Face in the Frame (17 page)

Cass was delighted, but that didn’t mean she was going to give him an easy time of it. “So you expect me to fall into your arms because you send a few flowers?”

“No, of course not but I...”

“You said some very hurtful things.”

“I know and I’m sorry but…”

“You were very rude. I never thought you could be like that.”

“I do get angry, like everyone else but I was upset because…”

“And you let that idiot Oliver come between us.”

He clasped both her hands and smiled down at her warmly. “If you’d please let me finish?”

“Why should I bother?” she said, snatching her hands out of his grip.

“All I ask is for five minutes. Can you give me that?”

“Suppose,” she sniffed, tilting her nose in the air.

“I was shocked when I learnt what you really do for a living. My reaction was a knee-jerk one. To be honest, your profession scares me a little.”

“It scares you?” she said sardonically.

“Yes and with good reason. Violence might be a daily part of your life but I’m not used to it.”

“I wouldn’t say it’s daily. Maybe three, four times a week.”

“I’m not used to even that.”

“So why are you here then?”

“Because I want you back.”

“Why?”

“Because I’m in love with you.”

Cass just stared at him.

“Did you hear me?” he said when she failed to speak or even blink.

“I’m not sure. Could you say it again?”

He smiled and took her face in his hands. “I love you Cass. I was going to tell you the last time we were together but Ollie ruined it.”

“You went from loving me to telling me you didn’t want me?”

“I didn’t mean it, the last part I mean. I was taken by surprise. I should never have spoken to you the way I did and I apologise most humbly. Do you love me?”

Cass did, she had no doubt about that but she was reluctant to open herself up to more possible hurt. “Before I answer you need to understand this is what I do for a living. I’m good at it, I enjoy it and I will not give it up.”

“I wouldn’t expect you to, although I admit what you do doesn’t fill me with joy. But if it makes you happy then I’m happy. This isn’t just a fling for me Cass and I was a fool to let Ollie come between us.”

“It’s not the first time he’s stuck his nose into a relationship of yours?”

“No but it is the first time the woman has meant anything to me.”

“You really mean that, don’t you?”

“Of course I do,” he said, touching her face. “I’ve never said this to anyone before. I love you Cass and I don’t want this to be the end for us.”

Cass just wanted to tell him she loved him back and sink into him, she’d missed him so much, but she was a stubborn woman and refused to give in so easily. “And what about the next time Ollie comes tale-tattling to you?”

“I’ll tell him to get lost, unless you have any other secrets?” he said playfully.

“No, you know everything now.”

“So, the only thing left is for you to tell me, do you love me?”

She pulled away from him, sighed and turned her back.

“I guess that means you don’t,” he said, hanging his head.

The dejectedness in his tone caused her to spin back round. “No it doesn’t Lucas. I love you.”

“You do?” he said, delighted.

“I’m just afraid you’re going to hurt me again.”

“No, not again,” he said sliding his arms around her waist. “I’m not a stupid man and I don’t make the same mistake twice. I won’t ever hurt you again. After seeing what you did to Ollie in the corridor I daren’t.”

“Because I will kick your arse next time,” she said light-heartedly.

“I don’t doubt it.”

Her smile fell. “How will this work? I live here and you live in London.”

“We’ll sort something out because I am not giving you up.”

This undid Cass, who kissed him hard.

“I can’t believe it, Lucas Thorne in my building,” said Roger, squirming with excitement. They were waiting outside the office door in the corridor - Brodie hoping Cass kicked Thorne out on his arse while Roger seemed to want to kiss it.

“What’s the big deal?” muttered Brodie.

“What’s the big deal?” shrieked Roger. “I knew you were a caveman but I never realised just how deep it ran. Lucas Thorne is only one of the most talented artists in the world.” The snigger Brodie released irritated him. “You really have no soul, do you?”

“I’ve got a sole on my shoe, which is going to kick you up the bahookie if you don’t stop going on about how great the Elf is.”

“Elf?” he frowned.

“Bloody Thorne.”

“Ah, I see what you mean. The hair and eyes. He is very handsome, isn’t he?”

“Why don’t you bugger off back upstairs? One of your vegans is probably wasting away as we speak.”

“My next appointment isn’t for another hour and I am not budging until Lucas Thorne comes out. I want his autograph.”

“If you want to lick someone’s backside find someone who deserves it,” said Brodie. “Oh, I’ve had enough of this.”

“You can’t interrupt them,” said Roger when Brodie moved to open the door. “Lucas wants privacy.”

“I don’t give a monkey’s cock what that prick wants,” he said before throwing the door open.

“Oh my,” said Roger, eyes widening as he took in the scene before him.

Brodie slammed the door shut, anger and jealousy sweeping over him.

