Chapter Text
What Andrew planned as a quiet Tuesday night at the office got much less peaceful in the span of just about thirty minutes after his second break, around a quarter to midnight.
Kevin Day, his one-track-minded and conventionally annoying partner, barged into his office without even pausing to knock with three files in his hand. He dropped them on an empty spot on Andrew’s desk, right next to his propped-up feet. Andrew stared at Kevin, and he took a final drag of his cigarette, stubbing it out in a glass dish.
Andrew, being the unlucky soul who got the night shift with Kevin Day, closed his eyes and leaned back against his chair as Kevin began his lecture about smoking in the office and completely forgot about the files.
Five minutes into his rant, Andrew got bored and rose to pick the file off of the top. That one alone was about an inch thick, and it was a heavy weight in his hands as he flipped through it.
“What is this?” Andrew asked, gazing at the pages lazily.
“All of these files are all of the crimes the Moriyamas have committed in the last month. Month!” Kevin said again, wiping at the obvious sweat on his forehead.
“And? What am I supposed to do with these?”
“We’ve been trying to catch Ichirou for two years,” he continued, grabbing the tv remote off of Andrew’s desk and switching the tv on.
It was the local news feed, live outside of the Moriyama company building. Andrew leaned forward as the camera zoomed in towards a black mass just outside the doors. It was Ichirou Moriyama, zip cuffed to the door handles. He was dead.
“Do we know who did this?” Andrew asked, standing up from his seat and putting his gear on. Kevin followed him out the door and to his car.
“No idea. They’re saying that whoever it was left a note, but they won’t tell us what it says over walkie.”
Andrew nodded and climbed into the car. When Kevin buckled up, he got them on the road.
When they pulled up to the scene, the on-sight cops directed them to an empty side of the street to part. It wasn’t like there was a lot of empty space. Crowds of people surrounded the yellow tape and the scene was filled with police and members of the Moriyama company.
A couple police officers greeted Andrew and Kevin when they got out of the car and led them through the swarms.
“Lieutenant Minyard, Detective Day, follow me,” one of them said. Andrew recognized him as Officer Jeremy Knox, top of his company at fire station 89.
Before Jeremy could lead them anywhere, Captain Danielle Wilds from precinct 42 approached them, waving off the other officers.
“Andrew, Kevin,” she said, her smile didn’t reach her eyes. “It’s pretty bad. I thought you ought to see the note he left.”
“It is a he, then?” Andrew asked, showing his badge to the on-guard officer so they could step underneath the tape.
She nodded. “He signed the note, too.”
That took Andrew by surprise. Most criminals don’t sign their names at the bottom of a letter and leave it for the police to find. That’d be too easy. If it was his real name, he was the stupidest man alive. Andrew and Kevin pulled on a pair of black latex gloves, given to them by Dan so they didn’t contaminate evidence.
They reached the front of the building where Kevin grabbed the note, and Andrew started inspecting the body. It looked like his throat was slashed and so was his chest. They were neat, clean cuts, as if done with some sort of military blade. Andrew didn’t know where an amateur killer would have gotten one of those.
He turned to say something to Kevin and saw the look of absolute horror on his face. His hands shook as he held the letter tightly in his fist like it would blow away and disappear into the wind.
Andrew stepped towards him and pried the sheet of paper from Kevin’s balled fist. The handwriting was as neat as ever could be. Even after killing someone, his hand was as steady as a neurosurgeon.
The letter read;
“I’ve caught your little rat for you. What a lovely guy, isn’t he? He put up quite a fight, but he’s no match for me, clearly. How embarrassing. Do I get a reward for doing your job for you? I actually have an idea for that. The next letter will be my request.”
The bottom of the letter had a blood stain on it and a bit of the corner was burnt off. Andrew guessed the forensics team had already taken a sample of it. It was drawn out in the shape of a smiley face. The name at the bottom was written in perfect cursive.
