Chapter 16
Artemis's plane lands in Edinburgh amidst a light drizzle, He feels a rush of mixed emotions in him but he is quite relieved at finally reaching his destination and anxious about how he confronts Rose. As he made his way through the airport, Artemis saw his phone, waiting for Mr. Brittany's updates on her.
"Mr. Vanderbilt" A familiar voice called out, Artemis turned around to see Peter, a lean man with hazel green eyes approaching him.
"Mr. Brittany" Artemis nodded.
They both hug each other.
"Any new developments?" Artemis breaks the hug.
"Yes, Mr. Vanderbilt. But you have to fresh up first and then we get down in the business" Peter says.
"Yeah, I am very tired by the way"
"Here" Peters shows at the Taxi, which he had brought for Artemis.
They both get in the car.
"Where are we going?" Artemis asks him.
"To the hotel"
"The one where Rose is staying right now?"
"No"
"What?"
"Yes, Miss Amatore has shifted from the hotel into a small independent house"
"Since when?"
"A few hours ago"
"And where are we going now? Her house?"
"No, Mr. Vanderbilt. Right now we will stay in the hotel"
"Yes! You saved me because I don't want to confront her in this position"
"You are good-looking, Mr. Vanderbilt" Peter says.
"I meant, I am very much tired and I need a heavy brunch I could say"
"Yeah, I understood. Don't worry, In our hotel the food is amazing"
"Thank goodness"
They both reach their destination after a few minutes of traveling.
"The room is ready" Peter said as they stepped out of the taxi and entered the grand lobby of the Balmoral Hotel.
Artemis followed Peter to the elevator.
They both reached the room, As Peter opened the door, Artemis was greeted by a spacious room with a view of the city.
"I'll give you some time to freshen up" Peter says, placing Artemis's luggage on the luggage rack.
He nods.
"Meet me in the hotel restaurant in an hour, We'll discuss everything over brunch"
"Thank you, Mr. Brittany. It won't be long" Artemis replied.
After taking a quick shower and a fresh pair of clothes, he is still anxious about the confrontation with Rose, he hasn't seen her for weeks.
He made his way to the restaurant where Peter was already seated at the table near the window, scanning through some documents.
"Hello" Artemis joins him.
"Hello" Peter greets him back.
Soon a waiter appeared to take their orders.
Once their orders were placed, Peter leans forward.
"Here what we know" He began.
"Rose moved out of the hotel early this morning and rented a small house in Old town, she started working at a bookstore called 'The Book Quirrel'"
Artemis nods, understanding the information.
"She's very perspective, but as far as I can tell, she's not aware of our presence yet"
"I don't want to scare her, already she's been through enough" Artemis sighs.
"I understand, Mr. Vanderbilt" Peter says.
Artemis looks out the window.
"We need to approach this carefully, Perhaps you should go there as a customer first. Observe her reaction, see if she's open to talking"
The food arrives, Artemis has ordered Mexican-style baked eggs and for Peter, it is a Tofu scramble with mushrooms and tomatoes and two plates of toast and bacon.
They stop the discussion from eating, Artemis finds the meal to be exactly what he needs to regain his strength and focus to confront Rose.
After brunch, Artemis returns to his room to gather his thoughts and prepare for the encounter.
He understands that, this might be the last chance to speak with Rose and make things right between them.
After some time, Peter and Artemis take a cab to Old Town. The streets are beautiful and the people's fashion sense is remarkable. Artemis covers his face with a scarf so that Rose sees him before she encounters him. Then it will become a problem for both of them.
They both stopped a block away from the bookstore, Artemis takes a deep - breath.
"I'll be close by" Peter says assuringly.
Artemis nods at him.
"If anything goes wrong, just signal me"
"Thank you, Mr. Brittany"
"I wish you good luck, Mr. Vanderbilt"
"Thank you, I'm ready"
With that confidence, Artemis walked down the cobblestone street and entered 'The Book Quirrel'.
The bells above the door chimed softly. When he enters the store, his nostrils are filled with the scent of old books and polished wood.
