
𝟏.𝟑
𝑺𝒏𝒂𝒌𝒆
Lil Keed
0:39 ─♡────── 3:03
"𝙸 𝚌𝚊𝚗'𝚝 𝚕𝚎𝚝 𝚗𝚘𝚋𝚘𝚍𝚢 𝚙𝚕𝚊𝚢 𝚖𝚎"
The room Karim led Maeve into was quieter than the others in the grand house. The noise of the races and the distant hum of music faded behind heavy wooden doors. A chandelier cast soft light across the richly paneled walls, reflecting off ornate furnishings. Guards loomed like statues near the doors, their eyes tracking Maeve the moment she entered.
Maeve didn't look at them. Instead, she stopped just inside the doorway, hands tucked into the pockets of her coat, her shoulders squared. She didn't like being led anywhere-especially not into rooms like this. Karim, of course, moved with the same polished confidence she'd come to expect, pouring himself a drink from a crystal decanter.
"You've been quiet since we left the others," Karim said, his voice smooth and unhurried as he turned to her. "That's unusual. Most women can't stop talking when they're nervous."
"I'm not most women," Maeve replied flatly, her sharp green gaze sweeping the room. She noted every detail: the exits, the placement of the guards, the way Karim moved with practiced ease.
Karim smiled faintly, amused by her response. "So I've gathered." He gestured toward a chair near the fireplace. "Sit. Please."
Maeve didn't move. "I'm fine where I am."
"You're stubborn," Karim observed, sipping his drink. "Is that a Shelby trait, or something unique to you?"
Maeve raised an eyebrow. "You like the sound of your own voice, don't you?"
Karim chuckled softly, unbothered. "Only when I'm speaking to someone worth listening to."
Silence stretched for a moment, heavy but not uncomfortable. Maeve shifted slightly, studying him as he leaned casually against the table, watching her like a man who believed he already held all the cards.
"Where are you from?" Maeve asked suddenly, her tone neutral but deliberate.
Karim blinked, surprised by the question. "London," he said, after a pause. "Born and raised."
Maeve tilted her head, her expression unreadable. "Don't sound like it."
Karim's smile returned, softer this time. "My parents were Egyptian. My father came to England with money in his pocket and ambition in his heart. Built an empire out of oil. You could say I've been fortunate."
"Must be nice," Maeve muttered, though there was no sincerity in the words.
Karim didn't seem to notice-or if he did, he ignored it. "And you? You're a Harding, aren't you? I've heard of your father."
Maeve's jaw tightened slightly, but her expression didn't change. "Dead men don't talk much. You should know that."
Karim's gaze lingered on her for a beat longer before he laughed quietly. "You're very good at this, Maeve."
"At what?" she asked evenly.
"Deflecting." Karim moved toward her slowly, though he kept his hands behind his back, maintaining that polished air of respectability. "It's rare for a woman to guard her secrets so carefully. Makes me wonder-what are you hiding?"
Maeve stared him down, unmoved. "You ask too many questions for a man who knows fuck-all about me."
Karim's lips twitched, though there was a hint of irritation beneath his polished mask now. "I'm trying to get to know you, Maeve. Isn't that what people do when they're stuck in a room together?"
She scoffed softly, pulling a cigarette from her coat pocket. "I don't make friends with men who don't know when to shut their mouths."
Karim watched as she lit the cigarette, his eyes narrowing slightly. "It's funny-you act like you're in control here."
"I am," Maeve replied simply, blowing out a stream of smoke.
Karim's patience cracked ever so slightly. He stepped closer, his voice lowering. "Tell me something, Maeve. What is it that keeps you so loyal to the Shelbys? What have they given you?"
"Nothing I didn't earn myself," she shot back, her tone clipped.
"You're wasting yourself with them," Karim said, his voice softening, almost persuasive. "You're clever. Independent. A woman like you could have more-if you wanted it."
Maeve's lips curled into a faint, humorless smile. "And let me guess. You're the one who could give me that 'more.'"
Karim smiled, though it was colder now. "Perhaps."
Maeve shook her head, flicking ash onto the floor without breaking eye contact. "You're all the same. Men like you think you can talk women into anything, so long as you smile pretty enough while doing it."
Karim's smile faltered briefly before returning, sharper this time. "I'm more direct than that, Maeve."
Maeve echoed, her tone mocking. "Enlighten me."
Karim stepped closer, his voice dropping just enough to be private. "Will you sleep with me?"
Maeve blinked once, the silence stretching between them like a taut wire. Then, to his surprise, she smiled faintly-sharp and humorless. "I'm saving myself for marriage."
Karim stared at her for a moment, the faintest flicker of irritation crossing his face before he chuckled under his breath. "A lie," he said softly. "But an interesting one."
"Believe what you want," Maeve replied, taking another slow drag from her cigarette, her eyes never leaving his.
Karim's jaw tightened, though his polished mask didn't slip entirely. "You're a difficult woman, Maeve."
"You're an easy man to ignore," Maeve shot back.
Karim turned toward one of the guards, nodding subtly. The man stepped forward, his hand moving toward his gun. Maeve, unbothered, reached into her coat and drew her pistol in a single, fluid motion, aiming it at the guard's head before he could blink.
"Try me," Maeve said quietly, her voice cutting through the room like a blade.
The guard froze, clearly caught off guard. Karim's expression darkened, though the amusement never fully left his eyes. "You're playing a dangerous game."
"I don't play games," Maeve replied, her finger steady on the trigger.
Before the tension could snap further, the door swung open abruptly. Tommy Shelby strode in, sharp-eyed and unruffled, as though he'd walked into far worse.
"Something I'm missing?" Tommy asked, his voice low and dangerous.
Karim straightened, smoothing his coat as he regained his composure. "We were having a conversation."
"Looked like more than that," Tommy said, flicking his gaze to Maeve. "Maeve, come on. Time to go."
Maeve didn't move. "I can walk myself."
"Then walk," Tommy snapped, lighting a cigarette as he gave her a pointed look.
Maeve lowered her gun slowly, tucking it back into her coat before brushing past Karim. He watched her leave, dark eyes lingering with both irritation and something else-curiosity, perhaps.
"We'll meet again, Maeve," Karim called after her.
"Not if I see you first," she muttered.
----------------------------------------
Tommy walked a step ahead of Maeve as they made their way back through the house. The sound of the music grew louder again, but Maeve ignored it.
"What the fuck was that?" Tommy asked, keeping his voice low.
"Ask your mate Karim," Maeve shot back.
Tommy sighed, lighting a cigarette and glancing at her. "Didn't I tell you to keep quiet and play nice? You pulled a gun on one of his men"
"And I'd do it again," Maeve snapped. "I was playing nice," She said. "He didn't like the rules."
Tommy stopped suddenly, turning to face her. "Listen to me. You keep pulling stunts like that, and you'll end up dead."
Maeve met his gaze without flinching. "I'll take my chances."
Tommy stared at her for a long moment before shaking his head again. "You're as bad as Arthur."
"Better Arthur than you," Maeve muttered, brushing past him as they exited the house.
Bạn đang đọc truyện trên: Truyen247.Pro