15 You are with me

Sofie had told Philip that she was an investigative journalist. And that she had evidence of MP Kerry murdering the opposition leader to advance her own chances for the top job. But Philip seemed to have known about this already. He knew of the murder and did not go to the Police. How could he be so corrupt?

"Ok..." Sofie's voice hitched. She could not believe how callus Philip was. She thought she knew him, at least his basic character. But she was obviously wrong. "So you knew of the murder and did not tell anyone? That is… interesting. Some might call it criminal. Concealing a murder is illegal, Phillip."

"Hold on, Miss Carter," he said, lifting his hands defensively, "I know he was murdered, because everybody does. It was all over the news. And it does not take much to put two and two together. Especially knowing her. I don't know who murdered him but you having evidence that it was MP Kerry does not surprise me."

Sofie searched his face for the truth. There was a slight twitch in his jaw. Was he nervous that she thought him an accomplice to something as heinous as this? Or was he lying because she was about to uncover how deep he was involved in all of this? Either way, he was not the object of her investigation. Her aim was to convince him to hand over the information she needed. Focus on that!

"If you can put two and two together, Phillip, then I probably don't have to point out what it means to have one of the largest economies of the world led by a person who sees herself above the law."

"No you don't." His answer was clipped and the twitch in his jaw had become a gnaw. His hands moved as if to reach out for her, but he thought better of it. "I am glad that someone has the courage to stand up against her."

It was the most honest thing he said to her all evening, perhaps ever. Sofie could not help but take it as the highest compliment. This was what she devoted her life for. There were no companions, no relationships, no friends. Her life was duty and sacrifice. Dedicated to stamping out evil.

A sudden locomotion erupted in the bar. Engrossed in their conversation, they did not notice that the band had taken a break and guests started walking to the bar for drinks. Sofie signaled for their conversation to be put on hold, people were passing too close to Philip's chair and could hear. To distract herself from the tense silence, Sofie watched the people at the bar, pretending not to notice Philip's eyes studying her face and lingering on her lips. Was he trying to make her nervous? It wasn't working. Or at least she hoped it wasn't.

"I don't doubt that you have evidence." He took up the conversation once the traffic had settled. "But there is obviously something missing. Otherwise you would have written the story already... instead of sitting here with me." There was no trace of humor in his face. "You are missing something. Aren't you? Something that links the evidence of the murder to MP Kerry. And you are hoping to find it in her emails. Am I right?"

His reasoning was on point. Sofie found the hitman who murdered the opposition leader. He was a small-ticket low life and would have been eliminated to tie up the loose ends, had Sofie not gotten to him first. He was willing to talk, because she promised him to negotiate a reduced jail sentence. 30 years in prison was preferable over certain death. So, he was the evidence but the link to MP Kerry was still missing. He only ever interacted with one of her staff members. Sofie needed to find the proof that showed MP Kerry ordered the hit or at the very least knew about it. And her emails were the most likely source for that. People are careless in casual conversations, especially the ones who fancy themselves too powerful to be touched.

"Here is my problem, Miss Carter." Philip leaned forward. His arm brushed against hers on the small cast iron table. "If you find the proof that MP Kerry is involved in her emails, I'll be in the firing line. Everybody will know that I gave you the YubiKey. And we both know how that would end for me."

Philip's lips were pressed together. He might like to play with fire, but he knew very precisely where to draw the line. He was not willing to risk his life to have the truth be known. This was a transaction to him, not a matter of moral principal.

"That's why the key must not leave Elandra. Why I keep inviting you back. You see, Miss Carter, I need to capture the thief on video to prove that it wasn't me."

Sofie was taken aback by his directness.

"And I am supposed to be that thief?" Of course she was, but being thrown under the bus was a new experience for her. "How do you picture that to end for me?"

He leaned back. Calmly studying her. He heard the accusation but it did not phase him the slightest.

"That's what you are prepared for, Miss Carter, isn't it? You will uproot your life and disappear before the article is published in any case. Why should anyone else take a fall, if it is not necessary?"

A million thoughts were raising through her mind. But his unashamed self-preservation angered her the most. She knew that her ideals were more extreme than most people's but his heartless self-interest was blatant. Sofie took a deep breath. In the end, he was probably right, thought. He did not do anything wrong. In fact he helped her when he did not have to and there would be consequences for him too, just not as dangerous as if he was suspected to be her accomplice.

"I suppose so. If you give me what I want, you might as well get away," she said looking away. "Keep on living, undisturbed, with all those other secrets in your head."

"Let that be my concern," he replied to her jab. "Shall we do the exchange tomorrow?"

"Yes. Fine." She felt frustrated.

It would be the end of their engagement and she somehow felt like a failure. There was something she wanted to achieve with him but she could not quite remember what. Not anymore anyways. With a sigh she added, "You could have been this open when I asked you for the key the first time. It would have saved us a month of dancing around."

"And miss out on your company?"

She did not reply.

"I am in a different situation now..." he revised.

"I see. You are engaged now. To be protected by Ms. Hunt. You don't care about Elandra's reputation anymore. As far as you are concerned, Elandra can burn with the rest once I publish my article, is that it?"

"Something like that." There was more to it than an after-me-the-tide attitude. But his distant stare made it clear that he wasn't going into more details.

He watched the band take their seats and strike the first chords of 'Save the Last Dance for Me'. Philip stood and held out his hand to Sofie.

"Now that business is over," he said with a smile that did not reach his eyes, "will you dance with me?"

She wanted to say 'no'. With business over their interactions should be over, too. After all, he was just her informant. And on top of that, a morally dubious and engaged informant. But one dance does not hurt, does it? Against her better judgement, she stood up and took his hand.

With one quick tuck he had her in his arms and led the cha-cha effortlessly, like the highly-trained escort he was.

Feeling the music, Sofie let herself be swept up by the moment. The risky rhythm and Philip's smooth movements against her body excited her. She swayed her hips and savoured the concealed glances from some of the other patrons in the bar. She knew she made a beautiful figure, confidently commanding the small dancing space amidst the vines and lanterns of the open air backyard.

"You can dance, Miss Carter," Philip said intrigued.

Noticing the not so subtle stares around them he could not help but placed his hands more possessively on her frame. She was with him, at least for tonight.

When he sent her into an outward swing she let her free hand glide along Philip's abdomen, like Ms. Hunt earlier.

He sucked in a breath.

"You are such a tease, you know that?" He gently pulled her closer, his lips brushing over the shell of her ear. "And you are the most courageous person I know, Sofie."

She could feel his heartbeat. It was faster than their gentle rhythm would have brought on. It was matching hers.

He nudged her away from him and into a turn. When their bodies met again both of his arms were wrapped around her waist to draw her in.

"I am glad you took me away tonight," he said touching his forehead against hers and closing his eyes for a second. "This is how I want to remember you... Remember us."

His simple statement squeezed her heart. Who was she fooling? Pretending to not care that Ms. Hunt took him from her? Why was she giving him up without a fight? There was something between them. The sparks were undeniable. She felt them right from the first moment she met him. This does not happen very often. If she missed this chance, would there ever be another one? All she wanted to do was fan this spark and see it ignite into a roaring fire. Stop being the cautious controlled Sofie. Leave her moral high ground and live a little.

She tilted her head up to find his lips. But he abruptly let go of her, as if he just remembered that he was engaged. "I am sorry. I need to go."

He grabbed his jacket to leave.

"But, I'll see you tomorrow. Yes?" He hesitated. "One last time..."