Face in the Frame

by Heather Atkinson

  “What’s going on Boss?” said Christian, both he and Ross getting to their feet when he burst out of his office.

  “Your boss has lost his mind,” said Pete, striding after him. “And you’re buggered if you think I’m letting you drive,” he said, snatching Brodie’s car keys from his hand. “You’ve had way too much to drink.”

  “Ross can drive then.”

  “I could,” he said, hanging his head when Pete glared at him.

  “No one is driving you anywhere Brodie,” said Pete. “You will sit down and wait here until I’ve got more information on this body.”

  “Body?” said Christian, but no one answered him.

  “If Lucas is guilty I’m not having you charge in there like a dick on a mission and buggering up any chance of a conviction,” continued Pete.

  “But Cass…,” began Brodie.

  “Cass can take care of herself. If he is responsible he goes for the homeless, those with no one to miss them, not women he claims to love. She’ll be perfectly safe.”

  Brodie huffed and folded his arms across his chest. “Fine.”

  “You know I’m talking sense.”

  “I said fine, didn’t I? I’ll wait here like a good little boy for you to come back.”

  “Thank you. Watch him you two,” Pete told Christian and Ross.

  “We will,” said Christian determinedly, ignoring Brodie’s thunderous look.

  “I’ll be back,” said Pete before stomping out.

  “Thinks he’s fucking Schwarzenegger now,” said Brodie. “Telling me to wait here like a naughty kid. Who the bloody hell does he think he is?”

  “A detective inspector,” replied Ross. “Sorry,” he added when Brodie scowled at him. “But he could nick you if you don’t do as he says.”

  “He’s had plenty of chances to nick me in the past and never taken them, even when he should have.” He was so distracted he automatically answered his mobile phone when it started to ring. “Oh Jesus Shelley, it’s over. Leave me alone,” he bellowed before hanging up and sticking it back in his jeans pocket.

  “What if this isn’t Thorne and you charge in there and spoil everything for Cass?” said Christian. “I don’t want her to go but I do want her to be happy.”

  This boy made Brodie feel ashamed of himself. He’d been so busy thinking of his own happiness he’d failed to consider that Lucas might actually make her happy. Pete was right, he’d been using this as an excuse to stop her from leaving. But what if his gut instinct had been right all along? He thought of what Lucas’s parents had said, of the stuffed animals heads on the wall and his body went rigid. “The heids.”

  “What’s that boss?” said Christian.

  “Lucas’s parents had all these stuffed animal heids all over the house. They were everywhere, even in the cludgy. Growing up there Lucas wouldn’t have been able to get away from them. His dad said he liked all the heids because it preserved the animal’s beauty. What if Lucas associates death with saving someone? Don’t look at me like I’m a fucking loon,” he added when they gaped at him.

  “Doesn’t mean he’s a murderer,” said Christian.

  “Pete’s just found Fred with his face cut off.”

  Ross and Christian looked at each other in astonishment. “Alright, maybe there is something in it,” said the latter.

  “Course there is. Thorne’s ex said he’s into some weird sex and he can get aggressive. His parents also told me he liked to torture and kill small animals when he was a kid, especially his own cats. That’s a big fucking red flag for a serial killer. Apparently the cats died in nasty ways after they’d pissed him off. What if Cass pisses him off?”

  “I don’t think she really wanted to go to London,” said Ross.

  “Ross is right,” said Christian, looking worried. “What if you’ve been right about Thorne all along Boss? What if Cass changes her mind and pisses him off when she’s all the way down south, far away from family and friends, all alone.”

  “Just the way he likes them,” said Brodie.

  The three men looked at each other in worried silence.

  “Fuck what Pete said,” growled Brodie. “We’re going to Thorne’s.”

  Lucas gazed at Cass out cold in the empty bath tub. This wasn’t ideal, he had a special place where he prepared all his exhibits, a lock-up in the city that was untraceable to him and that he carefully scrubbed down after each use but it was the best he could do given the unexpected circumstances. However she wasn’t going to be exhibited. She was for his own personal delight.

