Every Breath You Take

by Jay Zendrowski

  Chapter 17

  Ten minutes later, they were back in their car, the security kid saluting them from the front door of the office.

  "Well, it will be interesting to see if Janssen can pick up any prints from that book," Pepper said as he wheeled out onto Western Road and headed back downtown.

  "My guess is there won't be any besides Bartolucci's," Wallace said as he looked at the antique-looking book inside the plastic bag. "Based on the way he treated the Redmond girl when he placed her in that dumpster, I can't see our guy being careless, especially when he was at the point of using Bartolucci as an accomplice. I'm sure it won't come as a surprise to him that Rico's been caught-if he even knows at this point."

  Pepper flicked his eyes over to Wallace. "Interesting point-does he even know Bartolucci is being held? I know Rico said when he tried to contact the guy on the second day to get more roofies, the guy never responded. It was almost as if he knew something was up, but on the other hand, maybe he was just off the grid that day for some reason." Pepper paused as Wallace looked at him and nodded, eyebrows knitted in thought. "We sent The Sandman our own message from the Reaper website-now I think it's time we sent him one from Rico, offering to make some kind of further deal."

  "It definitely won't hurt to cast a little more bait into the pond, that's for sure. Yeah, there's been nothing in the paper about Bartolucci's arrest, so maybe the guy has no idea."

  "While we're showing Rico these pictures of the cars, we'll ask him for his password information so we can log in as The Hulkster and send another message."

  "I like it." Wallace sat back and looked out the windshield as Pepper turned onto Riverside Drive in the direction of the police station, the skies still spotty with clouds, the sun still trying to break through. "You know what else I like?"

  "What's that?" Pepper replied.

  "The idea of you getting a cop haircut." Pepper looked over to see Wallace grinning at him. "Yeah, I can see you with a brush cut like that kid. Just think of all the girls that would want to run their fingers through that bristly flat-top of yours." Wallace ran his fingers through his own short-cropped hair. "I'm telling you, buddy, if you get yourself one of those cop haircuts, you'll get yourself a date for sure-I guarantee it."

  Pepper paused as he looked over at his friend, Wallace now patting the top of his head and smiling like the village idiot. "Who says I need a date?" Pepper gave his friend the tricky eye, a knowing smile on his face. The smile disappeared off of Wallace's face immediately, like he'd been slapped.

  "Okay, what the hell does that mean? You can't just throw out a comment like that-and then give me that 'cat that ate the canary' look-and not say anything. C'mon, buddy, give?.give." Wallace put both hands out and curled his fingers in and out.

  "I, uh?I kind of met someone?"

  "When? Who?"

  "Just last night, actually. At my parent's house."

  "At your parent's house?"

  "Yeah, it was kind of a setup, I think. Everybody else was there, as usual, and this young woman kind of showed up with my grandmother. They all seemed to know about it except me."

  "Is she hot? Please tell me she's hot. Like on a scale of 1 to-"

  "C'mon, Rupe. Don't you want to know anything about her first? Like what she's like? Why she was there? Or even what her name is?"

  "Okay. So what's her-"

  "9, maybe even 9.5."

  "9.5?wow," Wallace said, nodding. "And just to clarify, this is on the scale that goes up to 10, not Nigel Tufnell's scale that goes to 11, right?"

  "That's right," Pepper replied, a broad smile on his face.

  "So okay," Wallace continued, "now that we've got the important stuff out of the way, tell me more about this sweet enchantress."

  "She used to be a chef at some big restaurant in Toronto, but she wanted out of the big city, so she's working with my mother and grandmother at the catering company now. I guess she's only been here less than a month, but apparently they just love her."

  "So what's her name?"

  "Shauna. Shauna Keegan."

  "Irish?"

  "Yep."

  "You better be careful, buddy-those Irish are nuts. I've been to one Irish wedding in my life, and everybody told me it was a good one. Do you know why?"

  "No, but I'm sure you're going to tell me."

