Chapter 8

“Heather?”

At the now-familiar voice, Yuri frowned. Heather turned toward it and greeted the man with delight. “Cherriot!”

“What are you doing here this late?”

“I was worried, so I came to check on you. Strange people even came to your condo today! Mr. Alexei told me.”

“I’m fine for now. You came all the way here to see for yourself? Heather really is kind.”

Soft footsteps scuffed over the corridor carpet, perhaps from hotel slippers. Within seconds, Cherriot reached Heather, then leaned slightly and spotted Yuri inside the elevator.

“What are you doing in there, Yuri?”

Cherriot wore nothing but the hotel’s bathrobe. His blond hair, darkened by water, clung to his pale cheeks and forehead, lending him an unexpectedly suggestive air. The robe gaped at the collar, revealing the hard muscles of his chest and making him look as though he had just crawled out of bed.

“…I’m fairly sure I told you to stay in the room.”

For a moment, Yuri forgot everything else and focused on the absurdity of Cherriot wandering into the corridor dressed like that.

“I heard the elevator arrive, so I came to see if it was Yuri. You left me alone too long.”

“Fine. Go back to the room first. I still have something to discuss with Heather.”

Cherriot’s gaze shifted. He stared at Yuri’s hand, which still encircled Heather’s wrist, and the corner of his mouth lifted. “I’m curious what kind of conversation requires you to hold hands.”

“Huh? That sounded strange, Cherriot.”

“It’s only that…” His gaze remained fixed on Yuri’s hand. “I thought Yuri hated touching other people for long.”

Heather’s cheeks flushed with confusion, and Yuri released her wrist. He had no idea what the hell Cherriot meant, but now that they were all here, perhaps it would be better to speak with both of them present.

“Enough. Let’s go into the room. We’ll talk there.”

“Are you sure that’s all right, Yuri?” Heather asked, still worried.

Cherriot, meanwhile, seemed to have been waiting for permission. He draped an arm gently around her shoulders and guided her toward the room. “Don’t talk out here. Let’s go inside. I’m in danger right now, remember?”

“That’s true. But for someone in such a bad situation, don’t you look a little too well, Cherriot?”

“You’ll change your mind once you hear what happened to me.” Cherriot quickly redirected Heather’s attention, chatting as he led her into the room. Yuri followed, glancing around to see whether anyone might have been listening. He heard no furtive door click and saw no one lurking, but the unease remained.

He gave the security camera opposite the elevator one last look, swallowed a sigh, and turned away. Cherriot had exposed his face far too openly while dressed like that, but it would probably be fine if they changed locations tomorrow.

By the time Yuri entered the room, Cherriot had seated Heather in the sitting area and was pulling liquor from the minibar. Yuri’s gaze swept over the miniature bottles and snacks arranged inside like display pieces.

He had never seen anything like them in the shabby roadside hotels he knew. They would be expensive. The room charge alone far exceeded the monthly rent Yuri had once struggled to scrape together.

“I went through something rough, but I’m fine, Heather. You shouldn’t stay out dangerously late. Go home. Should I walk you out?”

“It’s fine. I drove. I do need to go home and sleep because I have work tomorrow, but first, there’s something I need to tell you. I found out something about the group chasing you.”

“Really? That’s an unexpected bonus.” Cherriot smiled, placed a glass in front of Heather, and poured her some whiskey.

Heather stared at the filled glass and laughed in disbelief. “I thought you’d be frightened, but apparently you still have time to drink.”

“Well, you introduced me to a capable man who’s gorgeous and impressive, and now he’s my bodyguard.”

Only then did they both turn toward Yuri. Perhaps still flustered by what had happened in the elevator, Heather blushed and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “Mr. Yuri really is good at what he does. Remember what I told you back then? Several thugs rushed him at once, and he dealt with them like something out of an action movie.”

Cherriot watched Heather fidget with the frame of her glasses, then dropped into the chair opposite her. Lounging crookedly with his long legs stretched out, he looked up at Yuri with interest. “So you’re gentle with women, Yuri? You twisted my arm the first time you saw me.”