“I wasn’t expecting to see that much of Lucas Thorne,” said Roger, jaw hanging open.

“Stop using his full name all the time ya wee dick, it’s fucking creepy,” Brodie bellowed at him.

Roger’s lips pursed. “I’ll wait for Lucas downstairs where the company is more congenial.”

“Go on, do one you stupid…”

“Yes, yes, I’m aware I’m a prick,” Roger called over his shoulder before disappearing down the stairs. Quickly.

Brodie took a few deep, calming breaths before pushing open the door. Lucas and Cass were hurriedly dressing. Brodie’s heart almost broke. Cass’s hair had been set free and was all over the place, her cheeks flushed and her eyes sparkling with happiness again. He looked to Lucas, equally flushed, blond hair equally free and wild and for a moment he thought he might actually throw him out the window.

“I take it you’ve made up?” said Brodie, voice cold and controlled.

“Yes we have. Sorry Bossman, I know that was unprofessional but we couldn’t help ourselves.”

How fucking wonderful,
he thought. “What if a client had walked in?”

“I know, I’m sorry,” said Cass, hanging her head.

“Now I know where I’ve seen you before,” said Lucas, staring at Brodie. “You were in the café a few days ago.”

“Oh really?” said Cass, her eyes narrowing at Brodie. “Which café?”

“I do believe it was called Violet’s Tearoom,” replied Lucas.

“That’s not your regular place Brodie,” said Cass. “You don’t like it because they use doilies.”

“I met up with Pete for lunch. He likes it,” said Brodie.

The look she gave him indicated she didn’t believe him but she didn’t want to press the issue in front of Lucas.

“Well, if you two have finished making up could we please get some work done?” said Brodie.

“But it’s lunch time. We were going out for something to eat,” said Cass, taking Lucas’s hand.

“We have things to do…”

“Please Brodie. I won’t be long, promise.”

Once again he melted when confronted by those eyes. “Oh fine, just make sure you’re back for two.”

She kissed him on the cheek. “Thank you,” she said before leading Lucas to the door, who glanced over his shoulder at Brodie with a frown.

When they’d gone Brodie sank into a chair with a sigh. Finally he’d thought she was free of that creep but he had to sweet talk her round. Maybe his gut was wrong in this case? Lucas just didn’t tick all the boxes for being a psychopathic killer. The ones he’d met had been charming on the surface but he’d been able to see through to the coldness beneath. Lucas just didn’t have that quality. He thought about Sarah Creegan. She’d tried to trick him with her charm and failed. There’d been a superficiality about her that had been paper thin. He’d even seen it with his own father, who in public had been a pillar of the community, a respected police officer. In private he’d been a brutal sadist who’d enjoyed beating his kids and raping his wife in front of those kids, until his eldest son had cut his head off. Everyone outside the family home had thought he was a fucking saint. That was why his inner shit detector was so accurate, because he’d lived with evil like that for so long and now he could spot it a mile off and it was telling him Lucas Thorne was up there in the ranks with his own father and Sarah Creegan. But how could he prove it? An idea struck him and he smiled. He’d have a wee chat with Oliver.

CHAPTER 15

It wasn’t difficult to track Oliver down. Brodie found him at the exhibition, which was closed, fussing over the creepy faces with a tall, severe-looking woman with the shoulders of an Olympic shotputter.

“You can’t come in here, the exhibition’s closed until this evening,” said Oliver when Brodie strolled into the room.

“Are you Oliver Fender?” said Brodie, glaring down at the wee man.

“Err…who wants to know?”

“The name’s Brodie MacBride. I’m Cass Carlisle’s boss.”

Sweat broke out on Oliver’s forehead. “You can’t be here,” he repeated.

“I’d like to see you throw me out.” He looked to the blond. “You’d have more of a shot at it than him hen. You want to give us a minute?”

“No she doesn’t. We’re working here,” babbled Oliver.

“Of course Mr Brodie,” the woman smiled before leaving the room.

“But…,” began Oliver helplessly.

“I did her a favour once,” explained Brodie. “How do you think I got in here in the first place?” His smile was evil. “You forget you’re on my turf. Maybe you should have considered that before you started poking your nose into my business.”

“Not your business. Cass’s.”

“Same thing. She works for me. I don’t like slippery little sods sticking their big fucking beaks in where they’re not wanted. What the hell has it got to do with you anyway?”

“Lucas is not only my client but my friend, I was protecting his interests.”

“And what threat is Cass to his interests?”

“I thought she was some sort of honey trap, sent in by Lucas’s competitors. There are a lot of people jealous of his success.”

Brodie’s snort could only be classed as derisive. “What a load of shite. You want him for yourself.”

“I do not.”

“Course you do, it’s obvious. Well you listen to me pal, he makes Cass happy and if you in any way make her unhappy then I’ll make you unhappy.”

