Read Online Ill-Fame (A Detective Harm Queen Novel Book 2) by Erik Rivenes - Free Book Online Page A

anything else about the man, except that you don’t want him to know about me.”
    “That’s because he’s not worth mentioning.”
    “But you understand your position, and mine, don’t you? I have to make my own way.”
    He looked back at her, perspiration soaking his brow. It was funny how he could bound across a football field, barely breaking a sweat, but a conversation such as this made his forehead slick and wet.
    “I’ll take you with me,” he said, with a wild, determined look.
    “You can’t be serious,” she replied. “That would never work. I know there are other women. What would your university steady say?”
    “Those girls don’t mean anything.”
    “And how do I know? You’ve also got your whole future to think about.”
    He shot her a hot glance. “Obviously you’ve been thinking about yours.”
    She slipped his handkerchief from his chest pocket and wiped his brow dry. “You worry too much, Dick.”
    “How could I not? You’ll soon be in bed with a stranger.”
    He would be a dangerous one, too. Far too dangerous for Moonlight Darling’s college sensibilities. She needed him away from her for his own good.
    “I’ll be fine, I promise,” she told him.
    “And I’ll make sure of it.”
    She sighed. It was going as unpleasantly as she’d figured it would. But the worst was still to come.
    “I can’t continue on like this, Dick. I’ll be very busy soon, and the distraction of you will be too great.” She stroked his hair again, trying to let him down gently. “I care for you, but everything is changing, and our relationship, as it’s been, is too much of a burden at this moment....”
    “A burden? A burden ?”
    She’d known this would be difficult for him, but she hadn’t expected this level of despair. He wasn’t accustomed to being told no, either.
    God, this was hard. If there was a better way to cut ties with the one man she might actually love, she wished she knew.
    He pulled a pint-bottle of something from his pocket, unscrewed the top, and took a deep swallow. Once it found its way down, he shuddered, but managed only an imitation of his usually impish grin.
    “You seem to be taking your leave of me, Nellie,” he finally said.
    “We’re in such different positions, you and I.”
    And it could have been different, she thought. Perhaps if she’d made it off the station platform safely, and entered school like she was supposed to, they might have met, and loved, and it could have been different. But her lot had been cast in another direction, and that was that.
    He rested his head on her shoulder, and they sat in silence. This would be their last night together, she’d decided. There was no other choice.
     
     

CHAPTER 8
     
     
    He’d turned to Peder, as always, for the help he couldn’t get from his own police force. Peder, as always, came through. The Norwegian had provided Queen with a coal wagon, and a driver, Big Snorre, along with the appropriate clothes: work shirts, overalls and boots.
    The idea of a disguise was a sour one to Queen. Parading around in a silly costume bordered on cowardly, in his own opinion. He was a police detective, and proud of that fact. If he couldn’t get the information he wanted by being himself, he had no business doing the job.
    In this instance, however, a disguise made sense. Queen was not wanted in Saint Paul. The last time he’d been here, he’d irresponsibly raced a streetcar down the capital city’s busiest avenue, crashing it in spectacular fashion. The police hated him, and a certain Irish gangster desired him dead.
    But Pock insisted that Maisy was here.
    Queen didn’t trust Pock for a second. An ambush might easily be waiting ahead, or Pock might be looking for some perfect moment to escape into a city where he knew Queen wouldn’t ever find him. But this seemed to be the only way forward, so he’d prepared in haste. He had tucked a small roll of money and his pistol into his pocket, along with a handful of