The End Of Desire: A Rowan Gant Investigation Read Online Free PDF Page B

ain’t packin’ a
badge, so you’re just another civilian ta’ them. The coppers down
there are short-staffed and under siege for fuck’s sake. They ain’t
got time ta’ deal with ya’.” He paused briefly to allow the comment
to sink in, then continued, “Besides, I thought you were s’posed
ta’ be down there chasin’ a ghost, right?”
    “A Lwa ,” I corrected. “They’re deified spirits
within Vodoun religious practice.”
    “Yeah, well that’s just another friggin’ word
for ghost in my book.”
    “Uh-huh. And I also wouldn’t exactly call it
chasing. I’m just looking for her history. It’s really more like
genealogical research if you want to know the truth.”
    “Chasin’ or not, it’s what ya’ went down
there for, right?”
    I drew in a deep breath. I really couldn’t
argue with him too much because it really was the reason I’d come
here. After a bloated silence, I huffed out my agreement almost as
one word, “Yeah, I guess.”
    “Then that’s what ya’ need ta’ concentrate
on. You do the Witch stuff, and let us do the cop stuff.”
    Even though I knew continuing to argue with
him was futile, I decided to press my friend just a bit further on
the subject. “So, tell me something. If I can’t help then why did
you even bother telling me about this, Ben?”
    “Figured since you were there, ya’ had an off
chance of hearin’ about it anyway. Thought I’d see if I could get
to ya’ first.”
    “But…”
    He cut me off. “No but’s, Row. It was a
judgment call.”
    “So how’d you make that call?”
    “How else? I flipped a friggin’ coin.”
    “What a novel approach.”
    “Like I said. Judgment call. Heads I tell ya’
what I can and deal with ya’ bein’ pissed, or tails I don’t tell
ya’ and still deal with ya’ bein’ pissed ‘cause I didn’t. For me it
was lose-lose no matter what I did.”
    “Glad to know I’m worth so much
consideration,” I grumbled.
    “It was a no-brainer, Row. I got bad guys ta’
catch. Better I spend my time thinkin’ about that instead of
whether I want ya’ torqued at me now or torqued at me later.”
    “Yeah, I know you’re right,” I conceded.
    “If you wanna know the truth,” he offered. “I
didn’t actually flip a coin. I was gonna tell ya’ anyway.”
    “Why, because you figured I’d probably
already heard about it?”
    “No… Actually, ‘cause I’m a bit worried about
ya’.”
    “Don’t tell me, let me guess. Because you’re
afraid I’m going to go looking for her?”
    “Jeezus, White Man, I keep tryin’ ta’ tell
ya’ I ain’t stupid. Hell, I know you’re gonna go lookin’ for her.
What I’m afraid of is that you’re actually gonna find ‘er.”
     
    * * * * *
     
    I had to give Ben credit;
he definitely knew me as well as anyone could—except for my wife,
of course. I was definitely going to look for Annalise, and finding
her was my ultimate goal. I had absolutely no idea how I was going
to accomplish this, but I knew where I was going to start.
Therefore, I had no more hung up with him than I was heading out
the door in search of a way to get into the local crime scene. What
I was going to be able to do at almost 2:30 in the morning was yet
another mystery, especially considering the fact that I didn’t even
know exactly where the crime scene was located. However, I had an
idea, and since I wasn’t going to be able to sleep for a variety of
reasons, I decided I might as well get started.
    I had no doubt my friend was correct in his
assessment that I wouldn’t be welcomed with open arms, so the
head-on approach wasn’t even an option. Especially since I wasn’t
going to get any support from him or Constance where that was
concerned. This was something I would have to do on my own, with
subterfuge. As my wife had recently pointed out, I wasn’t a very
good liar, so that was yet another hurdle I would need to face.
Unfortunately, deceit was going to be necessary because the