Chapter 2

He stepped over the threshold and shut the door behind him. The pair of scissors hanging on the wall rattled lightly as the door closed. He checked the answering machine on a small end table by the door. The light was steady. No messages today.

He walked down the short hallway to his office at the back. The converted apartment was too large for his needs, but thanks to rent control, it was not above his means. Besides, it comforted clients to see that he had a large office. Gave them the impression they weren’t deluding themselves in coming to see him.

The hardwood floors creaked beneath the red carpet that ran down the middle of the hallway. He kept his desk in a back room, so that he could enjoy the view from his windows. In his last job, he’d been on the interior of a large government building. He had grown tired of the institutional off-white they painted the walls and florescent lights tended to give him a headache. Now that he was in the private sector, he was determined to have natural light as much as possible.

He strolled into his office.

The room was a mess, cluttered with the detritus of cases, past and present. He stepped through this cluttered space, not even bothering to avoid the papers littering the floor. It looked as though someone had ransacked the place, yet Dashiell walked through it as if nothing was out of the ordinary.

He walked to his desk and sat heavily in the large leather chair, swiveling to look out the window. It was a nice view. The trees were just starting to bud with new leaves, letting the world know that winter was once again coming to an end.

He leaned forward to the small mini-fridge and opened it, pulling out a can of Diet Coke. He popped it open and took a sip, leaning back in his chair, propping his feet up on the desk. There was a loud clatter in the silence as a piece of silverware that had previously been on the desktop fell to the floor.

Company was coming.

His eye traced over the curve of the spoon.

Female company.

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