  He gripped the scalpel tightly in one hand, trying to find the will to do what must be done. He hadn’t wanted it to come to this, he really loved her, had wanted to spend his life with her but she’d thrown that all back at him and he would not lose her. That was unthinkable. This way he could look upon her beauty forever.

  However he was troubled. She’d said Brodie suspected him, how he had no idea. Thanks to Oliver’s squirreling he knew all about Brodie MacBride, knew he’d been a highly respected police officer who had brought a lot of criminals to justice. He couldn’t take the risk, especially not if he wanted to get away with keeping Cass all to himself. It would mean sacrificing his best work but he was willing to do it to keep his liberty and his love.

  Leaving Cass in the bath he turned and made his way down the hall to one of the spare bedrooms where his laptop was set up, connected to four different monitors, each one giving him a different view of his exhibition in the museum. When he saw Bill the security guard there he smiled. Perfect. Leaning towards the microphone he started to speak.

  Bill stood before Sylvie, pouring his heart out to her about the latest slanging match he’d had with his vicious harpy of a mother. Just getting it off his chest made him feel better, made him not want to draw the knife he’d secreted in his jacket and carry out his grand plan to rid himself of his pent-up rage.

  “Thank you Sylvie. You always know how to cheer me up.” She hadn’t actually spoken to him this time or even opened her beautiful eyes but just knowing she was here listening to him was enough to soothe his anger. Gently he ran a fingertip over her lips. “I wish I could take you home. I would be able to face anything if you were with me.”

  He gasped when her eyes flew open and her mouth turned into an ‘o’ without him even having pressed her button.

  “Sylvie, is something wrong?” said Bill, panicking.

  “Help me Bill.”

  “What do you need me to do?”

  “He’s coming, He’s going to take me away from you.”

  “Who is?”

  “That horrible man who came in here looking mad and staring at us all. You remember him?”

  “Yes, he was very rude.”

  “You made him go away Bill, you were so brave and I was so proud. He’s going to take me from you. You can’t let him do it.”

  “Of course I won’t.”

  “I can’t fall into the wrong hands, I want to be with you,” she wailed.

  “And I want to be with you but what can I do?”

  “There’s only one way we can be together. You have to burn it all.”

  Bill’s face fell. “Burn you? But that would destroy you.”

  “Only this form. You would be setting me free. Then we could be together. Forever.”

  “We could, couldn’t we? Finally.”

  “It’s all I want Bill. Is it what you want too?”

  Lovingly he stroked her cheek. “Yes.”

  “Then do it Bill, now, before they take me away.”

  That was more than Bill could bear. Sylvie was the only light in his life. Frantically he looked around the room but could see nothing with which to start a fire.

  “Back in a minute,” he said before racing out of the room. “I won’t be long,” he yelled over his shoulder when he heard her calling for him.

  With shaking hands he unlocked the door to the cleaning cupboard and delved inside.

  “I’m coming Sylvie,” he
cried, rushing back to the exhibition with his arms full.

  He squirted the paint thinner around the room and the other faces. A flick of a match and everything went up.

  Bill wrenched Sylvie’s frame off the wall and cradled her in his arms, pressing his forehead to hers as the fire started to rage around him.

  “Soon we’ll be together. Forever,” he whispered to her.

  “Are you sure this is a good idea Boss?” said Christian as they jumped out of Ross’s car and rushed towards Lucas’s apartment block. Now the initial adrenaline rush had worn off doubt was starting to set in. “Cass is going to be really pissed off.”

  “I’d rather risk that than let that loon slice her face off. Will you two bloody hurry up?” he exclaimed when Ross slipped on the top step.

  “Ow, my ankle,” he cried, crumpling into a heap.

  “Leave him,” Brodie barked at Christian as he tugged at the front door. “It won’t open.”

  “Because it’s call entry,” said Christian. “What do we do?”