There he sees his Rose, dressed in a cool red floral maxi dress and a loose fishtail braid which enhances her facial features. She was behind the counter, her back to him as she was arranging some new arrivals on the shelves according to the genre.
Artemis takes a deep breath to steady himself and unfolds his scarf from his face before he confronts her.
"Excuse me" He says with a gentle voice.
Rose turns around, and her eyes widen in surprise.
"Artemis? What are you doing?" She gasps.
"Looking for you, I came to see you" He replies, his voice steady but filled with emotion.
She groans and tries to leave.
"I need to talk to you, Rose. Please, give me a few minutes"
Rose looks confused, her eyes are glued to the door and then back to him.
"I don't know, that's a good idea" She says with a shaky voice.
"Just a few minutes, Rose"
Before he could say anything, Rose turned away and ran through a door that was marked as 'Staff only'
Artemis follows her and tries to enter the room but it is locked.
He groans and understands that chasing her would only drive her far away from him.
Without wasting time, he pulls out his phone from his jacket and calls Peter.
"She's running"
Peter, who is watching across the street, watches the back door of the bookstore swing open and Rose comes out of it.
"I can see her, Mr. Vanderbilt. I'll follow her" He says.
Artemis waits in the bookstore, pacing anxiously among the shelves. Right now, he doesn't understand how to follow her or should wait for Peter.
He is confident in Peter that, he will definitely find out where she is heading to. So he relaxes a bit in the store by glancing at the different kinds of books on the shelves.
Minutes felt like hours until his phone buzzed with a message from Peter saying that he had lost her In the crowds, She was good. Too good.
Artemis sighs and leaves the book store, frustration and anxiety are raging up in him like a volcano.
He underestimated her intelligence, but she was one step ahead of them.
He leaves the bookstore and meets Peter at a nearby cafe.
"We underestimated her" Peter says, shaking his head.
"Yes, she must have sensed something off" Artemis supports his statement.
"Now, what should we do? Mr. Vanderbilt?"
"We need a new approach, something less direct. She works in the bookstore, so that means her details such as phone number or whatever would be stored in the files"
"Yes, Mr. Vanderbilt"
"Let's go" Artemis gets up from the seat.
They both go to the bookstore and one young man is doing his work at the counter.
"Good afternoon, sir. How may I help you?" The young man at the counter asks Artemis.
Meanwhile, Peter observes the books on the shelves.
"Good afternoon, I was wondering if I could get info about a friend of mine who might have applied for a job here recently" Artemis smiles politely.
"I'm not really allowed to give out personal information such as phone numbers like that, sir" The young man looked hesitant.
"I understand, It's just that I am very concerned about her. She's been going through a lot and I want to ensure she is okay. Her name is Rose Amatore" Artemis leans in slightly, his tone is gentle but firm.
"Let me look it" The young man senses his sincerity.
Artemis returns a smile to him.
Peter continued to browse the books, keeping an eye on the situation.
After a few moments, the young man turned to Artemis with a confused expression.
"I am sorry, sir. But I can't find anyone by that name in our system"
"Are you sure? Let me show you her picture" He takes out the phone from his jacket and shows it to him.
"Yes, Her name is Lily Adams. She is new here"
Artemis understands the whole concept.
"Could you please give me her phone number" He says.
The young boy gives her details.
"Thank you so much, Young man" Artemis pats his shoulder and leaves.
Artemis and Peter left the bookstore.
"She changed her name, I hope these contact details are not wrong" Artemis gives the details to him.
"Let's find it out" Peter takes the paper and keeps it in his jacket.
"You said you know her new house? Don't you?"
"yeah, let's go to her house" Peter agrees his decision.
They took a cab to Old Town, stopping a block away from Rose's new address. It's evening and the streets are glistening under the street lights.
They stand under a large Oak tree, partially hidden.
Minutes are passed, but there is no sign of Rose.
"I think she is not coming back tonight. We must have scared her off" Artemis glances at Peter.
"You're right. Let's head back to the hotel and we need to create a master plan this time"
They both return to the hotel.
After some time, both suddenly get an Idea.
