Mistletoe in the Mortuary (Inspector Rames)

Chapter 15

Cassia lingered in the mortuary after Zacharias had gone. She was putting off the inevitable: going home to pack her things.

She couldn't spend Christmas with Sebastian. She'd dragged this on for far too long, and it was time to leave.

The afternoon was creeping by when she left the building. Long, dark shadows stretched down the drive from the artificial lights in the concrete sky. She weaved around the section that was still taped off as a crime scene, passing behind a paramedic van. The cold air dug its fingers down her coat, sending a chill sweeping from her skin to her heart. Another man she'd loved. Another man she was going to lose.

Her love for Sebastian was different to the gentle love she'd once felt for Miles. The chemistry between them had lit a fire inside her, and now it was always burning. She loved him with strength and fervour, and even in their quieter moments, there was something intensely passionate about it.

Would she ever be able to forget?

She reached the top of the drive and walked towards the tram stop, her legs heavy. A carriage stopped just as she reached the sign, and she squashed herself on board with harassed husbands and disorganised families. The seats in front of hers were occupied by a mother and toddler, and the child was munching a gingerbread man. Part of her warmed. The other part of her hardened as she caught a glimpse of the mother digging through a tattered handbag. Something about her, even from behind, set her apart from the others on the tram.

That would be her, soon -- a single mother.

They reached Sebastian's road when her extremities were starting to turn numb. She was the only passenger to get off. As the tram pulled away, she turned around and walked towards his building. It was the second one along, with a covered alleyway arching between the near wall and its neighbour. A skip had been tucked to the side within, and as she approached, something inside it rustled in the breeze.

The tram stayed level with her for a second, then picked up pace and drew past.

A gunshot cracked the air.

She felt the bullet pass over her head, and then something hit her from behind. Arms clamped over her body. They rolled into the alleyway.

Panic bolted through her like an electric shock. She thrashed against her attacker, opening her mouth to scream.

"Cassia," Sebastian said.

One word. A promise and a warning.

He dumped her on the floor and sat up so that she was behind him, his pistol in one hand. The gunshot had shattered the sounds of the city, and silence hung for a second.

Then footsteps filled it.

Cassia struggled to sit up, gasping for breath. A shadow was approaching from the other side of the road. Another gun glinted as it entered the light.

Sebastian shoved her shoulder without looking behind him. "Get down!"

Cassia caught his arm. The shadow fired.

They hit the wall just in time. While the gunshot echoed, she readjusted her grip and took Sebastian down, landing on top of him. Jesus Christ. That had been so close. She wanted to yell at him, but she was barely in control of her breathing, and the shadow had unnervingly vanished.

"Well, well." A deep voice floated down the alleyway. "Your boyfriend came to save you."

Sebastian pushed her off, sighting into the darkness. "Tobias Evans."

"It took you a while to work it out. I thought I'd get another one."

"You thought wrong. Put the gun down, or I'll be forced to shoot you."