Page 69 of Silver Tears

We both laugh. I love how a six-year-olds mind works. Like it’s that simple. “I don’t think Seb has time for a dog. They are a big commitment. You need to walk them every day, and feed them, bath them.”

“I’d help walk him and bath him!” Charlie insists, sitting down on the floor and laughing when Bruno sits in front of him and licks his face. “I love you, Bruno!”

I call Bruno back into his kennel. He doesn’t want to go back in. He’s loving all the attention. The boys help me finish cleaning out the kennels and re-fill the water and food bowls. Charlie's face is a picture when I clean up the dog poo with poop bags. We take all the dogs out to the play enclosure so they can all stretch their legs and have a run. Charlie tracks Bruno’s every move. I think Bruno’s stole his little heart.

When my shift is over and we have to go, Chops insists on saying goodbye to Bruno and he sulks as we walk away, leaving him in his kennel. Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea after all.

* * *

When we pull up outside the house, I stare opened mouthed at the shattered glass all over the front. The front room window has an enormous gaping hole in it.

“What the hell?” I pull out my door keys and rush towards the house. When we enter, there’s a brick on the living room floor with paper wrapped around it. Seb strides past me and picks it up, unwrapping it. I watch as he frowns, reading the note.

“What does it say?”

Seb shakes his head at me, his eyes falling on Charlie. It’s then I notice despite all the broken glass that someone has cleaned the house. All the beer cans and litter are gone.

“Who cleaned up?” I ask bewildered, looking around the house.

Seb scratches at the back of his head and shrugs his shoulders. “I paid a cleaner to come in.”

He says it so quickly; I wonder if I heard him right. “Come again? A cleaner?”

He nods, as he puts his phone to his ear. “Oh hi, Ross. I have a job for you. I know it’s Sunday, but I’ll pay you double. I need a pane of glass replacing.” He listens and nods his head. “Sure, I’ll measure up now and send you the info. See you soon.”

“Seb!” I warn. If he thinks he’s paying for the window, he has another thing coming. He places his finger to his lips.

“Don’t even try to argue with me. We both know your wages at the café and the club won’t come near to covering this. Why don’t the two of you go over to Peggy’s while I sort this mess out?”

“Why did someone throw a brick through our window?” Charlie asks me, looking worried. I crouch down to his level.

“It was just some naughty teenagers being silly,” I tell him. I dread to think what could have happened if Charlie had been sitting in here when that came hurtling through the window. I haven’t seen the note, but I know from the look on Seb’s face when he read it, it’s not good.

Leaving Seb at the house, I take Charlie next door. Peggy is shocked when I tell her what’s happened. She wrinkles her forehead saying something woke her up in the night, but she’d gone straight back to sleep.

Once Charlie is distracted, I head back next door and I’m shocked when I walk in and find that Seb isn’t alone. A large guy in his forties smiles at me, passing me towards the door.

“I’ll be in touch,” he tells Seb.

“Who was that?” I ask him curiously. Mores the question, what was he doing in my mum’s house?

“He’s a private investigator. I’ve asked him to find out who sent the little gift through the window.”

I guffaw. “A private investigator! You just have one at your beck and call! Wow,” I exclaim. His world is such a strange one. “I want to see the note,” I insist, holding out my hand.

I can see he’s reluctant, but with a sigh, he hands it to me and waits.

The message: ‘Pay up or pay the price’ is written in messy black writing.

My stomach drops. This is bad. “Drug money,” I state rather than ask.

“Yep. I assume your mums run herself up a debt with an unhappy dealer.” He walks over to me and places his hands at my waist. “I’ll find out who it is, Mills. One thing about being an Ace is we have a lot of contacts in a lot of places.”

“How can I leave him here, Seb? Where are they? Did she not come home last night?”

Seb wraps his arms around my shoulders and pulls me into his warm body. I feel safe here with him. He’s had my back through all this shit and it’s something I never expected. “They’re holed up at his flat.”

“How do you know this?” I ask puzzled and then I put two and two together and come up with the answer. “The P.I.”

---