Page 34 of Drift

Sidelights flashed yellow as Monique unlocked her car, and Jan got in checking his phone again before he did up his seatbelt. He’d not received a reply yet, but that was okay. Jack staggered his hours at work, so dinnertime didn’t always mean… dinner time. Not Jan’s anyway.

“At least those assholes have gone,” said Monique, as she got in and checked her mirror. With fixing her lipstick, she made her look around the car park look natural, and Jan snorted a smile. She’d missed her calling as a copper. “It sucks they like this place too.” She did up her seatbelt and put the key in the ignition.

“Technically, we followed them here.”

“Yeah.” Monique turned the engine over. “I didn’t say they didn’t have taste. They’re just assholes with it.”

He laughed, but as the engine choked once, twice, spluttered, then cut to nothing, he frowned her way.

“Don’t….” Monique tried again. “Oh don’t do this now, baby. Not with what’s going down tomorrow with the FRC. We need to get back and clear our workload.”

Another choke, two splutters, then a whole lot more made the car sound like it was trying to cough up blood with the thick barking.

“Careful you don’t flood it,” said Jan. “Watch your foot on the clutch.”

“I am.”

“No.” Jan reached to undo his belt. “Stop. It really doesn’t sound right.” He’d been around them and Jack enough to know this one sounded off.

The car cut out before she did, and Monique hunched over the wheel. “Well fuck,” she mumbled. “Being back late today ain’t gonna look good.” She looked at her watch. “Fuck. Not being back today at all really isn’t gonna look good.”

Jan thumbed in a number as Monique pulled the key from the ignition.

“I’ve got breakdown cover,” she said, looking his way.

“I know.” ACan’t answer your call at the momentcame through off Jack, and he frowned. “But this might get you faster service and let you keep your no claims discount. Let me call a…Child of the Cornfriend.” He gave her a wink, then tried again. “Bosses’ lover, plural. Gets us certain… bedside assistance.”

Monique chuckled, but as his call to Jack stayed unanswered, Jan frowned. Well, hell. “Lend me your phone.” On his, he kept trying Jack’s.

“Huh?”

“Your phone,” said Jan. “I’ll hit the garage, see if he’s on the shop floor and not picking up.” Because it was unusual that he wasn’t, unless he really did hate MOTs on Cherokees afterhis appointment with Halliday, and had goneTexas Chainsaw Massacrewithout the earplugs to really enjoy the torture.

The vibration to Gray’s phone cut in, and he stopped his swipe at his lip as he stared at his whiteboard and the notes he’d added over the Wales’ murder case. He played with distraction, he knew that as he did everything he could to ignore any notes on Jude and the impact he was going to have.

But then seeing Monique’s number come up on his phone….

Shaun.

Had he spoken to her over Jason’s murder?

He answered. “Miss Tucker?”

“No. Jan here, Gray.” Quiet. “And you recognise Monique’s number without it being stored in yours, huh?”

Gray said nothing and frowned. Jan sounded… harassed. Harassed but still carrying a smile in his tone with that last comment. “Everything okay?” asked Gray. Jan sounded too light to be weighed down over Jason’s death, and beyond that, he usually didn’t make personal calls on MC time. The clock touched 3:00 pm. Lunch was over an hour ago. He should be back at work.

The sound of traffic from Jan’s end drifted over, then a hand muffled the mobile phone and talk his end was smothered.

“Sorry, Gray, yeah.” Jan came back on through. “We went out to get lunch, but Monique’s car cut out. We’re running late.” Something else was said, almost as if Jan held two phones and was caught between either one. “Aid over at Jack’s garage is arranging a breakdown truck. I was calling Ray to maybe come and pick us up after work, but Steve put me through to you.”

“Jack didn’t offer?”

More talking, but the mention of Monique’s name called Jan’s distraction. “Erm, no,” said Jan, back with him. “Aid said he was over at his other garage with Steve, and he didn’t answer, so Aid said he’d handle it all for us. Monique’s covered, but I wanted to avoid the car being off the road for too long with everything going on tomorrow. I was hoping to get us—” A laugh. “—I mean her back on the road ASAP, get her a replacement car so she can run about. With Aid, I just didn’t want to push my luck and ask him for a lift to and from work as well. We’ve called a taxi in.”

Shaun wouldn’t have been able to talk to them, not yet, and with no contact from Jack, that left Jan on his own with Monique, with a family member who’d lost a brother to serial killer play. “Where are you?”

“Farm Retreat, back carpark.”

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