13 Help You?

Sent to Adeline by Dimitri were obscene photos of him surrounded by women—his fun for that night, as he captioned. 

Below, followed messages of him letting her know that he might not be home and the from the looks of it, she was sure that he was at a huge club.

"What..." Adeline found it difficult to even process or say something.

Dimitri had always been an asshole, but stooping this low was something she didn't see coming.

Why did he do it?

What was he thinking sending her such photos the very day her mother was buried? To cheer her up? To make fun of her? Or to break her more than they already did?

A chuckle, low and steady, broke from Adeline before it switched into a full laughter mixed with anger. She threw her head back and laughed so crazily to the extent that the owner of the store who was working appeared startled and confused.

Adeline was begining to loose her mind and she'd had enough. 

"Dimitri! Dimitri! Dimitri!!" Her sharp polished nails scratched against the wooden table, gritted teeth clashing furiously.

Her body quivered along in undying hatred and she abruptly pulled a card out of her pocket.

It was the card that Caesar had given her.

Her skeptical eyes stared at it, and when it seemed like she'd made up her mind, she proceeded to dial the number on it. But then she stopped.

She couldn't make calls with the phone.

What if it had been tampered with, and her calls could possibly be traced? Dimitri and his father were very capable of it. They wouldn't just give her back the phone without tinkering with it, right?

Unwilling to take such a risk, Adeline turned the phone off and left the store. She hurried down the road and came to a stop when she arrived at the public telephone stand.

Her vigilant gaze shifted from her left to her right before she pulled open the glass door and stepped in.

Adeline put a coin in and pressed the number, and as it rang, she brought the phone close to her ear.

Patiently, she waited for the callee to answer, and luckily for her, Caesar picked up.

"Hello." The voice wasn't Caesar's. "Who is this?"

"Adeline. Is…Caesar around?" Adeline asked.

There was silence on the other side of the phone for a few seconds before the voice suddenly spoke again. "Give me a moment."

The voice belonged to none other than Nikolai, and the phone was transferred.

"Adeline?" This was Caesar. She could still vividly recall that ridiculously cold, deep, and husky voice like it was yesterday.

Adeline went quiet, no longer wanting to speak. She seemed to be in sudden thought, wondering if she should go ahead and speak or not. Would she be making a mistake?

Furiously, she shook the thought off and took a deep breath.

"Adeline? Are you held at gunpoint or something?"

Adeline frowned at his question and said, "I like to speak with you."

"With me?"

"Yes," she responded. "That is if you don't mind."

"Hmmmm…." Caesar went quiet for a few annoying seconds before speaking once again. "Where are you?"

Adeline gave her location to him and hung up. She put the telephone back and left the stand to proceed over to a bench on the roadside.

Taking a seat, she properly covered herself with her coat, ignoring the rain that was pouring down on her.

Fifteen to twenty minutes progressed, and there was still no sign of Caesar. At this point, she was starting to wonder if he would even show up.

It wouldn't be a surprise if he didn't come. 

Adeline buried her face in her knees and circled her arms around her body tightly. 

The sudden cease of the rain falling rapidly against her body in the next few minutes caused her to frown.

Did the rain stop?

Lifting her head, she was met with a familiar face and a tall figure towering above her.

"It's…you," she said.

"Why are you sitting in the rain?" The figure was Caesar. He stood, holding an umbrella over her.

Adeline fluttered her wet lashes in a bit of shock. "I thought…I thought you weren't coming anymore."

"I ran into a little problem." Caesar extended his large gloved hand. "Come here." He took her by the wrist, pulling her up from the bench.

Still stuck in a slight shock, Adeline allowed him to take her to his car, which was parked just ten feet away from them.

He locked her seat belt and walked over to take a seat in the driver's spot.

Adeline glanced at her drenched outfit and looked at him with an apologetic expression. 

"That's fine. I'll just have it cleaned later." Caesar turned the steering wheel, taking a reverse. He drove off onto the road and whined up the dark, shaded windows.

"Cold?" he asked.

Adeline nodded. "A little bit."

"Where do you want to go?" 

"Anywhere. I just want to talk." She rested her head against the window and watched as drops of water dripped from the strands of hair that fell over her face.

They'd stopped in front of a steak house after a few minutes drive. Caesar locked the car and walked into the building. Adeline followed behind him.

When they were inside, seated in a private dining area, he told her to order whatever she wanted.

Adeline was in no mood. She had no appetite and felt like she would eventually vomit anything she might attempt to put in her mouth.

Caesar, on the other hand, didn't order food either. He simply requested a cocktail, which he barely touched.

"How do you feel?" He looked at her.

"A bit better, I think," Adeline replied, glancing at him. "Thank you."

Caesar gave a nod, his fingers playing with the glass of cocktail in his hand. "You said you wanted to talk to me."

"Yes..." Adeline nodded.

"What is it?" Caesar averted his gaze from the glass to curiously look at her.

"Well." Adeline gripped her thigh and took a soft breath. "I need your help. I want you to help me."

Caesar stared, his emerald-green eyes hard and unwavering. "Help you?" he asked. "With what?"