The Emperor

by N. M. Brown

Shaking her head Anna stood stiff and aloof. “No.” Was all she wanted to say, but she wasn’t a girl to pass up the chance to talk about herself. “Not before today, though I can't see why anyone would want to. England is lovely, but Ireland is better. I don’t see why Canice thinks this place is so brilliant, why he-…”

  “Why he what?” Echo pressed.

  Their gazes met, but Anna quickly clamped down. “It doesn’t matter, but I will enjoy seeing Rippling. I wish to see the old history of it all, the charm that drew Canice hear. Maybe if we can both find it, the two of us will-….” Anna didn’t finish, becoming self -conscious, but Echo got the meaning. Join Canice, be with Canice, force him to love her again, blah, blah, blah.

  Smiling, Echo sat on the couch and enjoyed watching the mouse wander into the hawk’s nest. “Sounds fabulous. I’m sure Canice will be won over by your strong spirit. But it’s getting late and you’ve been traveling all day. We should crash and scheme tomorrow.”

  Anna spun on her toes, rubbing the back of her neck with a sigh. “I have, haven’t I. I didn’t even realise how tired I was.” She smiled. “I’ll enjoy getting a good night’s sleep in a comfortable bed.”

  “Oh… of-… course.” Echo stammered, biting hard on her anger as she spotted Anna's luggage, something Jacob must have brought up.

  Allowing her guest to get comfy, Echo twisted to the side and bit her tongue asher stitches pulled. She's only been shot some short weeks ago and she'd been told over and over the only reason she was alive was because of Detective McQueen. She owed so much to Detective McQueen. A life debt even.

  Echo would pay back this life debt, she told herself. Save the dear Detective from a life he didn’t want, perhaps. Save him from a life chained up, begging for freedom with every turn of his wedding ring. A life without his wife.

  Yes, Echo thought that would be an even trade.

  IV

  McQueen felt the sense of dread as he left his new apartment the next morning, the grey drizzle over head matching his mood. Anna was back. The memories of their life in Dublin was like a slow drip, coming back to him drop by drop. Everything was slowly unspooling and whatever semblance of a normal life he’d been building, was unwinding and he couldn't work out how to stop it.

  Moving out of the Spindle and Thread had been his chance to start again, to centre himself in Rippling and figure everything out. It was a change he needed so he could know what he wanted. But now Anna was back, only weeks later and McQueen still didn’t know anything. He’d left Dublin for reasons, the first and foremost because of his job, but there had been other reasons too.

  “She can stay if she has to McQueen?” Reese had kindly offered as McQueen had trudge through the door in the late evening. Seeing Echo and Anna off in a taxi had left him feeling hollow, and despite going back to the station, he’d got nothing done. Of course, there were no secrets in the station either, so McQueen wasn’t surprised that when he returned to the apartment he shared with the Twins, they'd already known.

  “Well I don’t want her here? She sounds horrible.” Roman piped up from the kitchen, sat on the counter with a mouth full of sugary cereal. “Besides, I like the current gender ratio: three man to one girl. Works for me.” Reese didn’t bother glaring at his brother, instead choosing to ignore his remark and focused on McQueen. Frankly, McQueen half expected Reese to walk around with a permanent squint due to everything his loud-mouth brother said.

  “We can compromise. Jess won’t mind. I don’t mind.”

  “It’d not a case of you ‘not minding’ Reese.” McQueen answered, rubbing his eyes as he collapsed in their open planned lounge. He hadn’t meant to sit, but now he had, he didn’t know if he could get up again. “Anna is… Anna-,” But he couldn’t finish. If he let Anna stay, she’d never leave, not unless it was back to their tiny village outside of Dublin, to their tiny apartment and back to how everything used to be. McQueen didn’t think he could do that, not yet anyway.

  “Anna is fine were she is now.” McQueen reconfirmed, not just for Reese or Roman, but for himself too. “I’m sure the Headly’s will look after her.”

  “That phyco whore House that according to all records, doesn’t exist and had a string of murders only the other week?” Roman scoffed, sending a bright pink cereal shape across the kitchen bench. “Yer, I’m sure she’ll be just fine.”

  McQueen sighed, knowing that in his heart what he was doing was wrong, but God had to forgive him. They had an understanding; a secret that chewed McQueen up from the inside, but He would understand. McQueen needed space and that meant Anna couldn’t stay with him. Not until he found the strength to look her in the eyes and not damn her to Hell.

  ◆◆◆

  Waking up that morning, McQueen had felt no better and despite the early grey dawn, he’d walked to the station, a lot turning in his mind. He’d been so preoccupied in fact, that he’d plodded across the station floor, wandering to the break room for a half decent cup of tea and back to his desk, before he even realised he had a visitor.

  He’s just been scanning over the few messages he’d bene left, when a chipper voice sounded from beside him, making him jump. “Good morning Canice darling. How’d you sleep?”

