Final Admission by Sue Brown

Author:Sue Brown [Brown, Sue]
Language: eng
Format: epub, pdf

Nine

WALKING BACK into the office building first thing Monday morning, Ethan almost skipped a step in excitement, just at the idea of actual human interaction. In their office, Antonia was taking off her coat and shaking off the light layer of snow. She looked up as Ethan walked in.

“Morning, Ethan, you survived the storm, then?”

“Morning, Toni, I did, thanks to a trip to the grocery store. Otherwise I’d have been living on mac and cheese.”

Shuddering at the thought, she said, “That stuff is only good for wallpaper paste. Don’t tell me that’s all you normally eat.”

“Pretty much.” Ethan took off his coat. “I don’t bother cooking just for myself.”

Antonia pulled a face. “That isn’t cooking,” she protested. “That’s boiling a kettle. What about proper food?”

As he hunted in his desk for a cup, Ethan said, “I wait ’til I go home to my mom. She feeds me right. Ah ha, coffee?” He held up his cup. “Coffee first?” he asked.

“Sounds good,” she agreed. “We’re the only ones in today. Ed is on vacation and Peter is still stuck at home. He can’t get out of the drive yet.”

“Peter’s got kids, hasn’t he?” Ethan asked.

“Four. And he’s been trapped in the house with them for a week.”

They looked at each other and burst out laughing. Jeez, Ethan thought he’d had it bad.

Antonia grinned at him. “Last time I spoke to him, he was discussing an escape route, but Julie would cut off his balls if he left her alone with that bunch of monsters.”

Somehow Ethan couldn’t see the mild-mannered Peter with screaming kids. “Are they that bad?”

She shuddered as they went into the small kitchen. “Worse. I’ve never met kids like them. I would have fucking killed ’em by now.”

The door opened, and they looked up to see Leanne hovering in the doorway. Her face was pale and Ethan’s heart sank. It didn’t take a genius to work out she didn’t have good news to impart.

“Mr. Williams, could you get your drink and join me in my office, please.”

“Yes, Ms. Cauldwell,” he said with a worried glance at Antonia. Shit, was he about to lose his job? He knew things weren’t going well with MacFarlane, but he was still new in the job.

Antonia pressed his mug of coffee into his hands with a whispered “Good luck!”, and he followed Leanne back to her office.

Once inside, his boss surprised him by taking the coffee out of his hands and pushing him down on the small sofa.

“Er, Leanne, Ms. Cauldwell—” Ethan started and then stopped as Leanne held up her hand.

“James’s in the hospital,” she said without preamble.

Ethan felt the blood drain out of his face.

It must have been obvious, because Leanne said, “If you think you’re going to pass out, put your head between your knees.”

Ignoring her order, he asked, “What did that bastard do this time?” Forget fainting. Anger was coiling in his gut and he was ready to hunt down Clayton Fisher and stake him through the heart.

“James was at Clay’s parents’ house.

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