The Love-Haight Case Files by Jean Rabe Donald J. Bingle

Author:Jean Rabe, Donald J. Bingle [Jean Rabe, Donald J. Bingle]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: WordFire Press
Published: 2015-07-01T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter 2.14

Dagger found Franklin Arnold in his office. He’d gone to the man’s house first, and a reluctant and sufficiently intimidated butler revealed that “Mr. Arnold is working late tonight.” Evelyn had mentioned Arnold looking like a horse. Dagger concurred. The man’s face was overly long and his long gray hair was like a mane. But where a horse’s eyes appeared soulful, Arnold’s were cold and hard like buttons.

“I received a call that said to expect a tattered, barefoot man,” Arnold said. He closed the screen on his laptop. “How did you get past security?”

Dagger didn’t answer. He took a look around the office. The carpet was thick and felt good against the soles of his feet. It smelled pleasantly musky, and he sucked in a few deep breaths, hoping to rid the last of the undead stench from his lungs. The room was larger than Thomas Brock’s entire law office and was richly appointed. One leather chair probably cost twice what Gretchen’s desk had set Brock back. He glided forward, appreciating the deep pad under the carpet, and dropped his motorcycle helmet bag on Arnold’s desk.

“How about you leave Thomas Brock and Evelyn Love alone.” Dagger didn’t pose it as a question. “Brock’s dead, your hit mostly succeeded. And you and your wife targeting Evey? That stops. All of it stops.”

Arnold glanced at the lumpy looking bag.

“Mr. McKenzie—”

Dagger showed no surprise that Arnold knew who he was.

“And there’s more to this bargain,” Dagger continued. “Change your building plans. The ones with the gargoyles … leave them the hell alone. Consider it a trade for what’s in the bag and what I’ve got pictures of. I can e-mail you copies of the pics, if you’d like. Pics of indentured servants your OT wife had murdered. Pics of your OT wife. But I won’t send them to the Chronicle or anywhere else if you leave the gargoyles and their buildings alone.”

“Mr. McKenzie—”

“And, like I said, no more attempts on Evelyn Love.”

“Ordering a hit? On Thomas Brock? On his little assistant? That would be illegal, and beneath me. I play within the law. While I might help facilitate matters for a friend, I don’t personally cross the line. I don’t need to. Look elsewhere for your Thomas Brock woes, Mr. McKenzie. I’m not the man a dog like you should be sniffing around. And the ghost who holds your leash should be looking a little closer to home. A lot closer, actually.”

Dagger’s eyes narrowed. Arnold had just told him who had really ordered the hit on Thomas Brock. Dagger had to consider how and when to pass that unfortunate tidbit along.

“What is in the bag, Mr. McKenzie? This trade-off for leaving the gargoyles alone?”

“A gift. You can open it after I’m out of here. Hope you’re up to date on your shots.”

Arnold nudged the bag and it wiggled. Something inside started trying to claw its way out.

“Your wife,” Dagger added, “is a whole lot older than you think she is. By a few centuries, I’m betting.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.