Nathaniel Wesiniski L.
“Do you know someone named Nathaniel, Day?” Andrew asked, setting the letter back where it was.
“I used to. He disappeared years ago. Remember the Butcher?”
Andrew nodded. He did remember the Butcher. It took two years to catch him, and he was currently living out a life sentence in the South Carolina maximum security prison. He wasn’t allowed visitors anymore, because he punched the last journalist who came to question him. He was suspected guilty of over fifty murders, including the suspected death of his own wife.
“The Butcher is Nathaniel’s father.”
That very sentence shook Andrew to his core. If Nathaniel was anything like his father, he was either sloppy or disorganized. He didn’t seem either of those. This crime scene was cleaner than the Butcher’s were.
Andrew, then, knew for a fact that Nathaniel would be harder to catch than his father was.
“Do we have any records of Nathaniel?”
“He dropped off of the map when his mother, Mary, ran away with him. The Moriyama’s and the Butcher were after her for money. She came up deceased in our system a little while ago, meaning that Nathaniel probably inherited the cash.” Dan said, coming up to stand beside Andrew.
“How much cash?” Kevin asked.
“Half a million bucks,” she shrugged, “maybe more.”
“Shit,” Andrew said, but a cruel smile formed across his face. “How old is he?”
`
“Same age as you. Maybe a year younger.” Kevin said. “He’s got brown hair and dark brown eyes. But he mentioned that his mom kept re-dying his hair all the time, so it’s possible that isn’t his natural hair color.”
“Do we have any idea of his whereabouts?”
“Not that we know of.” Dan said. “Somewhere around here, but we have no clues as to where he’s staying.”
“Have there been other killings that are linked to him?” Kevin asked, “He’s not the guy who’d send one message and then disappear. Plus, he said there’d be another letter.”
“This has been the only one so far,” Dan sighed, and Officer Boyd came up behind her. He lightly grabbed her elbow and whispered something in her ear. She nodded and dismissed herself to follow Boyd.
Andrew pulled off his gloves and tossed them in a nearby garbage bin. Kevin followed suit, pulling out his phone.
“Nicky and Aaron want to meet for drinks.”
“Okay?” Andrew said, tucking his hands into the pockets of his slacks. “Where?”
Kevin pointed across the street at a building called Josten’s. “Nicky says it’s the newest bar in town. It just opened up a few months ago.”
“Are they already there?”
Kevin nodded, so Andrew agreed to have drinks for about an hour and then go home.
They walked in and immediately Andrew was hit with the aroma of fresh cinnamon. Even with all the drunks and circling scent of booze, it was the only thing he could smell.
It was lively inside, and Andrew’s eyes were immediately drawn to the bartender. It was a beautiful man with sharp blue eyes and auburn hair that looked like fire under the lights. He had a white rag tossed over his shoulder as he filled drinks. The black shirt he was wearing was a bit too tight.
Talking to him was Allison Reynolds. Andrew recognized her because Renee was fooling around with her and showed Andrew a picture. He didn’t know she was into business.
He spotted Aaron and Nicky on the bar stools sharing a bowl of peanuts. There were peanut shells all over the ground beneath the stools but everything else was very clean.
Kevin sat down beside Aaron, and Andrew sat on the edge seat, which Nicky had apparently saved for him because he knew Andrew liked to be able to see the room. A drink was placed in front of him the minute he sat down, scotch, double shot with one ice. Apparently, Nicky also knew his drink order.
The bartender, unfortunately, did not pay much attention to Andrew. He set down Kevin’s drink as well and turned around to shoo off Allison. She was apparently talking his ear off and he was getting visibly annoyed. However, he didn’t say anything, just continued to endure her never ending rant.
However, when Captain David Wymack of precinct 03, Andrew’s precinct, came over to the bar and slapped Andrew on the shoulder, calling “Lieutenant Minyard” loud enough to hear over all the talking, the bartender finally looked Andrew’s way. There was a brief flash of recognition that shifted across his features and then he smiled. Not at Wymack but at Andrew.