“Oh, really?” Heather looked between them in surprise, then pointed a finger at Cherriot. “I bet you startled him first.”

“You’re taking Yuri’s side instead of mine?”

“I’ve known you long enough to know what your personality is like.”

They seemed closer than Yuri had expected. Heather showed no concern over the skin exposed beneath Cherriot’s loosely tied robe, and his sulking complaint that she had taken Yuri’s side sounded familiar to them both.

“…It’s late, so perhaps we should get to the point.” Yuri set the suitcase Alexei had brought down on the floor with a thud. “Your luggage is here. Heather, I heard you looked into the group targeting him. I’d appreciate a brief summary.”

“Oh, right! This happens sometimes when I’m with Cherriot. He makes it hard to stay focused. I’m sorry.”

“No need.”

Heather straightened and apologized, while Yuri shook his head. Cherriot remained sprawled in his chair like a delinquent, his long legs extended before him. The moment Yuri finished speaking, he complained, “What’s with ‘him’? You should call me Cherry like you did earlier.”

“That was because I had no choice.”

“There will probably be many situations like that from now on, so I think you should get used to it in advance.”

That was probably true. But there would be no “from now on” for Yuri. He fell silent, deciding it would be better to reveal his identity now rather than waste any more time. Once he made up his mind, he parted his lips and searched for the right words.

I’m sorry, but…

No. There was no need to apologize. He had never intended to accept this kind of request in the first place. But he did owe Heather an apology. She had believed he was a good person and introduced him on that basis. He had not deliberately created that impression, but if he had somehow given it to her, then some measure of responsibility belonged to him.

When Yuri failed to answer, both of them looked at him. Heather’s intelligent brown eyes plainly belonged to someone who had grown up honestly, while Cherriot’s clear green eyes seemed to conceal nothing. Facing them, Yuri suddenly felt sick with anguish. Shame flooded him, the same shame that always rose when he encountered “ordinary” citizens who lived in a world entirely different from his own.

His stomach burned.

“Heather, you said in the elevator that Cherriot hates rotten people.”

“Oh, yes.” Heather looked puzzled by the abrupt change of subject. Cherriot tilted his head, though his eyes curved with amusement.

“You two talked about me? If you were curious, you could’ve asked me directly.”

“No. Mr. Yuri seemed confused, so I brought it up first.”

“Did you? Heather, you’re always so considerate.”

Yes, she was. That was why Yuri had to speak before he caused trouble for someone genuinely good like her. “If that’s why you introduced me, then I don’t think I’m suitable.”

Yuri decided not to say anything about Alexei. That was between Alexei and Heather, while the immediate problem was Yuri, the man standing beside Cherriot. Besides, Alexei’s circumstances were different from his own. Yuri had endured the filthy work assigned to him in order to survive, whereas Alexei had been dragged into that filthy organization because it held leverage over him.

Alexei’s parents had tried to escape so they would not be forced to kill innocent people, and the organization had executed them for it. Alexei was also the one who had destroyed that organization with his own hands. Yuri could live on this land now entirely because of his friend.

He owed Alexei too many debts.

“What? What does that mean?”

“Yuri, we already settled this earlier. You’re taking the job. You can’t keep pushing me away. You have to pull me close once in a while too, or you’ll hurt my feelings.”

Cherriot had clearly failed to take Yuri seriously and went on spouting nonsense. Heather looked uneasy, though not because Yuri’s identity alarmed her. She seemed to think he was blaming himself. To prevent any further misunderstanding, Yuri decided to define himself plainly.

“I’m a criminal. I’ve done plenty of rotten things.”

His own voice sounded chillingly foreign. Yuri clenched his fists, horrified by the mere act of speaking his past aloud.

Silence descended over the room like a shroud.

Heather covered her mouth, visibly flustered, while Cherriot only blinked up at Yuri, the same smile still resting on his face. Yuri endured the silence tightening around his throat and steadied his breathing, quietly and carefully.

“That’s a joke, right?”

After a silence that felt both brief and endless, Cherriot parted his lips. He was still smiling, but his eyes had gone cold and hard.