Neil nodded, then Gareth shoved him back.
“I’ll talk to you when you’re feeling better,” Neil said, before walking away.
Gareth opened his mouth to say something to Chad, but before he had a chance, his phone was vibrating, and he took the call. He mumbled, turning his head so Chad couldn’t hear.
As soon as the call ended, Chad leaned forward eagerly. “What?”
“He’s confessed.”
“I want to see him.”
“That’s not a good idea.”
“Please.”
“I’m your sergeant, and I’m telling you no.”
Chad frowned. “But before that you’re my friend, and I’m asking you to take me to the station.”
“Your leg needs checking.”
Chad stood up. “My leg’s okay. You can’t force me to stay here. The nurses and doctors can’t make me stay. Either I go with you to the station, or I get a taxi over there by myself.”
“Chad…”
“I promise I’ll come back here afterwards. I’ll let them check me over properly. I’ll do everything the doctors and nurses ask, but first. I need to see him.”
“Fine.”
****
The numb, detached feeling lifted the closer they got to the station. There were cars crammed outside, blocking the roads. The journalists were all speaking as one, as manic mumbling noise that penetrated the car. Cameras were flashing at the car before they even knew who was inside, and when they did realize he was Chad, the man that got taken by the killer, they surrounded the car. He was still wearing Romeo’s clothes, could smell his body-wash, his shampoo. He was more Romeo than himself.
“Jesus,” Gareth muttered.
They had extra security outside the front of the station, men with riot shields to force the masses back. They cleared the people around the car, and Gareth twisted around in his seat to look at Chad, giving him a quizzical look.
“You sure about this?”
“I’m sure.”
Gareth unlocked the backdoors, and Chad climbed out. The noise level increased. Nothing was distinguishable, just loud, making his ears buzz. It had always been so quiet on the farm, so calm. The crowd surged closer, but they were pushed back, held at bay. Chad stared at the dazzling lights; the cameras all pointed in his direction. Gareth rushed around the car, grabbed his elbow, then pulled him towards the station doors.
“Come on.”
There were so many officers inside, but as soon as they saw him, they dispersed, pressing themselves into the corridor walls so he could pass. Gareth led him down the corridor. He’d walked it hundreds, thousands of times, but he felt lost. All the faces looking at him were alien. He recognized Zac behind the reception desk, somber expression on his face. He looked up, gave Gareth a grim smile, then froze when he locked eyes with Chad.
“What the hell are you doing here?”
Gareth gestured to Chad. “He was stubborn.”
“Detective Dickishness,” Zac muttered, leaving the desk. He came out, walked up to Chad, and pulled him into a hug. Chad was too surprised to react. His arms hung limp at his sides, and he rested his chin on Zac’s shoulder.
“Are you all right—I mean, I know you’re not all right. I just mean, it’s good to see you.”
“It’s good to see you, too.”
Gareth huffed. “He needs to be in hospital.”
“I need to be here. I need to see him. Where is he?”
Zac swallowed hard. “In interview room one.”
“Okay.”
Gareth walked next to him down the corridor, and Zac came, too. They were drawing a crowd—Chad could sense them all behind, all the other officers following as he got closer to interview room one. Kate and Martin were leaning on the wall outside. They both froze in shock when he approached. Kate recovered first, and gave him a hug, and then Martin patted him on the back and told him he looked well, all things considering.
The door to interview room one opened, and the chief took a step outside. Before he could shut the door behind him, Chad shoved past him into the room. Gareth grabbed his arm, Zac had hold of his t-shirt, and Kate was trying to pull him back by the waist, but he fought them all just to be in the room with Romeo, just to see him.
Romeo gawped when he saw Chad fighting to get into the room. Martin got in front of him, and pushed Chad’s chest, doing his best to get Chad to leave.
“We’ve got this, Chad,” Martin said.
Gareth nodded. “You don’t need to confront him.”
Romeo stood up. His hands were cuffed, and Chad noticed he was wearing the same clothes. He was wearing grey sweatpants, and a white-t-shirt, what they gave to all their suspects when they were looking over their clothing.
Chad fought against his whole team to stay in the room.
“He should be in hospital,” Romeo said. “He needs to be in hospital.”
He wasn’t talking to Chad, but to Gareth, who sneered in Romeo’s direction.
“I had to see you.”
Romeo blinked. “You had to see me locked up…”
He nodded, trying to get Chad to agree with him, but Chad couldn’t. He spluttered, shaking his head.
“No. I had to see you to tell you I’m sorry.”
“Sorry?”
“That I betrayed you.”
Romeo’s eyes softened. “It’s going to be okay, Chad, I promise.”
Only when the words came from Romeo, did he believe it, and give up the fight.
Gareth yanked him extra hard, and he lost his fight against his team. They dragged him from the room, kept pulling him back until he was far away from interview room one, far away from Romeo.
Epilogue
Chad pulled up outside the prison and angled his head to see the top of the perimeter fence. Twenty meters beyond the fence was an eight-meter-high wall. The maximum-security prison had been vigorously tested. Inmates were assigned to their cells twenty-three hours a day, with one hour out in the yard.
