by Tia Reed
Tilly dashed past. Ella let her go. The poor thing would have cuts to her pads but instinct would find her a safe place to take refuge until Ella could tend to her. The house creaked. Blaring sirens drew closer. Her eye caught a stout wooden beam wedged between the door and wall. Someone had wanted her trapped.
Inside, beams crashed down. Ignoring the glass embedded in her skin, Ella turned and ran for the back fence. She clambered over, delaying only long enough to check the neighbours had been alerted by the alarm before winding her way around to find Adam.
Chapter Ten
24th October. Night.
BRIGHT FLUORESCENT LIGHTS and the strong smell of disinfectant clashed with the horrors of the night. Ella winced as the nurse pulled another piece of glass from her body, momentarily breaking off her description of events to Adam. They were talking openly, she ignoring the medical staff’s advice to rest and refusing to take any sort of sedative.
She had been in the hospital for three hours now and its mundane workings had allowed her to gather her wits. She hadn’t wanted to come. Had Adam, who had followed in his own car, seen the arsonist she would have insisted they give chase. As it was, he had had to calm her down and point out she needed medical attention. Her protests had amounted to nothing when he herded her to the paramedics. They had slipped an oxygen mask over her face while she watched in shock as her home was engulfed in flames despite the best efforts of the fire crew. Before the firefighters were done, the paramedics had insisted on bringing her to the hospital. Somewhere in all that unwanted attention she had found the presence of mind to wipe the creature’s blood from her arm before she was cleaned up. She had barely stuffed the hanky into Adam’s jacket pocket with a “Keep it safe. Tell you later,” when she was bundled into the ambulance for a short trip to Modbury Hospital where she had been fussed over against her will.
“So someone tried to kill you,” Adam said. He had stayed at the scene long enough to find Tilly and take her to an emergency veterinarian. The grief that had earlier simmered below the surface was gone, replaced by a hard, unforgiving tone that suggested he would not rest until the monster involved in his cousin’s disappearance and Ella’s attempted murder was brought to justice.
“All done,” the nurse declared. Ella got up. The nurse looked scandalised. “We need to keep you in for observation.”
“Not tonight.”
As they moved out of the treatment area, Ella saw Rob and Detective Danes striding toward them.
“Are you all right?” Rob asked, taking her aside.
“I’m fine.”
“What happened?”
Ella and Adam spoke at the same time.
“I don’t know.”
“It was arson.”
Rob looked from one to the other of them. “I want to know what’s going on. Now.”
As Adam came to stand protectively behind her, Ella repeated her story, omitting details that sounded like they belonged in one of Matt Hayes’s videos. She had seen someone stand outside her window and use some sort of weird flame thrower to torch the house. A wooden beam had jammed her exit, forcing her to smash her way out. She hesitated, then sketched in fuzzy details of lashing out with the knife and probably hitting someone, but being too dazed to act further. Rob scribbled on a pad while he listened.
“You were extremely lucky. We’ll get a bulletin out to the other hospitals in case the arsonist is burnt. Can you describe him?”
“No. It was dark outside.”
“Approximate height? Weight?”
“Tall, thin.” A lot like Genord. “What did the neighbours say?”
“Unfortunately, nobody saw or heard anything.”
“Nothing?” Ella almost choked.
“It’s not unusual. Experienced arsonists can work fast.”
Ella didn’t know how to respond. She avoided looking at Adam. Unfortunately, Rob fixed an accusatory expression on him.
“Where were you when this was happening?”
“On the phone to Ella. She’d heard a commotion and rang me.”
Rob’s expression became pointed. “And your relationship is?”
Not a question that needed to be asked.
“I asked El—Ms Jerome to see if she could find out anything more about Cecily.” Adam stared at Rob, challenging the detective to deny the police had no pertinent information.
“I see.” Rob pretended to note down details. Ella could tell by the scratchy way the pen moved he was upset she had not chosen to ring him when her life was in danger. She hadn’t known the extent of her peril and, anyway, could hardly mention flying gargoyles to Rob. She still felt guilty.
Rob looked up, and she felt like she’d been caught in some duplicity. “What do you know about the murders that you’re not telling me?”
Her eyes widened slightly. “You think this is related?”
“Don’t play dumb with me.”
Ella sighed. A rookie would have made the connection. She owed Rob more but his admonition at the press conference was still ringing in her ears. “The only place we’ve been snooping is the church.”
“I find that hard to believe. You’re too good to rely on only one source.”
“Okay, so we’ve talked to Matt Hayes, but there’s no way he’s up to anything like this.” She didn’t see the need to complicate Matt’s life further by revealing he had had a fight with Bekka Todd.
Rob’s eyes flicked to Adam. Ella saw him digest the we part of the sentence.
“Have you analysed the blood yet?” she asked to distract him.
“DNA testing takes at least three days. And that’s only because we have a rush on it and promised the technician a few beers.”
Ella felt sorry for him. He was obviously overworked, and she had just added to his load. “I wiped some blood off my arm. It fell on me when I lashed out with the knife. It might belong to the arsonist. Adam?”
Adam fished for the bloodied hanky in his pocket and held it out.
