“There they are,” she said triumphantly, taking the syringes and vial of poison out of her coat pocket and stashing them in the lights, which were all tied up in a big knot.
“Let’s get out of here,” she told him.
Aidan nodded and they rushed down the stairs, Raven being careful to close the door properly behind her. They were about to descend the next set of stairs to the ground floor when the front door opened and the fluffy white dog bounded inside, followed by Ginger and a tall dark-haired man. While the dog ran around like crazy, its leash still hanging from its neck, Ginger threw her arms around the man’s neck and kissed him.
“I missed you,” breathed Ginger as the man buried his face in her neck, pushing her up against the wall and tugging up her skirt.
Raven and Aidan ducked down at the top of the stairs and looked each other, eyebrows raised.
“Do you recognise him?” Aidan mouthed at her.
Raven shook her head.
Aidan pulled out his phone, checked to make sure it was on silent then held it up to take a photo of Ginger and her mystery beau.
When the two of them started going at it up against the hallway wall, Ginger’s shrieks of pleasure making them cringe, they both sighed and sat down on the carpet to wait it out.
“That didn’t take long,” whispered Aidan when the man reached a climax with a feral grunt, Ginger’s screeches dying away.
Raven smiled at him and winked.
“That was incredible,” they heard Ginger say. “Marcus is two pumps and a squirt, no foreplay. In all the years we’ve been married he’s never made me come once, although he thinks he has.”
Aidan’s shoulders shook with suppressed laughter.
“Gustav, will you shut the fuck up?” she screeched when the dog set up a fresh bout of barking. Little did she know it was because he’d scented strangers in the house. “Honestly, that dog’s nuts. But he’s my little prince. Would my prince like some din dins?”
“Fuck din dins,” said the man. “I want to taste you.”
“That’ll have to wait. My prince is hungry.”
Gustav’s concern about the intruders was overridden by her love of food and he stopped barking and happily followed Ginger into the kitchen, followed by the man, who was still trying to entice her into bed but it appeared she was more interested in the dog.
“It’s now or never,” whispered Aidan.
“They might see us.”
“Or they might not and we might not get another chance.”
Raven was erring on the side of caution, as usual, while Aidan was keen to go full throttle, which was a typical example of their natures. “We wait,” she whispered back.
“They’ll come up here.”
“And we wait until they get busy again then sneak out. Remember your promise,” she added when he opened his mouth to object.
He sighed and nodded.
They sat back on their haunches to listen to Ginger and her man moving about the kitchen, accompanied by the yapping of the dog, which was mercifully silenced when his food was put down.
The sound of footsteps below indicated they were approaching the bottom of the stairs.
“Upstairs,” said the man. “I want you slippery and wet.”
“Bath or shower?” came the reply.
“When’s Marcus due back?”
“Not till this evening.”
“Bath then.”
Aidan nodded down the hall and both he and Raven got to their feet. Fortunately the doors were ajar so she could see inside and she selected what appeared to be a spare bedroom, just a bed and nightstand inside. They both snuck in and hid behind the door, listening to the sound of Ginger and her man giggling and the bath running.
Raven indicated that she wanted to look at Aidan’s phone and, nodding in understanding, he produced his phone and brought up the photos he’d taken of Ginger and her lover.
“Actually, he is familiar,” she whispered, frowning at the images. She handed back the phone. “It’ll come to me.”
They waited behind the door, listening to giggles and squeals. The bath was turned off, there was a slosh as they got into the water, followed by mutters and moans.
“Let’s go,” whispered Aidan.
He led the way back down the hall, hesitating outside the bathroom door, which had been left slightly ajar. Peeking inside he saw Ginger astride her mystery man, frantically moving on top of him. Fortunately they were side on so they weren’t facing the door.
He scooted past the open door first, Raven hastily following. They paused to make sure they hadn’t been spotted but when the sounds of passionate lovemaking continued undisturbed they carried on their way, hesitating at the top of the stairs when they saw Gustav at the bottom, growling, lips set back over his teeth in a snarl.
Gustav’s attention was drawn off them when the front door burst open and Marcus strode in, looking like a thundercloud.
CHAPTER 29
Marcus might have spotted Raven and Aidan crouching at the top of the stairs, had it not been for the dog bounding up to him, barking and wagging his tail.
“Get off me you mad little bastard,” snarled Marcus when Gustav attempted to hump his leg. “Ginger,” he bellowed.
Silence emanated from the bathroom before she replied, “Marcus?”
“Course it’s me. What are you doing?”
“Having a bath.”
“At this time of day?”
“I want to relax,” she screeched back.
Caught between Marcus at the bottom of the stairs and Ginger and her lover in the bathroom, Raven and Aidan retreated back down the hall, slipping back into the spare bedroom.
Seconds after they’d entered the room, Ginger’s lover raced in, soaking wet and a towel around his waist, clutching his clothes, face etched with terror. His mouth fell open when he saw two people crouching in what was supposed to be his hiding place. Aidan put his finger to his lips, the menace in his eyes telling the man to keep his mouth shut. The man nodded and crouched down behind the door with them, the position causing the towel to fall back, exposing his deflated genitals. Aidan’s scowl encouraged him to hastily cover himself up.