Andrew, obviously, didn’t smile back, but he acknowledged him with a nod. He’d never seen this man in his life, but the bartender looked at him like they’d been friends for years. Andrew ignored it while another bar worker brought Wymack an extra stool.
“Neva though I’d find you ‘ere,” Wymack said, getting settled on the stool and waving the gorgeous bartender over. He told him what he wanted, and it was brought to him right away.
“Never thought I’d be here,” Andrew responded. Then he gestured to Allison for her to come over. She leaned down, her elbows across the counter and blinked at him. “How’s Renee? I haven’t heard from her recently.”
A flush spread across her face, and she was so flustered that she couldn’t answer. However, the beautiful one came over and leaned over here. God, he was taller than Andrew thought.
“She was just here,” he said, and his voice drifted through Andrew’s head. It was so soothing, like dripping molasses. “Jean kicked her out because she was loitering.”
Allison whacked him on the shoulder and cursed his name.
Neil huh. Andrew smiled to himself.
Some random guy at the bar counter called out to Neil and he turned around. He, very loudly, yelled and asked if he could smoke. Neil’s kind smile twisted into something grim and cruel. He pointed to a sign right in front of the guy that said, “No Smoking Allowed.”
Andrew sipped his drink in silence. The man snapped something angrily to Neil, but Andrew couldn’t make out what it was. However, a look of absolute disgust shifted Neil’s features. Andrew barely heard Allison’s name being called by the disgusting drunk before Neil slammed the man’s head into the bar counter.
All conversations stopped and Wymack stood up. Andrew, however, grabbed his arm. Bar disputes were meant to be settled by the owner and clientele. Plus, Wymack was a captain and he didn’t need to get involved in petty drama. If it got bad, Andrew would make Kevin deal with it.
Neil leaned down and whispered something into the guy’s ear. When he pulled back and removed his hand from the back of the guy’s neck, he took off out the door. He looked absolutely terrified.
Allison was already getting onto Neil about the situation, but she mentioned that he was lucky he was the owner or else charges could be pressed against him. He waved her off and wiped the specks of blood off the counter with a dishrag.
He apologized to everyone in the bar, before especially apologizing to the police force sitting right in front of him. Andrew didn’t respond because, frankly, he would have done the same thing. However, Kevin was grateful for it and Wymack dismissed him with a “I don’t give a shit” expression.
When Andrew went home that night, he felt almost as if he was being followed. He kept checking over his shoulder, until finally his eyes landed on a dark figure. Andrew shoved his hands in his pockets and ignored the chill that trickled down his spine.
He glanced over his shoulder again, and now there were two dark figures. The new one, however, seemed more focused on whoever was originally following Andrew.
Andrew clenched his fists and took the long way home. He was probably paranoid, but he didn’t want to lead them back to his house.
He went inside, stood under the scorching hot water for thirty minutes to wash away the shivers, and tucked himself beneath his covers.
However, Kevin woke him up with a phone call around four in the morning saying that the second letter had just been found.
So Andrew dragged himself out of bed and out the door again. Running on two hours of sleep, he mindlessly chewed on non-smoking gum, per Kevin’s request, and listened to Kevin, who came to pick him up in his expensive ass Mercedes, talk his ear off about this supposed serial killer.
They didn’t have any details except for his name and Kevin’s lousy recount of their childhood together. So many things could have changed while Nathaniel was on the run. They had a very brief description of his looks, but there wasn’t much to go on because Nathaniel Wesiniski didn’t exist in the database.
All Andrew knew for sure was that the Butcher was his father. Knowing that made Nathaniel a hundred times more dangerous. So Andrew would either have to go on just the letters he leaves, or make the drive to the prison and interview Nathan Wesiniski himself. Though he doubted he would say a word about Nathaniel.