Rob took it but looked less than impressed. “I suppose it’s useless telling you to keep away from the case at this point?” Ever prepared, he dropped the hanky into an evidence bag he took from his pocket.
“Completely.”
Danes chose that point to decide his courteous non-involvement was not in his best interests. “Ms Jerome, if your activities compromise this investigation or you are in any way withholding information, you will be prosecuted.”
Rob looked furious.
Ella met Danes’ eye. “Understood. However, all I have to offer at the moment are unfounded allegations. When I have facts, I guarantee I’ll pass the information on to police.”
“Better you leave it alone. The police are more experienced at gathering information than you.”
Don’t bet on it, Ella wanted to say but held her tongue as well as her gaze. She breathed a sigh of relief when Danes strode off to wait by the nurses’ station, where a carved pumpkin and plastic skeleton were on display.
She tried to make light of the exchange. “He’s obviously not keen on journalists.”
Rob looked her up and down. She was incredibly sore and imagined she looked infinitely worse. Her experience with high risk situations had not empowered her enough to calm her nerves. Nothing prepared you for being the victim.
“Are you sure you’re fine to leave?” Rob asked.
She was about to reassure him, when someone behind them screamed. She jumped. A nurse flashed them a nervous smile and went to investigate.
“Someone’s probably got a stomach ache,” Adam said.
Ella followed the confident tread of the nurse’s soft shoes. She managed a sympathetic smile. It was cut short by another scream which made all the staff pause at their tasks. Two more unseen but obviously scared patients joined the chorus. Danes jogged after the nurse. Rob placed a hand on his gun and put himself between them and the rest of the corridor.
The nurse reappeared, a hesitant smile on her face. Danes was right behind her, looking le
ss than impressed.
“Nothing to worry about,” the nurse said, striding down the corridor, her motherly clucking helping to calm patients. One or two short shrieks interrupted her placations. Danes ignored them and slunk back to the nurses’ station.
“Really. Nothing to worry about,” the nurse repeated. “A bat found its way inside. Heaven knows how.”
Ella felt the blood drain from her face.
“I don’t think you’re fine to leave,” Rob said, misinterpreting her response.
“Do you think I’m going to stay?” She glanced nervously in the direction of the screams. The last thing she wanted was another entanglement with a bat.
“Not unless you’re on your deathbed. I’ll take you to a hotel.”
Adam turned in to her so as to exclude Rob. “There’s a spare room at my place.”
Ella considered the offer. What it came down to was that she didn’t want to be alone if there were any more surprise visitors. “Yes, thank you.”
“Call if you need anything.” Rob turned and walked past the nurses’ station. Danes swung round to join him. Then they were gone.
Adam guided her to the entrance. The nurse was on the phone, insisting maintenance attend to the vagrant immediately. She jumped as a black shape darted past her shoulder, heading for the door. Ella squealed and threw her arms up. The bat circled her way. She spun into Adam’s embrace, but not before a wingtip had brushed her shoulder, wrenching her mind away on a flight to a starry night with raging bonfires along swampy shores and dancing people mimicking flames that curled orange and red around a writhing dragon of fiery blue.
Ella’s knees buckled. She would have fallen if Adam was not holding her up, half dragging her into a chair. She dropped her face into her hands and hunched over. The hallucination had shaken her as badly as the fire. Fatigue and nerves were playing havoc with her mind. She had not eaten properly either. Deep down she knew if she’d taken a sedative she would have blamed the drug. Anything to avoid the impossible truth that bats were responsible.
Adam laid a comforting hand on her back. “They can be quite scary close up if you’re not used to them.”
“Are you sure nothing’s going on? I mean, why me, twice in a day?”
“I’m beginning to wonder.”
She took a deep breath and righted herself. All she wanted was to blot the experience from her mind.
The nurse cast a worried eye on her as the argument over whose job description covered the removal of a bat escalated. “This thing is giving our patients heart attacks. Literally!” she griped into the receiver.
Ella stood but needed to take hold of Adam’s arm. “Get me out of here.”
THE OLD-FASHIONED kitchen with melamine cupboards felt homely. Neat but cluttered, it sported a battered fridge plastered with photographs of Adam enjoying every extreme activity from parachuting to scuba diving. At its centre, a pine table was strewn with research papers and reference books on bats. When Ella came in after freshening up, Adam swept the lot to one side, creating a messy pile.
“I’m working on my PhD,” he explained.
Ella sat and watched him make hot chocolate. He had turned on just about every light in the house to appease her fears. The brightness combined with her fatigue made her feel dizzy and awkward. In contrast, Adam’s movements appeared graceful. He reached into cupboards confident he would find mugs, cocoa, spoons where they should be. After the mess on the table, the neatness seemed a touch odd. There had been a time, before she had broken up with Rob and been dumped from the Nationwide Daily, when her kitchen was as organised and her guest room as ready.
“You didn’t tell the Detectives about the grotesque.”
“Rob wouldn’t have believed me.”
Adam, two mugs in hand, nodded understanding. “You and he?” he inquired as he placed the cocoa before her.
