Blood Red

“I learned that ‘rush job’ don’t mean shit to the losers who do DNA tests. They won’t have anything solid for at least another forty-eight hours.” Unlike Danny, he spoke with his mouth full. He was capable of doing two things at once. “I learned that Captain O’Neill is a real hardass when he wants a problem solved and it ain’t happening fast enough. I learned from a phone call that we have a lot of crows in town.”

“Golly.”

“Yeah, no shit, right?”

“Any new developments?”

“No. I think that’s enough for one day.”

“This is fuckin’ stupid. What? We have a white slave ring in town now?”

“Maybe. Stranger shit than that happens all the time.”

“Yeah? Like what?”

“Loch Ness Monster.”

“There is no Loch Ness Monster.”

“Sure, instead there are just rocks that turn people into jelly and we have a race of human lemmings sneaking out every night.”

“I’m telling you, Richie, there’s something about those rocks in the bay. They don’t look right, they don’t feel right.”

“Anyway, so guess who got bailed out?”

Danny stared at him with a half-chewed shrimp in his mouth and forgot to finish chewing. His handsome model’s face went red around the edges.

“You better not fuckin’ say Freemont.”

“So I won’t say it.” Boyd shrugged.

“What kind of asshole would bail that prick out of jail?”

Boyd finished attacking an onion ring before he answered. He liked to make Danny sweat. It was a cheap and easy thrill, but he would take them where he could get them.

“Does the name Tom Pardue mean anything to you?”

“You were right, Richie. We should have shot the bastard when we had the chance.”

“Which bastard, Pardue or Freemont?”

“Yes.”

“There’s always tomorrow, Danny.”

“We could go looking today.”

“No, we’re on the shit list. No way is O’Neill gonna approve the overtime.”

“Fuck it. I ain’t poppin’ them for free.”

“Not what you said about those stewardesses.”

“Believe me, there was nothing to pop.”

“Spoken like a sexist pig.”

“Takes one to know one.”

“Screw this. We’ve been running around town all damned day. I say we call it a night.” Boyd covered his mouth with his napkin and belched as softly as he could. He loved onions, but they seldom loved him back.

“Yeah, that’s great.” Danny murdered another fried shrimp and washed it down with a gulp of coffee. “We can go on home and wake up to twice as many disappearances tomorrow. That’d be like the third night in a row.”

Boyd dropped his napkin and stared hard at Danny. “I wish that was a joke, Danny.”

“What?”

“That’s scary shit there.”

“What do you mean?”

Boyd held up a finger and thought hard. “You aren’t right, but you’re close. It’s getting bigger. Whatever these disappearances are, it’s getting bigger.”

Danny looked back at him and scowled. “Well, screw this. I want a raise.”

VIII

Maggie met Tom at his place, a large Cape Cod that had more class than he would ever be able to manage. It looked damned good. He still looked like a monkey.

“So what’s up, Tom?”

“Not even a hello kiss?”

“Don’t hold your breath.”

He held the door for her, a regular gentleman. She managed not to roll her eyes and instead nodded her thanks. She was feeling better as the day grew long. That was a plus.

She’d just realized that turning her back on Monkey Boy was a mistake when she felt the needle slip into her hip.

“What the hell?”

Tom pulled back a syringe and smiled. “Just something to calm you down, baby. You’ve been too tense lately.”

Her skin felt tender, but aside from that she didn’t feel any different. “I told you when we started this that I don’t do shit like that!”

Tom smiled and nodded. “This one is a surprise. Believe me, you’ll thank me later.”

“Fuck you. I’m out of here.”

He stood back and raised his arms in surrender. She didn’t like that very much either, because it meant he thought he had the upper hand. Maggie dug into her jeans pocket and pulled out her pepper spray. If this was going to get ugly, she intended to make sure she could get away.

She stormed the door and walked outside. Tom let her pass without a word.

“It’s done, Tom. I’m sick of this shit and I’m sick of you. I quit.”

“Maggie, don’t be that way, baby. We have a long history together.”

“It’s done! I don’t want anything more from you and you’re not getting anything more from me. Over. Done. Finished.”

“Well, it was fun, Maggie.” He was smiling and that got her deeply worried.

“What did you do to me, Tom?”

“Nothing you won’t live through.”

Her knees buckled and the pepper spray fell from her numbed fingers. Before she could hit the ground, Tom was there catching her.

“See? Nothing deadly. It’ll wear off in a little while.” His tone was as falsely sweet as she had ever heard. “And by then, all the fun and games will be ready.”

The feeling started coming back to her legs and arms, but only because the numbness was going elsewhere. It was creeping into her head, seeping through her senses like smoke through a screen door.

When Tom urged her to stand, Maggie did so without hesitation. She couldn’t think of a reason not to.