‘Then you’re putting him in danger too – and all of those things are bad enough, but that’s not even the worst thing he could do.’
‘Worse than kill my dog?’
‘Yep, he could use your dog to lure you somewhere because I’m pretty sure you’d go.’
‘Absolutely.’
‘Then get rid of it.’
‘Stop calling himit. His name is Barney and he already fucking hates you.’
‘I’ll live. He’s your biggest vulnerability. One of the few things you care about.’
Despite herself, Kim could see the logic of her words. If Symes ever got hold of Barney…well, it just didn’t bear thinking about.
‘I’ll take him to Charlie’s in the morning.’
‘Not good enough. Symes will soon work that out.’
‘Charlie visits his sister in Prestatyn every month.’
‘That’ll do. Get him to go now and take the dog. Where are the keys to your window locks?’
Kim shrugged. ‘Dunno – they’re around somewhere.’
Leanne blew air out of her cheeks as she continued to walk around.
Kim followed Barney to the treat cupboard and took out a pig’s ear – a rare treat but she’d missed him.
‘You want coffee?’ Kim asked, trying to get used to someone else in her space. Her last guest had been a stay-over mercy mission for Frost. It had been one night but had felt much longer. She sure hoped they caught Symes soon. At least she’d grown a smidgeon of respect for the reporter.
‘Got anything herbal?’
‘Water.’
‘But hot?’
‘Hot water.’
‘I’ll take coffee.’
Good, cos that was pretty much all she had.
She noted that Barney’s eyes followed Leanne wherever she went despite his focus on his big treat. Kim felt the exact same way as Leanne paused at the bottom of the stairs.
‘Anything up here you don’t want me to see?’
‘No, I keep all my sex slaves in the garage.’
‘Get ’em dressed cos that’s my next stop,’ she said without missing a beat.
‘No sense of humour,’ Kim said to Barney.
‘But excellent hearing,’ came the response from the stairs.
Kim shook her head. They’d been in her home five minutes and it felt like hours. She briefly considered asking Woody if she could join the task force searching for Symes. The quicker they found him, the quicker Leanne would be gone. If he was caught by morning, she wouldn’t have to send Barney away.
The thought of that prompted her to busy herself making a pot of coffee until Leanne reappeared.