  "Because there was a fight at the reception, and what made it typically Irish was that the fight was between the groom and his best man, who also happened to be his brother. That's how crazy the Irish are." Wallace wagged his finger at Pepper, warning him. "Does she look Irish?"

  "Oh yeah, she definitely looks Irish," Pepper replied, unable to keep the smile off his face. "She's got gorgeous red hair and these green eyes that you just want to dive into. Her skin is smooth as milk and she's got the cutest smile you'd ever-"

  "Whoa-hold on there, loverboy-I thought you said you just met her last night? She must have made quite an impression."

  "I guess you could say she did. And guess what else?"

  "What?"

  "She drives a Mini."

  "Get the fudge out of my kitchen!" Wallace blurted out.

  "Seriously, she drives a Mini." Pepper chuckled as he looked at his friend's incredulous face.

  "What are the odds?" Wallace shook his head. "It must be love."

  "Just shut up and take the book into Janssen," Pepper said as he pulled up in front of the police station.

  "Back in a flash, Johnny Cash," Wallace said as he leapt out of the car and sped into the building. He was back within a couple of minutes, and Pepper pulled away from the curb, turning south on Adelaide Street, heading back to the jail on Exeter Road.

  "I asked Janssen to call me once she'd checked the book for prints. She said she'd likely have something for us within the hour. Which reminds me, I think Fingerprintz was one of the most underrated bands of the '80s."

  "I know, 'Beat Noir' was a great album." The two of them debated the issue for the next ten minutes or so before Pepper swung the car into one of the strip plazas on Adelaide near Commissioners Road.

  "Oh, we're stopping at your mom's place?" Wallace said as Pepper pulled the car up in front of one of the tenant spaces, the sign 'Pepper & Spice Catering' prominently displayed.

  "Yeah," Pepper said as he climbed out of the car. "I thought you might like to thank her personally for that Beef Wellington."

  "I guess this wouldn't have anything to do with visiting anyone else working here, would it?" Wallace said, nodding towards a red and black Mini sitting a few parking spaces over.

  "Oh, I never noticed," Pepper said, giving Wallace a look of doe-eyed innocence.

  "Right." Wallace walked up to the unit and reached for the door. "You might want to do up your zipper before you go in."

  "What?" Pepper said, stopping dead in his tracks. In the universal method of checking for this social faux pas, he slid his hand along the line of his belt, as if adjusting it slightly, but letting his index finger slip beneath the top flap of his fly, finding that the tab of his zipper was in its rightful place. "Asshole."

  The alluring scent of warm cinnamon buns hit them as they entered the building. For Pepper, it brought back fond memories of this place where his grandparents had started their bakery decades ago. Changes had been made over the years, but the pervasive scent of delicious food still comforted him like a mother's embrace.

  "Well, look what the wind blew in," Joanie said as she looked up from one of the prep tables behind the front counter. She had her apron on as usual as she walked towards them, wiping her hands on a tea towel.

  "Mrs. P.," Wallace said as he came around the counter and let himself be swallowed up in a hug from Pepper's mother. "I want to thank you so much for that Beef Wellington dinner you sent home for me. It looks fantastic."

  "Well, you just make sure you take it home and let your wife try some of that-I know what you're like, Rupert." She wagged her index finger at him.

  "Mom, where's Grandma?" Pepper sa
id.

  "She's out finalizing things with the client who's getting this order later today."

  "Those cinnamon buns smell amazing." Pepper pointed to the tray of fresh buns placed on a cooling rack.

  "They do, don't they. But that's not my doing."

  "No?"

  "Shauna made those."

  Their conversation was interrupted by a voice from further back in the unit. "Joanie, I found the artichokes but I couldn't see the oliv-" Shauna said as she came out of one of the storage rooms off the main kitchen area. She had a big glass jar in her hand and stopped short as she noticed Pepper and Wallace. She had on jeans and a white chef's jacket with three-quarter-length sleeves, her lustrous red hair done up in a loose bun, stray tendrils of wispy hair licking her neck. She smiled as her eyes alighted on Pepper.

