Shred - Cuts of Flesh #1
Page 11
The woman was calmer now, but only just. He couldn't blame her, to come back to such a scene in the stables, with her husband gone, his clothes scattered on the ground. She said he had been acting quite strangely during the day, displaying a sense of aimless desperation as he had asked vehemently to be left alone. The wife had acquiesced, as they had been married for several years and were long past the point of second guessing each other, giving each other room when necessary. She now felt consumed with guilt for simply leaving, of course, but such things were to be expected with hindsight.
Sean ran his finger around the brim of Aleister's fedora, retrieved from the garden. Whatever he'd seen it had drawn him into the darkness alone. Sean hoped he knew what he was doing.
“Nasty business,” said Abrahams, pulling off his rubber gloves, stained with what little remained of the horse's blood. Sean looked over, his eyes narrow.
“You always carry those?”
“You need to know when you're going to get your hands dirty.”
Sean turned towards Abrahams, sizing the man up. He still stood with the same laid back nonchalance that he had always displayed in the past, even when the accusations of bribery had been coming thick and fast. It had never bothered him, at least not visibly.
“I'm going to cut through all the bullshit and small talk, son. We both know what you did...”
“Oh really...?”
“We do. I have no interest in talking to you unless it's for a good reason.”
Abrahams' lip curled back, the first sign that Sean could remember seeing of something bothering the man.
“Don't preach to me, not when...”
Sean spotted the glow before he heard the explosion, rising beyond the tree line, illuminating the branches in what would have been a beautiful image had it not been obvious what would cause such a flickering colour...
“Get the fire service,” said Sean quickly, the argument forgotten as he started to run towards Aleister's car, hoping that his son in law had left the keys in the ignition.