How is he here?
How?
It’s clear from Zach’s reaction that his father turning up is unexpected.I try to catch snippets of what Dex and Rio are saying, but it all points to a complete shock.
Nobody expected Paul Knight to be here, and now I feel so bad for Zach.His father turning up killed the mood.I’m trying not to panic and move further back into the crowd, not wanting to be seen.This is a nightmare I never saw coming, and now I can’t see how to get out of this.
Zach senses my unease and he watches me carefully, but he doesn’t know.Of course he doesn’t.To my utter horror, he steps towards me, his father by his side.Paul hasn’t seen me yet, and I frantically look to escape.
“Hey,” Zach says, softly.What’s wrong?His eyes ask.He lays a hand gently on my elbow.“Dad, there’s someone I’d like you to meet.”
Never have words instilled such dread into me.I can’t hide.I can’t vanish.I have no option but to confront the man who ruined my mom’s life.The laughter, the music, the clink of glasses, everything fades away.
His father steps forward and stares at me, smiling.“Who is this delightful creature?”
“You already know,” Zach says, cheerful enough, though a faint hesitation mars his tone.“This is Maya.You remember her?From the Knight Estate.”
“Maya?”His father turns my name over, like he’s not sure of what he’s seeing.But my body knows.Straight away, my pulse spikes so hard I feel giddy, and like I’m fifteen again; back in the servants’ corridor at the Knight Estate, with my mother’s tired face staring at me.
Paul Knight knows.
He remembers.
I catch it, the raw and unmistakable shock that flickers across his face.For a split second, his mask slips and his eyes narrow.
“Ah, yes,” he says, smoothly.“The housekeeper’s daughter.”
The monster wants to remind me of my station.“Delighted to meet you, after all this time.”
“Hi.”It’s all I can manage.I try to breathe, but I can’t.The air feels thin, like poison, and my chest tightens until I’m sure I’m going to gasp for air.Now I understand how my mom felt in the library with him.Trapped in a room alone with him with nowhere to run.
I need to leave.I need to get away.But I suddenly remember that we’re on a yacht.Surrounded by water.By people.And there’s nowhere to run.
His eyes are as cold as ever, ice-grey and reptilian.His face is smoother than I expected and even though his hair has been lightened by the years, he doesn’t look as old as I expected him to.
He hides his shock well.So charismatic.So smooth, but I see it as clearly as if my mother had slapped him all over again.A polite smile curves his mouth, even though his eyes stay cool and calculating.I would have missed it if I hadn’t been watching so closely, if my life hadn’t depended on reading exactly how he’d react.
Zach is still painfully oblivious to everything.It’s so clear to see, in the way he looks between his father and me.He doesn’t understand yet, but he knows something isn’t right.
“How did you meet again?”Paul asks.
“At Stella,” Zach says, slowly.
His father nods slowly, as if the puzzle pieces are clicking into place.
My skin crawls when Paul Knight looks at me like I’m a threat.I know his secret.I know what he did.Now I understand why he sent my mom away.Why she couldn’t get another job.Why we had to leave the state.
He didn’t want her talking.Didn’t want her making friends.Didn’t want her telling anyone who he really was.
I can’t speak.If I open my mouth, I’ll scream.Or cry.Or say something that will blow everything apart.
The rest of his brothers have moved away, but thankfully, Cari returns with someone beside her.One of the Italian Knights.Enzo, I think.Their expressions go from curiosity to concern as we stand around, the conversation dead.The air feels thick, like tar, and I’m still struggling to breathe.
“You should eat something, Father,” Enzo says, politely.“You must have had a long flight.”It’s awkward and stilted, but it works because Paul decides to go and get some food, with Enzo trailing him.
Zach reaches for my hand again and this time I let him take it.I can’t keep pulling away, especially not here, and not now.I don’t want to ruin his birthday.
“You don’t have to be nervous,” he murmurs, his lips brushing my ear.“He’s just my father.I’m sorry.I didn’t know he was going to be here.”
