7
‘Is everything okay?’ Logan asked Irvine. ‘I mean, it’s getting late now.’
‘I’m fine. It’s nothing.’
‘What’s nothing?’
Irvine sighed.
‘I had a bit of a confrontation tonight. This case I’m working on.’
Logan wanted to ask more but let it go for now.
‘Are you at home?’
‘Yes. But you don’t need to come over tonight if you don’t want to. I know you’ve got a long trip tomorrow.’
‘I’m coming over.’
‘Good.’
Logan parked a little way along the street from Irvine’s house and walked back. When she opened the door he stared at the discoloration on her face, her eye half closed from the swelling.
‘Jesus, what happened?’
She lifted a hand self-consciously, trying to cover it.
‘I thought you said it was nothing.’
She stepped back and told him to come inside. He followed her down the hall, through the dining room and into the kitchen where she sat at the table.
She poured herself a cup of tea while Logan went to the fridge and poured himself a glass of orange juice. He sat next to Irvine and pushed her hair back to look closely at the damaged side of her face. He saw now that she had three stitches in a cut beside her eye, which was heavily bloodshot.
‘Some confrontation,’ he said. ‘Did you get in a fight?’
‘Sort of. Somebody I wanted to talk to on my case wasn’t quite so keen to speak to me.’
‘Don’t you work these things with a partner?’
She looked sideways at him. ‘Yeah, usually. This time I went on my own. Turned out not to be such a good idea after all.’
Irvine put her mug down and turned in her seat to face him. Her lip trembled.
‘Logan …’
She moved forward and wrapped her arms around him, crying quietly. Then not so quietly.
‘I was so scared. He was much bigger and stronger. If I didn’t have the pepper spray—’
She didn’t finish the thought.
He held her and stroked her hair. After a moment she pulled away and took a tissue from her pocket, dabbing at her eyes.
Her phone rang, shrill in the quiet of the room. Irvine grabbed it and answered.
‘DC Irvine?’ a male voice asked.
‘Yes.’
‘It’s DS Jim Murphy. Listen, sorry to disturb you at night, but I thought you might like to know what we found.’
‘You got something new, Jim?’
‘Well, we think it’s the clothes from your victim. Lewski.’
‘What do you mean, think?’
‘There’s not much left of them. They were found in a skip outside a building site about a half-mile from the locus. Someone set fire to them.’
‘Is there enough left to do us any good?’
‘Don’t know till the forensics people go over it. It’ll be tomorrow now before they make a start.’
‘Thanks, Jim.’
She finished the call and held Logan’s hand.
‘How do I look?’ She straightened her back and sniffed, lifting her chin.
Logan tilted his head to one side.
‘You really want me to answer that?’
‘Yes, actually.’
He leaned towards her and kissed her gently on the lips, moving up the injured side of her face and kissing her eyes as she closed them.
‘How’s that for an answer?’
‘Pretty good. You practise that?’
‘Only on you.’
They moved through to the living room and sat together on an oversized couch. Logan put his arm around her and pulled her to him.
‘What is this case anyway that causes you to get beaten up?’
‘It’s a drug squad thing that I got pulled into because there’ve been some deaths.’
‘What, like gang hits or something?’
‘No. Not like that. Overdoses.’
‘Why is CID interested in overdoses?’
‘They think there’s a new strain of drug going around. A heroin derivative. If the suppliers know that it’s potentially lethal we might be able to charge them in relation to the deaths, not just the supply.’
‘I hadn’t thought about it that way.’
‘Can we not talk about it any more? When do you leave tomorrow?’
‘Alex is picking me up at seven.’
‘How’s Ellie taking it?’
‘Better than I thought. Sam said you can go over there any time. If you want.’
‘I will, if I get the time. This case feels like it’ll keep me busy.’
They sat for a while without talking, watching the fire crackle in the hearth and enjoying the quiet.
Irvine turned her face and kissed his neck, small and soft. Her hand slid across his chest and inside his shirt. Logan kissed her.
‘You have to get up early,’ she said, bringing her hand up to his face.
‘Not that early.’