Chapter Twenty

Amber

Jasper's face was an unreadable jumble of emotions when Li and I entered the industrial lot. Beside me, Li faltered for the barest second, then she found her composure and continued walking. It wasn't just Hex then; Li certainly didn't look either comfortable or thrilled to be within spitting distance of Jasper.

'What's this?' I demanded, thrusting the paper under his nose. Jasper went cross eyed, trying to focus on the object that was too close to his face, and then gently pushed my hands back, taking the newspaper from me.

He looked at the front cover and said with a slight frown, 'It appears to be an article on the shooting of Luis.'

'Now look at the photograph.' I waited while he did so then added, 'Now look at the people at the back of the shot, just to the left- your left- of the policeman. Recognise anyone?'

'No.' Jasper gave me a puzzled look and passed the paper back. 'What's this about?'

Frustrated, I jabbed a finger at Abigail's head and hissed, 'That's my boss, Jasper. Now, I want to know what the heck she was doing at the scene of a murder.'

'Passing through?'

Although I had initially thought that Abigail's appearance in the photo was pure coincidence, I was slightly more open to suggestion since Alex's recount of her verbal abuse by the coffee machine. Besides, after the crap she'd put us through, being corrupt- or, more accurately, being under suspicion of corruption- was the least she deserved.

'I don't think so. She's texting someone as well, entering something into her phone. Perhaps telling someone that the murder was successful, that Luis was dead?' I let my gaze bore into him for a few seconds and then continued: 'Texting you, perhaps.'

Jasper's mouth dropped open. 'You what?'

'Do you know an Abigail Newton?'

'Are you saying-'

'Do you know her?'

'No,' Jasper snapped. 'And, before you ask, I had nothing to do with Luis' death. I didn't kill him, I didn't get someone else to kill him, I didn't even know he was still in London until I read about the shooting. I told you all that this morning, Annie. Satisfied?'

I shook my head. 'No. Not particularly.'

'What else do you want?'

'Answers, Jasper,' I said, feeling marginally hysterical. 'I want some answers. I want everything to start making sense. I want to stop running in circles.' Wearily I ran a hand through my hair and slapped the paper against my leg. 'You're telling me the truth, right?'

'Yes.'

He didn't sound too certain so I repeated, 'Right?'

'Yes.'

'Good. Is there anything else you can tell me, anything at all?'

'No,' Jasper said, 'but you can tell me something.'

I blinked in surprise and took a small step backwards. 'What?'

I'd meant "what" not as a "go ahead, ask" but more of a "what the hell?"; Jasper didn't seem to pick up on this.

'Why do you seem so keen to implement me in all this? Is it because of your boyfriend?'

'Implement you?' I echoed. 'What's Hex got to do with this?'

'Anyone could have been behind the shooting and yet you come and ask me twice, automatically assuming that I orchestrated the whole thing.'

'No, that's not-'

'Yes, Annie. It is.'

I made several strange sounds at the back of my throat, unable to get any of the half formed responses out of my mouth. Then, finally, I managed, 'You're the only person I know to be connected to him.'

Our conversation was interrupted by Li dashing around a corner. During my talk with Jasper she must have wandered off and come across something bad, if her panicked expression was anything to go by.

'Ah, sorry to break up the party, guys,' she hissed, grabbing my arm and starting to drag me back in the direction of the car, 'but a guy with a gun and a bad haircut just pulled up in the loading bay.'

'What did he look like?' Jasper said urgently.

That stopped Li. 'You expecting someone?' Maybe, like me, she was wondering what business Jasper could have with someone who was armed and lacking in a good hairdresser.

'Just tell me. Quickly.'

'Tall, heavy set, bad hairdo, black suit-'

'Did he have a ring on?'

'A ring- I don't know, I was a bit too preoccupied with the gun.'

'The ring would have been on the hand holding the gun.'

Li shrugged, helpless, and Jasper opened his mouth; his sentence was cut off by a shriek from me as something whizzed past me and lodged in a discarded tyre half a dozen feet away.

'Go!' bellowed Jasper, snatching for my arm and shaking me out of my startled stupor.

Li didn't need telling twice. She sprinted across the exposed tarmac square, closely followed by me, Jasper hot on my heels. There was another shot fired, but almost no sound. Clever cookie was using a silencer, which didn't make me feel too confident; he'd come prepared, prepared to injure or kill as quietly as possible.

We made it to one of the derelict warehouses and darted inside, Jasper pulling what remained of the door shut behind us. The three of us huddled in a corner behind some half rotted crates and spoke in soft, frightened whispers.

