up, babe."

Dropping the bank statement onto the coffee table, Alex took a seat next to her. Relieved she had distracted him, she turned the volume up, turning her attention to the screen .

"We can't thank Mr MacFarlane enough," Erica said, smiling at the camera. God, she was annoyingly beautiful. Even with her cheeks bright red from the cold, she was fucking stunning. Sophie rolled her eyes and stole a glance at Alex.

On the plus side, he didn't look at her with longing eyes. But damn, did he look angry.

"… we've gifted a brand new tour bus, along with the funding to replace all their stolen goods…"

"Mother fucker," Alex muttered beside her. "Son of a bitch!"

"And if anyone has any information, we're offering a monetary reward…"

"You have got to be fucking kidding me!" Sophie jumped as Alex thumped the sofa between them, a dark look coming over his face.

"What ha—"

"Shush a minute."

"... And if we all rally together as a community, this beautiful young couple can continue to provide us with spooky entertainment for many years to come…"

"God, how nauseating," Sophie said, rolling her eyes as the camera focused on Marcus and Erica and the look of pure adoration they shared. Had Marcus ever looked at her like that?

Somehow, shockingly, she doubted it.

"Turn it off," Alex said quietly as the camera panned back to the newscaster. If she thought he was angry earlier, he was fucking livid now. She switched the TV off, biting her lip and staying silent.

What could she say?

She didn't even know what exactly he was angry about. Better to stay quiet and figure out how she was feeling. Marcus had clearly moved on from her. What was it the old man had said? The beautiful young couple?

That was as official as it was going to get.

And, gosh, they were beautiful.

Sophie felt a pang in her chest that she couldn't quite explain. But seeing Marcus and Erica on screen, and how perfect they looked together, left her with some confusing feelings she didn't want to explore.

"It was me," Alex muttered, interrupting her thoughts.

"What—"

"Their fucking bus. I stole it."

What. The. Fuck?!

"Or at least I hired someone to steal it," he said. Standing, he walked to their drinks trolly, pouring himself a double whiskey. "That's why I was looking at the bank statements. Because the bank flagged some unusual spending."

"I… Okay…"

"I don't know what I was thinking, I just wanted to get back at that bastard after he blackmailed me—"

"Marcus is blackmailing you? Why?"

"I- No, I mean, it's not a—"

"Alex," she said firmly, interrupting his stuttering. It wasn't a tone he was used to hearing from her, and the shock was enough to make him pay attention. "Why is Marcus blackmailing you?"

Alex sighed, knocking back his drink. "Remember around six months ago, when the London group started demanding meetings all the fucking time?"

"Yeah, we even joked that they were trying to catch us out."

"They were trying to catch us out," he said with another sigh. "Marcus got in touch with them before he even sent that letter to Erica."

"Shit."

"Yeah, exactly." Taking his seat next to her, he offered her his glass, which she took automatically. Hopefully, he'd be too preoccupied to notice she wasn't drinking from it. "Anyway, he's still holding it over me, I guess. He clearly hasn't got over me stealing you."

"I don't know. He seemed pretty cosy with Erica on the screen. I don't think I'm even on his radar anymore."

"Maybe it's a pride thing then," Alex said, curling his lip. "He has no other reason to come for me, does he?"

"Guess not… "

"Anyway, I stole the fucking bus to give him something else to focus on. A childish attempt at revenge." He leaned forward, resting his head in his hands. "Who knew he had the fuckin' Lord Provost in his corner?"

"I did," she said after a moment's hesitation. "He set up a meeting with him years ago, and some other important people in the city. We had dinner with him every couple of months after that."

Alex groaned, turning to look at her. "And you didn't think to tell me this?"

"Well, no," she replied with a shrug. "I didn't know you were going to steal his fucking bus, and it didn't seem important."

"Do you know how powerful Angus MacFarlane is, Sophie? If you had connections with him, why did you never mention it?"

"Because he never really warmed to me," she said, handing him back his drink which he promptly finished. She took his glass to pour him another. "I didn't think he'd be too interested in me once I cheated on Marcus, so it didn't seem important."

Alex groaned, falling silent. Sophie focused on pouring his drink, her mind racing.

"I really wish you'd told me," he said after a moment, his voice barely above a whisper. "I've really fucked up, Soph."

"Not really," she replied. "I mean, you're not the one on camera, are you? And I'm sure you've covered your tracks well."

"I have," he agreed. "Or at least I think so."

Sophie sat in his lap, moving her arm around his shoulders. "I'm sure you have," she said, kissing his temple. "You're an incredibly intelligent man. And if, somehow, you find yourself on the firing squad, you know I have your back. I'm not above lying to cover for you."

"You're fucking sexy when you speak like that," Alex said, squeezing her butt. "Thank you, Sophie."

"Always," she assured him. "And don't worry about Marcus. We'll get our revenge. Now I know about this blackmail, I can help you hit him where it really hurts."