Wendy’s smile grew even wider. “Changing room’s thatta way,” she said, pointing towards a door at the other end of thehall. “Come on, it’s a rite of passage. We’ve all done it, even the sarge.”
Hell.
He was in hell, and it was going to be a slow and painful death.
After nearly two hours of cops and robbers they were finally back on the road, and Johnny was in an absolutely foul mood.
Wendy hummed, fingers laced together across her lap as she grinned at him. “Well, your people skills need some work but you had the scowl down pat. I think you’d even give Amil a run for his money.”
Johnny scowled some more. “My people skills are fine.”
Wendy laughed, resting her foot against the dashboard. “It’s all part of policing Dingly, I’m afraid. They loved having a big strong alpha to manhandle, and who are we to deny them a little bit of fun before they croak it?” She batted her eyelashes, which did nothing to put him in a better mood.
“Taylor liked the outfit though,” she continued. “Said it really brought out your eyes.”
Johnny let out a long,longbreath, becauseof courseshe’d sent him a picture. “Did you have to?”
“Of course I did. Your arse looked fantastic in those trousers.”
“Because they were about three sizes too small.”
Wendy shrugged. “You say too small, I say just right. Like I said, it’s a rite of passage. Taylor’s time will come, don’t you worry. Honestly, you should have seen Amil the first time he was the bad guy. Funniest thing I’ve ever witnessed. He didn’t talk to me for days.”
That raised the tiniest of smiles from Johnny’s stony expression. “Can I get away with not speaking to you for days?”
Wendy grinned. “Why? Gotta get away with teasing you whilst I can.”
Johnny had been about to say that perhaps she should think about retiring when the radio crackled to life. “Delta three six.”
“Oh that’s us,” Wendy said, pressing her thumb to her radio. “Go ahead, control.”
“Thank you. Three six, we’ve got a disturbance coming in at Tumpnel’s grocers, are you free to attend?”
Wendy groaned. “Ah fuck, I know exactly who that is,” she said, rubbing her cheek. “Actually, control, we’re?—”
“Delta three six. Yes, we’re free,” Johnny said, pressing his own radio.
Wendy’s face blanched in a look of horror. “No, you idiot!”
“Thank you, three six. We’ve got reports of a male causing damage to the premises. The owner called it in, and the call handler could hear glass smashing in the background.”
Johnny nodded. “Understood. We’re making our way there now.”
Wendy threw her head back and groaned. “Now you’ve done it.”
“Why?”
She sighed. “You’ll see. But glove up. In fact, double glove. You’re going to need it.”
People parted like the red sea when he and Wendy entered the shop. Some were hurrying to get out, others looked like they were about to vomit, but everyone,everyonewas covering theirnoses. Johnny’s nostrils twitched as the acidic stench of shit hit him in the face like a wet sock.
“Jesus,” he said, throwing an arm over his face.
“Here we go,” Wendy said, snapping her blue latex gloves into place. “You asked for it, big man. Now, prepare to meet Sylvester.”
“Sylvester?” he said, pulling on his own gloves as they made their way through the shop aisle by aisle.
What presented itself to Johnny was the most repugnant thing he’d ever seen. A man with dirty blond hair and a crooked jaw lying on his back, legs and arms flailing around, like a very fat, very naked upside-down turtle.
