Chapter 17
Chapter
Seventeen
TOBIN
Dirk was full of shit.
He was also tied to a chair in the middle of the room, looking a little worse for wear.
Otis and Pania had gone outside, and Kellan, Hendrix, and Dylan had gone too, taking Hudson with them.
But Fray sat off to the side, never far from Tobin, and Beau leaned against a table with his arms crossed, watching.
His hammer was on the table beside him, though, something Dirk hadn’t missed.
Tobin had seen into Dirk’s mind. He’d seen how clever he thought he was coming into the Cove undetected. He’d seen what Dirk thought of the unusual water, how disgusted he was. And Tobin had seen that he was looking for something but he wasn’t entirely sure what it was.
Or who.
It was someone else’s voice in Dirk’s head. He was remembering it as he searched the cove.
“He’s under instruction from someone else,” Tobin said. “It’s not his voice. He’s remembering.”
Tobin then put his hand on Ciaran’s arm and played the memory for him.
Watch for shadows in the water, and let me know what you see.
“That’s Hadeom’s voice,” Ciaran said.
“What the fuck is this?” Dirk said, pulling at his restraints, rocking the chair he was currently tied to. “You gotta mind-reader? What kind of circus you running here, Brenner? A female and a human and a fucking mind-reader—”
Ciaran smacked his tentacle arm on Dirk’s chest, and he howled.
And gods be damned, that had to hurt.
Tobin had once felt a very low dose of Ciaran’s “fire” toxin, simply to see what it was like, and holy fuck, that was enough for Tobin to never want to know what a full dose felt like.
Dirk panted, spittle foaming at his mouth, and he shimmered, struggling to keep his human form. He could have morphed and slipped his restraints, but he wasn’t stupid. Well, he was stupid, but not that stupid.
In human form, Ciaran couldn’t kill him.
In cephamorph form, well... the rules of nature were different.
As the leader of his consortium, when in freeform, Ciaran could kill an intruder without consequence, and oh boy, it would be an excruciating death.
So yeah, human form was Dirk’s best option for getting out of this alive.
Sawyer took out his phone, pressed the screen, and hit the Speaker button.
“Detective. This is not like you to call. Is something wrong?”
“Yeah, Hadeom. You could say that. We have someone here who wants to say hello.” Sawyer held the phone out to Dirk. “Say hello.”
“These fuckers are crazy,” Dirk said. “I just wanted to see my men.”
Hadeom sighed. “Dirk Bridges. They’re not your men anymore. I told you this. They left your consortium because you were inadequate and—”
“We had a difference of opinion, that’s all,” Dirk tried.
“You moved them into waters so unsuitable, you should be glad no one died. And you disregarded their concerns and opinions—”
“These crazy fuckers are torturing me. I’m tied to a fucking chair, Hadeom. And Ciaran is burning me with toxins. It fucking burns. You need to do something!”
“Consider yourself lucky you still have limbs,” Ciaran said.
Then he spoke toward the phone. “Hadeom, he came into our territory without permission and was searching for someone or something. Hoping you can shed some light on that, considering it was you who asked him. Tell me, what shadow are you looking for in our cove, Inspector?”
“I think you know.”
“I want to hear you say it.”
“Salem,” he said. “That’s the name you know him by.
He didn’t die by Lusca’s hand as you claimed.
I know because of the water. I saw it. When Dirk said he was going to Tenebrae, I mentioned the water, and I shouldn’t have.
It was a misstep from me, and I’m sorry.
You’re protecting Salem, and...” Hadeom sighed again.
“And I should be grateful. It’s enough knowing... ”
Ciaran looked at Sawyer, and Sawyer shrugged. Tobin had no clue what was going on, but it was clear Ciaran and Sawyer were confused too.
“Enough knowing what, sir?” Sawyer asked.
“That he’s alive. Cern never told me. Can’t say I’m surprised, but...”
Hadeom sounded so tired, Tobin actually felt a bit sorry for him.
“What do you want with him?” Ciaran asked, all subterfuge gone now.
It sounded as if Hadeom scrubbed a hand over his face, and his voice was very quiet when he said, “Knowing he is alive is enough. He has found a group that will go to great lengths to protect him. That’s enough for me.”
Sawyer and Ciaran exchanged a frown, and then Ciaran looked at Dirk. “What do you want me to do with Dirk?”
