Page 45 of So Silent

Chapter Twenty Two

“Donut?”

Faith frowned at Michael. “Why are you eating donuts? We could be chasing a killer any minute now.”

Michael shrugged and took a bite out of his maple bar. “I’ll let the uniforms handle that. What’s the point of hiring testosterone-filled young men if you don’t give them a chance to prove how manly and capable they are?”

Faith rolled her eyes. “I’ll take the coffee I asked for. Did you get that?”

“Yep. Caramel sauce with extra milk and a dash of decaf espresso.”

Faith took her black coffee from him and asked, “Who told you that joke was funny?”

“Ellie laughs at it.”

“Ellie was trying to get into your pants when she laughed at that.”

“Joke’s on you, I didn’t start that until after she got into my pants.”

Faith rolled her eyes. “Well, if that joke makes you happy, go for it, I guess.”

“Seeing the look of exasperation on your face makes me happy.”

Faith glared at him, and he grinned mischievously. She tried to hold the glare, but a grin spread across her own face in spite of herself.

They were going to catch him. Maybe not tonight. Probably not tonight since he had already killed, but soon. They had found the killer’s weakness, and they were going to use it to catch him.

She felt a touch of guilt at feeling excitement only an hour after leaving Jessica to be taken away by the coroner, but she alleviated that guilt by reminding herself that they were close to avenging her. She felt very confident this time.

Wanda seemed to share that confidence. Redmond was barely a blip on the radar compared to Seattle and Tacoma, but Wanda strutted around like she was the biggest fish in the ocean, and when she issued instructions to officers and detectives from the larger departments, she did so as though such authority was rightfully hers.

“She’s gunning for commissioner,” Michael opined, gesturing toward her with the rest of his donut.

“I think they have a chief, not a commissioner.”

“No one likes a know-it-all.”

“And yet you still like me.”

“I get paid to like you.”

“Does that make you a whore?”

He lifted his eyebrow. “Who told you that was funny?”

“I laughed.”

“That’s your laughing face?”

“I’m laughing on the inside.”

He chuckled on the outside. “I wonder if David ever gets to see this side of you.”

“David gets to see more sides of me than you ever did.” Michael gave her a frank look, but before he could retort, she said, “Don’t say it. Forget I said anything.”

“Maybe try thinking before you speak next time.”

“Screw you.”

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