Rubbing One Out - Susan Mac Nicol Page 0,22

to take me to meet him, though. I was beginning to think my friend here was a changeling found under a bush.”

Dae’s eyes lit up. “Oh, I doubt that. In my extensive experience, changelings are usually notoriously bad-tempered and rather vicious. Ben here’s as soft as a dandelion.” He waved a manicured hand, on which various rings resided, one a rather large diamond. “If he were a true changeling, mind, I’d have to do my duty and return him to the realm from whence he came, and that can sometimes be a singularly spectacular event involving exploding parts and a lot of fuss and mess. So it’s good he was born from mortals.”

Ben laughed anxiously as Hemmy regarded Dae with large eyes and a look of confusion on his face. “Hah, you and your Dungeons and Dragons talk, Dan. So confusing for the rest of us. Do you think you can move out of character and leave the game behind now? In fact,” he ushered Dae into the kitchen. “Come help me make coffee.”

Once there, he saw Hemmy settle onto the couch, watching them with a degree of puzzlement.

Ben leaned in close to the Djinn. “Behave,” he muttered into Dae’s ear. “Remember you’re a damn human tonight.”

Dae scowled. “Fine. He started it, talking of changelings.” His eyes narrowed. “You haven’t even complimented me on my outfit or my accent. I thought I did rather well.”

Ben rolled his eyes. “You look extremely dapper, and while I’m not too sure on the whole Highlander thing, your accent is acceptable. Don’t overdo it.”

Dae rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “It was either that or some man who thinks he’s rather funny called Billy Connolly. I couldn’t understand a damned word he said though, so went with Connor instead.”

“Thank God for small mercies,” Ben murmured. “I don’t think I could have dealt with you sounding like Billy.” He fiddled with the coffeemaker. “Now go over there and keep Hemmy company, and make sure you stick to normal conversation.”

“Fine.” Dae flounced back to the lounge and sat down on the other end of the couch. Ben took out three mugs and opened the fridge to get the milk.

“Tell me about yourself,” he heard Dae say. “What exactly do you and Ben get up to at the zoo?”

Ben heaved a sigh of relief as Hemmy launched into an enthusiastic account of his job. At least that was a safe subject. He finished making coffee and took it over, setting the three mugs down on the coffee table. Ben got settled in his armchair and smiled over at Hemmy.

“You ready for more episodes of Mindhunter? We’re starting season two.”

Hemmy nodded gleefully. “Oh yeah, bring it on. I can’t wait to see what the guys are up to next.” He motioned to Dae. “You watched this series before?”

Dae shook his head slowly. “No, I haven’t. What’s it about?”

“It’s about these two FBI guys who go around the US interviewing serial killers so they can gain an insight into what makes them tick and maybe solve some questions at the same time. It’s epic.”

“Serial killers?” Dae echoed with a moue of distaste. “That’s your evening entertainment, watching sick people who kill other people?” His accent slipped a little, but luckily he quickly regained it.

Hemmy looked taken aback and Ben hastened to stop whatever diatribe Dae might be planning. “It’s more about the premise behind it, not the violence, Dae—Dan. This was the first unit set up to do this sort of forensic psychology so it could be used going forward to catch killers by seeing patterns in their behaviour. It’s really interesting.”

Dae took a sip of his coffee. “I see. Well, I’ll give it a try.” He leaned back against the couch and got comfortable. “Uhm, Ben, did you forget you had something in the oven? It smells done, whatever it is.”

Ben shot to his feet. “Shit, I forgot. The Chinese.” He scooted over to the oven and opened it as steam billowed out, fogging up the kitchen. With a muttered expletive, he removed the boxes of food, cursing again as he burnt his fingers.

“Right, come and get it. Help yourselves, there’s plenty to go around.” He opened the cupboard, took out three plates, and set them down. “Knives and forks in the drawer, you know where the stuff is.”

Ten minutes later, the three men were once back again in their places, with plates laden with food and tucking into their supper.

The series began and Ben dimmed the lights as the