Page 85 of Damian & Jun, Episodes 9-12
Damian barked out a laugh. “You’re joking.”
“Not.”
“I—I don’t have a clue of how that happened. Can’t say I’m mad about it.”
“Well, we booked him, but we’d like to know how he got in the bullpen all on his own.” There was a distinct note of disgruntled professional pride in the detective's voice.
“When will he be in front of a judge?”
“Tomorrow. We’re requesting he be held without bail.”
“I’ll file in support of that.” Like hell did Betti need to be worried about Thaddeus walking around or Armada either, for that matter. “Can’t he be seen by a judge today?”
“Um…er…he’s been transported to a hospital. Mr. Kramer was…in considerable discomfort from an injury.”
“From duct tape?”
The detective cleared his throat. “I’m afraid I can’t give out details.”
Interesting. Who had delivered Thaddeus to the bullpen? Not just anyone could waltz in and out of a police station with a prisoner.
Did it matter? No. He was arrested, and that was all that mattered. It was time to tell the others. He was going to be late to work, but there wasn’t anything he couldn’t move around.
He still needed that interrupted kiss from Jun.
Jun
Jun grinned down at the drawing in Collin’s hand. The plans for the lounge turning into a studio for Damian and himself looked perfect. “How long do we need to wait to get the materials?”
Collin bounced on the balls of his feet, staying warm in the freezing temperatures of the Parsonage. It was early on the Tuesday after Thaddeus had been arrested. They were outside waiting for the delivery of a dumpster from the city so they could start emptying the trash from inside the house.
Collin checked over his shoulder. Damian was inside signing papers with the general contractor. The construction loan had gone through. Technically, SP4700Y was renting the house for 5N, and that proof of income from the property had been sufficient along with Damian’s credit to get the loan. The funds had been dispersed the previous afternoon. It helped that Damian personally knew the banker.
“Richard is going to order the construction materials today. Most of it should arrive tomorrow while Damian is at work. He’ll lock the lounge up to keep it a surprise.” Collin’s grin widened. “He and I are going to do the actual framing together.”
“You and Richard are building this?” Jun tapped a knuckle on the cave in the drawing. That was the only thing that looked like it needed a frame.
Collin nodded. “The structural sections. Do you want to help me with the rest, like putting the cover on?”
Jun smirked. “If you can teach, I can do.”
Collin fist-bumped him. “Ellisandre is making curtains for all the windows. Some of the seams might be wonky. They’re teaching Dana how to use the sewing machine. Linda volunteered to come over and paint butterflies on the wall, and Geun said he’d like to help paint as well. You good with that?”
Jun nodded. Geun was a very good artist. He was hoping Geun would be willing to try doing album art for their upcoming comeback.
Collin went back to his checklist. “Alice and Ash are shopping for pillows and rugs. She’ll send pictures of what they find.”
“What does that leave for us?”
“Base coats on all the walls. Then putting the shell on the cave once Richard and I get the frame built. Émeric is helping with the anchor points. When the built-ins for the closet arrive, Richard has a contractor coming to anchor them. The finishing work will be ours.”
Jun nodded. He understood most of what Collin said. Sometimes he had to ask for translations when Collin went off using language like splicing, two-by-sixes, and shower pans. Who knew that there were pans underneath the shower? Evidently, the shower pan in the second-floor bathroom was out.
The front door opened. Jun and Collin turned around. Damian looked good in heavy Carhartt pants and a dark-green work coat. He shivered, rubbing his hands together. “We have a contract.” Collin gave Damian a grin. Damian grabbed Collin in a one-armed hug. “Don’t think I didn’t notice you mostly did that on your own. You didn’t leave me much to do but sign.”
Collin flushed even more than the pink the cold had already nipped into his cheeks. He dropped his eyes and shrugged. “It’s not a big job.”
“It’s a major job,” Damian snorted. He grinned over Collin’s shoulder at Jun. “Don’t let this one get away with saying something is nothing when it’s not.”
