Licence To Howl by Helen Harper

Chapter Seventeen

After hastily getting dressedin his normal clothes again, Devereau exited the Colosseum with Scarlett, making it out before the crowds who were no doubt still squaring up their bets. Scarlett marched ahead, her hips swaying. Devereau limped.

‘Come on,’ she called over her shoulder. ‘We have to hurry. I’ve got a car waiting.’ She glanced back and noted his shuffling gait. ‘Men,’ she said. ‘You’re all the same. A few scrapes and you’d think you’d been through a real war. Next you’ll be getting a sniffle and telling me you’ve got pneumonia.’

‘I’ve just endured six fights!’ Devereau protested.

‘And,’ Scarlett said, ‘if you’d been at all smart, you’d have avoided this entirely and endured none. You’re absolutely fine.’

So much for her softly spoken darling endearment then. ‘I wasn’t complaining,’ he pointed out.

‘Just as well.’ She sniffed. Then she hesitated. ‘Are you alright?’

‘As you said yourself. I’m absolutely fine.’

‘Good. Let’s get a move on then and deal with Christopher Solentino.’ She smiled at him humourlessly. ‘While you were running around play fighting, I came up with a plan.’

‘Play fighting? It was hardly …’ He sighed and shook his head. Never mind. ‘What’s the plan?’

Scarlett smirked at him. Belatedly, he realised she’d been goading him in much the same way as he’d done to her earlier that evening in a bid to take his mind off his aches and pains. ‘Well,’ she said, ‘it doesn’t involve you chopping off my head.’ She gave him an arch smile. ‘The end goal here is to find out what that slimy wanker and his gang of wannabe terrorists are up to, right?’

‘Right.’ Devereau put his hands in his pockets and gave her a wary look.

‘Okay then.’ She bobbed her head with enthusiasm. ‘Solentino sent his own man to follow you here. Based on how the evening’s entertainment was supposed to go, you’re not due to finish up for another half an hour. Mr Motorcycle left long before the decision was taken to only have six fights rather than seven.’ She motioned towards the Colosseum. ‘We’re still supposed to be there.’

‘Solentino must think I’m still busy fighting.’

‘Indeed.’ Scarlett began walking quickly again. Devereau caught up with her, doing his best to ignore the stabbing pains from his injuries and remain stoic. ‘The last thing he’s expecting is for us to show up at his door again right now. We have a tiny window of opportunity to find out what he’s up to while he believes we’re elsewhere.’

‘You think we should sneak into his place while he’s unaware and see what we can find out?’ Devereau frowned. ‘If he catches us, the game is up.’

‘You sneaked into my place,’ she pointed out.

‘And I got caught. I wasn’t injured then either.’

‘That’s why,’ Scarlett said with a grin, ‘you wait outside while I do all the sneaking. In the best case scenario, I find the information you’re looking for. In the worst case scenario, if Solentino catches me, I say that I’m working alone because I no longer trust you and think you’re plotting behind my back. I’m looking for proof that you and Solentino are in cahoots. You can claim ignorance and play the part of the poor betrayed werewolf.’

He shook his head. ‘That’s far too dangerous, Scarlett. I’ve got years of experience at this sort of thing and I’m not convinced I could pull it off. But you …’

She smiled serenely. ‘I have a secret weapon.’

Devereau looked at her. ‘What?’

She winked and jabbed her thumb over at the car waiting by the kerb, its engine ticking over. ‘He’s waiting in the car.’

* * *

Devereau hadn’t beensure what to expect when he’d clambered into the back of the car. When he saw who was sitting there however, with his nose all but pressed up against his smart phone, he understood.

‘Oh,’ Devereau said. ‘It’s you.’

Tatton O’Brien didn’t answer. Devereau glanced at the screen of the leprechaun’s phone. Candy Crush. Really?

‘Give him a moment,’ Scarlett said, sliding into the driver’s seat.

‘Where did the car come from?’ Devereau asked.

‘Simon delivered it.’

Devereau’s eyes narrowed. Simon? ‘You mean your goon for hire? The idiot who tried to confront me at your place?’

‘I mean,’ Scarlett said, ‘the hero who tried to stop a would-be burglar in his tracks.’

Devereau did his best to keep his tone casual. ‘He’s an employee, right? I mean, he’s not a vampire so -’

‘Simon,’ she said, ‘is not any of your business.’