As far as Andrew knew, Nathan loathed his son.
The next crime scene was right in front of the Minyard-Myer Hospital, where Andrew’s brother, Aaron, and his wife, Katelyn, worked. They purchased the building a few years ago and eventually made it into a pro-bono hospital.
Aaron was waiting outside the doors with his arms crossed over his chest. There was blood all over his white coat, but he looked thoroughly unimpressed with the scene. There was a body lying on the ground, surrounded with yellow tape.
Andrew remembered walking home past this hospital just a few hours ago and everything had been fine.
He approached Aaron himself, knowing that there was pretty much no chance in hell that Aaron would ever speak a word to a cop that wasn’t Andrew.
He offered Aaron a cigarette, but Aaron denied it with a glare. So, Andrew lit one for himself and let it rest between his lips as he tucked his hands into his pockets.
“What happened?” Andrew asked, his lips curling around the stick.
Aaron shrugged, glancing down at the body. “Some guy came running over here, waving his arms like a crazy person. His mouth is pretty sliced, so he couldn’t speak. Except he had a paper sticking out of his mouth. He has no hands, ‘Drew. Cut clean off. Killer did it like he was cutting butter, that’s how neat the bone is sliced.”
“Where are his hands?”
“I have no idea, and I don’t want to know.”
Andrew’s brows furrowed. “Where’s the letter?”
Aaron reached into his coat pocket and handed Andrew a light brown sheet of paper. Again, it was stained with blood and singed at the corner.
The print was very small, but again it was quite neat. Steady hands of a steady killer.
I apologise for the blood. I tried to keep it neat, but the stalking bastard splattered blood everywhere even after I told him to be still. Did he make it to the hospital in time? I hope not. He doesn’t deserve to recover, but it could have been fun if he did. We could’ve talked some more. Anyway, I mentioned that I had a request, but since I didn’t expect to kill again so soon, I didn’t have time to prepare. I guess that’s why it was so messy. This is lovely Jenkins. He thinks it’s fun to follow people home. Honestly, I mean if I hadn’t killed him, he would’ve killed someone else. Or worse. This is mercy. Not for poor Jenkins though. That’s two Ravens down. How many more to go? Up to you.
-Nathaniel Wesiniski E.
“Cocky bastard,” Andrew said, folding the letter. He passed it to Kevin, who was standing to his left, and watched his face pale.
“Riko won’t like this.” Was what he said before he crumbled the letter in his fist. Andrew pried it out of his hand and handed it to the first deputy on scene.
He pulled his cigarette out between two fingers and took a heavy drag. Riko was the heir for Moriyama's entire company. However, it wasn’t only a tech company. It was an underground yakuza that took over organizations left and right like they were simply playing a board game. Except when they landed on someone else’s property, they expected payment. Not the other way around.
Riko Moriyama, the youngest of their crime family, just got booted up in line after Ichirou’s, his brother’s, death. He chose the members of his security detail very carefully and Jenkins was one of them.
Andrew realized who Neil meant when he said that Jean shooed Renee away. He was referring to Jean Moreau, Riko’s second hand and a member of the Ravens. Does that mean that Jean could be next? Or is he not killing all of the Ravens?
If anything, Andrew would have thought the body he walked up to tonight would have been Riko. Either he was killing them in a random order, or he was making sure no one would ever figure out the pattern he had planned. So far, he wasn’t going in the order of social standing in Riko’s detail.
The big question was how did he know exactly who was on the Ravens’ detail. Even Andrew didn’t know the entire list because Riko liked to keep his team hidden, and it was impossible to log into Riko’s information because his firewall was unbreakable.
Whoever the killer was either had to be on the inside, close to Riko, or someone with a background in computer software. There were thousands of people like that as well, and there was no way to pin them down.