“Oh yeah?” he snorted, wilting beneath Brodie’s whisky-coloured stare. “How are you going to do that? Do you have any idea who I am?”

“An annoying little farthole with bad dress sense.”

“Just who the bloody hell do you think you are?”

“I’ll tell you who I am, I’m the fucking king snake around here and you are a little rat that I will swallow whole if you piss me off again.”

“You’re joking?” he said uncertainly.

Brodie threw back his head and released a bellow of laughter. Oliver frowned up at him before adding his own nervous laughter, looking confused. He went abruptly silent when Brodie suddenly lowered his head and scowled at him.

“I never say anything I don’t mean. I’m not a two-faced wee shitebag like you. I don’t sneak around people’s backs snooping and causing trouble. I come at them head-on. Leave Cass alone. Lucas is lucky to have her, not the other way around.”

“My priority is protecting my client’s interests.”

“Why does he need protecting so badly? He’s a big boy. Or does he have skeletons in his closet that he’s anxious aren’t released?”

“No, of course not,” he replied shiftily.

Brodie thrust his face into his, eyes searching. “Then why are you so worried?”

“There are some people who are curious to understand how Lucas produces the faces, how he makes them so lifelike and they’d go to any length to find out.”

“How does he make them?” said Brodie, sensing he was on the verge of a breakthrough.

“Sorry, trade secret.”

“I want to know.”

“And I can’t tell you. We can’t have every Tom, Dick and Harry copying Lucas’s work.”

“Do I look like some poncy artist?”

“Then why do you want to know so badly?” he countered.

“Why did you want to know about Cass so badly? Just tell me.”

“Sorry, no can do. Threaten me all you want, I won’t tell you.”

“I don’t threaten, I just do,” he growled, making the man swallow hard. “How does he do it?”

“Do your worst because I’m not telling.”

“I don’t want to know the exact process. Just tell me where he gets his inspiration from. Whose faces are they?”

Oliver shrugged. “They were born in Lucas’s fertile imagination. They are beings created in the very depths of his mind.”

Brodie pulled a face. “Don’t give me that load of old fanny. Just tell me straight.”

“He makes them up,” Oliver added, speaking slowly, as though he were simple.

“That’s better. But if he does make them up then how come some of them look like real people?”

“He does get some inspiration from what he sees around him, like any artist and he takes casts from people’s faces. Why do you care so much anyway?”

“I’m a nosy bastard.”

“That I can believe,” sighed Oliver, folding his arms across his chest. “Are we done now?”

“No,” said Brodie, thinking. He wanted answers but he didn’t want to put Lucas on the alert. No doubt this wee turd would run back to him and tell him all about the bad man who’d cornered him in his exhibition and Lucas might do something drastic, if he was guilty of what Brodie’s gut was accusing him of. Plus Cass was happy again and he didn’t want to spoil that for her.

“Hello?” said Oliver when it appeared Brodie wasn’t going to reply.

“I’m thinking,” he snapped before pondering for a little longer. “Does he get models to sit for him?”

“Occasionally he might see a face that speaks to him and incorporate it into his work, then he’ll get someone to sit for him and he’ll take casts. Now that’s all I’m willing to say on the matter. Usually I don’t tell anyone that much.”

“Why’s it such a big secret?”

“Because there are unscrupulous people who wouldn’t hesitate to try and copy his work. Now if you’ll excuse me…”

“Just hold your horses there pal,” said Brodie, putting a hand on his arm. “Cass said you mentioned something about Lucas’s parents to her.”

Oliver’s eyes widened. “I did not.”

“Aye ya did and I want to know what’s so weird about them.”

“I never said they were weird.”

“You said his parents were nightmares and I want to know why.”

“What has that got to do with you?”

“Like I said, I’m a nosy bastard.”

“I will not break the trust of a friend.”

“You told that to Cass with a little arm twisting. I wonder what you’ll tell me when I start to twist your daft wee heid off.”

“This is outrageous. Who do you think you are, coming here and threatening me? I’m leaving.”

When he attempted to walk past Brodie a large hand clamped down on his arm.

“We’re no’ finished wee man.”

“Yes we are,” countered Oliver, struggling to free himself. “Emma,” he called when he realised Brodie wasn’t about to let him go.

“She’ll only come back when I’m good and ready.”

“I can’t believe this,” shrieked Oliver. “This is kidnap. I’ll see she loses her job for this.”

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you. You see, I’ve done a lot of favours for a lot of powerful people in this city and you’re a fucking visitor. Who do you think they’re going to want to keep happy?”

“They’ll soon change their minds when I threaten to pull the exhibition.”

“Like they’ll give a shit. Everyone has their secrets and I help people protect theirs. Who’s more valuable to them? Me or you, with a bunch of faces stuck on a wall?”

