Page 54 of So Bleak

She sighed and ran her hands through her hair. Their killer was out there planning his next victim, and they were shaking down a dirty health inspector. What a joke.

Maybe the Boss was right. Maybe it was time for her to leave fieldwork behind. She’d gotten West. She’d done what she set out to do. Maybe it was time to leave this behind for others who weren’t so exhausted.

Maybe she just didn’t have what it takes anymore. Maybe the scars Trammell, West and the numerous other serial killers she’d fought had left behind were too much for her to overcome.

Maybe the world would be better off without Special Agent Faith Bold trying and failing to protect them from the monsters that lurked in the darkness.

CHAPTER TWENTY FOUR

Michael joined Faith and Turk outside and said, “I’m not gonna lie, I was seriously considering helping myself to some of the alcohol he had on the counter.”

Faith chuckled mirthlessly. “I don’t think alcohol would help me right now.”

The door opened, and the three agents saw police officers leading Clive Benson away in handcuffs. He was weeping, and when he saw the two of them, his face screwed up in a pout. “I didn’t kill anyone. You said if I helped you, you wouldn’t tell them about the kickbacks.”

“We never said that,” Michael countered, “and we couldn’t keep that promise even if we had.”

“You guys suck!” he called.

Michael didn’t dignify that with a reply. The three agents left the building and drove back to Faith’s apartment. Just after they started driving, Faith’s phone buzzed. A text from Dr. Spencer informing them that none of the substances in their victims’ blood matched any known cleaning chemical, authorized or unauthorized.

“So that’s a dead end too,” Faith said drily.

“What?” Michael asked. “The cleaning chemicals?”

“Yep.”

“Yeah, I figured. Tox screens usually include the most popular cleaning chemicals since it’s a fairly common cause of poisoning. Still worth a shot.”

“Was it?” Faith asked. “Was it really? I kind of feel like we panicked and threw the ball blindly hoping a receiver would magically lift himself out of the secondary and pull it in for a touchdown.”

“Kudos to you for knowing enough about football to make that analogy,” he said. “I assume, anyway. I don’t know shit about football.”

Faith was in no mood for banter right now. “The point is we guessed, Michael. We made a guess.”

“All detective work is guesswork.”

“Yeah, but this wasn’t educated guesswork. We weren’t following evidence. We literally asked, ‘Hmm, who else visits multiple restaurants?’ and landed on health inspector. We aren’t trying to solve the case, we’re throwing darts at the wall and hoping one of them lands on the jackpot.”

“That analogy sounded less accurate, but again, I don’t know.”

“Michael—”

“Well, what do you want me to say, Faith? There is no evidence. Or rather, there is, but we’re waiting for the state crime lab to tell us exactly what it is and where to find it. The whole reason we’re not sitting on our asses waiting for a phone call is because we’re not satisfied to sit on our asses waiting for a phone call when some psycho is still out here killing people. So yeah, we’re chasing our tails here because that’s all we have until the crime lab gets back to us. But that could still be weeks. So what do you want us to do? Should we lick our wounds and stop trying? Or should we keep fighting?”

“I want to keep fighting, Michael, but I don’t want to waste time chasing phantoms.”

“Then where do we go? What do we chase? You tell me, Faith, what’s our next move?”

Faith didn’t answer. After a long moment, Michael said, “Exactly. We’re caught between a rock and a hard place, but if you throw spaghetti at a wall, something will stick eventually. Do I like it? Hell no. Do I think it’s good detective work? No. Is it our only option? Unless we get a call from the crime lab or have a eureka moment, yes.”

They finished the rest of the drive in silence. Fortunately, it was a short drive, so the tension between them didn’t have time to grow oppressive. Turk whined mournfully, and both agents ruffled his fur and offered terse encouragement that Turk didn’t find reassuring at all.

When they reached the apartment, Michael ordered a pizza. Faith didn’t want to be alone with her thoughts right now, so she switched the TV on. Michael called a warning, "You know it's all gonna be bullshit about West. Why are you putting it on?”

“Because I’d rather be pissed at West and the news media vampires than at myself.”

He shrugged. “Fair enough.”

---