Mistletoe in the Mortuary (Inspector Rames)

Chapter 10

Sebastian's alarm went off earlier than usual the next morning. The other side of the bed was empty, but he heard the shower running when he opened his eyes. Relief rushed through him. Cassia was still here. Yesterday, he'd been surprised at how quickly she'd left for work. Today, he was going to make sure she didn't vanish before she'd eaten breakfast with him.

He strolled into the kitchen half-naked, and she joined him a few minutes later, her cheeks flushed from the hot water. They coloured a little more when they landed on his bare chest, and he smiled. He liked knowing he had the same effect on her that she did on him.

He crossed the kitchen and kissed her. "Good morning. I have to confess that I don't know what we're eating for breakfast."

"Banana and ginger porridge," she said. "Don't pull that face -- it's warm, wintery, and tasty. And healthy. You'll be thanking me for it."

He wasn't so sure, but he tried to smooth his expression. He didn't want to offend her. "Anything I can do to help?"

"You could chop up two bananas."

So he peeled and sliced the fruit while she warmed milk and oats in a saucepan. He chopped the ginger too, and she added both extra ingredients to the mix before serving. They sat down on either side of the coffee table, and she grinned at him. "Try it."

He ate a mouthful with trepidation -- and found that she'd been right. It was delicious and warming. He scooped up a big second spoonful. "This is good."

She tucked into her own porridge, still smiling as she ducked her head.

***

Sebastian's warm feeling faded when he and Otto arrived at Tobias Evans' flat.

According to Amber, his mother had lived in another of the city's glass skyscrapers, but this building was skinny, dark, and lacking in warmth. Sebastian shivered as they waited in the ground floor corridor, and Otto, who had been unbuttoning his greatcoat in preparation for removal when they sat down, buttoned it back up again. The narrow space smelled of sticky beer and old blood, reminding Sebastian of Cassia's less than savoury flat on the walkways.

The front door opened at last, and Tobias Evans peered out. Young but worn-down, he was a small man with too many creases in his face. Sebastian and Otto had introduced themselves via the door camera, but they held up their warrant cards for him again.

"Someone came yesterday," Tobias said as he stepped back.

That would have been Amber. She'd told Sebastian everything he needed to know, but he wanted to run through it all again anyway. He liked to get his information right from the source: to meet the relatives and read their body language as well as their words, and to see the place where the victims had lived.

Ruth Evans had lived a world away from here, of course.

Her son led them into a dark kitchen that stank of burnt food, the surfaces mucky and the floor crumbly with dirt. He sat down on one side of a plastic table. Sebastian and Otto sat opposite.

"I have to work a shift in an hour," Tobias grumbled. His tone spoke of a bygone upper-class life, the words clear cut. "Will this take long?"

"No," Sebastian said. "I've taken over the investigation from Inspector Rames, and I just wanted to clarify a few things."

Tobias grunted.

"When did you last see your mother?"

"The other week. She came into the shop."

"What shop is that?" Otto asked.

"Ever Empire."

The jewellery store on the high street. Everyone knew it. Sebastian nodded. "How did she seem?"