‘Yes, but I’m more grateful that you’re okay and you didn’t get hurt.’
Neither of them spoke for a moment.
‘See you soon.’ Her voice was barely a whisper.
Ben was already standing at the front gate waiting for her. There was a chill in the air this morning and he was wrapped up in a thick, padded jacket. Wearing gloves and a hat, not the usual shirts and suits she was used to seeing him in. He looked normal, but maybe that was the wrong word. Casual was better; he looked relaxed. It made him seem younger and not as conservative.
He opened the car door and grinned at her.
‘I could get used to this door-to-door, chauffeur-driven service.’
‘Yeah, well better not because you’ll have your own car back soon.’
‘Ha-ha, your green eyes pop when you’re being mean. Has anyone ever told you that? They stand out against your fiery red hair?’
‘Is that a compliment?’
He shrugged. ‘Never was very good at them; might have been. Anyway enough small talk, breakfast is on me after this. I owe you big time, Morgan.’
She stole a glance at him and saw he was being sincere.
‘I want to catch the killer as much as you do; maybe more, because he threw my life into a whole new world of hurt and sadness on my first sodding day. I want to see him locked up and the key thrown away for what he did to that family and the O’Briens.’
‘Me too.’
She drove to the area where the lock-ups were situated, passing them by, then parking a few streets away.
‘We’d better walk in case he’s still there.’
‘Good idea.’
They got out and she led the way. When they were almost at the entrance to the cul-de-sac, they heard footsteps behind them. Ben reached out. Grabbing hold of her hand, he pulled her close. She didn’t pull away, realising he was making it look as if they were a couple. A minute later and the person behind them overtook. Not even glancing their way, as they hurried on over the crest of the hill.
Ben let go and whispered, ‘Sorry.’
She smiled. She wasn’t giving him a hard time over that because she’d liked the feel of his hand in hers.
They paused at the opening, Ben bending down pretending to tie his shoelace. Morgan looked at the lock-ups; the doors were all painted the same red colour. All of them had peeling chunks of paint missing and a lot of graffiti. Except for one at the end; it had a new metal shutter. Not the knackered, rotting wooden doors the rest of them had.
She whispered, ‘It’s that one, it has to be.’
Ben stood up, told her to smile and snapped a photo of her with his phone. Then slowly turned, taking several bursts of the garages and the area. Grabbing her hand again they carried on walking, going the long way around to get back to her car. He didn’t let go this time and she kept hold until they were back at the car.
‘What do you think?’
‘Why does he have a lock-up here with a secure metal shutter when he has a big fancy house and garage at home? Something is going on. We need to get a search warrant. Good job, Morgan, now drive to wherever you fancy breakfast from, I’m buying.’
She looked at the clock on her dashboard. ‘It’s really early, nowhere is open.’
‘What time is it?’
She pointed at the clock.
‘Bloody hell, I can’t remember the last time I was dressed and out of the house this early. What are you doing to me? Want to come back to mine, I have bacon and eggs?’
‘If you have bacon then yes, please.’
They drove back to Ben’s. The house was much nicer in the day. She followed him in through the front door and looked around. It was lovely; everything was painted white. If anything, it was a bit sparse, lacking in the bits that would make this kind of house seem homely. Then again, who was she to talk? All she owned was an oversized chair, coffee table and a bookcase stuffed full of books. She followed him down to the kitchen, where the boarded-up window made her cheeks turn red.
‘I’m so sorry, I’ll replace that when I get paid.’
He turned from the fridge, from where he had taken the packet of bacon. ‘No, you won’t. If I hadn’t been such an arse and opened the door you wouldn’t have felt the need