“What the fuck’s all this water on the floor?” they heard Marcus demand.
“I slipped getting in,” was Ginger’s reply.
“You okay?”
“Fine, although I did bang my elbow.”
“Whatever. Listen, I’ve got a lot of shit going down at work and I need you to do something for me.”
“What’s that?”
“Pack a bag and go to your mother’s for a while.”
“I’m not leaving my home,” she shrieked.
“You have to. Dexter’s turned up dead.”
“What? I didn’t think anyone was capable of that.”
“Neither did I but it’s happened. I want you safely out of the way until I’ve put all this to bed.”
“Will you be okay?”
“I will but the bitch who topped Dexter won’t be.”
“A woman killed him?”
“Keep your voice down. Do you want the whole street to hear?”
“Sorry. A woman?” she repeated in a quieter voice.
“Yeah but don’t you worry, she won’t be around for much longer. I don’t want you getting caught in the line of fire so please babe, do this for me so I can fight back without having to worry about you.”
“Yeah, course I will. For you.”
“Good. Let’s have some fun before you go. That bath’s plenty big enough for two.”
The three of them were forced to listen in embarrassed silence as Marcus and Ginger went at it.
“She sounded more excited with you,” Raven whispered to the lover.
The shivering man smiled coyly and nodded her his thanks.
“I know you,” she said, realisation dawning. “You’re Jamie the barman, from Marcus’s pub.”
Jamie looked horrified. “Please don’t tell him.”
<
br /> “We’ll keep your secret if you keep ours,” said Aidan, taking his phone out of his pocket to show him the photos.
Jamie felt faint. “Course.”
The sounds ended abruptly, followed by the sloshing of water as someone climbed out of the bath.
“Thanks babe,” said Marcus. “I needed that. Now get your pretty arse all packed up and ready to go. Guy will drive you there.”
“You’re not driving me?”
“No can do, I’m up to my eyes in it and Guy is my most trusted man, now Dexter’s been chopped up into tiny bits.”
“That was him? That story’s all over the city. It’s even made the big newspapers.”
“Yep, so you see why you need to leave…where are you going?”
“To pack,” she cried, her voice coming from the other side of the hall and Raven assumed she’d run into the master bedroom.
“Don’t panic love,” said Marcus, following her. “This is business, not personal.”
“And sometimes business has a habit of becoming personal. I am out of here, I don’t want to be chopped into little bits and scattered about Yorkshire.”
“Don’t be so dramatic, that’s not going to happen.”
“I bet you didn’t think it would happen to Dexter either.”
“Well…yeah, I can’t deny it. I didn’t think anyone would have the balls to top him.”
“There you go then.”
Jamie, who was getting cramp in his calves from squatting for so long, was unable to resist moving and banged his shoulder on the wall.
“What the fuck was that?” said Marcus.
Aidan glared at Jamie, who had gone pale with fear.
“It’s just Gustav having one of his maddies,” said Ginger with strained nonchalance.
“Oh yeah, that crazy little sod. You can take that nut job with you. I’m not putting up with him humping my leg while you’re away.”
“Don’t be so grumpy, he loves you.”
“Correction, he loves my legs. I don’t know why.
“Probably because they’re so hairy, like him.”
“You all set to go then?”
“Yep.”
“Good. Give me that case love.”
Jamie released a breath of relief when there came the sound of them walking down the stairs.
“Put your clothes on for fuck’s sake,” Aidan told him.
Jamie nodded and hastily pulled on his underpants, attempting to do it under the privacy of the towel.
A car pulled up outside, the engine a dull thrum, accompanied by the faint sound of voices, drowned out by Gustav’s excited barking. There was the slam of a car door, the voices and dog going silent and they all got to their feet, Jamie hurriedly finishing dressing.
“Thanks for not giving me away,” he said, fastening up his shirt.
“Right back at you,” replied Aidan.
“Let’s get out of here,” said Raven.
They filed out of the room, hesitating in the hallway when there was the slam of the front door.
“Gloria,” said Marcus’s voice. “Get your arse over here pronto. The old witch has buggered off to her mum’s for a few days. We’ve got the place to ourselves. Fancy a hot, soapy bath?”
Raven and Jamie sighed and tramped back towards the spare room but Aidan was defiant.
“I’ve had enough of this shit,” he said.
“What are you doing?” said Raven when he pressed himself back against the wall at the top of the stairs.
“Get out of sight,” he replied.
“Come on,” muttered Raven, steering Jamie back into the spare room.
They resumed their position behind the door, straining to listen and hearing nothing. When they heard footsteps approach Jamie began to visibly shake.
“Safe to come out,” said Aidan, popping his head around the door.
“What did you do to him?” said Raven.
“Knocked him out.”
“Thank God,” breathed Jamie, burying his face in his hands. He shot to his feet. “I need to get out of here.”