  McQueen blinked once, then twice as he took in the black cladded she-devil that sat beside his desk. “Echo-… what are you doing here? Again?” He suddenly tensed and looked over his shoulder, ready to see Anna, but when the mess of red curls didn’t bounce into view, he turned back. “When did you get in here?”

  “I’m an early riser when I want to be Canice. I walked.” She answered like it was obvious, peeking inside some of the folders that covered his desk. “And your receptionist goes on a pee-run at eight-o’clock on the dot, so it wasn’t like there was anyone to stop me.”

  At this point McQueen noticed she'd also helped herself to a steaming cup of tea and she watched him over the ceramic rim and took a long sip. The mug read ‘Dead Thirsty’ with a chalk outline and McQueen marvelled at how out of all the mugs in the break room to choose from, Echo could pick Hale’s.

  “Made yourself at home I see.” He commented, pulling his files away from her snooping eyes and gestured for her to move out of the way. “Look, if you’re here on some information request on behalf of Anna, I’m not interested. Anna and I know where we stand, and you don’t need to be brought into this.”

  Echo sighed, un-crossing her legs and pulled the chair closer to his desk. He made a quick note in his mind to hide that chair in some dark deep cupboard somewhere. “Well, luckily for you I’m not here for the Mrs.” McQueen waited for the other shoe to drop and like always, Echo made thhe undiluted acid churned in his stomach. Yet, the mischievous glint in her eyes dimmed and suddenly she was just there. Just her; no front, no persona, just Echo; someone he knew came out very, very rarely. “Thank you, for not letting me die.”

  The words were shot out so quickly, McQueen took a second to make sure he’d heard correctly. “Did you just-… thank me?”

  And just like that, Echo the person was gone and the shield were back up. Rolling her eyes, she gave him a devilish look. “Don’t let it go to your head Queenie. I’m not one to let a life debt go, so I'm here to repay the favour.” She winked. “I can pay by card, cash and sexual favours.”

  Shaking his head, McQueen turned to face Echo and paused. He knew she had a secret agenda; he knew better than to expect kindness from her heart, but that didn’t mean he lost his manners too.

  “Well, all I can say back is also thank you. Anna and I will sort things out shortly and she will be out of your hair. I’m sure I can find a B&B or something.”

  McQueen had come to that decision last night, telling himself he could penny-pinch while she was here. He’d visualised Anna in that house with people like that… unholy creatures of Hell and damnation. Demons or not, they were not nice people and he knew she couldn’t stay there. Even if Echo was crazy and it was all made up, her lifestyle wasn’t virtuous, and Anna was his wife under th
e eyes of God and their congregation. She’d been in white, he in a tux; until death do they part.

  So, he’d called Mrs. North from the Spindle & Thread, apologising for the time of night and begged for a room. However, she sadly told him all her rooms were full but not to worry calling so late, she never slept anyway. That hadn’t made him feel any better.

  He couldn’t afford a hotel and God only knew what she spent the salery he already sent send her on. Several times he’d had phones calls from their landlord telling him the rent was late again, or that repairs had to be paid for.

  McQueen had opted that not knowing was better than being dragged back, to Dublin, so sent whateverr money was needed. “I’m sure your family will be pleased to not have another person around. I’ll get Anna out of your way as soon as possible.” He promised.

  He expected an answer from Echo, some quip about his disastrous love life, but instead he was met with only silence. Looking up, he hadn't expect her nose to be buried in a files she’d slipped from his desk.

  “You can’t read those!” He snapped yanking the manila file from her grasp, realising with a shock she’d snooped through half of them already. Not only that, but the crude map of abduction sights, homes, schools and last seen reports, was open on her lap too.

  “Why are you looking for a bunch of missing parasites?” Echo mused holding up one photograph between pinched fingers like it was dirty underwear.

  “It’s a case.” He snapped. “Don’t be so horrid. These are people’s children. They’re innocent.”

  Echo huffed. “I gathered they were missing, Queenie. And, for a while. This one went missing fourteen years ago. What did you do be given this steaming pile of shit?”

  McQueen ignored her jab, knowing he wasn’t expected to succeed in solving this case, but he still took it to heart. He wanted to find these kids whether everyone else thought it was possible or not, and Echo’s opinion was the last he cared about. He was ready to demand she leave – again - when his mobile started to vibrate flashing Hale’s name. “Leave Echo. You have no reason to be here.” He ordered, before getting up and walking away to take the call in private, “Hale? What’s up?”

  “McQueen, are you on your way to work?” Hale asked.

  “No, I mean, I've just arrived. Why?”

  “Good. Find that case; the robbery-gone-wrong. Tell Kesslis from Files to bump it to Armstrong and his partner. We’ve got a fresh body dump and it’s a bloody mess.”

  McQueen said a quick pray for the deceased, as he did everytime. “Where?” he asked, knowing Hale would either already be at the crime scene, or on his way.

  “Wapping Woods. We’re at the very edge of a children’s park of all places, with aches beyond it.” McQueen could already hear Hales mind ticking over; odd dump site, easily found, no hiding the body. All the same questions raced through McQueen’s mind, but he told himself to wait until he was at the crime scene.

