Page 57 of Two/Face

Jimmy moves from the doorway, and I follow, raising my hands in defense. Stepping into the brownstone, I follow him toward the living room where both Pamela and Axe sit. Their expressions match Jimmy’s.

Axe stands. As he barrels over, Jimmy throws his arm out to stop him. I don’t move. I stand my ground even though I know I’ve used them to my own advantage.

“What the fuck were you playing at out there? You could have got us cornered by the police,” He spits out.

“That was never going to happen. Harry wouldn’t have gone with you.”

“Really?” Axe cocks his head to one side, speaking sarcastically.

“Yeah, really.”

Jimmy’s eyes narrow on mine. He looks between Axe and me, shaking his head.

“I don’t fucking believe you!” He throws his hands in the air; he begins pacing the room. “You had me wear your fucking mask because you wanted to throw her off.”

My jaw moves slightly from side to side when all eyes fly to mine.

“Jesus Christ, Bhodi, I saw how she reacted when she saw it! You can’t hide that, she fucking cares about Two/Face, and you’re continuing to mess with her fucking head!” Jimmy shouts, he never shouts, but right now, he’s fucking livid with me.

Pamela shakes her head, and Axe runs his hand over his face before falling back into his chair.

“I had my reasons.” I speak calmly.

“You had your reasons? Care to tell us your fucking reasons?” Axe speaks through gritted teeth.

Reaching for the bottle of Jameson’s on the side table, I pour a glass. Taking a seat, I pass the bottle to Axe. As everyone takes a seat, I swirl the amber liquid in the tumbler before downing the measure in one.

“Detective Daly came by the precinct the other day and asked questions about Harry. I told him what I knew, what Detective Grey knew.” I begin. “He told me he was investigating Alex Crane’s disappearance, apparently, some colleagues were worried after he didn’t turn up for his shift. The police went to his apartment, and the place was smeared in pigs’ blood, and it was turned upside down.”

Axe immediately shoots me a concerned look, to which I nod in response.

“I know. We picked him up off the streets and never set foot anywhere near his apartment. The police searched his call logs and found he’d been communicating with Harry and wanted to speak with him, but by this point, Harry conveniently couldn’t be found.”

A heavy silence falls over the room. Jimmy, Axe, and Pamela all look towards me to carry on.

“Father Dudley called when he saw Summer at the church. He described Eric, and I knew it was a trap. Harry still wants Summer for some reason, so that’s why I called. You never had anything to worry about. I’d called in backup when I saw him panicking. He knows he’s safer in custody.”

“Why show Two/Face to Summer?” Jimmy asks.

Leaning back in the chair, I let out a low breath.

“I wanted to know if we can trust her. She still doesn’t know about her dad’s separate life, and she doesn’t know about us. I wanted to see if she would say anything.”

“And did she pass the test?” Pamela interjects, her face still unreadable.

“She did. She never said a word and has never even said anything to me.” I confirm.

“Where do we go from here?” I turn to Axe when he asks the obvious question.

“Luca Bernardi’s lawyer stormed into the precinct as I left. He’ll likely represent Harry. We know he’ll probably make bail. My report and the statements are sound, but that doesn’t matter. Detective Daly mentioned a task force at One PP. The PC put it together to weed out the potential dirty cops working for Luca. So far, I can’t find any proof on it.”

“Who the fuck would help him?” Pamela spits out, her body almost trembling as Axe reaches for her hand.

“I don’t know, Pam. Our only guess could be money, but I can’t find any proof, and neither can the captain.” I shrug. She shakes her head, but Axe pulls her close.

“For the last eight years, we’ve killed anyone working with Luca, are you sure the PC isn’t just hunting us?” Axe speaks, almost amused by the whole thing.

“No, I think there’s a lot more people than what we’ve removed.” I shrug.

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