Heists and Homicides by Lily Webb

Author:Lily Webb
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Lily Webb

Chapter Ten

No one answered, but I wasn’t surprised. The last time I went to the shop, it wasn’t yet out of commission. Now, however, it seemed Becker had vacated in a hurry — had something changed to accelerate his departure?

Desperate, I pounded on the door again, as hard as I could, and shouted Becker’s name. It was faint, but when I stopped knocking, something scraped against the floor inside, as soft as a set of fingernails raking up the leg of a pair of jeans.

“Becker?” I called. “It’s me, Zoe Clarke. If you’re in there, I’d really like to talk to you.”

Another scraping sound scurried out from under the crack at the bottom of the door, and a moment later one of Becker’s wild eyes appeared in the space between it and its frame.

“What’s going on in there? Are you okay?” I asked. The shuffling noises I’d heard sounded a bit too much like a body being dragged across the floor for my liking.

“Closing up for good. I’m almost done. You caught me at a bad time, can we talk tomorrow?” Becker asked.

“This won’t take long, just a few minutes, I promise,” I said. I didn’t want to drop a bomb on him just yet — maybe he didn’t know about Victor’s death, and if he was the one who committed the murder, I didn’t want to press too hard before I got the truth out of him.

Becker hesitated, but eventually pulled the door all the way open. I gasped when I saw his clean-shaven face.

“I know, it’s quite a different look for me, isn’t it?” Becker asked. “Honestly, that was part of the reason I didn’t want to see you. I’m not sure if I like it or not.”

He might’ve been telling the truth, but Selena’s words flashed in my mind: the masked murderer didn’t have a beard. Becker used to but now it was gone. Was it an unfortunate coincidence or…?

“But you don’t have to be afraid of me, I’m still the same old warlock. Come on in, but make it quick. I’ve got a lot of work left to do,” he said and though I worried I might be walking into a trap, I stepped into the shop and jumped when the door thudded shut. There was only one light on in the space, revealing stacks upon stacks of boxes, all of them positioned near the front door.

“Almost done?” I asked and Becker nodded.

“Yeah, finally. I have to be out of the building by Monday morning so I haven’t stopped for more than a few minutes at a time,” Becker said.

“Well, you stopped long enough to shave at least,” I said, stroking my chin like I might find his lost whiskers there. Becker chuckled.

“I had to for a job interview. No one would’ve even thought about hiring me with that caveman’s beard,” Becker said. An interview? That was news to me.

“Oh, where?”

Becker stared at the floor and scratched the back of his head.

“That new casino over in the Werewolves’ Quarter,” Becker said.

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