  “All right. See you soon.” But Hale had already disconnected.

  Turning back, Echo hadn’t moved but his files had, all now stacked in a nice neat pile. Almost too perfect and McQueen hoped everything was clipped back in the corresponding folder. The only thing that was left out was his map covered in red, green and blue dots. “You did this?” Echo asked not looking up from it.

  “Yes. I wanted to see if there was any correlations to where the children lived, to where- “

  “They were last seen and where they went to school.” Echo finished for him.

  “Yes.” McQueen said, a little surprised. “There wasn’t though, not that I could see.” And that had aggravated McQueen. Only one or two kids matched in school district, only a handful matched in age, though all were very young, and the dots were spread wide across Rippling and the local, smaller villages. No bodies had been discovered and any CCTV that might have had the kids on were long gone. “Look, you gotta go. I’ve got a crime scene to get to. Besides, this case is done with now.” He said with a heavy heart. A new case meant it was time to admit defeat.

  Rising from the chair, Echo gentle folded the map and with an emotionless face, handed it back to him. “You should have checked where the children played.” She said in an off-hand comment, but it made McQueen still.

  “Played? Like parks and playgrounds?” He hadn’t added that to the map because not all the files had that information. Only half the data wouldn’t have given an accurate indication and could set off a wild goose chase. “Why do you think that’s important?”

  “All kids play. They play together, meet other kids playing. Its where paedophiles get off so it would make sense child snatchers would go there too.” McQueen nodded along. Echo still looked at the map and he waited for her to say more. There was something in her eyes, a strange emotion. “You should- ... you should drop this case, cold or not. Wapping Woods is not a place you want to be found sneaking.”

  A cold cloak of unease suddenly wrapped around McQueen and squeezed. “Excuse me?” How did she know he was headed to Wapping Woods? Hale shouted down the phone often, but he wasn’t that loud, especially with sensitive work information. “How do you know about Wapping Woods?”

  “Wapping Woods, it’s at the edge of town on the edge of your map.” Echo explained. Looking into McQueen face directly, she didn’t flirt with a smile or tease him with a sneer, she just looked at him with an important intensity. “From the mouth of crazy chicks and her fantasy world… be careful around Wapping Woods. When I-,” She stopped, snapped her mouth shut. “Never mind. Just don’t go snooping there, ok.”

  “But how did-...”

  “Don’t worry you pretty head about it Queenie.” She laughed before walking towards the door. “You said the case was done with and closed. I doubt you’ll ever hear that name again.” She joked.

  McQueen's gut went colder still. “What does Wapping Woods have to do with this case?” Damn it, if she was pulling his leg…

  Looking back, Echo watched him with a glint in her eyes, but he noticed for the first time that the glint didn’t make him shudder. “With any luck Queenie, it has nothing to do with your case. Besides, you have a new case now. Hop to it.” And like that she spun back around, waving goodbye over her shoulder, and that she’d pass his love onto Anna.

  McQueen barely heard her, instead looking at his map with more interest. Wapping Woods. In the past thirty seconds, he’d heard that name seven times, a name which before held no meaning and no consequence. But one simple sentence from Echo… one crazy coincidence… No, he slapped himself. He was not getting involved with her again. Not in any capacity. Not after last time.

  Sweeping the map back into a file, he dumped all of them into their case box ready to go back down the file room. He would hand his findings to the Chief and apologies for his lack of progress. He’d go meet Hale at this new crime scene. A crime scene he told himself, that despite being in Wapping Woods, would have no connections to this cold case. He would move on and work his ass off; pushing any and all thoughts of missing children, woods and Echo Headly far from his curiosity.

  Yes, that’s what he’d do.

  V

  The bitter wind whipped around Echo’s legs, kicking up dirt and rubbish. The skies were still grey and heavy with the threat of snow; it would be one hell of a storm when it came down on them. Still early morning, the winter sun was just cresting the trees, the frost still clinging to the grass and curled in the corner of the windowpanes.

  Jumping up the stairs to the House, Echo enjoyed the bitter nip to her skin and the numbness in her extremities. It reminded her she was alive and considering resent events was a miracle to be feeling.

  A miracle, Echo snorted, a miracle was just what McQueen was going to need if he thought he’d seen the end of her. Seeing him this morning helped stir the pot; his negative reaction to his wife yesterday had surprised her, and if she was going to understand the full extent of what she was dealing with, she’d need to play catch up.

  McQueen’s personal business wa
sn’t just his business and Echo was going to find out every detail she could. She deserved too after all; allowing that self-centred woman into her home.

  Echo doubted the Irish Princess would be up yet, so her early stroll wouldn't have been noticed, yet as she stepped through the door, a sudden hush filled the lower floors of the House. The grandfather clock still ticked, and the winds still battered the windows, but there was an eerie silence from the Library. Taking cautious steps forward Echo peered into the room as was greeted with fourteen eyes looking back in silence.