Chad unclipped his seatbelt, then climbed out of his car. He flashed his ID, signed in at the first gate, then stepped through the scanner. He moved along to checkpoint two, and the same procedure was repeated. Finally, he was patted down by a huge security guard.
“What’s in the bag?”
Chad lifted it. “A newspaper. I was told it would be all right.”
The security guard hummed, then nodded. “Fine, but I’m keeping the bag.”
Chad handed it over, then tucked the newspaper under his armpit. He passed through into reception and was greeted by a cautious smile.
“Hello again, Chad.”
He grinned at the woman on the front desk. Frizzy orange hair and thick framed glasses.
“Hi,” Chad said.
Chad knew she was wondering why he kept coming back, knew she wanted to ask, but didn’t have the courage.
“Leon will accompany you today.”
“Okay.”
Chad saw Leon coming down the corridor, stopping to unlock each gate, and relock it behind himself. Leon was muscle clad, a gym-goer, who looked like the kind of man to start fights, not break them up.
He snorted. “Back so soon?”
Chad swallowed the lump in his throat. They were both judging him. They thought it was wrong that he visited Romeo, but how could something so wrong, feel so right? Maybe it was wrong for them, but it was right for him.
“Yes,” he said, lifting his chin. “I want to see him. I’ve got all the paperwork.”
Leon shared an uncomfortable look with the receptionist, and Chad pretended not to notice.
“Follow me,” Leon said.
Chad followed Leon through the maze of gates. The clutch of locks got louder, until two keys were needed to open the last gate. One from Leon and one from the senior guard on shift. They looked at each other, counted down from three, then turned their keys at the same time. The clunk that rang out stabbed right in Chad’s ear. Leon led him into the visiting room, a small box roo
m with glass separating visitor from inmate.
Romeo stood up when Chad stepped inside, and he paused, taking him in, still just as handsome, still just as muscular. Those green eyes, that confident smile. He wore an orange prison uniform, with no shoes. A warmth grew in Chad’s chest, and he imagined people felt that way when they walked into their homes after being away from them for days. A relief, a comfort, a sense of “this is my place on this earth”. He found that feeling when he looked at Romeo.
Leon leaned on the back wall, gesturing for Chad to take a seat. He smiled at Romeo as he approached, sat down, then took the phone off the wall.
Romeo picked up his own phone, then pressed it to his ear. Chad was overly aware of the camera watching them, of Leon behind him; he even believed their conversations were being recorded.
“I missed you,” Romeo whispered.
“It’s only been a week.”
“Still, it’s all I have to look forward to each week. I’m waiting for the day you stop coming.”
“Why would I do that?”
“Your colleagues might convince you to stop.”
Chad lowered his gaze. “They try, but they don’t understand…”
“They don’t know you like I do.”
“Exactly.”
“What about your therapist, what does she say?”
“I’ve got some kind of Stockholm syndrome.”
“Sounds about right.”
“She thinks I should stop visiting you, too, but I told her no. I can’t—I won’t.”
“I should ignore you, yell at you—”
“Throw rocks until I go away for good?”
Romeo snorted. “Yeah, but … I don’t want to. I don’t want to send you away. I want you to stay, and if you want to keep coming, I’m not gonna be the one to stop you. I won’t make that mistake again.” He looked down pointedly at the table in front of Chad. “How’s the leg?”
Chad rubbed the top of his thigh. The damage was on the reverse, but he rubbed it anyway. “It only bothers me sometimes.”
“And your finger?”
Chad gazed at the scar over his knuckle. “Doesn’t bother me at all. The mark’s still there. I quite like it.”
“You could say, I left my mark on you…”
Chad laughed, shaking his head. “That was awful.”
“Made you laugh.”
“A sympathy laugh.”
“Still a laugh.”
“And you?” Chad said, leaning on his elbows. “How are you?”
Romeo sighed. “I exercise in my cell, eat in my cell, read in my cell, shit in my cell … the same as I tell you every time you visit.”
The desire to apologize was there, so conflicting it twisted Chad’s tongue into a knot, and made him nauseous. It was his fault Romeo was locked away. It was the right thing, but God, did it hurt. Romeo read the expression on his face.
“I’m surviving,” he said.
“It’s exhausting feeling guilty all the time.”
“Then stop. I’m not angry with you, Chad, quite the opposite, and this place will do for now.”
He looked at the glass, dragging his gaze to each corner. A clear sign that despite the high security, he still thought escape was possible. The thought was exciting, and nerve-inducing. Chad shouldn’t will a prisoner to escape, but his morals were skewed when it came to Romeo.
“But I do miss cooking with you.”
“I miss that, too, but not chopping onions.”
“You were an expert at it.”
Chad narrowed his eyes.
“And dare I say it, I even miss those awful sci-fi movies we watched.”
“I knew you liked them really.”
“They were terrible, but seeing you geek out over them was cute.”
“Cute?”
Romeo wrinkled his nose. “Adorable.”
Chad laughed but stopped when Leon coughed. It wasn’t a natural cough, but a forced one. Romeo gave him a death glare, then cracked his knuckles.
