Page 55 of Fortune's Ashes
‘You know how the process goes,’ I told him. ‘There’s not yet been a formal identification and, given the state of the remains, that may take some time. But it’s definitely the body of a gremlin who has lain undiscovered for several years.’
Carmichael staggered back and his arm stretched out for a chair. He grasped the arm rest and sank down. He knew as well as I did that the body had to belong to Quincy. ‘I thought he’d done a runner,’ he whispered. ‘I thought—’
‘Everyone thought that,’ I said. ‘This isn’t your fault.’
His eyes snapped to mine. ‘I know it’s not my fault!’ He winced suddenly. ‘Sorry. I didn’t mean to sound so harsh. I just—’ He shook his head. ‘I just can’t believe it.’
I felt nothing but sympathy for him. ‘I’m sorry, Phileas. I truly am.’
‘Did he die naturally? Did he kill himself?’
‘The body was found down an old well on the outskirts of London. It was covered over.’ In other words, he didn’t fall in by accident. Somebody put him there.
His shoulders sagged. ‘Quincy was murdered.’
I wetted my lips. ‘It appears that way. Lukas is reporting it to the nearest police station and they will start the process of retrieving the remains and identifying them. When it’s established that the body is that of a gremlin, control of the investigation will pass back to the supes.’
Phileas’s head jerked. ‘What about Supe Squad?’
‘I’m suspended,’ I said gently.
‘You’re not the only Supe Squad detective. There’s that Owen Grace fellow and the young plod – Fred something.’
My next words were shaky. ‘They were in a car accident late last night. They’re both in a critical condition. And there was a fire at the Supe Squad building. There’s nothing left of Supe Squad.’
He stared at me; he obviously hadn’t heard the news. ‘So who’s going to find the bastard who murdered my Quincy? This is your job! You’re supposed to be the one who does this! What’s the fucking point of Supe Squad if none of you are around to investigate a murder?’
He got to his feet and glared at me, then sat down again. A second later he stood up. ‘I don’t care if youaresuspended. You have to find out who did this. Did you kill Cobain?’
If Phileas Carmichael believed that I might have done it, then so would many others. ‘No.’
‘Well, then.’ He looked down before mumbling, ‘I didn’t really think it was you.’
Uh-huh.
‘I didn’t!’
‘Did you think Cobain was really a phoenix?’ I wasn’t accusing him, I was simply curious.
His cheeks flushed. ‘I thought it was possible.’
I gazed at him. I was certain he was telling the truth – not that I supposed it mattered now.
Phileas toed the edge of a rug and returned to thoughts of his nephew. ‘My poor sister. She always thought he’d come back one day. We all did.’ He clamped a hand over his mouth and shrank further into himself. ‘She died without knowing that it wasn’t his fault and that he didn’t run away.’
I took the chair opposite so that we were on the same level. ‘We found him at a small cottage just north of London,’ I said. ‘It’s called the Love Nest and seems to have been empty for a long time. Have you heard of it? Did Quincy own it?’
Phileas’s hands twisted together in his lap. ‘I thought he’d sold it to pay off some of his debts. That’s what he told me.’
So it had belonged to Quincy at some point, even if it didn’t belong to him now. ‘What did he use it for?’ I asked.
‘It was part of his stupid dating agency thing.’
I frowned. ‘Like an office?’
‘No. Not like that.’ His reddened eyes met mine. ‘You know what things were like for us a couple of years ago.’
I nodded.
