Page 30 of The Quarterlands (Dark Water #4)

Chapter Nine

Josiah

As Josiah made his way home, he pondered whether he should tell Alex what he’d learned. On the one hand, he thought Alex deserved to know, but on the other, his mental state was still fragile, and with the trial looming, was it wise to let him know that Gideon was alive and had killed Elliot Dacre?

Gideon had told him in no uncertain terms that he didn’t want to see Alex before he died, and Josiah was pretty sure he knew why.

Gideon had a list of excuses and justifications for his actions, but he had to be worried they wouldn’t withstand Alex’s reactions to them.

Alex hadn’t been in love with Elliot, but he’d been fond of him; he’d be devastated to learn why he’d been killed.

On balance, he decided it was best not to tell Alex before the trial. He needed him alert and focused on Tyler, not upset about Gideon.

It was just after 7p.m. when he returned home, and his heart sank to see Charles’s duck in the driveway. Charles and Alex had been spending a lot of time together lately, which was fine, but Josiah didn’t enjoy Charles’s company.

“Hey,” he called when he entered.

“Hey.” Alex ran to greet him, looking excited, and pressed a kiss to his cheek. “Charles is going to stay over. He’s taking me out to some fancy restaurant on Ghost Eye tonight. It’ll be late after and easier for him to stay here. If that’s okay?” he added anxiously.

“Of course it’s okay,” Josiah said firmly. “I told you to treat my house as your home for as long as you’re here, and that includes inviting guests to stay over.”

“Cool. I said he can sleep on the sofa. I’m not sure he’d manage the stairs anyway. He struggles with his legs, but did you know that his upper body strength is still excellent? He’s talking about training again, maybe even competing.”

Josiah gazed at him steadily. “And how do you feel about that?”

“I suppose it’s fine if it makes him happy. I mean, it’s nothing to do with me.” Alex shrugged. “The spotlight will be on me for the next few months anyway. Nothing Charles does will make that any worse.”

That was certainly true. Josiah stepped into the living room to be greeted by Charles’s familiar, affable smile and good-natured, boyish charm.

He wasn’t sure why, but it always rubbed him up the wrong way, and tonight he was tired after a gruelling day and not in the mood to deal with it.

It was hard to actively hate Charles – he was far too bumbling and ineffectual for that – but Josiah found him irritating.

Charles was jabbering on excitedly about the fancy new restaurant on Ghost Eye. Josiah had vaguely heard of it. He was excited about showing it off to Alex and had arranged to meet a bunch of his friends there.

“My treat.” Charles beamed.

“I hope it’s not too expensive,” Alex said anxiously.

“I can give you the money if it is,” Josiah said.

He already gave Alex a monthly allowance because he wanted him to have as much freedom as possible to enjoy life.

Alex usually spent it on art supplies; the house was full of his sketches, to the point where it was difficult to find anywhere to sit at times.

Josiah liked it. He’d always complained about Peter leaving engine parts around the place, and this was a damn sight easier to live with, as hobbies went.

“No, I won’t hear of it. I want to pay,” Charles insisted.

Josiah remembered those bank statements Charles had shown him.

He wasn’t exactly rolling in money, but he’d been splashing the cash around on Alex a lot lately.

Perhaps it wasn’t surprising. He’d been reunited with his brother, who’d been through a hard time.

It was natural for Charles to want to treat him.

Yet, the investigator in him couldn’t help wondering if he was compensating for something – maybe for not saving the money to buy Alex’s contract, the way he’d promised, or… perhaps for something else?

“I’m going upstairs to get changed. I’ll be ready soon,” Alex said, disappearing into the hallway.

Josiah stared glumly at Charles. He hated making small talk and had nothing to say to this man. Charles flashed him that bright, sweet smile that had charmed the nation, and Josiah wasn’t sure why, but something inside him snapped.

“There’s something I’ve been meaning to ask you,” he said.

“Oh, hello!” Charles laughed. “That sounds serious.”

“When I last visited The Orchard, you said something that stuck with me. I almost missed it, but it came back into my head again recently, and I thought I’d ask you about it. It might be nothing, but…” He shrugged.

“Fire away.” Charles beamed at him.

“When I told you what had happened to Alex, you were understandably upset, and you said something that struck me as strange.”

“Did I? What on earth was it?”

