“Are you all right?”
Felipe nodded and took a shaky breath as he straightened.
“Here, let me grab something.”
Gingerly extricating himself from under Felipe’s form, Oliver picked through his discarded coat until he found a folded handkerchief. He handed that one to Felipe before grabbing the other he had used at the church to blow his nose for himself.
“You’re very lucky my job is messy. I always carry extras,” Oliver said with a tight smile as he wiped himself off. “Sorry, body fluids are just... It’s hard for me, but I don’t mind this as much. I hope it was good for you.”
Felipe blinked at him, his mind still catching up with what Oliver was saying. He didn’t like being dead, but Christ almighty, that tether might actually be the death of him. If Oliver was willing, he was going to take advantage of that as much as he could.
“It was. I think we both needed that.” Cleaning himself off, Felipe let his head fall back against the wall as Oliver gathered their clothing from the floor. His body still felt boneless from doing it standing, and the last thing he wanted to do was move. Felipe ran a tired hand over his face. Maybe he was getting too old for fucking without a bed.
“So is there anything regarding the case you want to talk about?”
“Now, you want to talk?” Oliver replied with feigned exasperation as he handed Felipe his clothing.
Felipe sighed and threw on his shirt. “Not really, but it’s frustrating that we didn’t really get anything out of this trip. Apart from doing this, of course.”
“Well, we do know the murderer is a member of the Paranormal Society, which isn’t exactly a comforting thought.”
“No, and I can’t imagine who would have a tie to the monastery. We can’t exactly interrogate everyone. If we knew who could control air or had telekinesis, that would be significantly easier, though I guess we could ask around.”
As Oliver slipped on his waistcoat, he froze, his eyes going distant in thought.
“What?”
“It might be nothing. It probably is. Forget I didn’t say anything.”
Stepping closer, Felipe caught Oliver’s nervous gaze. “Just tell me.”
“Head Inspector Williams was a sailor before he came to work here, right? Well, what is most useful to sailors?”
Felipe’s fingers stilled on his buttons at the realization. “Controlling the sea or the air.”
“I would assume telekinesis would be equally useful, and he made it clear he wanted the case wrapped up quickly from the start.”
“So Head Inspector Williams could have killed Sister Mary Agnes and tried to murder me. But why?”
“I don’t know, but you did say the killer was devilishly strong.”
“They were, and this morning at breakfast, Newman stopped by my table.” Oliver crinkled his nose, but Felipe continued, “He said, he sent his report on our case to the head inspector’s office figuring it would be disseminated to me. But I never got a report. Maybe the head inspector didn’t forward it to me because he thought I would be dead already.”
Perching on the arm of the chair, Oliver frowned. “What do we do with this information? I don’t know anyone above the head inspector we can go to.”
“I don’t know. The capital branch, maybe? But I think we should wait until we know for sure before we contact them. If we don’t have evidence, they won’t even entertain us.”
“So we won’t tell anyone about the case, hers or yours? I sort of told Turpin someone was attacked in the society and to stay on guard, though I didn’t give details. He suggested we tell the head inspector, but he didn’t seem eager to get involved.”
Felipe sighed. This was all such a goddamn mess. He didn’t mind hiding information from his employer, if necessary, but the lack of recourse worried him. Head Inspector Williams was respected and admired with his position and military record. If he wanted Felipe dead and Oliver out of the way, he could do it with little fuss. They would have to be smart about this. Stay busy and out of the way and hope the head inspector didn’t try to make a second attempt on his life if he caught him alone. Slipping on his coat, a wave of exhaustion passed over Felipe at the thought of spending his final week laying low, constantly on edge. The case wasn’t only about him, but he wished he could scrap it and spend his time doing... He didn’t know what. Besides work, there was little else. Oliver gently squeezed his shoulder, breaking his reverie.
“I don’t know if you would be opposed, but I was hoping I could clean up and rest a little before we head to your wife’s house. Would you like to join me?”
As Oliver watched his face, his gaze flickered to the space under his eyes where Felipe knew dark circles were forming despite his and his body’s best efforts. Years of running, years of fighting, years of his life consumed by this job, and all he wanted was a few hours rest in Oliver Barlow’s arms. Felipe swallowed against the knot in his throat. His life had shortened to a handsbreadth. He should want to be out doing things, but he would rather waste a few hours in peace with good company than fill it with excitement for the hell of it. He wondered what that said about his life.
Flashing Oliver his best approximation of a charming smile, Felipe hoped the other man didn’t notice the way it didn’t reach his eyes. “I would love to.”
