Chapter Thirteen
Adam
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“WELCOME.”THE WOMANsitting in the middle of the panel eyed me as I strode inside and offered her my palm.Her accent conveyed a heritage of Asian descent, as did her dark, exotic countenance, although her English was excellent.“You must be Mr.Harper.”
“Yes, I’m Adam Harper.”
My gaze scanned the line of officials, trying to decipher their well-disguised expressions.They had been sent by the ICC to get some type of concession out of me, and while I was prepared to listen to their proposals, and potentially, to help, I wasn’t the kind of man who would roll over on their every request.
No doubt they knew that much about me already.Commander General Harper was preceded by quite the fierce reputation, whereas I knew nothing about the three strangers lined up behind the long table.
“Thank you for meeting with us.”She stood, grasping my palm and offering a firm handshake.“We have been sent by the International Criminal Court’s pretrial division to meet with you and gather evidence.I am Judge Akari, and these are my colleagues, Judges Meyer and Laurent.”She motioned to the man and woman sitting at either side of her, who both nodded to acknowledge their names.
“Thank you for coming all of this way.”I gestured to Caroline, who was still hovering behind me.“This is Miss Caroline Craness.I believe you are all informed about her and my relationship.”
Laurent glanced up from his paperwork.“So, this is the woman you rescued from the UK?”
His accent revealed precisely where he was from, and I relaxed at the thought.Thanks to Mum, French was one language I was acutely familiar with.
“Oui, c’est correct.”I smiled, taking a seat in front of them at the same time Caroline did.
“In English, please,” Akari corrected.“We are all from different countries, Mr.Harper, but the ICC asks that we come together and use a common tongue for the purposes of justice.”
“Of course.”Disgruntled at her chiding tone, I tried not to let the emotion show, focusing instead on the reason I was talking to them at all.Caroline.Yes, I wanted freedom, but my main driver for that liberty was the woman standing at my side.There was no point in freedom if she wasn’t going to share it with me.“Ensuring Caroline’s safety and wellbeing is my utmost priority.I assume it is yours, as well.”
All three judges shifted to take in the look of the woman I loved.
“It is,” Akari concurred as she settled on her seat.“That and the safety of as many other people as possible.”
“Indeed.”
Perhaps saving those people would help to equalize the scales of my past bad behavior.I could only hope.
For what it was worth, I was ready for redemption.
“And your health, Mr.Harper?”Akari peered over at Kaspar, who’d insisted on joining for the meeting.“Officer Kaspar’s accompanying notes said you were suffering from amnesia after your recent collapse.”
“My memory is returning little by little.”I bit back on my smile at the excellent human aide-memoire Caroline had been.Every time she touched me, I seemed to reclaim more of the lost time.“It shouldn’t impact on my ability to answer your questions, but if there are any gaps, I have Caroline here to help me.”
“And do you concur with what Mr.Harper has said, Miss Craness?”Meyer asked, her voice even more Germanic than Kaspar’s was.There were subtle differences between Swiss German and the language spoken in Germany, and while I recognized some, my grasp of the language wasn’t strong enough to honor them all.“That he has your welfare at heart, you think?”
“Definitely, Judge.”Caroline straightened, and I sensed how hard she was working not to look overly embarrassed at their attention.I wondered to what extent all those hours of my close attention had helped to prepare her for that moment.“Mr.Harper got me out of Britain, and he has been looking after me ever since.”Her gaze slid to mine.“Without him, I’d either already be dead, or I’d be staring down the barrel of that fate.”