Nathaniel had to be living under some other name. If Nathaniel was his real name, then Andrew would be forced to visit Nathan to find out if they ever put him in the database, whether it was at birth or on bank statements. But so far, there was no record of a Nathaniel Wesiniski ever existing.
The only Wesiniski’s in the system were Nathan and his wife Mary. Perhaps if he got a professional to study their portraits, they’d be able to draw up a sketch that’s close enough to the real person.
He sighed and sucked in another breath of smoke. Kevin looked like he could collapse any minute. Andrew kind of understood where he was coming from. His friend from childhood was following in the Butcher’s footsteps. Like father, like son, as they always say.
Andrew tossed his cigarette somewhere outside of the crime scene, so as to not disturb the evidence, and snapped on a pair of gloves. He knelt down beside Jenkins’ body and lifted his shirt sleeve. Both of his hands were definitely gone.
Andrew ran his finger over the slight indents in the bone. It was some sort of carving that Andrew had to squint to see. He checked the other arm, and it had the same type of carving. Putting them close together, he realized it was two letters.
NW, one letter on each arm. With a smiley face after the W. Andrew dropped Jenkins’ arms and stepped back, coughing into his elbow.
“That’s fucking disgusting,” Jean said, coming up to stand beside Andrew.
Kevin sent him a glare, “Why are you here?”
Jean scratched the back of his neck. “Riko isn’t my favorite, but Jenkins was my partner. Whatever he does reflects on me.”
Andrew poked at a bandage on his face and then shoved his shoulder, to which Jean groaned and clutched his arm.
“He got a hold of you already.” Andrew deadpanned. Kevin pulled back Jean’s shirt to reveal bandages across his shoulder and chest.
“For fucks sake,” Kevin said, rubbing his face with his hand.
“It’s fine. I called someone this time. He won’t beat me again,” Jean said coolly, and Kevin sighed with relief.
“How can you be sure?”
“Because Riko is in West Virginia Medical right now.”
Kevin’s face dropped and suddenly Andrew was very interested in what Jean had to say. Kevin gripped Jean rather aggressively on the shoulder, and Andrew wasn’t sure if it was because he was so in shock that he couldn’t stand up on his own or he was so pissed off that Jean would dare put Riko in the hospital.
A car door slammed, and Andrew glanced over his shoulder to see a man getting out of a black, 1967 SS Chevy Impala. He was tall and wearing a suit, but that was all Andrew could see.
When he got closer, Andrew recognized him as the bartender from a few hours ago. Neil, apparently, Josten, since he was the owner. He was dressed head to toe like he was on his way to a fancy restaurant at almost five in the morning.
He approached them as calmly as possible, but then he, gently, but actually, wretched Kevin’s hand off of Jean’s shoulder. He obviously did not care that he was surrounded by a police force. However, he wasn’t exactly in the wrong since Jean didn’t commit any crimes and Kevin was technically assaulting a citizen.
“I’m sorry that my friend interrupted you. I actually just picked him up, so I was in the process of taking him home when he made me stop.” He cracked his neck and rolled his shoulders.
Even in the slightest gleam of the light, Andrew could see a thin cut that stretched from the bottom of his cheekbone to the top. It had to be new, and it was definitely from a knife slash. Andrew had been doing investigations for too long to miss the little details.
His fists weren’t bloody, but they were red with irritation. Andrew understood then that Jean called Neil to retrieve him from Riko’s manor. It must have been the manor that was here in South Carolina because Neil wouldn’t have made it all the way to West Virginia, beat his way into the manor, put Riko in the hospital, and brought Jean all the way back.
Andrew could be wrong. The injuries could just be from some squabble on the street because his suit looked rather neat for just engaging in a, probably, 20 on 1 fight. Plus, he doubted Neil could take on that many men. But wasn’t it too much of a coincidence?
Kevin rubbed his wrist where Neil grabbed him, and a look of guilt crossed Neil’s face.
He apologized, again. Andrew was starting to believe he was a bit of a pushover, until he reminded himself of Neil’s past behavior just ten seconds ago and earlier at the bar.
