He acknowledges my commiseration with a feeble smile. “How are you holding up, otherwise?”
“I’m fine.”
“After what you went through last night? After what those men nearly…” He trails off, as if physically unable to utter the words.
“Really, I’m fine.”
“Margot, you escaped rape,” he manages this time. “Or worse.”
No thanks to you!The harshness of that thought gives me pause. Since the attack I’d refused to think about Peter in any other terms than “brave.” I still believe it required courage to act the way he did. But I’m glad Jonas was there.
Speaking of the devil—he tumbles into the kitchen and heads for the coffee machine. It’s going to be his first breakfast in our company.
“You must be traumatized,” Peter says to me. “The police will ask you to undergo a psychological test, I’m sure.”
“We haven’t even reported the mugging yet.”
“I did it online last night. The Met will be here in a few minutes to take our depositions.”
Ah, that explains our host’s unusual presence at breakfast.
Five minutes later, Mrs. Everly leads three bobbies into the chimney room. Peter, Jonas, and I join them there.
The cops start off by informing us that the wounded attacker will live. Jonas’s shoulders slacken with relief at that news. I’m pleased to hear it, too. Mostly, for Jonas. It’s a heavy burden to carry around—the knowledge that you killed a man—even if you did it to rescue a woman said man was planning to rape.Or worse.
The following hour consists of separate interviews filled with detailed questions and unpleasant recollections. At the end, the bobbies confess they’d never heard of a knife attack unfolding the way ours did.
After they leave, I feel compelled to thank Jonas again.
“You don’t need to,” he interrupts me.
“But I do! You chose to stay and fight when you had a chance to get out. You chose to risk your life to save mine.”
“It wasn’t a deliberate choice,” he says.
“What do you mean?”
There’s a roguish glint in his eyes when he replies, “Toxic masculinity made me do it.”
I try to keep a straight face for about a second, but then I burst out laughing.
Peter gives a humorless smile. “I’m off to the Sky Hall. See you there shortly!”
I check my watch.Only an hour left until showtime.An hour to get into character while Tami dresses me and coifs my hair and Sandra gives me a pep talk.
“We better go,” I say to Jonas.
As we walk the short distance to the Sky Hall, he gives me a sideways look. “This is your daily reminder that my offer to have you resettled in the attic still stands.”
“As do my objections.”
He frowns at that.
“Listen,” I say. “I slept like a log last night. If you made any noise, I didn’t hear it. Besides, I have foam earplugs! Turns out Liam has a pile of them in his room. That guy is a planning genius! Anyway, I’m all set now.”
His reply to my outpouring is a few words muttered under his breath. I can’t be certain, but they sounded like,Good for you, but how does that help me?
* * *
