Gloria typed something, lips twisting. “Fix? Please. All he fixed was his bill. Quack told me to cut back on screens. Might as well tell a fish to stop swimming. But he asked me out to dinner, so I guess I’ll see him again.”
He grunted. “Man’s got a good taste, at least.”
That drew her eyes from the monitor, sharp and surprised. She spun in her chair to look up at him, then let out a laugh that rattled in her throat. “Well, aren’t you suddenly a charmer! What’s got into you, Mr. Grumpy? You’re practically glowing. Don’t tell me you’ve been sneaking vitamins.”
He shifted, uncomfortable under her scrutiny, and took another drag instead of answering. Smoke curled slow from his lips.
Gloria smirked. “Or have you got yourself a new sweetheart, mm?”
Rick felt the heat spreading across his face. He hoped to God he wasn’t blushing. “Something like that.”
“Ha!” Gloria squawked. “I knew it.” She swiveled back to the computer, muttering, “Big man walks in here with a spring in his step, you think I don’t notice? I’ve been doing this too long.”
To his relief, the system chirped. A green light blinked across the display.
Gloria’s expression tightened. “Well, I’ll be damned.” She tapped the overlay with a painted nail. “Perfect match. That’s your boy, no doubt.” She hit a key and the printer whirred, spitting out the official record.
Rick stubbed his cigarette into her ashtray, leaving a gray scar among the filters. He picked up the paper, tucking it under his arm. “Appreciate it,” he said, tone low.
Gloria huffed, but there was warmth in her expression. “You better, Superman.”
He gave her a nod and headed for the door. Pulse hammering, sharp with the thrill of a break, yet a weight in his gut kept step with it.Would it really be that easy?Easy never sat right. But easy or not, he had enough for a warrant.
Frank’s phantom voice rumbled in his head:‘Always looking a gift horse in the mouth, huh? Bust that son of a bitch already and be done with it.’He wished the bastard were here to say it out loud.
As he cut down the corridor toward the elevators, Rick pulled out his phone and thumbed through his contacts. For a long moment, he only stared at the name glowing back at him, jaw locked, thumb hovering. Then he pressed the dial. The line rang twice before Ash answered.
“Yeah?”The voice came guarded, edged raw with caution and distance.
Rick swallowed. “Hey.” His throat felt dry. “Just wanted to check in. See how your search is going.”
Ash’s reply was clipped, businesslike.“No luck so far. The Green Fairy was a bust. Fresh hire at the bar, wasn’t aroundback then. Spent the day greasing palms, chasing shadows. Everyone had plenty of silence to sell me. But I’ll turn up something tonight.”There was a slight pause.“That what you called for?”
Rick leaned his weight against the wall, head tilting as if the plaster could steady him. “I… wanted to hear your voice.”
There was a pause, the faint scratch of a lighter, then smoke drifted down the line with Ash’s softened tone.“I can take care of myself, Rick. I’ve done it all my life. So quit worrying. You’ll give yourself an ulcer.”
Rick huffed a low laugh. “Lycan physiology, remember? Can’t get ulcers.”
Ash exhaled smoke into the line, audible even through static. He wasn’t laughing.
Rick’s grin faded; his hand dragged over his face. “Listen. I just got confirmation—Frost’s prints matched the ones from the scene.”
For a moment, the line carried nothing but breath. Then Ash’s voice dipped lower, thoughtful.“So he really is our guy.”
“Seems so.” Rick’s fingers tightened around the phone. “I’m moving toward an arrest, but… I wanted you to hear it from me.” He hesitated, words scraping. “And I wanted to say I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have pushed you the way I did.”
The silence that followed was thick, but not empty. Finally, Ash sighed.“Guess I overreacted, too.”
“Still.” Rick’s thumb tapped against the case, a nervous tic he couldn’t stop. “I don’t want things left sour between us.”
“Me neither.”Ash’s reply was quieter now, warmed with something almost tender.
The tightness in Rick’s chest eased, his stance loosening as if the wall behind him had let him breathe again.
“Anyway,”Ash went on, lighter but steady,“I’ll see if I can dig up more to nail Frost down proper. The case deserves more than a single fingerprint, and so does Jimmy.”
“Ash,” Rick started, tone turning serious. “The killer’s still on the hunt. He needs one more victim, remember? And you—”