Devereau’s left eyebrow twitched.

‘Bastard!’ Tatton hissed.

Both Devereau and Scarlett looked at him. He jabbed furiously at his phone, his attention entirely caught up in the game.

‘Simon,’ she said softly, ‘works for the security firm that take care of our overseas properties. That’s all. You have no reason to be jealous.’ She paused. ‘And no right to be jealous either.’

Devereau drew in a breath, biting back the automatic denial which rose to his lips. It would have been a lie – and they both deserved the truth. ‘But I am jealous,’ he said. ‘I know I don’t have a right to that emotion. I know you never made me any promises. The thing is, Scarlett, I can’t help the way that I feel. Jealousy is a natural feeling that arises out of the fear of loss. I can’t stop myself from feeling that way. It’s how a person acts on those feelings that matters and I told you already that I won’t act.’ His mind flashed to what had happened between them in the hotel room before Moretti had shown up. ‘Unless,’ he amended, ‘you want me to.’

Scarlett’s eyes briefly met his. ‘Sometimes, Devereau Webb, you’re too honest for your own good.’

‘I know it scares you. I know emotions scare you. But sometimes it’s good to be scared. Fear pushes you to be your best.’

‘Not always.’

No. Not always. He ran a frustrated hand through his hair. He was trying to be truthful and it wasn’t doing any good.

‘Are we leaving or not?’ Tatton asked, without looking up from his game. ‘Because all this fecking relationship stuff is not what I signed up for.’

Scarlett returned her gaze to the front and turned on the engine. She didn’t say anything else – and neither did Devereau.

* * *

They trundledthrough the streets in silence for several minutes until finally Tatton scowled at his phone and switched it off.

‘Stupid game,’ he muttered. ‘I’d have won if I could see the screen properly. I left me glasses at the hotel. I didn’t think I’d need them.’ Then he flicked a look at Devereau, properly acknowledging him for the first time. ‘Good to see ye again so soon, dryshite. I’m impressed with how ye did back there.’ He nodded approvingly. ‘Ye’ve got smarts as well as strength. There’s slight hope for ye yet.’

‘Thank you.’ Devereau wasn’t actually convinced that thanks were in order given the little man’s last statement but he knew when to be polite. ‘So you’re a leprechaun?’

‘Half leprechaun.’ He peered at Devereau. ‘Go on. Ask it.’

‘Ask what?’

Tatton sighed. ‘Ye know what. Let’s get it out of the way so we can move on.’

Devereau considered pretending he didn’t know what he was on about. But he actually was curious. ‘Do you have a pot of gold at the end of a rainbow?’

Tatton snapped his fingers. ‘There it is.’ He shook his head in weary dismay. ‘I have no gold and no rainbows. I never wear the colour green and I bloody hate St Patrick’s Day and silly hats.’

‘What about Guinness?’ Devereau asked.

Tatton pulled a disgusted face. ‘Yuck. Never touch the stuff. Is that it? Or are ye finished with the daft questions? Do you have any questions about potatoes?’

‘No,’ Devereau said. ‘But I’m not finished. Because while you might not fall into those stereotypes, you do turn invisible.’ He gave Scarlett a quick look. ‘And that, presumably, is why you’re here now.’

Tatton gave him a wink. ‘Aye, it is. That and the fact that I’m an all round good guy who can’t resist the chance to help a wee wolfie in need.’

Scarlett coughed delicately.

‘Plus,’ Tatton added, ‘she’s paying me to be here.’

‘I’ll expect to be reimbursed by your lot later,’ Scarlett said to Devereau. At least she wasn’t naming MI5 out loud and some secrets would remain hidden.

‘I’m sure we can work something out,’ Devereau murmured. ‘So how is this going to work?’

‘Can you deal with the main door?’ Scarlett asked. ‘Pick the lock without anyone hearing you?’

Devereau pursed his lips. Probably. Such operations were never wholly silent but it was late at night by now so most people who lived in Solentino’s building would likely be sleeping. From what he could remember from their first visit, the lock looked easy enough to navigate.

‘Good,’ Scarlett said, interpreting his expression. ‘If you can open the door, then Tatton and I will head inside and attempt to gain access to the apartment itself. I’ll piggy back onto his invisibility and, unless we’re very unlucky, neither Solentino nor anyone else will know we’re inside.’

