I get a hold of myself, slapping my face a couple of times until I stop thinking about her.
By the time I’m out of the shower, I’ve got my whole day planned in my head. Not thought about her once.
Go to the sheriff. Get the file. Find out how Andrew got hold of the necklace. Make it clear that Umberto is not going to be happy when he finds out how lax Walter’s keeping up his end of the bargain.
Once that’s done, I go to her place and get the necklace back. If she’s taken it to work with her for some reason, I’ll get it back from there. Make sure I keep all interactions with her to an absolute minimum.
Once I’m done in the shower, I get myself dressed. Without my suit on, I always feel lacking somehow. It’s my armor. When it’s on, people are warier of me, unsure what it means to see someone as brutal looking as me in something so expensive.
I like them wary. Makes them easier to manipulate.
That’s what most of my job is. The violence is part of it but most of my time is taken up with intimidation and persuasion, sometimes both with the same person. Keep at it until they obey my commands.
With her, I know exactly what I’d do to get her to obey me.
Not going to do it though. Not going to get her killed just so I can get my rocks off.
I pack my case before I leave the room, loading it into the trunk of my car. I’m done here. Won’t be coming back.
I can’t come back. If I do, it’ll be for the job I don’t want. I’ve never turned a job down before but I know the only reason I’d be sent back here.
I’m not going to kill her. That’s one thing I’ve decided since meeting her. I can’t imagine the world without her in it. Not after everything she’s been through. Not after what she’s put up with over the years.
I’ve kept tabs on her for a while. After everything that happened, I couldn’t help but check in on her now and again, maybe a little more often than I should have.
Haven’t told Umberto that. I know how he’d interpret it. But I’ve known about her for a long time, about how she’s been doing. None of the reports that came back to me told me how she’s turned out though, how fucking beautiful she’s become.
Not that it matters anymore. She finds out the truth and she’ll want nothing to do with me.
I’m done here. Simple as that.
I slam the trunk shut, setting off a minute later for the sheriff’s station. I park outside in Walter’s spot. I know he’s not about to start complaining and I’d like to meet the person who’d dare to give me a ticket.
I head up the steps and Walter sees me coming in. He’s looking more nervous than yesterday, his face draining of color when he spots me. So it should. He knows I’ve come for the necklace and I’m guessing he’s discovered it’s missing.
“Enzo,” he says, trying a slim smile like it’ll make any difference to my mood. “I’ve got to talk to you.”
“You got the file?”
“Please, give me two minutes of your time. For old time’s sake.”
I step close. “If those two minutes don’t end with the file in my hands, they’ll be the last ones you spend pain-free.”
He gulps, his face turning white as he turns and walks into the back. He opens the door to a disused interrogation room that smells damp.
He shuts the door once we’re inside before collapsing into the steel chair by the far wall. It’s bolted to the floor and I’m glad. I get the feeling I might be tempted to slam it into his face when he gives me the bullshit I know is coming.
I can hear the murmur of conversation out in the office. Telephones ringing, coffee mugs clinking as they’re washed in the sink. No one knows their sheriff’s fate is being decided here. Will he live or die?
Comes down to how he answers the next few questions.
“Where’s the file?” I ask, watching as he fights to keep calm.
“That’s out on my desk. Don’t worry. The file’s not the problem.”
“Keeping it out in the open where any asshole can get hold of it? What the fuck is wrong with you?”
“Listen to me. The necklace is missing.”