with pics changed around to justify Bigfoot or the 9/11 conspiracy silliness or whatever’s the hot thing online right now.” His fork impaled the last dumpling. “I was surprised as all hell to see an actual paper document showing up under my door. Took me back to the old days, it did.”
My blood pressure started rising. “And you gave the original over to your editor?”
“Like I wasn’t going to?” Bran put the fork down with a loud clink. “I had no reason to keep it at my place.”
“So you sold the picture and wrote the story to go with it.”
“Right.” He rapped the table with his knuckles. “I did exactly what I get paid for and what the public wants.” Bran smiled. “And now you’ve got me just curious enough to keep following this story much further than I would have taken it if you hadn’t shown up. The fact that her family’s pissed enough to call you in makes it much more interesting. So let’s scratch each other’s back and work out a deal.” He pressed an index finger against his right nostril with a wide grin. “That’s what reporters go on, honey.”
“Right.” I pulled my wallet out and tossed a few bills onto the table. “We’re out of here.”
Bran’s eyebrows rose again as he looked at me for a minute before sliding off the chair. “I must admit, you’re pretty easy.”
“Don’t bet on it.”
Chapter 5
We flagged down a cab right outside the bar. It was well into rush hour by this point and I had chosen wisely to not try to bring my car into this mess.
As the taxi began to maneuver in and out of the traffic on Queen Street, Bran turned to me, a curious look on his face. “So what got you into this business? Seems to me like a girl like you deserves better.”
I couldn’t hold back the laughter. Chuckling, I glanced out the window to make sure I knew where we were going. The smell of old cigarette ash was almost overpowering. The cab was obviously one of the last to switch over to non-smoking as the decal on the window attested.
“Gee, haven’t heard that pickup line before.” I rubbed the tip of my nose and saw a bit of the playfulness disappear from his face. “Let’s just say that I fell into working security and then just expanded into the private arena.” The traffic slowed to a crawl around us. “So how does a reporter like you end up working for a rag like the Inquisitor ?”
“The fickle follies of life.” He lifted his hands in a melodramatic display. “Either way, we’re here now and that’s what’s going on.”
“Thanks for the update.” The vehicle pulled up at the entrance to a small apartment complex down near Yonge and King— one of the hot-up and coming spots for the youthful businessman in the downtown core. These condominiums cost more than a million dollars. Not what I expected from a cheap hack.
The doorman nodded to both of us as we walked through the lobby, his eyes scanning me as a security professional would. I had no doubts if a cop came by later he’d be able to give a pretty darned good description of me with the exact moment my foot crossed that threshold. This was a pricy place that didn’t hire kids looking to find a place to sleep or study on the night shift.
We stepped into the elevator, a gaudy trip of mirrored walls and gold-plated buttons screaming upper class.
Bran was silent on the trip up, bouncing back and forth on the toes of his black running shoes as if he was preparing for a marathon, quiet until we hit the seventeenth floor and walked out into the hallway.
“So, what do you think?” He fumbled in his slacks for the keys, finally hitting the lock on the third try.
“Aren’t you supposed to ask that after I see the interior of your apartment?” I joked, trying to figure out who this guy was.
“I guess asking if it was good for you too should wait, then.” He grinned and stepped inside, flicking a set of light switches to his right.
The condo was larger than if you had dragged my
My blood pressure started rising. “And you gave the original over to your editor?”
“Like I wasn’t going to?” Bran put the fork down with a loud clink. “I had no reason to keep it at my place.”
“So you sold the picture and wrote the story to go with it.”
“Right.” He rapped the table with his knuckles. “I did exactly what I get paid for and what the public wants.” Bran smiled. “And now you’ve got me just curious enough to keep following this story much further than I would have taken it if you hadn’t shown up. The fact that her family’s pissed enough to call you in makes it much more interesting. So let’s scratch each other’s back and work out a deal.” He pressed an index finger against his right nostril with a wide grin. “That’s what reporters go on, honey.”
“Right.” I pulled my wallet out and tossed a few bills onto the table. “We’re out of here.”
Bran’s eyebrows rose again as he looked at me for a minute before sliding off the chair. “I must admit, you’re pretty easy.”
“Don’t bet on it.”
Chapter 5
We flagged down a cab right outside the bar. It was well into rush hour by this point and I had chosen wisely to not try to bring my car into this mess.
As the taxi began to maneuver in and out of the traffic on Queen Street, Bran turned to me, a curious look on his face. “So what got you into this business? Seems to me like a girl like you deserves better.”
I couldn’t hold back the laughter. Chuckling, I glanced out the window to make sure I knew where we were going. The smell of old cigarette ash was almost overpowering. The cab was obviously one of the last to switch over to non-smoking as the decal on the window attested.
“Gee, haven’t heard that pickup line before.” I rubbed the tip of my nose and saw a bit of the playfulness disappear from his face. “Let’s just say that I fell into working security and then just expanded into the private arena.” The traffic slowed to a crawl around us. “So how does a reporter like you end up working for a rag like the Inquisitor ?”
“The fickle follies of life.” He lifted his hands in a melodramatic display. “Either way, we’re here now and that’s what’s going on.”
“Thanks for the update.” The vehicle pulled up at the entrance to a small apartment complex down near Yonge and King— one of the hot-up and coming spots for the youthful businessman in the downtown core. These condominiums cost more than a million dollars. Not what I expected from a cheap hack.
The doorman nodded to both of us as we walked through the lobby, his eyes scanning me as a security professional would. I had no doubts if a cop came by later he’d be able to give a pretty darned good description of me with the exact moment my foot crossed that threshold. This was a pricy place that didn’t hire kids looking to find a place to sleep or study on the night shift.
We stepped into the elevator, a gaudy trip of mirrored walls and gold-plated buttons screaming upper class.
Bran was silent on the trip up, bouncing back and forth on the toes of his black running shoes as if he was preparing for a marathon, quiet until we hit the seventeenth floor and walked out into the hallway.
“So, what do you think?” He fumbled in his slacks for the keys, finally hitting the lock on the third try.
“Aren’t you supposed to ask that after I see the interior of your apartment?” I joked, trying to figure out who this guy was.
“I guess asking if it was good for you too should wait, then.” He grinned and stepped inside, flicking a set of light switches to his right.
The condo was larger than if you had dragged my
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