Page 64 of Girl, Remembered

Edis put him about fifty years old. He was wide, overweight, bearded, grey. He stood frozen like a statue with his arms by his side.

‘Hands up! William Edis with the FBI.’ He pointed his gun at the man. ‘Who are you?’

‘My name’s Colin, and I’m sorry,’ the man muttered.

‘What are you doing on my property?’

‘Hiding.’

‘Did you break my window?’

‘No. I did not.’

‘Sure,’ Edis said. ‘How long have you been here?’

The man – Colin, apparently – checked his watch on his stubby wrist. ‘Ten minutes.’

No obvious category of intruder was apparent for this person. He emitted none of the usual signs of homelessness, nor did anything about him suggest he was a junkie. Another option was burglar. Another was he was here to meet a lady of the night. Empty buildings were cheaper than motels.

‘I’ll ask you again – why are you here?’

‘Because I was invited.’

‘By who?’

A smile broke the man’s rigid expression. And it happened at the same time Edis felt something solid press firmly into the back of his skull.

He couldn’t call it muscle memory because it was the first time it had ever happened. However, by some instinct, perhaps one subconsciously absorbed by osmosis after a lifetime in the game, he knew that the object pressing against his head was the barrel of a Smith & Wesson M&P Shield Plus pistol.

‘Drop the weapon,’ the stranger said.

Another man.

In his peripheral vision, he saw black shoes and – if his mind wasn’t playing tricks on him – a briefcase.

Edis breathed deeply. He could open fire and pray for the best, or he could comply and risk giving up what might be his only chance of survival. Burglars and petty criminals didn’t tend to hold guns to your head.

The stranger pushed the gun further into the back of his head, meanwhile the stocky man in the toilet had conjured up a butcher’s knife.

‘What do you want?’ Edis asked.

‘We want you to drop the gun. Doctor’s orders.’

‘Not gonna happen,’ Edis said. ‘You’ll have to shoot me.’

‘Pride goeth before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.’

This time it was a different voice, from the other side of the room.

What the hell?

How many people are here?

Footsteps of the third man bounded off the floor. Edis felt his presence five feet away.

That made three of them.

Edis had walked into plenty of rooms in his life not knowing what was on the other side of the door, but he always knew who he was looking for.