"Mr. Brittany?"
"Mr. Vanderbilt? I got an idea"
"Mee too, let me hear you first" Artemis smiles.
"We have her phone number, let's try to locate her location?" Peter says.
"Yes! That's what I am about to tell you. Let's locate her location"
Peter pulled out his laptop and began working on tracing the phone number. After a few minutes, he got a result.
"Got her, she's at the nearby cafe"
Without wasting time, they hurried to the cafe. Hoping to catch her at least this time.
They approach cautiously, spotting Rose sitting at the corner table looking anxious.
Peter stays outside, ready to take action if necessary.
Artemis starts walking inside, his heart pounding like never before.
Rose looms up, her eyes widening in shock. She stands up.
"Artemis? What are you doing here?"
"Rose, please listen to me" Artemis pleases her, with emotion.
But before he could say more, Rose came out of the cafe. Peter sees their actions and steadies himself to take further action.
Artemis chases after her, but as he steps into the street, he is suddenly hit by a bike.
Rose froze, as she watched Artemis laying motionless on the ground.
Panic enters her, she rushes to his side and tears stream down her face.
"Artemis? Oh my god, Artemis?"
Peter, seeing the commotion from across the street, runs over to Artemis's side.
The crowd is gathered and they immediately call an ambulance.
With in minutes, they were on their way to the hospital.
Rose holds Artemis's hand tightly, her mind is filled with fear and guilt.
They reach to the hospital, the doctors quickly assess Artemis's condition and he is rushed into the surgery.
Rose and Peter are standing outside of the room, the silence between them is heavy.
Hours later, A doctor approaches them.
"Mr. Vanderbilt is stable, but he has some significant injuries on his body and face. We have done everything we can, but he'll need to remain under our observation for a while"
Rose and Peter relax at the Doctor's words.
"Thank you, Doctor" They both say.
"This is my fault, If I hadn't run --" Rose turns to Peter's side.
"It's not your fault, Miss Amatore. He's here because he cares about you. We both do" Peter interrupts her gently.
There are allowed to see Artemis, after some time.
Rose sits beside Artemis, her heart is heavy with regret.
His beautiful face is bruised and various tubes are connected to the machines that monitor his condition.
"I'm so sorry, Artemis. I didn't know this could happen to you" She holds his hand tightly.
Artemis stirs slightly and he opens his eyes.
"Rose... I'm glad that you are here" he squeezes her hand.
"I am here, I am not going anywhere" Tears filled her eyes.
Over the next few days, Rose stayed by Artemis's side. She refused to leave the hospital without him. She took all the responsibility of him from feeding him to sleeping beside him.
Meanwhile, Peter ensures that Artemis has everything he needs.
With the help of Doctors, Rose and Peter. He began to recover.
Artemis is discharged, but they were told by doctors that, he should take rest for a few weeks little more to gain full recovery.
They are outside of the hospital, right now.
"Let's go to my home" Rose holds Artemis's hand tightly.
"Let's go to my home" Artemis interrupts her.
"Doctor said, you should relax a bit more"
"Yes! it's a matter of a few hours, right? From Edinburgh to New York? I will not do any exotic dance or something in flight. I can take rest too there" He smiles.
Both Peter and Rose chuckle at his response.
"Okay then, It's already late today. Let's take a rest at her house now. Tomorrow morning, we can leave for New York" Peter says.
"Taxi?" Peter calls the nearby taxi.
"Artemis, I need to talk to you. There is so much to tell you" Rose says to him with a trembling voice.
"Yes, Rose. Same here! Let's talk after reaching home" He winks at her.
Both Artemis and Rose get in the Taxi.
"Are you not coming? Mr. Brittany?" Artemis looks at him.
"I need to get your stuff from the hotel, so I am heading over there now"
Artemis nods and smiles.
"Please, go the Old Town" Rose says to the driver.
"Yes, Ma'am" He starts.
"Is he your friend?"
"Yes"
"What does he do?"
"A private investigator"
"Investigator? What did he find?"
"YOU" Artemis looks at her.
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