He had confidence, he knew his rights, and he wasn’t afraid to speak his mind or get a point across, whether it required violence or not.
Neil gently pat Jean on the back and whispered in his ear.
“We’ll let you get back to,” he swallowed and looked down at the body, “that.” Then he and Jean were walking away.
Except Neil turned around and glanced Andrew’s way. There was something in those blue eyes of his but Andrew couldn’t decipher it.
“What are we going to do about this?” Kevin said, and he ran a hand through his hair.
Andrew had no clue. The letters were all they had for solid evidence, and they couldn’t check the street cameras without Renee. She was their head of cybersecurity, but she’d been injured in the field a week ago. It wasn’t anything severe, so she was supposed to come back two days ago.
Except Abby, the precinct nurse, or mother, wouldn’t let her until she’d gotten a week’s worth of rest. She was supposedly coming back later today, but there’s an off-chance that Abby will do a routine check and decide she’s not finished resting.
All she has to do most of the time is sit at a desk and type, so Andrew couldn’t understand why she couldn’t do it at home.
He shot her a quick text message, telling her the street names and asking her to pull up the cams so he could drop by and take a look at them. She didn’t answer, obviously, because any reasonable person would be asleep right now.
Andrew desperately wished he could be asleep right now. He was supposed to have off tomorrow, or technically today because it was five in the morning, because it was Nicky’s bachelor party. Andrew almost refused to go because it was on a Wednesday, and who the fuck has a bachelors party on a Wednesday.
It was supposed to be small, just a few close friends from the precincts and fire stations close by. Nicky was taking them out to a fancy restaurant, not his treat, as he clearly specified that he would not be paying.
Nicky was getting married to Erik Klose in about a month. They said it would be perfect because Erik’s favorite season is winter and Nicky loves the snow, so apparently it was a win-win.
The only bad thing was that he kept nagging Andrew about the RSVP for the wedding. He was hesitating on not sending it out, only because that stupid guest checkbox.
Nicky always bothered Andrew about the fact that he never dated. Nicky didn’t know Andrew’s sexual orientation, but he still complained about him being single.
Andrew was fine alone. He wasn’t interested in women, but there weren’t many worthy men around either. Most guys pissed him off to the point of murder and that wouldn’t go well for his career.
So today he’d go home, sign the RSVP with no plus one, and forget about it until the day of the wedding. At least, that’s what he expected to do.
.
They wrapped up the scene as quickly as they could because the morning work traffic would be arriving any minute. Andrew eventually got home around seven and ate a muffin before going to sleep.
He had to be up around three so he could meet Kevin at Josten’s before heading to the restaurant. Kevin wanted to discuss details of the investigation and Andrew would only do that if he had a drink in his hand.
He was happy for Nicky, of course since they were cousins, but he also didn’t care for Erik. He always had a bad feeling about the guy, everytime Nicky would come visit with a bruise saying that he fell again. Nicky was clumsy, but Andrew didn’t think he was that clumsy.
Perhaps Andrew would start his own investigation at the wedding.
Erik lived in Germany, but he was coming to America for the ceremony. Erik proposed when they went on a trip to France, and it was all Nicky ever talked about.
So around one-thirty, his alarm went off and he got up to wash his face. He planned on dressing casual, since it was only the party.
He pulled on a soft, black t-shirt, a pair of black slacks, combat boots, his armbands, and he combed his hair back out of his face with gel.
He left the house around two-thirty and drove his black Chevy Corvette C8 to the bar where he was meeting Kevin. He was very proud of his car since he’d spent almost a fortune on it. Fortunately, it barely dented his bank account.
Kevin was already at the bar when Andrew got there. He was dressed in an exceptionally fancy suit, and he looked like he’d already had a few drinks.