  “Press one,” said Brodie, mashing the button with a large finger. “Closest to the door.”

  “What ya wantin’?” snapped a reedy voice through the speaker.

  “The name’s Brodie MacBride. I need you to open the door right now, it’s a matter of life and death.”

  “Yeah, like I’ve no’ heard that one before.”

  “This isn’t a joke you prick. Open it now before I break the bastarding thing down,” Brodie roared down the line.

  There was a pause on the other end before the voice said, “bugger off.”

  “Wait, no, come back. Just wait till I get my hands on you, I’ll pull your fucking tongue out,” he bellowed.

  “Boss, please, that’s not getting us anywhere,” said Christian.

  “I think I’ve done something really bad to my ankle,” groaned Ross, who had plonked himself down on the steps to tenderly probe the appendage. “It feels all weird and puffy.”

  “Then it’s just like it’s owner,” said Brodie. “I’ll try two,” he added, hitting the button for flat number two.

  “Hello?” said a polite female voice.

  “Let me,” Christian told Brodie, who reluctantly stepped aside to allow him access to the speaker. “I’m from the electric company, I’ve come to do some maintenance. I wondered if you would mind opening the door please Madam?”

  “Of course young man,” replied the creaky, elderly voice before the door buzzed open. “Such a polite boy.”

  Christian grinned at Brodie. “See where manners get you.”

  “I don’t have time for manners,” retorted Brodie before racing inside and up the stairs towards the penthouse, Christian following, leaving Ross grimacing on the steps.

  He reached the top and pounded on the door. No answer.

  “Maybe they’ve already left for London?” said Christian.

  “They’ve not had time. Thorne hadn’t packed or anything,” replied Brodie.

  “They could have gone out for something to eat?”

  “For Christ’s sake, he’s alone in there doing God knows what to her. Let’s break the door down.”

  “Are you sure Boss? If we’re wrong we’ll get arrested.”

  “You big girl. I’ll take the blame if it goes wrong, alright?”

  “Okay, just saying,” he shrugged.

  “We need to do this cleanly. We’ll both charge it on three, okay? One, two three…”

  They both rushed at the door, which gave way beneath their combined weight with a loud crack and they fell inside, landing in the hallway. Hastily they scrambled to their feet, catching their breath.

  “It was open, wasn’t it Boss?” whispered Christian.

  “Yeah,” he hissed, feeling like an idiot for not trying the handle in the first place.

  CHAPTER 23

  Lucas paused in his work at the sound of a thud somewhere in the flat. Had he locked the door? He couldn’t remember. It was foolish of him not to but he’d been so caught up in preserving his Cass that he may have overlooked it. A foolish error.

  He looked down at Cass, who was still out cold. The drug he’d used was very strong, there was no risk of her waking up yet. He’d only managed to cut an inch and a half into her jaw with the scalpel, blood trickling from the wound onto her neck, the red vivid against her creamy skin.

  “I’ll be back soon my love,” he said before slipping out of the bathroom, closing the door behind him. After glancing down at himself to make sure there was no incriminating evidence on him - which there wasn’t because he was far too careful for that - he walked down the hallway, into the lounge and froze. “What on earth are you two doing here?”

  “We want to speak to Cass,” said Brodie.

  “You can’t, she’s not here. She went out to the shops to pick up some things she needs for London.”

  “Then we’ll wait.”

  Lucas shifted impatiently, well aware he was on a time limit. “I don’t know when she’ll be back. Why don’t I get her to call you when she returns?”

  “We’re not shifting until we’ve seen her,” said Brodie. He stood nose to nose with Lucas, who just stared back at him steadily.

  “In that case, would you like a drink while you wait?” said Lucas.

  “Aye, that would be nice,” smiled Christian.

  “No,” interrupted Brodie. “All we want from you Thorne is Cass.”

  “I’ve told you where she is. I suggest you go and look for her if you’re so anxious to speak to her.”

  “I’ll do one better,” he said, taking out his mobile phone. “I’ll gie’ her a bell.”

