Brooding City: Brooding City Series Book 1 Read Free Page B

they?” Bishop asked jokingly. She took a bite of her pancakes as she reached for the folder.
    “Did everything come out all right here?” asked the waitress, suddenly reappearing. Brennan gave her what he meant to be an appreciative nod. “Great! I’ll check back with you in a bit.”
    Papers rustled in Bishop’s hands as she looked past Zachariah’s financials and into his family history. “Says here that his parents are both living in Michigan, some small town in the middle of nowhere. They haven’t had contact in years, so it’s doubtful they’re the ones supporting him.”
    Brennan grunted. It was puzzling, but it was also a dead end. “Let’s put that aside for now,” he said. “The motive: what was it? Cut a man up like that, that’s personal. Bad blood between Nettle and our killer, that’s for sure.”
    “He didn’t even have time to stand,” Bishop added. “The killer planned this out.”
    They both sat chewing their food noiselessly, thinking of the implications. It could have been a relationship gone wrong, like Bishop and McCarthy’s, with the girlfriend turning into some sort of femme fatale. Another possibility was that Zachariah had somehow gotten himself into trouble, maybe borrowed money from the wrong people to pay off his loans and couldn’t repay those debts. He did live in a rough neighborhood, after all. Or maybe they were completely off-base and it was a robbery gone wrong. The fact that Nettle had been caught off guard could just be a coincidence. The kinds of toys Zachariah had kept in that apartment were worth a small fortune. But none of it had gone missing, so—
    “Might I interest either of you in some coffee?” asked a sweet voice. The waitress had returned.
    Without raising an eye or turning her head, Bishop casually reached up and adjusted the strap of her shoulder holster. The butt of her gun just barely showed through the unzipped opening in her jacket. There was nothing overtly threatening in the gesture, but the waitress visibly gulped and took a step back.
    “The bill is ready whenever you need it,” she said hesitantly. She backed away quickly. “Thanks for coming in.”
    “Don’t you think that was a little cruel?” Brennan asked.
    “No harm done,” Bishop murmured into her coffee. She looked toward the retreating waitress and smiled. It looked more like she was baring her teeth.
    “You’re insane,” he told her, chuckling.
    “We all have our flaws. So I’ve been thinking—and don’t you dare say ‘That’s a nice change’ or I will brain you,” she threatened as Brennan opened his mouth. “I’ve been thinking that maybe someone knew who would want to hurt Nettle. His parents are estranged, but somebody who worked with him at the pharmacy could know something.”
    Brennan nodded. “Good thinking. Need me to come along?”
    “No, I can handle it.” She looked up at Brennan, taking in his lined face and sunken eyes. “Maybe you should head back home, get a few hours of sleep,” she suggested. “You look like death.”
    “Death wished it looked this good.” Brennan grinned, standing from the table.
    “Oh, shut up. Go get the bill from our waitress.” She smiled fiercely. “I think I’ve frightened her.”

Chapter Six
     
     
     
    Jeremy regretted not bringing a hat.
    The storm clouds were a distant memory, and the sun beat down mercilessly upon his head. The blond atop his head reflected some of the light, and he was certainly better off than Ellie would have been with her curtains of raven-black hair, but his cheeks felt hot and his mouth had dried up entirely.
    He had forgotten to change into pants before setting out for the Tower. While he was thankful for the breeze that blew against his bare legs, each step through the switchgrass left long, thin scratches on the exposed skin. Now, in addition to the accumulating cuts, Jeremy had to contend with impending dehydration.
    The walk was longer than he realized, and he arrived at the