Hard Case Read Free Page A

Marshall? Are you friends?”
    “Acquaintances.” Steve nodded. “I was a few years behind him at school. We were in the same House, so we played football together sometimes at the school sports events.”
    “You went to school together?” Troy repeated, his brain connecting this fact with the others, even as his mouth continued to move.
    “My family comes from money,” Steve answered with a puzzled look. “We’re by no means rich or aristocracy, but I don’t need this job to make ends meet. I work because I enjoy it…gives me a sense of satisfaction.”
    Troy did listen to Steven’s response, but it felt like it was far away. Pieces of the picture the case had clicked into place with an almost audible snap . He stood with a rush, looking around him as his brain moved faster than he could keep up with. Lurching a little as pins and needles pricked his senses—he hadn’t realized he’d been sitting in the same position for quite so long—he crossed the tiny room in three strides.
    “Your phone,” he bluntly asked Fin. “I need your phone. This has to be connected. It’s too much to be coincidence. The PM, Marshall, now Steve—all at the same school around the same time.”
    “Oh,” Fin said. “Right. You think this connects back that far—that James knew them too.”
    Troy was pleased. All too often he was the first to see the big picture when an investigation started to make sense, and people thought him mad. Normally he could happily ignore the snide comments as others fell behind, but he was glad Fin could see where his brain was leading him. Fin dug into the pocket of his royal blue blazer and pulled out his phone. He held it out and Troy took it.
    “I think I can see how we can make the old boy’s network work for us for a change. People know people who went to school or grew up with each other. Those relationships last for life. I bet James is connected to that, which means Steven can tell us who this James fellow really is.”
    Troy tapped the camera app, bringing up the photos stored on the card’s memory. Fin had mentioned earlier that he’d managed to take a couple of quick snaps before James had shot Emily.
    “What do you mean James isn’t his real name?” Steven asked, clearly perplexed. Troy came to stand next to him, having brought up the full-body shot of James. Clearly taken from a distance, it wasn’t the best resolution, but it did have James front and center.
    “I never believed James was his real name. More a working moniker,” Emily added. “I could be totally mistaken, but that was certainly the impression I got. He seemed smug, arrogantly so. James is one who likes to hold the cards and wield the power. It makes sense for him to enjoy playing the spy and use a false name.”
    When Steven looked at Troy, he appeared both eager and wary.
    “I’ve been an avid reader of thrillers my whole life,” Steven said in a low tone.
    In the close confines of the room, it was impossible for privacy, but at that moment Troy felt as if it were just the two of them again, speaking in quiet words of personal matters and sharing pieces of themselves with each other.
    “I’ve lived a thousand fictional lives of espionage and secretive conspiracy cases,” Steven continued. “It’s a different feeling when it’s real, though.”
    Part of Troy had been ecstatic at this link between Steve and his case. His words, however, sobered him. As Emily’s bruised and tender flesh bore witness to, this wasn’t a game where they’d break for picnic lunches or bumble around together like the Famous Five on another thrilling adventure. This was real. People died and the good guys didn’t always win.
    Troy suddenly didn’t want Steven any more involved than he already was. He felt slightly ashamed that his own selfish reasons had helped him forget how tenuous life could be. Troy had worked alone for years, only recently had he teamed up a few times with Fin when both their objectives lay in