Page 10 of Mystic Justice (The Other Detective #2)

Rowan Dewlin was a blond dryad covered in mud up to his elbows.

When he looked up and saw Peter, he threw him a joyous smile.

‘I got the yareta to grow! I got an air elemental to help create a bubble of special high-altitude air around it.’ He pointed excitedly to a bright-green, moss-like plant that was contained in its own glass box.

Peter’s answering smile was reserved. ‘Great work, my boy, great work.’ He cleared his throat. ‘The Connection are here to speak to you about a delicate matter.’

The infectious delight in Rowan’s young eyes faded. ‘Is everything okay?’ he asked, standing up. He absentmindedly rubbed the mud off his palms onto his trousers.

‘I’m Inspector Wise, this is Detective Channing and this is Robbie,’ I said carefully. Having the High King of the Ogres listen in on your interview might be nerve-wracking even for the most innocent of souls, so it was better that Krieg remained incognito.

Loki took to the air again, circling before he rested on some exotic fauna. I hoped he knew which plants to avoid and which ones were safe because everything in the Other could be deadly, including the plant life.

I went straight to the point. ‘I’m sorry to say that Moss Hollings has been found dead.’

‘Dead?’ Dewy breathed, his eyes wide. ‘Oh no! No, no, no!’ He sat heavily on the edge of the nearest ceramic plant pot and the resident fauna vibrated at his distress.

‘She can’t be – I saw her last week. She was missing, but I thought …

I just thought she was finally shooting her shot, you know?

Going to a recording studio. She’d been saving for so long.

I was mad she’d ducked out without saying anything but I… ’

He trailed off as his eyes filled. ‘Sun and rain,’ he whispered. ‘She was dead and I was mad at her.’ He looked away, jaw clenched. We gave him a moment; there was silence, bar a few stifled sobs while he struggled to assimilate the news of Moss’s death into his own life.

We waited as his sobs echoed around the large chamber. Finally he turned back to us. ‘What happened? What happened to our lovely Moss?’ He wiped his face, leaving mud smeared across his face in lieu of tears.

‘She drowned.’ Channing’s tone was sympathetic.

Dewy surged to his feet. ‘No way! She was terrified of water – we used to joke that she wouldn’t even take a bath! No way was that an accident. You have to believe me!’

‘They do,’ Krieg said with surprising softness.

‘She was bound,’ I admitted grimly. ‘It wasn’t an accident.’

‘Bound?’ Dewy shook his head again, visibly upset and also bewildered. He sank back down onto the edge of the giant plant pot. ‘Who the hell would hurt Moss? She’s the best. She’s so kind, and she’s fun. She’s… Everyone loves Moss. I don’t understand. Who did this to her?’

‘That’s what we’re here to find out,’ I said, letting a little ‘bad cop’ creep into my voice.

He shot to his feet again, his muddy hand pointing to his chest. ‘Whoa! Me? You suspect me? I would never have hurt Moss. Never!’

‘You dated,’ I said flatly. ‘It didn’t work out.’

‘Yeah, but it wasn’t like that! Mostly we just fooled around some. We’re friends … we learned together, you know, sex and stuff, but we didn’t love each other. Not like that. We were just friends with benefits.’

‘Her parents thought you were dating.’

‘Well, sure.’ He made a face. ‘Moss wasn’t going to tell her parents we were banging buddies!’

‘What made you end your arrangement?’ Channing asked.

‘I guess we were both ready to bump uglies with someone else. Someone we could maybe love like that.’

‘Did you end things or did she?’ I pressed.

He shook his head. ‘I honestly can’t say.’ He paused and frowned. ‘Me, I think. There was a girl here I had my eye on.’ He shrugged. ‘Anyway, it all fizzled out.’

‘Where were you last night from 9pm until 1am?’

Dewy’s green skin was tinged with grey. ‘I would never hurt her. Never.’ His tone was insistent but I wondered if he was giving himself thinking time because he didn’t have an alibi.

‘Just answer the question,’ Channing demanded.

‘We worked until 2am this morning.’ He looked at Peter. ‘You saw me leave, right?’

Peter nodded. ‘Yes.’ He turned to me. ‘We do a lot of work in the Palm House through the night because it saves us bothering the Common realm folk in the day. Last night Dewy worked until just gone 2am. We chatted a little after his shift, and the CCTV camera footage will show him leaving probably close to 2.15, well after your window.’

‘And what time did his shift start?’ I asked.

‘Eight o’clock, after the Palm House closed,’ Peter confirmed before Dewy could answer.

Dewy nodded emphatically. ‘You’ll see me coming in on the cameras. I didn’t leave the Palm House until my shift was over. You’ll see. It wasn’t me – I would never have hurt Moss.’

We would follow up with the cameras but for now I believed him. Which meant we were back to square one: my least favourite square.

According to a quick scan of social media, the bar where Moss had worked didn’t open until 5pm due to some refurbishment work.

There wasn’t much we could do until then, so we left the Palm House and returned to our cars.

Annoyingly, it was still too early to press Kate for any results from the autopsy.

‘Head back to the office,’ I said to Channing. Mindful of the time and my growling stomach I added, ‘Take an hour, grab some refs.’

‘Refs?’ Krieg asked, eyebrows raised.

‘Refreshments,’ Channing answered. ‘It means a lunch break.’

Ignoring their byplay I continued, ‘Once you’ve had a break, type up a report for Thackeray. Later on this evening I’ll go to Botany.’

Channing cleared his throat. ‘With respect, ma’am, I would like to attend the questioning too.’

‘It’s after your shift has ended,’ I pointed out.

‘The job doesn’t stop because the pencil pushers say so.’ He lifted his cleft chin. I was pleased to see a little more backbone from him.

‘Fine. We’ll meet outside at 5pm. Full uniform still on.’

‘Got it. And ma’am?’

‘Yes?’

‘Thanks.’

‘Channing,’ I called to his back as he walked to his car. He turned. ‘You did really well today.’ Looking incredibly youthful, he grinned at me and climbed into his car.

‘What about me?’ Krieg breathed into my ear. ‘Did I do really well?’

I half-laughed, half-huffed, ‘Mostly you distracted me.’

A slow smile crossed his face. ‘Glad to hear it. Now it’s time for your refs too. Come on, I’m taking you out for lunch.’

‘And Loki!’ my bird chimed in. This time he settled on Krieg’s shoulder.

‘Sure. You can come, too.’

‘I’m on the clock,’ I pointed out.

‘So is Channing and you gave him an hour. We’re taking one too,’ he said firmly. For once, I didn’t argue; I needed to refuel so why not do it with Krieg? He’d taken a few days’ holiday to spend time with me. The very least I could do was give him my lunch hour.