  Brodie pressed the phone to his ear, smiling with triumph when ringing filled the air from somewhere in the room. “Find it,” he told Christian.

  Christian nodded and started to hunt around the room. He found Cass’s jacket on the floor behind the couch where she’d dropped it and pulled her phone out of the pocket. “Got it Boss.”

  Brodie turned to Lucas, seething with rage. “So you’re saying Cass went into town without her jacket or phone?”

  He shrugged. “It’s a warm day.”

  “You don’t know Cass like I do. She’d never go anywhere without her phone. You don’t do that in our line of work. What have you done with her?” Brodie was really panicking now. Cass would not have gone out alone without her phone when she knew Big Malc was after her blood. She wouldn’t have left the flat full stop.

  “I’ve not done anything with her. I told you she’s gone to the shops.”

  Brodie grabbed him by the front of the shirt. “What have you done with her you freak?” he bellowed in his face. He was gobsmacked when the pupils in Lucas’s eyes elongated even more, the green burning brightly.

  “What the fuck did you call me?” hissed Lucas.

  “Don’t like that name, do you?” said Brodie, recovering himself. “I don’t know why, I thought you’d be used to it by now after Mummy called you it every day of your life growing up.”

  “You’ve been to see my parents,” he glowered.

  “Aye I did and they told me lots of interesting things - about you. I also saw all the heids on the wall of their home, how your daddy told you he took them to preserve their beauty and to save them. It was smart of you to ask me to investigate Oliver, it threw my attention off you. Briefly. Now where the fuck is Cass?” he roared in his face.

  Brodie was perturbed when Lucas stared back at him with rage burning in his eyes. Normally when he yelled in someone’s face it reduced them to jelly and that’s what he’d been expecting would happen with this creep. On the contrary, Lucas actually looked pleased.

  “I really don’t like you,” said Lucas. “And I’m glad you’ve given me an excuse to do this.”

  Before Brodie knew what was happening he was on the floor, clutching his stomach, the breath knocked from his body. He looked up to see Lucas glaring down at him, hands balled into fists.

  “Bastard,” exclaimed Christian, chargin
g him.

  Brodie could only watch in astonishment as Lucas sent Christian - who was twice his size - reeling with one punch before grabbing his arm, twisting it up his back then throwing him halfway across the room.

  “Get out of my flat,” yelled Lucas.

  “Cass, Cass,” cried Brodie, scrabbling to his feet, now terrified for her. He’d been right, the guy was a full blown loon.

  He’d almost reached the door leading out of the room and deeper into the apartment when he was grabbed again. This time Brodie managed to throw Lucas off and punch him in the side. Lucas just released a deep exhale before ramming his fist into Brodie’s gut, grabbing a handful of hair and attempting to bang his head off the wall. Fortunately Brodie managed to throw his arm up first, so his forehead bounced off his right hand instead. Throwing up his legs he kicked back off the wall and sent them both staggering backwards, his superior size and weight sending Lucas crashing to the floor.

  “Cass,” he yelled again, immediately getting to his feet while Lucas flailed on the floor.

  He threw open the first door and encountered an empty bedroom. He moved on, still calling out her name. The second room was just as empty.

  As he was about to open the bathroom door Lucas slammed into him and they started to fight furiously, Brodie almost overcome by Lucas’s speed. He’d never fought anyone who moved so fast before but fortunately he had a thick head, so he was able to take most of the blows dealt him. A kick Lucas delivered to his stomach sent him to his knees but he grabbed Lucas’s foot and tipped him. Brodie was on him in an instant, hands going to his throat.

  “Where is she?” he yelled as his grip on Lucas’s throat tightened.

  “Not here,” he managed to rasp before punching Brodie in the side of the head.

  Brodie went down with a groan, white light filling his head. Something sharp pricked his side and he felt warmth trickle down his skin. Where the hell had Lucas got a weapon from? He hadn’t seen one in his hand.

  “I’m here Boss,” called Christian.