Devereau’s brow creased. ‘What do you mean, piggyback? How does that work and why can’t I do it instead of you?’

Tatton snorted. ‘Because you weigh twice as much as she does.’

‘It’s a literal piggyback,’ Scarlett said with a smile. ‘Once I’m on Tatton’s shoulders, I’ll be as invisible as he is. It won’t last long so we have to move fast but it should be more than enough for us to look around the rest of Solentino’s apartment and find the incriminating information that you need.’

Devereau’s frown deepened. ‘You’ll make a lot more noise that way.’

‘Which is why it has to be her and not you.’ Tatton flashed him a crooked grin. ‘I can only sustain it for around five minutes, especially with a passenger on board. We’ll have to be both fast and quiet. From what she’s already told me, however, it’s worth the risk.’

‘I’ve been thinking about the layout of the apartment,’ Scarlett said. ‘We already saw several of the rooms. There was one closed door towards the back. I reckon that’s where the secrets will be kept. We nip in and nip out and bob’s your uncle.’

‘I don’t like it,’ Devereau growled.

She shrugged. ‘Then you shouldn’t have gotten me involved. This is the best plan we have and you know it.’

Unfortunately, he couldn’t disagree with that. And there was no doubt in Devereau’s mind that Christopher Solentino was both highly dangerous and slightly unhinged so they had to find out what he was really up to. Fuck it. ‘Okay,’ he said with a brief sigh. ‘Okay.’

* * *

They slippedthrough the silent Roman streets with speed and ease, arriving near Solentino’s street within minutes. Scarlett parked the car round the corner from the apartment, tucking it safely out of sight. It wasn’t a legal parking spot but at this hour they’d be in nobody’s way and it would allow for a quick exit should circumstances demand it. In the event this little escapade went tits up, they’d have to be prepared to skedaddle if they needed to. Devereau prayed it wouldn’t come to that.

The three of them stepped out of the car. Devereau immediately began casting around on the ground, searching for the tool he needed. It didn’t take long for his eyes to alight on the empty water bottle nestled in a small pile of old sweet wrappers and curling dead leaves. He bent down and scooped it up, using the edge of his fingernails to rip off a square of plastic. He felt both Tatton and Scarlett watching him with curiosity so, in a bid to ward off his own gnawing feeling of foreboding, he held the translucent scrap up and winked.

‘You don’t need a lockpick,’ he said in a low voice, ‘when you’ve got plastic.’

‘I prefer the sort of plastic that gives ye credit,’ Tatton replied.

‘Ah, but this plastic doesn’t charge interest.’ Devereau smiled and picked up speed, swerving round onto the street they needed and double checking that there were no late night pedestrians out for a walk. Then he marched forward to Solentino’s front door.

‘Car,’ Scarlett hissed.

Devereau nodded and paused, hoping it looked like he was merely searching for his house key. The swooping headlights didn’t pause. Tatton audibly exhaled and Devereau wasted no further time, hunching down and deftly inserting the plastic square between the lock and the door frame.

‘Is this going to take long?’ the leprechaun asked in a whisper.

Devereau stood up and grinned, while the door clicked open. ‘Nope.’

Even Scarlett’s jaw dropped. ‘I thought the credit card thing was a myth.’

‘Nope. The lock mechanism was incorrectly inserted. It happens more often than you’d think.’ He nodded at the door. ‘Especially on old doors like this one.’

‘I’ll have to review me home security,’ Tatton muttered. He gestured to Scarlett. ‘Alright then, lovie. Let’s get on with this.’

Scarlett looped her arms round his neck and hopped up, her legs wrapping round his midriff. Tatton grunted slightly. ‘Which floor is it?’

‘Third.’

His nose wrinkled. ‘Now you tell me. Alright, let’s do this.’ His eyes rolled back into his head and the air around him took on a faint shimmer.

Devereau’s head jerked up. ‘Stop.’

Both Scarlett and Tatton glanced at him.

‘Dev,’ Scarlett said, ‘we’ve been through this. It’s the best –’ She stopped in mid-sentence and dropped down from Tatton, whose green eyes squinted at her.

‘What? What is it?’

Scarlett and Devereau exchanged glances. ‘Blood,’ she whispered.

Devereau nodded grimly. ‘A lot of it.’