Can’t argue with that. A message, then. “And where is he now?”
“Lauren’s watching him. He’s been at his office all day. You want to have a chat with him?”
“Not yet.” No reason to raise the alarm until I’m ready. “Keep me updated. Do you know if anyone else on our payroll is missing?”
“I checked with Nox, and he said everyone is accounted for as of three a.m. today.”
“Tell him to check again.” I want to be absolutely sure there isn’t a pattern. If it’s only Casey, that adds a tick in the connection column. As if there aren’t already enough.
Heat prickles at the back of my neck, right before Xavier approaches from behind, shoulder ghosting against mine. “Well?”
“Your old friend Vickers is up to his tricks again. Theodore believes this was him. I’m inclined to agree.” There’s a certain brutality to it that most wouldn’t bother with. It takes coordination, effort, and a distinct lack of respect.
Hunter stands close enough to me that I can smell his cologne, with Xavier flanking my opposite side. The mixture of the two scents is strangely enticing. They’re nothing alike but blend well together. If I were into touching, I might want to bury my nose in their necks and take a good smell of it. Maybe get a taste.
Adam joins us a moment later, yanking black latex gloves from his hands. “Bodies are bagged. Body is bagged? Parts of the body are bagged. All of Casey is in a bag. Singular. It’s still one body; he fit in a bag.”
Hunter raises his eyebrows in amusement. “Good to know.”
“I aim to be helpful,” Adam says lightly. “There’s no trauma, bruising, signs of torture or a prolonged death. It was quick and clean, which we can be thankful for. All the cutting-him-up part happened after. It’s a scare tactic, not meant to punish him but us.”
I suppose I could attempt to return the favour and make it quick. “Make sure you speak to his family and then have him transported to a funeral home.” With the state of his body, a car accident is the only plausible way to sweep it under the rug. A better kind of closure for the family than murder.
“I want him taken to my guy,” Hunter says firmly.
He means Maverick, the man who works for Hunter, and owns both a morgue and a funeral home. Good for any kind of job they need. Not somethingweneed, in this instant. “We already know who did it.” Any kind of autopsy done is a formality, not a requirement. It will allow us to smooth the way legally, and that’s all. If it weren’t possible, we would simply make him disappear. Doing it this way allows the family to grieve and know.
In terms of our current situation, the finger sent to Hunter doesn’t belong to Casey, and he has specific markings that lead us right to the killer. No need for further investigation down this path.
“All the same, I want him looked at by someone that I trust.”
“It’s unnecessary.” His lack of trust is his problem, not mine. We have our own systems in place for this kind of thing. He can stick to his side, and we’ll stick to ours.
“I wasn’t asking for your opinion.”
Xavier lays a brief hand on my elbow, the lightest touch before retreating. “Take him to Maverick,” he says to Theodore, who nods and looks curiously between us. My face betrays nothing. If I have an issue with Xavier’s orders, I’ll speak to him in private about it.
“Liaise with Six; if Mav finds anything worth our interest”—Hunter glances at me, gaze flashing in challenge—“that you don’t already know, he’ll send word.”
He’s deliberately trying to goad me.
“Hot damn, I’m there,” Adam says with a wolfish grin. “It’s been too long since I’ve seen my favourite sword-wielding agent. Do you think he misses me? He talks about me, right? I know he does.”
“Greerwillmurder you if you keep flirting with Six, and I won’t do a thing to stop him,” Hunter says mildly. “In fact, I’ll look the other way and provide an airtight alibi.”
“It’s no fun if there’s no danger.” With a wink, Adam heads off, whistling to himself.
Theodore sighs. “I’ll make sure he doesn’t get himself killed and then make sure the body gets to Maverick. Call me if you need anything else.”
“That will be all for now, thank you, Theodore,” Xavier says. “If you discover anything urgent, tell us immediately.” He doesn’t expect anything new to come from this any more than I do. It’sa dead end, in a sense. We know who was responsible, and we’ll follow that thread. Casey has come to an end. Someone willpay for what happened to him, with interest.
Theodore nods and heads in the same direction as Adam, disappearing around the corner, leaving the three of us on the quiet street alone.
Xavier rubs his bottom lip thoughtfully. “I wasn’t expecting that.”
“No.” Vickers seems to emerge like a cockroach, at all the wrong times. It doesn’t sound like our last conversation stuck. “I’ll pay him a visit.” He may even come out of it alive.
“Not yet.”