Andrew spotted Neil when he walked inside. He wasn’t behind the bar, but he had a white dishrag in his pocket as he went around and served customers. Andrew’s eyes lingered on him a little too long while he made his way to Kevin. He sat down beside him at the bar and asked for a scotch on the rocks.
Kevin started ranting immediately about the killer. He said something about how the letters showed that he had some type of humor, and Neil walked by right at that time. There was a smile on his face like someone had just told him a funny joke.
He came around the bar and started wiping cups. He caught Andrew’s attention, especially because he was dressed almost as fancy as he was earlier this morning.
He must have noticed Andrew staring at him because he looked up and caught Andrew’s eye.
“Back so soon?” He asked, refilling Andrew’s glass. Beside him, Kevin was mumbling to himself about something Andrew couldn’t understand.
“Just your average alcoholic.” Andrew responded, bringing his drink up to his lips.
“I’m certainly looking at one, but I don’t think it’s you.”
“What’s got you looking so fancy,” Andrew asked, and Kevin downed his fourth drink of the afternoon. Andrew reached for his glass and pulled it away. Neil took it and dropped it in what Andrew assumed was a sink.
“Some stranger I met recently asked me to come to his bachelor party today. I met him like three days ago? He seems nice enough.”
That caught Andrew off guard. Nicky wouldn’t do that, would he? Then again, Nicky did have a bad habit of talking to strangers and inviting them into his life.
“Who’s the guy?”
“Uh,” Neil paused and checked his watch. It was a particularly fancy one, so Andrew assumed he got some sort of notification. “Nicky Hemmick.”
“Shit.”
“He’s your cousin, right?” Neil nodded to himself like he was answering his own question.
“How do you know that?”
“He told me,” Neil said, but it seemed to Andrew like he might have been lying. Andrew knew Nicky conversed with random people, but he never told them about his family. However, Andrew could just be overthinking it.
“You don’t have to go,” Andrew said, resting his head on his hand.
“No, I know, but I don’t really have anything else to do.”
What would Neil think if he saw how Erik behaved? If Nicky invited him to the party, he probably invited him to the wedding as well. What if he saw the bruises? Would he be able to control himself like Andrew desperately has to, or would someone get hurt? Did he already see the bruises?
Andrew rolled his eyes. Beside him, Kevin groaned something Andrew didn’t understand and stood to his feet. Andrew apparently wasn’t paying attention to the time, but it was around five, which was when they needed to leave to get to the restaurant in time for the reservation.
The restaurant was fancy, fancier than Andrew was expecting. He understood why Nicky didn’t want to be responsible for the entire bill.
Nicky was already waiting at the table for them, and he had ordered some kind of fancy champagne. Andrew hated champagne and apparently Neil did too, because he pushed the glass away from him the moment he sat down. He, surprisingly, chose a seat next to Andrew.
They ordered and talked about whatever they could to ease the silence. It was mostly Andrew and Aaron’s fault because they didn’t enjoy small talk. Neither did Neil. He sat back and nodded along to the conversations but he didn’t give his two cents in at all.
Kevin and Nicky did most of the talking. Dan, Matt, and Renee were there as well. They talked amongst themselves for a while before joining in to talk about Nicky’s wedding plans. Before long, the bill was placed on the table, split five ways. Andrew and Aaron, Kevin, Nicky, Neil, and Matt and Dan.
Andrew watched Nicky search through his wallet and scowl at the price a few times. He assumed Nicky underestimated the amount and didn’t bring enough cash. He almost offered to pay when Neil beat him to it.
“I got it,” he said, and slid a black card out of his wallet and into the check presenter. By “got it” he apparently meant that he was footing the entire bill.
Nicky flushed a bright shade of pink and feverishly tried to take Neil’s card out so he wouldn’t have to pay for everyone. Neil’s hand, however, didn’t budge off of the book, even when Nicky tried to pry his fingers away. Neil held onto it for safekeeping until the waiter came.
