Proven Guilty (The Dresden Files #8) - Jim Butcher Page 0,11

either.

Attack of opportunity, Murphy said.

Whassat?

She smiled a little. When you werent expecting the shot, but you see it and take it before the opportunity passes you by.

Oh. Yeah, probably one of those.

Murphy shook her head. Look, maybe I should get you to a doctor anyway.

No, I said. Really. Im okay. But I want to get off the street soonest.

Murphy inhaled slowly and then nodded. Ill take you home.

Thanks.

Grayson came ambling over to us. Wreckers on the way, he said. What do we got here?

Hit and run, Murphy said.

Grayson lifted his eyebrows and eyed me. Yeah? Looked to me like you got hit a couple of times. On purpose-like.

For all I know it was an honest accident, I said.

Grayson nodded. Theres some clothes in your backseat. Looks like they have blood on them.

Leftovers from last Halloween, I said. Its costume stuff. A cloak and robes and such, had fake blood all over them. It looked cheesy as hell.

Grayson snorted. Youre worse than my kid. Hes still got some of his football jerseys in his backseat from last fall.

He probably has a nicer car. I glanced up at the Beetle. It was a real mess, and I winced. It wasnt like the Beetle was a priceless antique or anything, but it was my car. I drove it places. I liked it. In fact, Im sure its a nicer car.

Grayson let out a wry chuckle. I need to fill out some papers. You okay to help me fill in the blanks?

Sure, I told him.

Thanks for the call, Sergeant, Murphy said.

De nada , Grayson replied, touching the brim of his cap with a finger. Ill get those forms, Dresden, soon as the wrecker gets here.

Cool, I said.

Grayson moved off, and Murphy stared at me steadily for a moment.

What? I asked her quietly.

You lied to him, she said. About the clothes and the blood.

I twitched one shoulder.

And you did it well. I mean, if I didnt know youhellip; She shook her head. It surprises me about you. Thats all. Youve always been a terrible liar.

Urn, I said. I wasnt sure how to take that one. Thank you?

She let out a wry chuckle. So whats the real story?

Not here, I said. Lets talk in a bit.

Murphy studied my face for a second, and her frown deepened. Harry? Whats wrong?

The limp, headless body of that nameless young man filled my thoughts. It brought up too many emotions with it, and I felt my throat tighten until I knew I wouldnt be able to speak. So I shook my head a little and shrugged.

She nodded. You going to be all right?

There was a peculiar gentleness in her voice. Murphy had been playing in what amounted to a boys-only league in her work with CPD, and she put off a tough-as-nails aura that made her seem almost as formidable as she actually was. That exterior almost never varied, at least out in the open, with other police officers nearby. But as she looked at me, there was a quiet, definite, and unashamed vulnerability in her voice.

Weve had our differences in the past, but Murphy was one hell of a good friend. I gave her my best lopsided smile. Im always all right. More or less.

She reached out and twitched a stray bit of hair from my forehead. Youre a great big girl, Dresden. One little fender bender and you go all emotional and pathetic. Her eyes flickered to the Beetle again, and suddenly burned with a cold blue fire. Do you know who did this to you?

Not yet, I growled as the wrecker arrived. But you can bet your ass Im going to find out.

* * *

Chapter Five

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By the time we got back to my place, my head was starting to run at its normal speed, the better to inform me how much it hurt. I had a nice, deep-down body ache to go along with the bruised skull. The light of the afternoon sun stabbed at my eyes in a cheerfully vicious fashion, and I was glad when I shambled down the steps to my basement apartment, disarmed my magical wards, unlocked the door, and shoved hard at it.

It didnt open. The previous autumn, zombies had torn apart my steel security door and wrecked my apartment. Though I was getting a modest paycheck from the Wardens now, I still didnt have enough money to pay for all the repairs, and I had set out to fix the door on my own. I hadnt framed it very