Page 124 of Skeletons in the Closet

“Yeah, but—”

“You already got hurt once, Tallus.” His voice rose, and he clenched his fists before continuing with a softer tone. “I’m not waiting around for it to happen again. I’m done. This is over.It’s not a game. If I keep wading into territory where I don’t belong, I’ll be out of a job, and I can’t afford that. I told myself when I started this business that I wouldn’t butt heads with the department. And here I am doing exactly that.”

“Yeah, but—”

“No.Mycase.Myrules.Mydecision. We aren’t partners, so you don’t get a say.”

I deflated. Yeah, I knew we weren’t officially partners, and I knew it wasn’t my case, but his words stung.

“What about Olivia? You and I both know that wasn’t a random house fire. There’s no fucking way.”

“I’ll give Doyle a heads-up. He can take it from there.”

Diem couldn’t look at me, which was typical, but it felt different this time. Like I was being dismissed without so many words. I could take a hint.

“Well, fine. I guess I’ll take off then.” But I didn’t move. I crossed my arms like a petulant child, giving him a minute to change his mind.

Diem stood his ground.

I huffed. “It was nice working with you, Guns. I think.”

Irritated, I shoved past him and headed for the door.

“I’ll get you your cut once Faye pays what she owes.”

“You know what? Keep the fucking money. It’s not why I helped you.” I slammed the office door, and the sign fell.

I left it on the ground.

***

The following day was Sunday. I had a pity party for one, lounging all day in my pajamas, ignoring Memphis’s phone calls, watching too much TV, and eating junk food.

I didn’t hear from Diem, but that didn’t shock me.

I flipped through the news sites on my phone more than once, but there were no updates about David Shore or anything surrounding him.

Monday came around, and I threw myself into my work. Kitty was off, so I spent a long time in the crypts, browsing dusty boxes of retired cases, selecting a few, and returning to the computer to input their contents into the system. Usually, I had a bad habit of reading details and spending too long not actually working. Today, it wasn’t an issue. My brain was too occupied to care about unsolved or retired cases.

Time had not erased my anger toward Diem. How could he give up? The whole case was on fire—literally if Olivia’s house was any indication—and he was walking away? Yeah, I understood that what he’d been hired for was essentially solved, but come on. This was golden. This was the intensity I craved. We’d reached the climax of the thriller movie, and Diem shut it off before we discovered who the bad guy was. It was unfair. Some of us wanted answers.

Still, there had been no updates on the case—at least none that had crossed my desk or been broadcasted on the news. I was in the dark and hated every second of it. The itch to know was insatiable.

Later in the morning, unable to sit still, I wandered to MPU. I couldn’t approach my cousin. He had rightfully put me in my place the last time I’d asked him for help, and I didn’t feel I could approach Fox and Doyle since they were already leery about how much Diem and I knew.

So, I figured I’d put on the charm and talk to Valor. We briefly connected during the previous year’s Secret Santa event. It couldn’t hurt. Plus, he might know what was happening with the case. If I played my cards right, he might indulge me in department gossip.

Unfortunately, Valor wasn’t at his desk. He and his partner were out working a case, and no one knew when they would return. Everyone got to do fun shit but me. I left a note with my number, asking him to message me when he had time. A bold move. He could easily tell his husband I was sniffing around, but I didn’t care. It was worth a shot.

It wasn’t until midafternoon that I heard from him.

You were looking for me?Quaid texted.

Tallus: Are you in the building?

Quaid: For a few minutes. What’s up?

Tallus: omw

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