I’d burn a hole in the fucking pavement just to get back to her sooner. She’s all alone in that house without me, and it’s driving me crazy.
Oh…burn!
Tar’s flammable, right?
I turn for my car, finding a lighter in the glove box. Perfect.
I haven’t removed my gloves, so tossing this should not be a problem. If there is anything left, they’ll never be able to pull a print from it. Flicking the lighter open and sparking the flame, watching it dance before my eyes. “Goodnight, Stephen,” I mutter under my breath as I toss the naked flame onto the tar, igniting a small fire that rapidly grows. The flames reflect in my eyes as I turn away, knowing that soon enough, I’ll be back with her.
I stop by the Orion on the way, picking up a change of clothes from my office and grabbing a small bag of essentials. When I turn to leave, a pair of amber eyes on a five-foot-nothing frame stop me in my tracks. “Mrs. Grimsby.” I smile down at her; she’s having none of it.
Instead, she charges into my office, her cheeks puffing up like a beaver. “It’s Greengot!”
“Hard to tell nowadays.” I shrug, closing the door behind her and sealing us in. “Murphy, Quinn, Ryan, Grimsby.” I list every surname she has ever had. “I can’t keep up with all the name changes.”
She huffs and crosses her arms, clearly unimpressed with my attempt at humour. “Are you trying to stitch me up?”
I arch an eyebrow, genuinely confused by her accusation. “Excuse me?”
Her amber eyes narrow as she leans forward, her voice laced with suspicion. “You know exactly what I mean. Are you trying to set me up for something?”
My head tilts to the side, and my confusion deepens. “Are you taking your pills, Éabha?”
“Aiden James Quinn!” She roars like a mountain lion. “I’ve already done time for one of your murders; I’m not going back for another!”
“Alleged,” I interject.
“Whatever!”
“Why would I want to set you up? I mean, it’s not like you robbed me blind, broke my heart, and set me up to get violated with a latex glove by a prison guard or anything.”
She pauses briefly, then growls, “I hope he got the whole hand up there.”
“Why do you think you’re being set up?” I ask, walking around my desk and dropping into my seat.
“A lot of Walsh’s associates are going missing. A lot of people we both had ties to, Aiden.”
“I can assure you that the fact that these men belong to Walsh is just a happy coincidence. What makes you think that I’m involved?” I get up, brushing the hair from her face, to check her ears for a wire or any other listening devices. Then pull her dress up over her head, revealing a clean slate underneath.
“What the hell!” Éabha shrieks. “Get the hell off me! I’m not wearing awire!”
“Prove it! The bra is next,” I demand, holding her gaze.
Éabha’s eyes widen in disbelief, she quickly unclasps her bra and throws it to the ground. “There, satisfied?”
“Ecstatic, just be thankful you chose a thong and not granny panties, or I would have had to take those off too.”
Éabha rolls her eyes and crosses her arms, clearly annoyed. “Can we please get back to the matter at hand now?” she demands, pulling her clothes back on and adjusting herself.
“Please do; I have places to be.”
“These men, the ones that are vanishing are,” she pauses, taking my measure. “Just the type you like.”
“I think you’re confusing me with Robbie.”
“Rapists, Paedophiles, the worst of the fucking worst, Aiden. The kind you hunt. The kind you can make disappear.”
“All I’m hearing is that the streets are safer, and that justice is being served,” I shrug.
