Crossfire 10

Returning with two glasses of champagne, one for myself and one for Alice of course, I noticed Nicholas Shaw was no longer in his previous spot. Only Alice remained, glancing at me faintly. She took a glass from my hand and drank as we engaged in conversation.

“Your name isn’t Alice?” I mumbled.

Her eyebrows lifted slightly. “Not really important, is it?”

For me, I thought before sipping my own glass, it was. "My name is Anya, but it’s just a pseudonym." She sipped her champagne again, looking a bit different.

"Different from usual? Not sitting and full of bruises?”

She chuckled, making me slightly surprised. I didn’t know she could laugh. “You’re different as well,” I mumbled.

Right as she was about to open her mouth to reply, a loud clink caught both of our attention. Reluctantly, I shifted my gaze away from her, following her line of sight. A butler stood on a small podium, announcing that dinner would begin shortly.

I glanced back at Alice. "You can join me at my table," I offered.