Chapter 24
CHIEF MATTHEWS
Samael was dead.
I stared ahead at the home I had brought my family into years ago, hoping that this would be a fresh start from all the shit before. How had it come to this? How had I lost absolutely everything? I had worked so hard to thwart Runo at every move, to clean up his mess, to keep his darkness quiet.
And now I had lost a man who had been a son to me, a confidant, someone I could lean on. For years, he had been Merchant to me—until I caught Runo slipping up and calling him Samael. Was that his real name? Was that the man I had loved liked a son? It still felt strange to call him that.
The worst part was that I was pretty sure Runo had killed him out of spite. Had Runo even loved Samael? Had all of this been a ruse?
It had been a week since Dr. Harley had been found just outside Sip N Dip, a cute little eatery I had visited a few times while my wife was still alive. He had been dressed in Samael’s clothing, blood smeared everywhere, but he hadn’t been killed in that spot.
We worked overtime, trying to connect the dots, even as Tyrone pointed the finger at me. Every step we took, Tyrone would somehow circle it back to my involvement. To him, I was either involved or I was the killer headlining the newspapers. The Unknown.
I was neither but no explanation I gave put Tyrone on a different path and with Samael missing, supposedly dead, I had no one to truly back me up.
We all knew, though, that Samael was gone.
A man like that wouldn’t hide out. He wouldn’t leave me to explain all this on my own.
He was a good detective. He also wouldn’t have left Runo.
Blowing out a heavy breath, I exited the car and head up the steps through the front door.
The silence hit me first, a breath of fresh air from the chaos out in Primrose.
Tomorrow, I’d fire Tyrone and set Runo in the limelight like he truly wanted.
The game was over and while he had had his fun, it was time to end it.
Another step into my house and I caught two things at once: blood splattered across the foyer, dark streaks glistening on the walls and the stench of rotting flesh choking the air.
The basement door gaped open, flies buzzing around my house in a thick hum that only grew louder as I headed toward the kitchen.
The sight stopped me cold—old meat on the counter, an arm sprawled across the table bloated from the heat in my house, flies crawling over it like a living shroud.
A gasp of horror tore from my throat as I fumbled for my phone and dialed Runo, my voice shaking with rage and panic. “What have you done?”
Runo’s cackle crackled through the line, a sound that sent a shiver through me. “I haven’t done anything. I assume you got home to the mess you left. Dad, you really should be more careful.”
I gripped the phone a little tighter, my voice rising. “I’m turning you in. You won’t get away with this! They’re… your men… Merchant…”
Runo’s voice cut in, still playful but a cold edge to it that boasted everything I knew about him. “His name is Samael, by the way. Well, it’s Timothy, but that’s such a disgusting name. Look, I’m not sorry it had to end this way.”
“You have done so much damage to a place I’ve tried to keep afloat.”
Runo’s responding laugh echoed in my ears.
“Dad, let’s be honest here, you always really liked this game.
You wanted to be one step ahead. You wanted to be the best, and you couldn’t do that with a crazy family, but you know what?
I think you secretly like this. I think you’re just as twisted as I am.
Maybe you don’t have voices, but why else would you repeatedly cover up for me? ”
My voice shook, a new wave of rage and panic mixing as I spoke. “You’ve left me so much to clean up. Why would you bank on me taking the fall for you or hiding your mess?” I had a mind to search for Runo and wring his neck before turning him in.
“Because that’s what you’ve always done,” he sing songed. “It’s fine, though. I told Tyrone something was going on with you. We’re coming back to do a wellness check.”
My breath caught in my throat, the phone nearly slipping from my grip. “What the fuck are you talking about?”
“We’re on our way. You’re sick, Dad. You’ve made such a mess.”
“Tyrone will never believe you.”
“Just hold on,” Runo said, ignoring my statement. “And Dad? I wouldn’t touch anything if I were you.”