Chapter 5 - SHADOWS OF THE PAST
Nathaniel stood up and motioned for Emma to take a seat by the roaring stone fireplace.
“Are you injured?” Emma asked,
her sharp eyes noticing a subtle stiffness in his left shoulder.
“Nothing a glass of scotch and a quiet evening couldn't fix,
” Nathaniel replied smoothly,
walking over to a mahogany liquor cabinet.
“The men who tried to disrupt my business tonight have already been dealt with.
”
“Dealt with how?” Emma asked,
a tremor of apprehension in her voice.
“Let’s just say Victor has retired from the shipping industry permanently,
” Nathaniel answered,
his tone flat and emotionless.
Emma shuddered slightly,
reminded once again that she was sitting across from a ruthless crime lord.
“Why did you bring us here,
Mr.
Caldwell?” Emma asked,
looking directly into his piercing gray eyes.
“Because your apartment in South Boston is no longer safe,
” Nathaniel said without hesitation.
“Victor’s associates know you sat at my table tonight,
Emma.
”
Emma gasped,
her maternal terror flaring into sudden anger.
“You put us in danger just by letting us talk to you,
” Emma accused,
standing up from the sofa.
“You made my daughter a target because of your petty underworld wars.
”
Nathaniel did not flinch under her attack.
He set his glass down on the mantelpiece and walked toward her with slow,
deliberate steps.
“You are entirely right,
” Nathaniel said softly,
his voice disarmingly honest.
“I endangered you both simply by existing in your orbit.
“That is why you are here behind reinforced steel and armed guards.
“Because nobody touches anyone who showed kindness to Nathaniel Caldwell on his birthday.
”
Emma stared at him,
struck by the absolute ferocity hidden beneath his calm exterior.
“I don't need your protection,
Mr.
Caldwell,
” Emma said stubbornly,
though her voice lacked conviction.
“I have survived on my own for six years since my husband walked out.
”
Nathaniel stopped just inches away from her,
his tall frame shielding her from the draft of the grand room.
“Survival is not living,
Emma,
” Nathaniel whispered,
his gaze softening as he looked down at her.
“And tonight,
for the first time in ten years,
May you like
I felt like a human being instead of a monster.
”