“Official answer is whatever punishment you see fit,” Hadeom said. “You are not bound by any law that pertains to detaining a consortium leader because he no longer is one. He has no consortium.”
“And the unofficial answer?” Sawyer asked.
“Unofficially,” he replied. “I don’t give a fuck what you do to him. He was a shit leader who failed his men.”
Tobin caught Fray’s gaze, and he chuckled. Beau’s smile held a little more satisfaction.
“For what it’s worth, I’m glad Beau and Hudson are working out,” Hadeom said. “Happy endings are rare in my line of work.”
Ciaran looked at Beau when he spoke. “Both are valued members of our consortium, contributing and helping already. I’m glad they’re here.”
Fray gave Beau a nudge, and Beau smiled shyly. It was pretty clear he’d never heard praise from his old leader, and the way Dirk sneered in disgust said all Ciaran needed to know.
“Thank you, Inspector,” he said. “Anything else?”
“Yeah, Sawyer,” he said. “Hold off on any future correspondence. I’ll be out of office for a while.”
Sawyer frowned again. “You don’t want my reports?”
“You’ve never sent any,” Hadeom replied.
Fray snorted, and Sawyer smiled at him. “Okay, so no correspondence. At all. Roger that. For how long?”
“Until you hear from me again.”
“Understood.”
The call ended, and Sawyer looked at Ciaran, then Tobin. “That was really fucking weird.”
They all nodded because it was weird, and then they were left with Dirk, who was shaking his head at Ciaran.
“You have no idea who he is, or what he’s capable of,” he said with a sneer. “How do you think I knew Lusca was coming before you did? Huh? Who do you think told me? Why do you think I got the hell outta there?”
“We should have come here to help!” Beau said, finally stepping forward. “We voted for, and you vetoed us against. You left them to fight alone.”
“Because she would have killed us all,” Dirk said. “And if she didn’t, Hadeom would have.” He looked at Ciaran then, eyes pleading. “He’s not who he says he is. And you trust him over one of your own? He’s more powerful than you can imagine.”
Ciaran smiled at him. “Oh, we know.”
Dirk shook his head. “No, you don’t. Whatever you think you know, you don’t know the half of it.”
Ciaran grabbed him by the arm. “Get up.” Then Ciaran looked at Tobin and Fray. “Can you take him to Strahan?”
Tobin nodded. “Sure.”
“Or drop him fifty miles off the continental shelf, I don’t care,” Ciaran added.
Then he turned to Dirk, his voice low. “Otis and Pania will go with them to make sure you behave yourself. If you say one word they don’t like, or if you look at Pania in a way Otis doesn’t care for, he has my full permission to tear you apart.
So my suggestion is keep your head down and your mouth shut. ”
Dirk swallowed hard and nodded.
“You’re not welcome back here,” Ciaran said. “Ever. When you get to Strahan, keep going north, you hear me?”
Sawyer grimaced at Dirk. “And my suggestion is maybe work on yourself as a person because you’re a bit of a dick. Make some friends. Get some hobbies. I dunno. Something fun, maybe.”
Of course Fray laughed at that.
“Oh,” Sawyer added. “And just so we’re clear, there’s nothing wrong with the water here. It’s not fucked up or weird. It’s freaking beautiful. So don’t talk shit about Tenebrae to anyone. Okay?”
Dirk grimaced in pain. The welts on his skin from Ciaran’s toxin were red and angry. He’d be feeling the residual nerve pain for weeks, and Tobin thought it couldn’t have happened to a more deserving person.
Fray raised both arms, excited. “Late arvo boat trip to Strahan can only mean one thing.”
Sawyer and Beau stared at him. “What’s that?” Sawyer asked.
“Pizza orders!” he said. His smile was so infectious, so perfect, Tobin couldn’t help but laugh.
Tobin noticed Dirk staring at him, so he nudged him toward the door.
“No pizza for you,” he said. “Now, Dirk, have you met my mate, Fray? He might look cute and funny, but don’t be fooled.
He can zap you with enough electricity, you’ll be able to use your junk as a flashlight.
Add that on top of Ciaran’s nerve burn, and you’ll actually beg Otis to rip you apart. ”
“You’re all fucking weird, you know that?” Dirk said. “Weird and fucking crazy.”
Tobin laughed. “Oh yeah. We know.”