“Just a second there,” said Raven, Aidan blocking his way. “We need you to do a little something for us.”
“I already am by not telling anyone you were here.”
“Something more, unless you want me to show Marcus the photos on his phone,” she said, gesturing to Aidan.
Jamie swallowed hard. “What do you want?”
“Just to let me know if anything of interest happens at Marcus’s pub.”
“Like what?”
“Who meets with him, any unusual activity, that sort of thing,” she said, pressing her card into his hand. “Call me immediately and of course, say nothing about our presence here. Should you do as I ask, your secret’s safe with us.”
He took the card and stuffed it into his pocket. “Will do.”
“Thank you.” When her thoughts flicked to Barry she added, “and don’t be obvious or go asking nosy questions, that’s a sure fire way to get found out. Just observe, that’s all.” She didn’t want him to suffer her last informant’s fate.
“Fine by me,” he said before racing from the room.
“Ready to finally get out of here?” said Aidan.
“More than,” she replied, smiling when she saw Marcus sprawled face down in the hallway. “If we weren’t setting him up as the Needle Killer, I’d be tempted to slit his throat.”
“I did consider that but right now he’s more useful alive,” said Aidan as they hurried down the stairs.
“Marcus has contacts on the force who will tell him who made the call grassing him up. Let’s use that to our advantage too.”
He kissed her. “Have you any idea how much I love you?”
“You can show me when we get back to the barn. First, we have a call to make.”
Aidan drove around the block Marcus’s pub was situated on four times before ascertaining that no one was watching them. He pulled the car up in a space outside the baker’s three doors down and Raven got out, wrapped in a thick woollen coat, hood up, sunglasses on and head down. As she approached the pub she began to dial, the call connecting when she was just outside the pub. Fortunately all the smokers used a side door leading onto the alley, so they could indulge in their nefarious conversations without being overheard by passers-by.
“I have some information about the Needle Killer,” she said, smiling into the phone.
Marcus lay on his own hallway floor, bursting with rage and wanting to inflict bloody retribution on whoever had snuck into his home and attacked him. However, he was quite sure that if he moved his head it would fall off. What the fuck had hit him, a charging rhino?
When his back began to spasm after lying on the floor for too long, he decided it was time to man up. If his head was going to fall off then so be it but he refused to lie there quivering a moment longer.
Taking a fortifying breath, he dragged himself upright, stomach heaving and he feared he was going to throw up over himself, taking away what little dignity he still possessed, but the alarming sensation passed. Fortunately his head stayed on his neck, although it did feel like someone was mining inside his skull. He was even too sore to plot the horrible vengeance he’d take on whoever had done this to him. All he wanted to do was curl up in a corner and sob but he hadn’t got where he was today by acting like a little girl.
Gritting his teeth, he grabbed onto the banister and dragged himself to his feet, ignoring the protest of his screaming skull, hanging on for dear life as his vision cleared.
Just when he thought he was able to put one foot in front of the other, there was a bang at his front door. He was furious with himself when fear shot through him. Was his assailant back for a second attempt? It was almost a relief when a voice yelled, “open up, police.”
Feeling far too wobbly to walk down the stairs, instead he called, “it’s open,” the sound making him wince.
Marcus sighed when they ignored his words and kicked his lovely shiny fro
nt door in. His legs gave way and he slumped to the floor, impassively watching as they swarmed up the stairs towards him, some of them armed.
“Marcus Moore?” said the towering detective inspector.
“You know it’s me,” he replied, the man’s face blurred, making him wonder if he had concussion. “You’ve arrested me three times.”
“We’ve got a warrant to search these premises,” he said, shoving a piece of paper in his face.
Marcus attempted to read it but the words were as blurred as the copper’s face. “What for?”
“On suspicion of being the Needle Killer.”
“Needle Killer?” he said, outrage overriding his pain. “Bollocks.”
“Not according to information we’ve been given. Tear the place apart,” he told his colleagues, who threw themselves into the task with glee.
“Check up there,” the inspector told his subordinates, indicating the door leading to the attic.
The smile the inspector gave him chilled Marcus to the bone. They’d sparred for years and, like a shark sensing weakness in its prey, the inspector was homing in for the kill. Marcus wasn’t the Needle Killer however he knew who was, but why would Jeremy set him up? They both wanted that bitch Raven gone, so surely the enemy of my enemy is my friend? Or was it the other way around?
Marcus grunted with frustration, his foggy head unable to make any sense of his wild thoughts. “I need a hospital,” he announced.
“That old chestnut?” said the inspector. “What’s wrong? Did you sell so many guns you sprained your wrist counting all the cash you made?”
“Ha fucking ha. There was an intruder in my house, they knocked me out.”
“A likely story.”
“It’s true. Feel the back of my head, I bet there’s a huge lump.”
“I’m not touching your greasy head.”
“It is not greasy, I shower every day.”
“To get rid of the stench of corruption?”
“Oh piss off Captain Superpants with your cheesy spiel. Touch my head.”
Raven Page 24