“You said, ‘All this because he told one mistake.’ That seemed to me an odd choice of language.”

Charles gave an easy laugh. “Oh, lord! I was in such a state I knocked over a glass of water as well. I’m sorry. I don’t think I really knew what I was saying.”

“So, it didn’t mean anything?” Josiah gazed at him keenly. “Just… one tells a lie, one makes a mistake.”

Charles stared at him blankly. “I suppose so. I wasn’t thinking clearly. I have no idea what I said, but I’m surprised it was coherent at all, given the circumstances.”

Josiah gave a tight smile. “Understandable.”

“Honestly, Josiah, I was babbling. I can be an utter klutz at times. Ask Alex.” He gave a roar of laughter.

“Ask me what?” Alex appeared in the doorway, wearing a pair of black jeans and a vivid green shirt, with a dark purple jacket over the ensemble. He’d let his hair grow, so it hung in dark curls around his neck.

Josiah’s heart skipped a beat; he looked stunning, and, more importantly, he looked happy. “Nothing,” he said quickly. “Now, you two go and have a good night out. Any plans for tomorrow?”

“We’re going shopping,” Charles announced cheerfully. “Alex has something very particular he wants to buy.” He winked at Alex, who put a finger over his mouth and whispered a theatrical “shh!”

“It’s a surprise,” Alex informed Josiah, pressing a kiss to his cheek, and then they both left, still laughing and whispering.

The house seemed oddly lonely and empty without them. For the first time since Hattie’s death, Josiah wished he had someone to share it with. Living with Alex, loving Alex and not being able to have him… it was hard.

He sat on the sofa and gazed around the room.

Alex had turned a sad, shabby house into a home.

His eye for design meant that the place was now full of delightful cushions, lamps, throws, and other little touches that brightened it up without changing its character.

He found he liked it much better with Alex in it than he had before.

He thought for a moment that he could feel Hattie’s cold, wet nose snuffling in his hand, but when he looked down, there was nothing there. Leaning back with a sigh, he allowed his mind to wander over the events of the day. How he wished Peter was here to help him through the complexity of it all.

Gideon’s motive for killing Dacre – dragging not only Alex but also himself into his warped reasoning – still disturbed him.

Then there was that conversation with Charles.

He’d given no indication that he was lying.

In fact, his explanation was entirely reasonable.

So, why couldn’t he let it go? Was it because he didn’t like Charles?

Did he even envy Charles the time he was spending with Alex, while he worked his arse off on the case Alex had thrust upon him, upending his life in the process?

Yet, he’d been the one encouraging Alex to live his life; he’d wanted to give Alex that.

He sighed. This was doing him no good. Taking off his shoes, he padded into the kitchen.

He didn’t usually drink, but that Quarterlands brew earlier had reawakened his taste for it.

He made himself a black tea with a dash of whisky, rummaged around in the pantry for a box of his favourite chocolates, and returned to the sofa with both.

He gazed vacantly at the screen, finding it impossible to switch off.

If he closed his eyes, he could see Gideon’s yellow skin, remember his cultured voice speaking such appalling truths, hear his coquettish laugh.

He knew he should tell Esther, but he also knew he wouldn’t.

He’d made a deal with Gideon, and he couldn’t risk screwing it up. Alex’s future depended on it.

He turned to his holopad and made a private entry, visible to nobody unless he died.

Then Reed would no doubt be tasked with looking through all his files.

He wanted to make sure there was some record of Gideon’s crime somewhere, just in case.

As it stood, Neil would likely be blamed for Dacre’s murder, and as unpleasant as he’d been, it didn’t sit easy with Josiah that an innocent man should take the rap for such a crime.

He finished the entry and put the holopad to one side. He’d done enough work for one day.

“Have you discovered Alex’s secret?” He remembered the exact cadence of Gideon’s voice as he spoke. “You should – it’s important…”

Poor Alex. Befriended by Solange as part of an elaborate trap, filmed having sex for use as blackmail material, watched by Gideon to uncover his secrets at Belvedere.

Josiah had prided himself on giving Alex back his freedom, and now he found he couldn’t leave him be either.

Digging into his life, allowing no stone to remain unturned, leaving him with no secrets.

Not even this one. The one he’d clearly spent years hiding, so that nobody – not Solange, not Tyler, not even Gideon – came close.