At Wick's End - Tim Myers [28]
There was a pause, then Becka said, “Aren’t you going to invite me over to your new place? I’m dying to see it, and my schedule’s completely open.”
“Sorry, but I’m not in any shape for company tonight,” I said.
Most likely it was a first for Becka, being turned down like that. “Come on, Harrison, I won’t stay long. I’d just really like to see you tonight.”
“You’re welcome to come by the shop sometime,” I said, knowing that Mrs. Harper had no doubt shared that particular news with her as well.
“Absolutely, I have every intention of coming by, but I thought we could get together tonight. I’ve got some of your favorite wine,” she added, ignoring my refusal completely.
It was time to be blunt. “Listen, I’m beat. I’m going to bed.” I didn’t even give her a chance to protest as I hung up the telephone. It appeared that Becka had forgotten how nasty she’d been while breaking up with me, but the “I never want to see you again” still rang in my ears.
In another minute, I was back in Dame Agatha’s world, happy to leave mine far behind.
A pounding on the apartment door brought me fully awake. I’d dozed off on the couch reading, and looked at the nearest clock through blurred vision.
It was 2:00 am.
Whoever wanted to get in was quite adamant about it.
I picked up an old baseball bat I’d found cleaning out Belle’s closet, something she’d probably kept for self-defense herself.
“Who is it,” I called out through the door, studying the man on the other side through the peephole. He was huge, with shoulders that would barely fit through the doorway. His hair was the color of midnight, untamed and wild.
“It’s Markum. I got your note.”
I opened the door, the bat still firmly clutched in one hand. “It’s two o’clock in the morning,” I protested. Close up, the man had the greenest eyes I’d ever seen, as if they had been cut from the coldest emeralds on earth.
Markum shrugged. “Sorry, I was on the telephone when you came by earlier. Long distance, different time zones, that sort of thing. What can I do for you?”
I dropped the bat on the couch as I walked deeper into the apartment, Markum close behind me. “I just thought it would be nice to meet you, since I’ve just inherited the building.”
“Sorry about your great-aunt,” he said easily. “You don’t happen to have any coffee around, do you?”
“I’ve got instant,” I said, going for my transported stash in the freezer.
“No, I’d rather go without than drink that slag,” he said with a grimace. “If that’s it, I’ll be going then.”
“Excuse my asking, but I was wondering what exactly it is you salvage and recover” I asked, the lateness of the hour accounting for my direct approach.
He grinned slightly. “Oh, this and that. If it’s gone, I’ve got a knack for finding it.”
“And I bet you go here and there to do it, don’t you?” I replied.
“Now you’ve got it. If that’s it, I’m going to go scrounge up some real java.”
“Thanks for stopping by,” I said.
He nodded and headed out the door. What an odd bird he was. I’d learned absolutely nothing about him, except for the fact that if he’d wanted Belle dead, shoving her off that ladder wouldn’t have been a problem for him at all.
Now that I was wide awake, what in the world was I going to do with myself for the next six hours? Going back to sleep was out of the question; once I’m up, I’m up. It was a curse I’d had since childhood.
There was really only one thing I could do that made any sense at all. I got dressed quickly and headed down to At Wick’s End.
“You’re here early,” Eve said as she came in, removing her jacket and hanging it carefully up on a peg in the office.
“I couldn’t sleep,” I said, “So I thought I’d get some work done.”
Eve looked worriedly around. “I hope you haven’t switched anything around. Belle and I worked out the perfect system for our inventory, and I’d hate to see it...modified.”
I shook my head. “I didn’t change a thing. Actually, I’ve been studying.” I gestured to the eclectic collection