Page 40 of Prey

“Got what wrong? C’mon Mikky, just say what’s bugging you.” It was like squeezing water from a rock, but obviously, he was perturbed by whatever was discussed with the PI.

“As I said, I might be reading into it, but where was Sylvia when Uncle Lars was shot?” he fired the blow, which left me a little dumbstruck.

“Huh. I didn’t expect you to say that,” I exclaimed, wondering where he was going with this. “She was at home with…Gunner and the girl.”

“The girl, Annika,” his jaw pulsated from clenching. That girl. That name. “Sylvia said the girl and Gunner were home the night of the shooting. That story never changed.”

“Yeah, so we knew the girl was lying all along because Sylvia said she never left her room, and her bedroom was at the back of the house, so there was no way she could’ve been a witness to the murder,” I added. “What did the PI…what the fuck is his name?”

“Danny Lam,” he reminded me.

“What did Lam say that’s got you all riled up?” I needed to know.

“Sylvia said to the PI she went out for an hour to get some food for dinner,” he stated, and his words seemed to linger in the air before crashing down.

“But she was home when Mr. Kaiser was murdered in the front yard?” I proposed since the whole night had become hazy to me.

I wasn’t there. I was working at the club in Larsson. The only people that could’ve been witnesses were Gunner, the girl, Sylvie, and neighbors. Two neighbors reported seeing a black van pull up outside their house at about 5.30 PM, and Mr. Kaiser walked to the van to talk to someone inside. That’s when he was shot. The neighbors believed whoever was in the van shot him because they took off immediately afterward. We had no ideawhy Mr. Kaiser spoke to the people in the van, but the neighbors assumed that Mr. Kaiser knew them. We didn’t know anyone who owned a van of that style back then, and still, to this day, that van hasn’t been discovered.

He released his grip on the back of the chair, stood over, and started making his way to the door. “I don’t know, Ronan. But if she lied about not going out, what else did she lie about?”

“Ah, c’mon, Mikky,” I groaned. “She’s your aunty. Mrs. Kaiser would never…”

“You know, I thought about that night so many times while lying in that flea-infested prison, and ah, you know, so much went around and around in my head.” He turned the handle on the door. “Just forget I said anything.”

“Like that will ever happen,” I mumbled. His accusation left me cold as if he sucked the air out of the room. I could never envision Mrs. Kaiser involved in Mr. Kaiser’s death. Never. She loved that man, and they were the perfect couple. Nah, he’s got it wrong, or maybe Danny Lam heard it wrong.

There was another knock at my door, but the knock wasn’t familiar this time. Everyone knew the rules. No one came up here unless explicitly instructed by us – Mikky and I.

“Enter,” I called bluntly to scold whoever came here without my permission. The conversation with Mikky put me in a reflective mood, and I wasn’t interested in talking with anyone.

The handle turned, followed by a scraping and bumping sound, so I propelled off my seat to see what it was. When I flung the door open, a sweet-face girl wearing glasses, cheeks flushed, tried to wrangle her way around the serving trolley.

“I’m sorry,” she stuttered and hopped from one foot to the other nervously. “Betty sent me up here with your dinner.”

“Betty? Did she now.” My frown was quickly replaced with a grin shining from within—good ol’ Betty.

Under my stare, she fumbled over the trolley and pulled out the tray with one hand because the other was wrestling with the trolley door. She lost her grip on the tray, and I stepped forward to rescue it before the plate of food slid off.

“You’re new at this,” I chuckled, totally entertained by her clumsiness.

“Um, yes,” she admitted, even though I already knew. “First day.”

“Do you want to come inside?” I suggested, opening the office door wider so she could step in.

“No,” she shook her head, looking horrified. “I’m expected downstairs.”

“They can wait,” I insisted.

“It’s my first day. I can swan about on my first day,” she argued, avoiding my eyes as those cheeks blazed in pink and the lens of her glasses fogged up.

“No, no. I’m the floor manager. I like a chat with all the new staff,” I lied to lure her in.

Her feet seemed glued to the floor, unable to move in any direction, including away from me, so I gently wrapped my hand around her small wrist and pulled her into my lair. Her skin was cool, and she reminded me of a terrified fledgling fallen from the nest, wide-eyed and vulnerable to the horrors of the outside world.

I had no intention of hurting her, but I did intend to get to know her a little better.

Selkie started when I closed the door behind her, so I moved away to let her breathe and placed the plate of food on my desk. “Are you hungry?”

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