'Who the hell is that?' Li demanded, looking straight at Jasper.

'I'm not one hundred per cent certain,' he said slowly, 'but I think it might be one of Luis' new guys.'

My eyes narrowed as I realised what he was implying. 'I thought you said that you hadn't known Luis was still in London. How would you know he had some new people?'

Jasper cleared his throat and picked at a splintering piece of wood. 'Okay. I lied. Once. Everything else was the truth.'

'And you wonder why I suspected you.'

From outside came the sounds of feet crunching over gravel. We fell silent and sunk down even lower behind the crates so we were almost horizontal. The footsteps grew louder and quicker before the door creaked and groaned its way open.

'Price.'

Jasper made a face, confirming that this was indeed one of Luis' henchies. Painfully slowly, he stood up, gesturing subtly that Li and I should remain hidden. Neither of us complained about that plan.

'Roberts, isn't it?'

Roberts grunted an inaudible response and raised the gun, aiming straight at Jasper's chest. My stomach clenched and Li looked alarmed, though it soon became clear that her concern wasn't for Jasper; she grabbed my arm and shot me a don't you dare look as I half rose, my eyes huge with fear. When I didn't sit back down, Li gave an insistent tug on my sleeve. I ignored her, remaining half crouched behind the crates.

'Hang on, mate,' Jasper said, remaining astonishingly cool, calm and collected given the fact that there was a gun pointed at him. 'What's this about?'

'You know,' Roberts grunted- again. Not too eloquent then, though since when are henchmen to drug dealers- or any sort of evil guy for that matter- gifted in the art of conversation and table manners?

'No, actually,' Jasper said, actually sounding completely bewildered. This made Roberts hesitate, the gun falling slightly from its mark.

'You killed him.'

Jasper rolled his eyes and muttered something like, 'Not you too,' then added, to Roberts, 'Trust me, I didn't kill Luis.'

'I wouldn't trust you with my pet rock, Price.'

'He has a pet rock?' Li muttered in disbelief. Once again, I ignored her.

Jasper sighed. 'I swear I didn't shoot him, but anyway, just out of curiosity, what makes you care so much? He was your boss, yeah, but you'd only been working for him for a couple of months, right?'

'So?'

'So... Why do you have these...' He trailed off, searching for the right word amongst the rotting building. 'Loyalties. Why do you have loyalties to Luis? Why do you feel the need to become a walking cliché and "avenge his demise"?'

'I'm just doing my job,' Roberts said, raising the gun again. Jasper's back chatting and apparent lack of fear seemed to be getting on his nerves. Then again, that was probably Jasper's plan. I tucked that gem of information away for future use.

'Why?'

The gun dropped a few inches again. 'Huh?'

'Luis is dead,' Jasper said bluntly. 'He's not exactly going to be checking to see you've crossed off all the tasks on your to-do list at the end of the week, is he? How many others have stuck around?'

'Others?'

'You know, the rest of Luis' guys. How many scampered off into the sunset the minute they heard he was dead?'

Roberts didn't answer and Jasper gave a little laugh.

'Just as I thought,' he said. 'All of them, isn't it? All of them except you, the new guy who was so scared of his boss he wouldn't even leave after he died. Trust me, mate, Luis ain't going to come back and haunt you if you leave. Save yourself the trouble, save yourself the murder charge and jump on the first plane to Hawaii. Or Barbados. Or Spain. Wherever. You might even be able to find some of Luis' cash, use that.'

Roberts looked steadily at Jasper, then lowered the gun. 'You're a lucky guy, Price.' He raised his voice slightly and called, 'And you two behind the crates.'

Li gave me a sideways look, an unreadable expression on her face.

'That's what I thought, too,' Jasper said softly.

With the creaking of the door and the crunch of gravel, Roberts left. Li and I didn't hang around and, with a backwards glance from me, we left, kicking out a small section of the back wall to make a door- of sorts. In the car, Li looked at me, shaken.

'Well that was exciting,' she said.

I started the car, unable to ignore my trembling hands gripping the steering wheel a lot harder than usual. 'That's my thrill quota for the day used up. Yours too,' I added as an afterthought.

'Why?'

I gave her a cheeky grin and batted my eyelashes. 'You have a date with the gorgeous Riley West tonight,' I reminded her.

She did an amazing impersonation of Roberts, groaning and muttering incoherently. I held back a laugh, wondering how many insinuating jokes I could make before she hurt me.

I'd get away with a couple. At least.