Ella tilted her mug. The muddy liquid smelt heavenly but it could still be improved. “We used to be an item. Have you got anything stronger?”
Adam leant against the bench. “You heard the doctors. A detective and a journalist. Unusual combination.”
“It didn’t work out.” She took another sip, hoping her face was hidden behind the mug.
“You or the combination?”
“Both.” It was not the truth exactly. They had been doing fine until the court case, but with Rob under suspicion as the mole and her refusal to reveal her source, their relationship had strained to the point of breaking. Damnation, she had even testified under oath that Rob had not leaked the information. He had still piled the guilt on, both as a policeman seeking the truth and a lover feeling betrayed. The pressure had driven her out of his apartment one night with enough bitterness to warrant changing the locks to her house. He hadn’t visited; she hadn’t called. That was the end of what had been two fulfilling years. She could quite happily have lived out her life never speaking to him again. Probably he thought likewise. Unfortunately, fate had a twisted sense of humour.
“He still cares about you.”
So Adam had noticed. “It’s over.”
A loud, sustained rumble jarred their conversation. Startled, Ella jumped. Hot chocolate slopped over the side of the mug onto her hand. She reacted to the scald by flicking her hand. The movement knocked her bag off the table and upset the mug further. Liquid ran onto the table, began to seep into the papers, and dripped onto the spilled contents of her bag.
Adam was immediately at her side. He wiped her hand with a paper towel and then led her to the sink. As he held her hand under running cold water, the rumble continued.
“It’s just someone wheeling the bin out,” he explained unnecessarily.
She attempted a laugh. “Pretty stupid, huh?”
“You’ve been through a great deal.”
Ella turned to the small window above the stove, unnerved by the pitch black outside. She noticed the stained papers on the table. “Your work.”
“They’re just notes.”
The disregard in his tone made her look at him. His blue eyes were fastened on her. She became acutely aware of his hand supporting hers under the tap. He turned his fingers so that they interlocked with hers, bent his head so that their lips met. The pain in her hand disappeared. When they pulled apart, her eyes were sparkling. There was something different in his, a tender desire to protect. She leaned forward for another kiss, and he obliged.
“You wanted to know why I chose you, Ella Jerome.”
She searched his eyes. “There’s a reason?”
“When you were starting out in journalism, you interviewed Professor Dolman about blue-tongue lizards for a science article.”
“I vaguely remember.” Creepy crawlies were not her forte but had provided an entry level job. She had worked hard to break into crime reporting. The irony that the two now seemed to be merging did not escape her.
“I was the Masters student sitting at the back of the room during the interview.”
Which explained how he had known about her high school bat encounter. The anecdote had been her excuse for her noticeable avoidance of the bat posters in the room. A weight lifted from her shoulders. She couldn’t believe her ignorant questions had impressed anyone. “Way back then?” she said.
“And possibly longer. Seeing you made it hard to concentrate on my studies.”
“We’d better not have a repeat of that.” She grabbed some paper towels and began to dab at the cocoa on the table. “I think you’ve lost some of these,” she said, holding up a sopping, stained page with running ink.
“Nothing that can’t be replaced.”
Adam bent to mop the liquid from the floor, Ella to collect the lipstick and chocolates that had rolled from her bag. Adam found a scrap of paper under the chair. As he started to hand it to her, his eye caught the sketch. He drew the paper back and studied the picture. “Where did you get this?”
“I sketched it.”
“You sketched it.”
“Do you recognise it?”
“Recognise?” His face had become red. He seemed about to explode. “How did you know Cecily had a bracelet like this?”
“I didn’t.”
“It’s got her name on it, Ella.”
She felt at a loss as to what to say.
He closed his hand tightly around the paper. One damp edge protruded from his fist. “I want to know where you saw this.”
“Sit down, Adam.”
“I will not sit down. Where did you see this?” He was looking at her like she had betrayed him.
“Sit down. Please. If it belongs to Cecily, it’s proof she was in the church.”
He stared at her. His chest was working hard. Slowly, he sank into a chair. “Where did you find it?” His rage had ebbed. The space that created opened the way for pain. It was there in his eyes again.
“It was on one of the grotesques at the church. I noticed it while Genord was showing off the statues.”
“You could have asked me about it.”
“I did.” He looked about to argue. “You said she wasn’t wearing any jewellery,” she added quickly.
“It has her name on it.”
“I’m sorry, Adam. I didn’t want to inflict further pain on you.”
“If her gold bracelet is on a grotesque, that will be enough for the police to search the church again.”
“But it’s not.”
“What more do they need?”
“I mean the bracelet isn’t on the statue.”
“You just said it was.”
“No. A copy of this bracelet is carved around the gargoyle’s wrist. Genord mentioned Romain models his statues on real people. When you said she didn’t have any jewellery on, I just assumed he’d seen it on her sometime earlier. He has an eye for detail.”
“Cecily has never been inside that church. She was only there that night because she wanted to spend time with me. She arrived in Australia three days previously, and she only got this bracelet the day before.”
Ella felt her knees wobble. “Are you sure?”
“My mother bought it for her as a late birthday present. I was with them when they picked it up from the engravers.”