Page 51 of Fortune's Ashes
Bright flashes of light danced in front of my eyes, then I saw two narrow, glinting yellow eyes staring at me from across a dark pathway. A second later the eyes vanished and I saw my hands stretched behind me, handcuffs securing my wrists. That was followed by the image of a gun, its lethal muzzle turning towards me, and more flashes of light.
My mouth opened. ‘Bang!’ Sharp pain filled my chest. ‘Bang. BANG!’ The gun fell and I choked. My chest hurt so much that I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t breathe. Oh God –I couldn’t breathe. I looked down. There was blood trickling down my body, washing across the curve of my stomach and coating it red.
My vision swam as unbidden tears sprang to my eyes. I sucked in air, gripped the steering wheel and pulled as much oxygen as I could into my lungs. This was the first time I’d properly felt a Cassandra vision. I’d seen things and I’d said things before, but I’d neverfeltanything until now .
I rubbed my wrists. No steel cuffs encased them. I reached up and gently pressed my fingertips against my heart. My chest felt sore, as if someone really had squeezed a trigger and shot me, but it hadn’t happened and it wasn’t real. Not yet.
‘Jellybean,’ I whispered. Oh, my jellybean.
I wiped away my tears and took a moment to compose myself. I was alone inside Tallulah, and I wasn’t in any danger. I gulped another breath into my aching body then I pressed down on the accelerator again and started the drive to New Scotland Yard. Right now there was nothing else I could do.
ChapterNineteen
It felt different walking through the glass-fronted doors of the police headquarters now that I was officially suspended from duty. As soon as I strode inside, I felt like everyone was staring at me and judging me.
I bit back the temptation to scream at the top of my voice that I wasn’t one of those police officers who blithely committed any number of heinous crimes while pretending to uphold the law. That would only make me look more guilty, not less. Instead, I passed through the metal detectors and waited patiently to be escorted upstairs for my DNA test. Apparently I could no longer be trusted to wander these halls by myself.
I’d hoped – but hadn’t expected – that it would be Barnes who would fetch me, and I couldn’t help a surge of relief when her familiar face appeared. I knew she’d be fair and she’d look at all the evidence before jumping to any conclusions. And she knew at least some of what was going on.
I got to my feet as Barnes offered a brisk nod of greeting. ‘Emma.’
‘Ma’am.’
She raised an eyebrow at my meek politeness but didn’t comment. ‘I’m receiving regular updates from the hospital. I’m truly sorry for what happened to your colleagues. This is a very worrying situation.’ That was the understatement of the year. ‘How are you holding up?’
‘Fine,’ I muttered. Or at least I would be when I found the bastard who was behind this shit.
Her clever eyes narrowed a fraction. ‘It seems unlikely that these events are unconnected.’
‘Indeed.’
‘What are your thoughts?’
‘I’m suspended,’ I said. ‘It’s not my place to comment.’
‘Hmm.’ She frowned. ‘It’s good that you called in your solicitor. We’re going to need to interview you again formally about these latest events.’
I couldn’t help myself. ‘Is that because you think I killed Alan Cobain, set my office building on fire and arranged for two of my colleagues to almost die in a car crash?’
DSI Barnes stared at me impassively. I sighed. ‘Lead the way.’
She remained where she was. ‘This is a Met Police matter, not a supe matter. You need to make sure everyone knows that.’
I folded my arms.
‘I mean it, Emma. I’ve spoken to Dr Hawes. Alan Cobain did not resurrect and all indications suggest that he was entirely human. As are DS Owen Grace and PC Frederick Hackert. Plus, the Supe Squad building is Met Police property.’
‘Partly funded by the supe community.’
‘It’s still ours. And it’s not only Supe Squad that’s been destroyed – the hotel next door has been condemned. You’re not the only ones who’ve been affected by this. I understand that emotions are running high, but these events are for us to investigate. Not the supes. Not Horvath.’
‘Yep.’ I nodded. ‘Sure. Of course. I’ll make sure everyone knows that.’
Her lips tightened and I knew she didn’t believe me. I wouldn’t have believed me, either. Even so, her voice softened. ‘I can arrange for some support for you. Whether you’re suspended or not, we have counsellors on staff who can—’
‘I am fine.’
‘Are you?’
