Read Online House of Skin by Tim Curran - Free Book Online Page B

date.”
    “I’ve never been known to be.”
    Fenn was intrigued by her encyclopedic knowledge of crime and insanity, but mostly by the woman herself. He liked the way she looked at him, the way she called him Mr. Fenn rather than Lt. Fenn—there was something almost endearing about that, like a pet name—although he would’ve preferred just Jim. He liked her husky, sexy voice. And despite her catalog of grue and grim, she had a soft, winning quality about her that could reach right into your heart, he thought. The sort of woman who was a wonderful combination of beauty, brains, and confidence. She gave her best at all times and it made Fenn want to do the same. He felt he would follow her anywhere. He almost hoped that they never would find Eddy Zero, so their time together would never end.
    But it would.
    It had to and he knew it.
    But there was always the present and it would have to enough. He could be with her now, listen to her voice, pretend that there was more here than there actually was. He told himself that he could merely ask her out to dinner, but he was afraid of the consequences. Her possible refusal was something he didn’t think he could bear. That it would end before it really began.
    He almost wished he were still married so there would be a reason he couldn’t pursue her. If it hadn’t been for the mystery surrounding her, surrounding Soames, surrounding all of this, he would’ve fallen completely.
    “What do you make of all the mirrors?” he asked. There were dozens upon dozens.
    “I’m not sure,” she said. “Zero had them installed here. We know that much. But not why.”
    “Crazy fuck.”
    “I don’t think we’re going to find anything here,” she said.
    “No, I guess not. But we had to try.” He popped a couple of aspirins and chewed them vigorously, willing the headache not to start.
    “You should do something about those headaches,” she said.
    “I’ve tried. The doctors said there was nothing they could do.”
    “How often do you get them?”
    “Irregularly,” he lied. The truth being that they were starting to be very regular. “I’ve tried to figure out when they happen, like the doc said, so I could figure out if they were caused by some kind of stress. But there doesn’t seem to be any reason. They just happen.”
    She touched his hand and it was nearly too much. “I want to thank you for being so helpful, Mr. Fenn,” she said. “This is probably all a wild goose chase. You’ve been very understanding, very cooperative.”
    “Just doing my job,” he said and they both knew it was a lie.
    They walked back to the car, each secretly relieved to be out of the house.
    “What now?” he asked.
    “I don’t know. I’ll spend a few more weeks at this. I’m not beaten yet. I know he’s here somewhere.”
    Fenn started the car. “If there’s anything I can do …”
    “I could go for a cup of coffee.”
    “You had only to ask.”
    He drove them quickly away from that malignant house and its decaying neighborhood. He chose a small diner that wasn’t far from his own apartment. They sat and drank their coffee and he asked her about herself and all the while he thought about other things. How her lips might feel against his. How she might smell if he held her close. How she might look in the morning.
    He was more than a little surprised at himself. Although he’d been divorced some six years, he’d had few dates … outside of a few sleazy onenighters. Relationships could be ugly things, he knew, and he had no interest going back into that arena of psychological and emotional barbarity. And now this. He was quite happily falling in love like some giddy teenager. It was totally out of character for him. Yet, he was enjoying it. Enjoying the fact that love had put a new glow in his cheeks, new wind in his lungs, and a new and necessary need to keep living.
    Last year, his fortieth birthday had come and gone and he’d consoled himself to the fact that this