Somatesthesia by Ann Somerville

Author:Ann Somerville
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Tags: M/M SciFi/Futuristic, Source: Amazon
ISBN: 9781605049861
Publisher: Samhain Publishing
Published: 2010-04-20T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Eleven

Connor returned to Covington three days after that conversation, having taken two days of his accumulated vacation to spend time with Raj, and to avoid Devlin. Cowardly, certainly, but Devlin did things to Connor’s self-control, and there was too much at risk. Perversely he was disappointed as much as relieved to discover he had indeed managed to avoid Devlin who’d departed to his family’s home the day before Connor arrived. It had been an abuse of his seniority to ask his partner to return separately—something about which Devlin could have made a legitimate complaint—but the only comments he received had been to pass on Devlin’s gratitude for Connor allowing him a few more precious days with his family before Thanksgiving.

It made him feel like a fraud and a fool, and the praise he’d received from Angelina Menezes for a job well done sounded hollow to his overly enabled ears.

“We didn’t catch him,” he said, interrupting her enthusiastic assessment. “For all we know, he’s setting up in another city, preparing another round of kidnappings.”

“Possibly, but it’s equally possible he’s given up. Connor, nothing you could have done would have changed the result, and if you hadn’t detected who and how, that little girl would almost certainly have died. You’re too hard on yourself.”

Not as hard as he deserved, though. “Do you want me to delay taking my accumulated downtime?”

“Not at all, and in fact, I’ve been ordered to make you take another week of your vacation. We don’t want you burning out.”

“Three weeks? I haven’t got anything to do requiring that amount of leave.”

“Find something,” she said. “I’ve told Devlin to take the extra week too, for the same reason.”

“He’s only just started.”

“In this department, yes, but he’s got six weeks’ vacation accumulated and Health and Safety are cracking down on it. If you feel guilty, I’ll let you work over Christmas, okay?”

A joke, of course, since Connor was only too happy to work the festive season, having no pressing reason to spend it with his father who abhorred the whole business, or his brothers who had friends and family of their own to occupy them. “Devlin might not appreciate that.”

“He’s already agreed. You’re two of a kind. I’m so glad to see you working out so well together.”

No trace of irony in her tone. Devlin had done a very good job of keeping things quiet, perhaps for selfish reasons, but it gave Connor breathing space. Now all he had to do was hide the depths of the disaster from his father. Fortunately, Otou-san was no more attuned to human emotional idiosyncrasies than Connor.

Angelina told him to go on leave from the end of the day he came back, and with his apartment already mothballed for a long absence, the easiest thing was to take himself to his father’s house near Campton. He sent a message to say he was coming, and two hours later, arrived at a still and silent house. His room was ready, of course, and supper left by the housekeeper.

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