The Devil Among Us by Ramsay Sinclair (easy books to read txt) 📗

morning, I suppose,” she giggled at the newfound burst of energy. Gently inching her body from mine, I shuffled in order to pick up the phone. It had been overloaded from messages, mainly McCall teasing me about yesterday's office scene. But the most recent ones were of her informing me they’d had word from the hospital.

“And?” Abbey poked my ribs, warranting an unexpected yelp.

“It was work.” I scrolled among the rest of them. “They want me at the hospital, pronto.”

“About the officer who got shot?”

“No, Flynn Jones. The criminal,” I specified. Trust Abbey to think so… humanely. “Though we should probably check in on Ryan whilst we’re there. It would be a decent thing to do,” I humbly corrected.

“Yeah, it would.” Abbey finally sat up straight and took a moment to orientate herself. “That’s our wake up call.”

Following by example, I sat up and sniffed the air hesitantly. As feared, there was a pungent smell of musky sweat, Chinese food and a general whiff of men.

“I stink, don’t I?”

“I wasn’t going to mention it.” She patted my chest.

“I’ve got to get in the shower,” I frowned, “and iron a new set of clothes in the nick of time before McCall kills me for being late.”

“You get in the shower,” Abbey got to her feet, stretching for the fifth time already. “I’ll clean up, iron you a work suit, and make you a cup of tea.”

What did I do to deserve a woman such as her?

“Are you a superhuman?” I joked, planting a peck on her adorably chubby cheeks.

“I just might be,” she humorously agreed and rubbed the sleep from her eyes. I’m sure we looked as dishevelled as each other after our long sleep. It was actually the best I’d had in a while. “Go.”

“Yes, miss.” I did as I was told and exhaustedly stomped upstairs to find a clean towel of some description. The shower steam rose up and covered the mirror’s reflection in a dusting of condensation. A fresh dousing of water was exactly the wake-up call I needed, and my hair flattened over my forehead from the drenched weight of it.

Getting out, I roughly towel dried it and smiled at the sight of Abbey’s spare toothbrush next to mine. Being so involved with a woman would’ve scared me a couple of years ago, but having her by my side now made me realise that I needed someone. To calm me, to show me a new side to life.

“It must be my lucky morning,” she hinted when I resurfaced, wearing only suit trousers.

“This was your plan all along, wasn’t it,” I grinned at the sight of the marigold gloves that crept up to her elbows, deep in washing up liquid and crockery. Spotting my work shirt on the ironing board, I deftly picked it up and slipped it onto my torso. Buttoning it up proved a trickier task for the buttons were too fiddly for my larger hands.

Padding over to her curvaceous figure, I had the element of surprise. She didn’t see me, too busy scrubbing the dishes to within an inch of their lives.

“Are you listening to me?” I easily picked her up, leaving Abbey squealing.

Yelling in bouts of laughter, she flailed around. “There’s water everywhere. I thought you had to go!”

“Spoilsport.” Grumbling, I did as told and pecked her rosy cheek. “I could get used to waking up like this.”

“Me too,” Abbey said sincerely, about to say something else but stopped. “Your tea’s over there.” Abbey showed me, her hair put up into a messy bun, that only enhanced her naturally gorgeous features. “Your hair’s wet.”

“I know. Work needs me, I couldn’t let it dry.” I lifted up the cushions in search of my keys. The water dripped unpleasantly onto my shirt collar.

“Looking for these?” She held the keys up in the air.

“You’re a star,” I took them eagerly. “You’re alright here, aren’t you? You’ve got your--”

“My own set of keys, yes,” she finished the sentence, practically pushing me out of the door. “I’ll lock up when I leave, don’t worry. Now go before they tell you off, or cut your wages.” Although she was only joking, I hoped they couldn’t do that.

“Anyone would think you’re trying to get rid of me.” Taking a thick coat from the hook, we exchanged a farewell kiss.

“What gave you that impression?” Abbey grinned, not letting me get away so easily. She wrapped her arms around my neck, pulling me in for a few more pecks. “Have a great day.”

“Great days don’t exist at CID,” I joked, reluctant to leave. I’d rather be paid to stay home all day. Abbey waved me away, waiting until there was an appropriate amount of distance between us to retreat inside.

Having soaking wet hair made the Scottish weather hit worse, and I was simply grateful that I’d driven the work Volvo home last night. It made the journey to the hospital quicker and shielded me away from the chill.

An awfully friendly receptionist greeted me upon arrival, overly cheery for the surroundings we were in. A brief set of instructions led me towards the ward Flynn Jones resided in, where both McCall and DCI Reid were already waiting outside for me. A policeman stood guard to keep intruders out and Flynn in, though not a familiar one I recognised.

“You took your time,” McCall teased. She was dressed differently to normal in an all-black suit. It was on the eighties side, with some shoulder pads sewn in. Interesting, to say the least.

“Good night last night, Cooper?” DCI Reid joined in, sipping a hospital cup of tea in their plastic cups. He smirked and remembered our prior conversation. Was he on the alcohol again?

“You could say that,” I hinted, earning a boisterous slap on the back from him. “Are we standing out here all day, or do we actually have an appointment?” I stared at Flynn Jones through the window that separated us. He seemed frail and trembled in the hospital bed alone, so much so, that