  Pepper felt his heart give a flip. With her hair pulled back and tied loosely behind her head, she looked even prettier than he remembered, her lovely features drawing his gaze like iron filings to a magnet.

  "So, you must be the great Rupert Wallace I've been hearing about," Shauna said as she put down the jar of artichokes and shook Wallace's hand.

  "Sadly, I'm unable to deny the great part," Wallace said, taking her hand in his. "And you must be the amazing Shauna that I hear is responsible for this alluring cinnamon-sweet fragrance that has me on the verge of committing the crime of grand theft bunnage."

  "You know what they say, "if you can't do the time, don't do the crime." Shauna looked Wallace's diminutive form up and down before slowly shaking her head from side to side. "Hmm, you know, Rupert, I don't think you'd do well at the crowbar hotel, especially if they gave you a roommate named Bubba." Wallace's jaw dropped as Pepper laughed out loud. "I think we can spare one or two cinnamon buns for our good friends in law enforcement, don't you, Joanie?"

  "I don't think I've ever seen Rupert at a loss for words before," Joanie laughed. Like Pepper, she couldn't keep the smile off her face as Shauna reached out and playfully patted Wallace's arm. "One each, that's it." Joanie took the tray of buns down and set them on a prep table. As she cut off a couple of the warm steamy buns, Shauna went to one of the fridges and pulled out a jug of milk, pouring glasses for Pepper and Wallace.

  "So Shauna, I hear you were a chef in Toronto. Thanks, Mrs. P," Wallace said as he took the small plate Joanie handed him.

  "Yes. This is a welcome change. I'm liking London so far, and it's been great working with Joanie and Dot."

  "Oh man, these cinnamon buns are fantastic," Wallace said, wiping his mouth with a napkin.

  "I thought you cops only liked donuts?" Shauna said to Wallace, giving Pepper a wink.

  "You watch far too much TV, woman," Wallace replied, opening his mouth to take another bite. "We have a much more discerning palate than that."

  "What do you think of them, Scot?" Shauna turned to Pepper and leaned on the edge of the big prep table.

  The light flickered off her vivid green eyes as she brushed back a stray lock of hair, and it took Pepper a second or two to catch his breath. "They're amazing," he finally said, holding up his plate in salute.

  "What brings you boys down this way?" Joanie said.

  "We're just on our way to Exeter Road."

  "Exeter Road?" Shauna said, looking from Pepper to Wallace and back again.

  "Our local crowbar hotel, as you call it," Pepper replied. "We have to have a talk with one of the residents." He shovelled the remainder of the bun into his mouth.

  "We'd better go, buddy," Wallace said, washing down his last bite with a big slug of milk.

  "Well, Rupert, it was nice to meet you," Shauna said as she nodded in Wallace's direction. "Hopefully I'll see you again soon." Her gaze flicked over to Pepper before returning to Wallace.

  "I'm sure we'll definitely see you soon. So nice to meet you, Shauna, and I just love these buns of yours." The others all laughed. As usual, Wallace's filter was not working up to par. "I mean these cinnamon buns are incredible-not to say yours aren't too-I mean?"

  "Quit while you're ahead," Pepper said as he gave his mother a quick kiss and turned to Shauna. "Are you going to be home tonight? Would you mind if I gave you a call?"

  "I'll be home, and I'd like that." The smile she gave him was worth the trip.

  Pepper started the car and pulled back out onto Adelaide and turned onto Commissioners Road, heading toward the detention centre.

  "How do you like the cinnamon buns, Scot?" Wallace mimicked, emphasizing his friend's proper first name.

  "Don't you start," Pepper replied. "I got enough of that from my sister and her husband last night."

  "Scot?.I love it." Wallace said as he looked out the passenger side window before starting to sing. "Shauna and Scot, sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S?..I-N-G."

  Once again, Pepper's opinion of Wallace was confirmed. "Asshole."