Oliver hesitated, thinking this over before saying, “fine. His parents are odd to say the least.”

“How?”

“How what?”

Brodie rolled his eyes. “How are they odd?”

“Lucas comes from a wealthy family. No one’s really sure where they got their money from. Some say they’re criminals.”

“What sort of criminals?” said an eager Brodie. This wasn’t what he’d expected at all.

Oliver shrugged. “Fraud, burglary, drug dealing. The theories are varied. I don’t think they are criminals, I think they just inherited but because they’re vastly unpleasant people everyone decided to make up nasty stories about them.”

“So how are they unpleasant?”

“Just full of vicious comments. As soon as I walked into the house Lucas’s dad called me The Ferret.”

Brodie released a chuckle. “I’m starting to like him already.”

“If you want me to give you information then you’d better start being more pleasant to me.”

“Just get on with it.”

Oliver sighed wearily. “Brenda, Lucas’s mother, is enormous. Obese isn’t the word. She sits in her specially adapted chair in a room downstairs that has also been adapted for her because her heart couldn’t stand the strain of walking up the stairs. She seems to be under the impression that she’s royalty, barking orders at everyone. I feel sorry for their staff. They live in a huge house and they have an army of servants who they treat like rubbish. She even talks to Lucas like he’s nothing when he visits, which he does dutifully every six months. He couldn’t stand any more than that. There’s only one person Brenda actually likes and that’s her husband and Lucas’s father, Derek. No wonder she thinks she’s royalty because he treats her like she is. He’ll buy her anything and do anything she wants, including berating his own son for nothing.”

“So Lucas’s parents put him down?”

“It’s horrible. They call him all sorts of names - useless, untalented, ugly, pathetic. No matter what amazing work he produces, how much money he earns and how famous he becomes it’s never good enough. His dad makes out as though they’re trying to keep their son’s feet on the ground but it’s just an excuse to put him down. I’m sure they enjoy it.”

“Why?” said Brodie, genuinely interested.

“Because they’ve done nothing but sit around on their arses their entire lives, achieving nothing except making everyone they come into contact with hate them. They’re jealous but they’d never admit it. Honestly, I don’t know how Lucas has become the man he is today after growing up in that nightmare house.”

“Where is the house?”

“An isolated mansion in Kent.” Oliver paused to regard him with big, startled eyes. “Please don’t tell me you’re going out there.”

“What a great idea. I think I just might,” he replied although he’d already decided on this course of action the second Oliver had started talking about Lucas’s mummy and daddy.

“No, you can’t.”

“How no?”

“Because…because…”

“Lucas might find out you’re a grassing wee toerag? That’s your problem, no’ mine.”

With that Brodie turned on his heel.

“Wait, you can’t,” exclaimed Oliver, making chase.

Brodie halted, almost causing Oliver to run into the back of him. “And why not?”

“Why are you so interested in Lucas anyway? I don’t understand.”

“Because the pair of you scream dodgy and I will find out what you’re hiding.”

“Are you mad? We’re not hiding anything.”

“I don’t believe you. You’ll keep this conversation between the two of us.”

“I’m not going to tell Lucas, do you think I’ve got a death wish or something?”

Brodie went rigid, eyes blazing. “What the fuck is that supposed to mean?”

Oliver’s eyes darted from side to side as he backed away. “Nothing.”

“Does Lucas have a temper?”

“No, that’s not what I meant at all.”

“Does he get violent regularly?”

“No, of course not.”

“Does he lash out if you piss him off? Tell me,” he barked in Oliver’s face, grabbing him by the front of his shirt and pulling him closer.

“He can get angry, like everyone else.”

“Has he ever hit you?”

“No.”

Brodie’s stare was cold. “I don’t believe you.”

“Well it’s true. Get your hands off me,” he said, writhing on the end of Brodie’s hand like a fish on a hook, unable to escape.

“Does he get violent?”

“Worried about that little tramp who works for you? You’re in love with her, aren’t you? That’s why you’re going to all this trouble.”

“In our line of work we have to look out for each other. She has my back and I have hers and if anyone hurts her I will remove their genitals with a rusty knife and stuff them down their throat.”

“It’s more than that. You’re a man possessed. The only thing that has that effect is love.”

“Shut that huge fucking gob of yours before I stick my fist in it.” He shoved Oliver away contemptuously. “Prick,” he yelled at him before stalking out.

“What do you mean you’re going to Kent?” said Cass.

“I’ve been asked to sort something out for someone and I need to go,” replied Brodie. “I’m booked on a flight in the morning.”

“What about all the work we’ve got on at the moment, not to mention all that business with the McVays?”

“I’ll only be gone one night, it’ll be fine.”