The Vindication Gents

Chapter 3.19

Kiara Hoffman’s POV

Well, last night was…unexpected. I was happy beyond reason as I was curling up to Charles’ hard chest as our naked bodies were entangled between the sheets. I was playing with his chest this morning when we got the message from the boss.

‘You need to check St. Peter’s Basilica. We have information that Chris Virtanen was seen there,’ Boss said in the text as we got out of our love nest and went out of the room.

But of course, before we were out of the house, we had to have breakfast with Tony and Christina. I think Christina was beyond happy this morning.

“So, anything sitting you want to share with me?” She whispered to me as we were sitting farther away from the guys. Charles and Tony were discussing something, as I can tell that Charles was relaxed and calm. I smiled at his posture.

“Hmm, that’s an interesting smile that you plastered on your face, Kiara. Care to share?” She asked while wiggling her eyebrows at me. I rolled my eyes at her as I sipped the tea. It was delicious, by the way.

“Nothing that you should concern yourself with, Christina. Moreover, I would love to know from you. Any bambino or bambina that will be arriving soon?” I asked before her face was blushing at my question.

Finally, a weakness against her persistence to know about my love life.

“What are you saying, Kiara? Of course, I have not been discussing it with Tony yet. It’s hardly 2 months since we were married,” she said before she slapped me playfully on the arm. I laughed at her before I made eye contact with Charles. He nodded, a sign that we needed to go to do our thing.

“I think we have to take our leave now,” Charles said to Tony as he arched his eyebrows at us both when he put the teacup down.

“But it’s Sunday,” he retorted before Charles whispered to him. I don’t know what he was whispering about, but I think with Tony’s expression, Charles must be telling something embarrassing to him.

The nerve of the guy!

“Well, I cannot hold you captive then. Christina,” Tony said as he was smirking at me. I narrowed my eyes at him before Charles took my hand and we were out of the mansion and we were standing in front of a sleek black Lamborghini.

“Is this Tony’s car?” I asked as Charles unlocked the car and opened the passenger’s seat for me to get in.

“Yeah, he generously gave me to take you out for a walk,” he said as he was smirking at me. I narrowed at him but I slid inside before he closed the door for me. He jogged to his side before he got in and started the ignition.

“Tony trust you to use his car? What a thoughtful friend,” I said as I looked at Charles. He smirked at me before he put on his sunglasses to cover his hazel eyes. Now, he looked even more mysterious.

“Well, I think you might be surprised how much he trusts me,” he said as he shifted the stick to D and sped off from the front yard of the mansion to the destination that Boss told us earlier.

“So, what might happen there?” Charles asked me as he parked the car on the opposite side of St. Peter’s Basilica. We were looking in the car looking for any sign of that guy.

“I don’t know. Maybe he is meeting with his benefactor that might link to the kidnapping 5 years ago,” I said as I was looking at the front door. It was crowded, I tell you, but I don’t think Chris would be it obvious to sneak inside without being suspicious.

“So, you think he might just waltz inside if nothing happened?” Charles asked, as I turned to look at him. I smirked.

“Yeah, because the best way of hiding was under plain sight,” I said as I turned to look at the front gate again. I thought I saw familiar hair before I blinked a few times. Yup, a very familiar head indeed.

“s**t,” Charles cursed, as I know why he was distressed after all.

“Why is she here?” He hissed as I looked at Sophia, Charles' ex-fiancée, who was supposed to be dead, 6 feet underground.

“I wonder the same thing,” I said before I looked again and I saw a familiar head.

“There he is,” I said as I was pointing at Chris who was intimately talking with Sophia Hansen.

What was their relationship? I wonder as they were talking animatedly if Chris was gazing at Sophia like they had known each other like old friends.

“Should we go inside?” Charles asked as I was looking at him. I wonder if he wanted to confirm their relationship exactly, as I wanted to know what exactly they were with each other.

“Yeah, we can, but I think we need to disguise ourselves,” I said as I was smirking at him. He arched his eyebrows as if I was pulling something from behind. I brought my backpack just in case of things like this happening.

“Now, Mr. Durand, would it kill you to put this on and this?” I said as I was showing him a case of contact lens and a cap.

“You know, this is very uncomfortable,” he said as he was rubbing his eyes again. I sighed a thousand times about his action being unable to fit in.

“Damn Charles, can you not do that?” I hissed at him as he was still rubbing his eyes.

“Do what?” He asked before I took his hands off from his face. People were staring at us like we were odd couples. Maybe we were.

I helped put the brown contacts on his eyes, as my eyes were covered with a black lens. It was the perfect disguise as I put a baseball cap on his hair as I French-braided my hair and put some makeup on like an alternative girl.

Now that was a good disguise.

“You know I never wear this and yet you have forced me to put it on,” he said as he was blinking a couple of times as I rolled my eyes at him.

“Will you relax? It’s not that hard. You just blink like you normally do but with something in your eyes,” I said as I was smoothing his arms as we were following the couple, Chris and Sophia, at a safe distance. We looked like any other tourists right now, only with hidden motives.

“You know I can’t do that. I’m not a spy, I’m a doctor.”

“Yeah, the one that has a bad reputation if we do not uncover the truth,” I said as I was tugging him along with my hands on his arms. People were walking and talking about the monument as we were getting closer to our mark.

“Did you get the information that I asked you to get, Chris?” Sophia asked him as he was nodding at her while looking at the statue.

“Yes, everything was according to plan, except when you let that chummy scientist get in our way,” he said as he was gritting his teeth. If I know any better, he was referring to Charles.

“Oh, don’t be mad. I did it to throw them off from us and we succeeded,” Sophia said as she was soothing his arm. He grunted as he was walking ahead of the group.

“What are they saying? Do you know anything about this?” I asked Charles as he was still blinking a few times before he focused his gaze on me.

“I don’t know. The last thing I knew was that I was supposed to find a cure for something.”

“Cure? What kind?” I asked. Charles shook his head, as if he did not have any of this. I sighed as I was rubbing my temples for clues that did not make sense. Maybe we should get out of here.

“We cannot let anyone know that she was alive. The Boss will be angry at us,” Sophia said as she was talking with Chris. He sighed as I was trying to hear what they were saying.

“I saw them. Back in Finland,” Chris said.

“Who?” Sophia asked.

“The doctor and his w***e,” he whispered, but I can read those lips. Sophia was blinking at him before she laughed.

“That’s nonsense. I think you’re delusional now, Chris, my love. Charles Debrun was dead back at his lair in Denmark. I make sure of that.”

“But what if I told you you were wrong in your calculation? What if we have someone that was playing the odds?” Chris asked before he met my gaze. I took a sharp breath as I was holding Charles from going away. I felt Chris’ gaze as he turned to Sophia and ushered her away.

Damn it, our covers have been blown.

Charles was taking my hand into his as he was whispering into my ears. I was breathing helplessly as I was looking at the couple disappearing from our sight.

“Kiara, they are moving. We need to catch them,” he said.

“No, that would be useless. Chris knows. He knows our covers. We have to get out of here,” I said as I was tucking his hand into mine before we were exiting the St Peter’s Basilica and went to the car that we got from Tony.

“Drive now,” I said as Charles was putting it into D and sped off. Before we could get out of the Basilica area, something was booming in the distance that made Charles screech the car and we turned to look back.

“Dear God,” Charles mumbled, as I was shocked to know that we just got out in time.

St Peter’s Basilica was on fire and we were too preoccupied to locate the bomb.