Page 116 of Two for Joy

“Everyone in the country knows what happened, you can’t run from it, or escape it.”

“No, but it’ll be less personal somewhere else. The spotlight on me will drift onto someone else. Another killer will come out of the shadows wreaking havoc, and eventually, people will forget about my past, and what happened to me. I can be … Chad the detective with the dark secret.”

Zac huffed, then leaned back against the wall. “If that’s what you want, you really truly want, then you should go for it.”

Chad lifted his arm, then tugged on the hospital tag around his wrist. “First, I gotta break out of here.”

“Don’t talk about breakouts. Did you hear there was another attempt at Romeo’s prison?”

“What happened?”

“Some convict pretended he had meningitis, even pricked his body with a needle for it to look like a rash, the final stage. They were extra cautious after Romeo’s escape, and he didn’t even make it out of the prison hospital.”

Romeo snorted. A part of him, the smallest possible part, felt bad for Will.

“Faking a medical emergency to get to the MRI scanner, it’s clever.”

Romeo smiled at the compliment.

“I’m not supposed to say it, but I’m glad he got out.”

“Me, too.”

“And I’m glad he’s gone.”

Chad didn’t reply.

“It’s gonna suck without you. You’re the only detective I don’t think is a total dick.”

“Thanks, Zac, that means a lot.”

Chapter Twenty-Two

Romeo stared at Gareth’s car, parked the opposite side of the road, on the curb. He’d rushed inside the hospital with Zac and had been in there for twenty minutes. He knew something bad hadn’t happened, they’d both looked pleased when they left the car, but Romeo hated having to wait to find out what was going on. He caught movement out of the corner of his eye, and saw Gareth and Zac making their way back to the car. Zac had a rucksack on his back, and Gareth twirled the car key on his finger. Chad walked behind them and dropped his hospital tag into a bin.

He didn’t make eye contact with Romeo, but walked towards him, even though the other two had already crossed over to the car.

“I still think you should stay at mine … just for a few days.” Gareth said.

Zac nodded. “Or mine.”

“Seriously guys, thanks, but I just want to get back to my place.”

“I could ask the DI to put someone outside your apartment, or drive by a few times, check everything’s okay.”

Chad snorted. “What? Why?”

“Just in case…”

“He’s dead Gareth, gone. And even if he wasn’t, he wouldn’t hang around here, would he?”

“He might come after you, kill you—”

“He had the perfect opportunity to do it, and he didn’t. He’s gone Gareth. It’s over.”

Chad reached down and put a few bills on Romeo’s cardboard sign. He crossed the road, Zac climbed into the back of the car, giving up the passenger seat to Chad.

“Jesus, Chad, how much did you give that guy?”

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