Alice listens without interruption, his eyes lingering on Enri, who is watching him back (no he's watching the phone, he's staring like he's terrified to lose this one final connection.)
He hears.
If Enri is willing. (Darius, taking into account Enri's needs.) (Darius called here, not ten minutes after Enri was yanked from him.)
Darius is weighing the boy's needs against his own wants, and there's no grudging tone to be found. He says he'll come here not because he wants to, but if Enri needs him. These aren't the words of a man who has been the subject of monetary settlements over unspeakable abuses.
In fact - now that Alice looks, the bites he can see look superficial. And Lydia said there were bruises at Darius's throat. Alice knows one thing about Darius: the other man roused at the implication of having a hand at his throat just like that. Put it together. Those weren't unwelcome wounds, and. And if Enri was enduring pain he didn't want, it seems he could have easily handled Darius. (Is that a wise conclusion, a safe one?) (It's the probable conclusion.)
"I'm going to hand the phone back to him so you can tell him yourself." Meaning, I'm trusting you to actually tell him all that.
Meaning, I'm keeping my word.
Meaning, It's better, coming from you.
"I'll -" A heavy exhale through his nose. It's been a long fucking day and it's still barely noon. "I guarantee that I'll defend Enri's autonomy. From you and from them, Darius. If he wants to come back to you in an hour, then I'll help however I can. I'm not going to promise anything else without knowing what he wants. Someone here needs to think about th-"
He stops sharply, abrupt and thoughtful, his eyes on Enri, whose hand is out for the phone already.
He heard, a moment ago, I need you to guarantee, and the words sink in wholly now.
That isn't the Darius Scarlett he knows. He would have said, Guarantee in on hour... or I'll have your guarantee, or something, something that conveyed his own rightful entitlement. His sovereignty, his manifest destiny. That's who Darius is.
Darius might as well be pleading for them to permit Enri to return.
And Alice thinks, Oh, Darius, you're in deep, aren't you? (Is this a game Darius can end in a week?) (Is this a game that won't destroy Enri?) (He'd like to reach out a hand and smooth back the boy's hair, but he suspects that would be the worst possible idea.) (This poor fucking kid.)
(...Maybe. Maybe poor Darius, too.)
(Darius, who might be in real fucking deep, is putting Enri first.)
"Sorry. Sorry. That was. Fucking uncalled for, and unfair of me. I - Yeah. I'm -" A breath. "Talk to Enri. I'll go...try to handle the clusterfuck."
Enri practically snatches the phone from him, too fixated on cramming it to his ear to give any sort of acknowledgement that Alice kept his word. As he straightens and turns to leave, he hears (and wishes he hadn't heard) Enri choke out, "Daddy."
no subject
He hears.
If Enri is willing. (Darius, taking into account Enri's needs.) (Darius called here, not ten minutes after Enri was yanked from him.)
Darius is weighing the boy's needs against his own wants, and there's no grudging tone to be found. He says he'll come here not because he wants to, but if Enri needs him. These aren't the words of a man who has been the subject of monetary settlements over unspeakable abuses.
In fact - now that Alice looks, the bites he can see look superficial. And Lydia said there were bruises at Darius's throat. Alice knows one thing about Darius: the other man roused at the implication of having a hand at his throat just like that. Put it together. Those weren't unwelcome wounds, and. And if Enri was enduring pain he didn't want, it seems he could have easily handled Darius. (Is that a wise conclusion, a safe one?) (It's the probable conclusion.)
"I'm going to hand the phone back to him so you can tell him yourself." Meaning, I'm trusting you to actually tell him all that.
Meaning, I'm keeping my word.
Meaning, It's better, coming from you.
"I'll -" A heavy exhale through his nose. It's been a long fucking day and it's still barely noon. "I guarantee that I'll defend Enri's autonomy. From you and from them, Darius. If he wants to come back to you in an hour, then I'll help however I can. I'm not going to promise anything else without knowing what he wants. Someone here needs to think about th-"
He stops sharply, abrupt and thoughtful, his eyes on Enri, whose hand is out for the phone already.
He heard, a moment ago, I need you to guarantee, and the words sink in wholly now.
That isn't the Darius Scarlett he knows. He would have said, Guarantee in on hour... or I'll have your guarantee, or something, something that conveyed his own rightful entitlement. His sovereignty, his manifest destiny. That's who Darius is.
Darius might as well be pleading for them to permit Enri to return.
And Alice thinks, Oh, Darius, you're in deep, aren't you? (Is this a game Darius can end in a week?) (Is this a game that won't destroy Enri?) (He'd like to reach out a hand and smooth back the boy's hair, but he suspects that would be the worst possible idea.) (This poor fucking kid.)
(...Maybe. Maybe poor Darius, too.)
(Darius, who might be in real fucking deep, is putting Enri first.)
"Sorry. Sorry. That was. Fucking uncalled for, and unfair of me. I - Yeah. I'm -" A breath. "Talk to Enri. I'll go...try to handle the clusterfuck."
Enri practically snatches the phone from him, too fixated on cramming it to his ear to give any sort of acknowledgement that Alice kept his word. As he straightens and turns to leave, he hears (and wishes he hadn't heard) Enri choke out, "Daddy."
He closes the door behind him. Christ.