For five minutes, Nicky thanked Neil profusely. Neil kept waving him off, basically saying it was whatever, but Nicky didn’t stop until they got to the club.
Andrew didn’t mind paying his and Aaron’s share of the bill, but he didn’t protest to Neil covering the entire thing. If that’s what he wanted to do, then who was Andrew to argue?
Andrew knew that Neil owned Josten’s, but he didn’t picture him as a person with a ton of money to spend. Of course, Andrew had too much money to spend, but he also worked a high-ranking job, and his brother owned an entire hospital.
The club was busy as usual. It was “Madame Roses,” which was owned by Allison. Neil said she wouldn’t be here tonight because she was taking over for him at the bar. However, Renee was supposed to be running the place for her.
Andrew, for the first time in forever, didn’t feel like drinking. With a killer on the loose, he should be alert at all times. Though, he doubted there would be a kill tonight because there had already been two in the past 24 hours.
Regardless, he sat at the bar counter and ordered a jack and coke, which he planned to sip on for the next two hours or so. Andrew figured Nicky was going to get wasted tonight and someone would have to drive him home.
Everyone else followed him to the dance floor but Kevin, who was ordering shots for himself, and Neil who sat beside Andrew. He was so silent that Andrew didn’t even notice him there until the bartender set a sprite down in front of him.
He glanced at Andrew over the rim of his glass, but he didn’t say anything. Neil was such a strange person. He came to a bachelor party when he barely knew the bachelor, he paid for a table of people that he barely knew at the most expensive restaurant in the area, and now he was sitting beside Andrew again like they were friends.
“Why did you pay?” Andrew asked, crossing his arms and leaning against the bar.
Neil set his drink down and rested his chin on his arm. “I dunno. I guess I was feeling kind.”
“You do not seem all that kind.”
“I’m not,” and he said it with a straight face. Then he shrugged and sighed, loosening his tie.
The shine in Neil’s icy blue eyes was dangerous and challenging. Andrew found that particularly intriguing. He wasn’t sure if it was from a detective stand-point or a partner stand-point. Honestly, he hoped it was the first one.
Though if he could get Neil to accompany him to the wedding as his plus-one, Nicky would finally stop nagging him. Though, that was a stupid idea and Andrew dismissed it immediately. However, it didn’t hurt to consider. Perhaps if he saw Neil again after tonight, he’d ask.
And if Neil said no, then whatever. Andrew would go alone and that wouldn’t be a problem.
When Andrew pulled himself from his thoughts, he noticed Neil looking at him again.
“Staring,” Andrew said, closing his eyes.
Neil shrugged, but he didn’t look away.
It was quiet between them, as quiet as a club could get, before the shouting began.
It sounded like Nicky, and Andrew was up on his feet in an instant. Neil trailed him to the dance floor where a circle had formed around a group of people.
There were three guys. One had Nicky by the shoulder while Matt and Kevin were in the face of the other two. Renee was walking over with bodyguards, but the crowd was too tight to get through.
Andrew got to Nicky first, regretfully because he was most likely the shortest person there. He wretched the man’s hand off Nicky’s shoulder and shoved him away. He didn’t think this argument was enough for an arrest, so he just told everyone off until they turned and left.
By the time they got outside, Nicky’s tears had dried and Dan and Renee were tending to him. Neil gave Nicky his suit jacket, which fit Nicky like a blanket draped over his shoulders.
“I’m sorry your party got ruined,” Renee said softly, wiping the remnants of Nicky’s tears off of his cheeks. He nodded and sniffled, probably too shaken up to say anything.
It was hard to read the look on Neil’s face. His posture was more relaxed now, despite what just happened. He was standing with his hands in the pockets of his slacks with the deadest look on his face and a dull, creepily calm glint in his eyes.
When he noticed Andrew looking his way, however, it was gone in an instant. He smiled and dismissed himself, saying that it wasn’t his place to be here and that they knew where to find him.