“Left wall is unstable, earth underneath it soaked through because of a burst water pipe, foundation sagging, wood just sawdust, mold everywhere, eating away at the structure, termites, a huge colony, the queen heavy with eggs, so many soldiers and workers, no, don’t get distracted, Andi, you need to know where it’s still safe, focus, open the door, Holway is upstairs, in a room close to the sagging wall, need to be careful, ceiling is broken, just held by plaster, careful now, the planks are rotting away, need to stay at the wall, not here though, one step to the middle, three forward, back to the wall, try to get your foot on the very edge, no weight to the side, here are the stairs, don’t touch the banister, stay away from it, not too close to the wall, the anchors are lose, half in the middle, careful, slowly, damn, he’s heard us, he has a weapon, quick, need to get upstairs, the floor is not as bad as the stairs, hurry, he’s trying to flee, no, don’t go there, it won’t hold, not when you run so fast, slow down, damn, it’s breaking, breaking, stay at the side, back down, too dangerous, no, he’s going for the balcony….”
George was already carefully but quickly retreating the same way they had come up half the stairs when he heard the sickening crunch of wood and plaster slowly caving in, the sound getting louder, more insistent, more threatening, like the rumble of an avalanche racing down the mountain. And like an avalanche, the noise was deafening when the ceiling broke, crashing into the first floor. Among the sounds of breaking wood and shattering tiles, George heard the pained screams of a human being, and for a terrible second, he thought he sensed the meaty thump of a body hitting the ground or being squashed, but that couldn’t be, not over the cacophony of sounds surrounding them. They made it safely down the stairs, and George let Andi squeeze past him to get them outside before the entire house collapsed on their heads. Andi moved fast, with an urgency that had George staying sharp at his partner’s heels. The moment they were through the main door, Andi jumped in a bid to get as far away as possible. George followed his example, and not a second too soon, because behind him, the noise tripled, accompanied by a sighing sound, as if the house was happy to be finally put to rest.
George rolled through the brownish grass, careful not to squish Andi, who was lying on his back, panting. One look back at the ruins they had just escaped from, and George knew it would take a miracle for Holway to still be alive. Why on earth the man had chosen this house as his hiding spot was beyond George. Then again, he himself had thought it was still fairly safe. He shuddered. If it hadn’t been for Andi, they would have gone in there with at least a half dozen police. George didn’t have to be a seer to know the outcome would have been devastating. He slowly pushed up on his elbows when Gentry and Mescew came running toward them. Mescew kneeled down next to Andi while Gentry offered George his hand to pull him up. When he was standing, George turned to where Andi was now sitting, his eyes closed, in obvious pain.
“My head is killing me.”
“Let’s get you back to the car. I have more ibuprofen there.” George helped Andi up and kept an arm around his waist while he briefly talked to Mescew and Gentry. “Can we leave this to you? I need to take care of Andi.”
Mescew glanced at the pile of debris that had been a house only minutes before. “I don’t think Holway is going anywhere. If he’s still alive, which I very much doubt. We’ll report this and tell the chief you were in the middle of it all and had to take the rest of the day off.”
“Thank you.” George started leading Andi toward the Escalade. His partner was leaning on him heavily, his body slightly shivering.
“There you are, sit down.” George helped Andi into the car, where he immediately went for the glove department to get the ibuprofen. He didn’t even bother to wait until George had opened a water bottle; he simply swallowed them dry. George hurried to get into the driver’s seat and start the car. The drive back to James Island seemed to take an eternity, though in reality it couldn’t have been more than twenty minutes. Andi looked half passed out in the passenger seat, his head lolled to the side as if he didn’t have the strength to keep it up. Getting him inside the house was difficult enough to make George grateful for the weight training he was doing. By the time he had Andi stripped down to his underwear and on the bed, he was sweating from the strain. Andi just slumped into the mattress with a groan, left it to George to pull the cover over him. When George turned toward the door, Andi called after him.
“Are you staying?”
“Of course.” George smiled when Andi grunted happily and went to sleep.