“I’ll tell you what I don’t miss,” Chad said, trying to lighten the mood. “Your godawful jokes.”
“You love them. Here’s another: What do you call a man who can’t stand?”
“I don’t know.”
“Neil.”
“Bringing my ex-fiancé into this…”
“He is the punchline to my best joke…”
Chad shook his head. “I went to his house, got my stuff, and left. He kept telling me he did the stories for us.”
“For himself more like.”
“That’s what I said to him.”
“Now where do you live?”
“A small apartment in the city, but the best thing is they allow pets, and there’s a doggy daycare nearby. It won’t be like having Toby back, but it would be nice to have some non-judgmental company.”
Romeo grinned. “You deserve some happiness.”
“The messed-up thing is … I’m happier now, than I was before.”
“You’re happy to be alive?”
The question lingered. Romeo tensed, waiting patiently for Chad to reply. He’d offered his life, begged Romeo to take it, so it was no wonder Romeo thought he was suicidal, or unhappy, but the reality had been different. He’d wanted to do right by everyone, catch the killer, and set Romeo free, and in an odd way, he had. The countdown killer had been stopped, and Romeo looked less haunted.
“Yes, I’m happy I’m still alive.”
Romeo relaxed in his seat. “Good. You wanna know what’s weirder? Despite the cell, being trapped in here, I’m happier, too.”
“Even though you didn’t get your number one?”
“Who’s to say what the future will hold?”
Chad heard Leon shuffle behind him.
“But this,” Romeo said, gesturing to himself and Chad. “Makes me happy, and there’s no other way this could’ve happened… I get to keep you, and you get to keep me.” He rubbed his fingers seductively across his lips. “But I do miss … some things.”
Chad nodded in agreement. He missed the touches, the kisses, the orgasms. The house had been swabbed, forensics had been all over it, and although his colleagues knew about his and Romeo’s intimacies, they’d managed to keep it from the press. They wanted a rape charge bought against Romeo, but Chad refused. It was messed up, but it wasn’t rape.
“I even miss the crosswords…”
Chad held the newspaper up. “That, I can help you with.”
He flattened the paper out on the small table. Romeo lifted himself out of his chair, humming as he studied the crossword clues.
“How about this one? Bring back together, seven letters.”
Romeo looked at Chad through the glass, eyes sparkling, and coy smile spreading his lips.
“Reunite,” Chad said, trying to keep his tone neutral. “Black and white bird, six words.”
“Magpie.”
Romeo said it so quietly, Chad’s lashes fluttered, and he snorted softly.
“And this: scary creature, seven words.”
“Monster,” Chad whispered.
Romeo looked at him fondly, and Chad looked so deeply into his eyes he could see the monster within, no longer sad, no longer alone. He imagined his own eyes had the same softness, too.
“This is a good one,” Romeo said, pointing down at the clues. “Subsequent storyline, six letters…”
Chad frowned, running his fingers over the boxes. “Sequel?”
“Very good,” Romeo murmured.
Chad looked up just in time to see Romeo wink.
The End
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BONUS SAMPLE CHAPTER
THE FRESHMAN
Louise Collins
Copyright © 2018
Sample Chapter
Alfie thought about hurling insults, he thought about punching Ryan in the face, but in the end, he rolled his eyes and stomped his heel to the floor. The angry clomp didn’t stop the snort of amusement from the man strolling away.
For the past few months, Alfie had been subjected to hundreds of colorful new names. Being called a dipshit arse-wipe by the prisoners was preferable over what the staff called him. Rookie, newbie, fish, tender meat—they were a few of his new names from his colleagues.
“It’s Alfie.” He hissed, then turned and leaned against the metal gate.
Alfie, that was all his mother gave him. His name that sounded too soft for the world, a weak name he was determined to strengthen. He was the youngest prison officer to work at Larkwood in decades, but so far, he’d only be assigned to the brain numbing nightshift. Every time a post opened up on days, Ryan, his superior officer, always denied him. He said it was because he was too inexperienced, but he couldn’t get any experience until they shoved him on days, even working the visitor’s corridor would’ve been a step up.
Ryan didn’t like Alfie’s age, and he didn’t like that he was from the care-system. He never said it, but Alfie strongly believed Ryan thought he was a plant in the prison by one of the cons.
“Have a good night, Rook.”
Alfie didn’t turn at the taunt. He breathed deep and exhaled to an internal count of ten.
The day shift had just handed over to the night staff. The graveyard shift where the very walls looked like they were shifting in the darkness. He stood inside G-wing, behind him was the lobby, and on the opposite side was another gate the led to H-wing. The lobby acted as a space to ferry prisoners through whatever gate they needed to go. Whether that was to the hospital, the visiting area, the church, or the classrooms. Alfie imagined it was bustling with activity during the day, but at night it was an echoing chasm.
Staring straight ahead without blinking, the darkness bled into Alfie’s peripheral, until only black splodges remained, forming faces, sinister ones that put the prisoners to shame. The prisoners had been locked up since seven. All of them accounted for in the droning roll call. It was surprisingly quiet, and the only sound came from behind him.
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