BREAKFAST WASa silent affair, Andi obviously still suffering from mental exhaustion and a headache. Experience had taught George that all his partner needed in this stage was quiet, some tea, and something plain to eat, hence the toast with butter (Kerrygold, unsalted, thank you very much) and apricot jam (some unknown-to-him brand but edible, if a little too sweet for his taste) for George while Andi was nibbling on just the bread. He stopped at their usual Starbucks to get more tea and coffee and a bagel for Andi who, at this point, was starting to show some interest in his surroundings besides groaning when the light hit his eyes the wrong way. When Andi bit into his bagel with a contented sigh, George risked asking him a question that had been bothering him the entire night.
“How come there were still arthropods in the house?”
“Huh?” Either Andi was too distracted with filling his stomach, or he really didn’t understand what George meant.
“Yesterday, at the house. You said it was close to collapsing, and you knew exactly where to tread, which means the arthropods knew it as well. So why didn’t they leave long ago?”
From the corner of his eye, George saw Andi staring at him as if he had lost his mind.
“You’re serious, aren’t you?”
“Yes?” George wasn’t sure why, but suddenly he felt stupid. Andi took a sip from his tea, then cursed a little because it was still too hot.
“They didn’t leave because everything was ideal as far as they were concerned. Arthropods have no concept of the future or the integrity of buildings. Everything I said in the house was how they saw it, translated into what it meant for us. For them it was some version of paradise until it wasn’t. End of story.”
“Damn. I was applying human standards to a completely different form of life—again.” George would have thumped his forehead against the steering wheel if they hadn’t been in the middle of traffic.
“Happens to the best of us. Don’t stress it.”
“But I do. I’m a detective. I should know better than to impose my own set thoughts on something else. I should be more open.” George wasn’t entirely sure why it bothered him so much; perhaps it was the stress of the case or the fact that he had started to think he understood the world Andi lived in, only to realize he was still very much an outsider.
“Man, I think you’re pretty open, considering what you put up with from me. Don’t be harder on yourself than I am.”
“You’re never hard on me.”
“Because you buy me clothes and feed me and put me to bed when I’m too exhausted to think clearly.” Andi was absolutely deadpan, and it yanked George out of his low.
“Fine. I get it. No being too hard on myself.”
“See how easy it is?” Andi tried another sip from his tea, and this time it seemed to be the right temperature because he followed it with a huge gulp.
George maneuvered the Escalade into the parking lot, using the familiar task of trying to find the perfect spot to calm his mind for the storm that would surely descend upon them the moment they entered the precinct. Gentry had written him a short text the day before that they had found Holway dead under the debris, and Chief Norris had tried to call them first on his and then on Andi’s cell at least five times. He had put both phones on mute, because he had been too drained to deal with her. It wouldn’t endear them to her, but having narrowly escaped a collapsing house was a valid reason to take half an afternoon off. Besides, George had realized he had lost all interest in playing nice with the chief.
The moment they entered the bullpen, Chief Norris was on them like a vulture on a cadaver, bellowing at them to come to her office. Even though she was seething, she seemed to have decided to try a new tactic, because once the door was shut and George and Andi had sat down, she simply stared at them without saying a word. It was kind of childish and stupid. Andi had no problem with peoplenot saying a thing. George wasn’t even sure his partner was aware that the silent treatment was supposed to make him feel uncomfortable and nervous, and George had two brothers and an overly dominant mother. Nothing Chief Norris could dish out came even close to what he had endured during childhood.
It was funny, really, the three of them sitting in the office, none of them saying a word. After about five minutes, Andi obviously decided that just sitting around was a waste of his time and started checking his texts. George had to summon every ounce of self-control he possessed when he saw the nervous tic starting in Chief Norris’s left eyelid. It was one of the first lessons George had learned from his mother—only play the silent game when you’re absolutely sure you’re going to win it. Otherwise you look like an idiot. Norris started tapping her fingers on the desk.
“Don’t you have something to tell me, Detectives?”
