Chapter 6

I pulledinto the apartment building lot a second before another vehicle. As I removed my helmet and shook out my hair, I watched as the truck parked at the back.

My neighbor, of the ornery attitude, exited the dark old beater truck and dragged out a bag with a big box logo for a hardware store. No surprise the ride matched the man perfectly.

"How's the fix of the tub going?" I hollered.

He slammed the truck door shut before heading in my direction. "It's going."

"Meaning what?"

"Meaning there was more damage than expected. It will be at least another day."

"Another day!" I squeaked. "How am I supposed to wash my hair?"

"In the sink."

"That might work for your short locks, but this?" I grabbed a fist of red. "This needs a proper sluice."

"What do you want me to do about it?" he groused, stalking past me.

"I want to know how I'm supposed to shower. And don't tell me a hotel. I am not paying to bathe." Nor did I want to drive out to Mom's again. I snagged the garment bag and trotted after Aidan.

"Will you stop whining if I say you can use mine?"

"Yours?" It came out high-pitched. "Listen, if you think I'm getting naked in your place—"

"Slow down, Red. One, I have no interest in seeing you in the buff. You're not my type. Two, I would be far from that apartment. I'm not dumb enough to put myself in a situation where you can cry foul."

"Says the man who had no problem barging into my place."

"To do my job. You borrowing my shower is a favor. Take it or leave it. I really don't give a fuck." He entered the building with me on his heels.

"How do I know you don't have a spy camera?"

He whirled so fast I almost slammed into him. "Jeezus, Red, what kind of pervs are you used to dealing with?"

"I work for the bureau. I see more than most," I admitted.

"Well, I'm not one of those freaks," he growled. "So again, the offer is there. Just give me a heads-up and I'll clear out of the way."

He headed into the stairwell, and it must have seemed like I stalked him since I followed.

"Would in the next hour be okay?" I wanted to get into the office early tomorrow. Run my baiting plan by my boss then map out where I should be wandering based on where the known victims were last seen.

He glanced at me over his shoulder from the first landing. "Yeah. I just need fifteen minutes to move my tools out of the way."

I understood what he meant when, thirty minutes later, he let me in and himself out with a gruff, "I'll be at the bar down the street for the next hour."

"I'll only need ten minutes." Unlike some, I didn't fuck around when showering. Wet the body, shampoo the hair, rinse it, condition, and, while that cream sat in my hair, soap my bits, rinse, and done. I never understood how some people took so long to do such a simple thing.

"Whatever." He left on that brusque note.

I took a second to look around his place. Same layout as mine, but the décor differed. Leather couch and matching chair. Wooden coffee table. Big screen television and video game console. A peek at the games stacked beside it showed he played similar things to me. Call of Duty, Halo, and some kind of racing game. I wondered if I'd ever taken him out when playing online.

His kitchen didn't have dirty dishes piled in the sink, and the drying rack sat empty beside it. While I knew I shouldn't, I glanced in the fridge. He had beers in the door with condiments, a few take-out containers, and packages of ground beef. His freezer had ice cream and more frozen meat. I couldn't judge. I tended to be rather carnivore myself. On my way to the bathroom, I noticed his bedroom door closed, and while tempted to look inside, I refrained. I'd already snooped more than I should have. Blame my investigator side.

The tools he'd mentioned were stacked outside the bathroom, and walking into it, I immediately noticed the massive hole in the ceiling above the tub. Exposed ceiling joists, piping, and signs of moisture were evident but no mold thankfully. Despite the obvious work going on, the room seemed clean. A single toothbrush sat in the holder. Toothpaste and razor were neatly lined on the vanity counter. The shower held a single bottle. Being a guy, he had something that covered hair and body. Must be nice.

Before I did anything, I searched for a hidden camera. No matter what he claimed, I took no chance my naked bod would end up on his hard drive or the internet. I found nothing suspicious. Inside his cabinet, he had a backup bottle of all-purpose shampoo, toilet paper, and a new toothbrush in a package. The bare walls had no holes or pictures. The ventilation fan also proved to be camera-free when I removed the plastic cover.

Satisfied I wouldn't be spied on, I laid out my toiletries on the tub edge. Not many. Shampoo, conditioner, soap. I piled my body and hair towel on the counter, and then I undressed, utterly self-conscious. It felt odd to be showering in someone else's place even if it looked identical to mine.

In the midst of rinsing the shampoo from my hair, a noise had me squinting. "That better not be you trying to scab a peek, Mr. Fixit," I grumbled, rinsing my eyes and face. A tug of the shower curtain showed the bathroom door still closed and locked.

Scritch.

The noise had me glancing overhead just in time for the rats!

They tumbled through the opening, landing in my hair, claws scratching as they fell, their tiny paws thrashing. I did a very girly shriek and jig in the tub as squirming bodies filled it. Alas the combination of water, soap, and slick fur led to me slipping and falling. My head slammed the edge of the tub and—

"Red! Red! Come on, wake up. Don't make me explain to someone why I've got a passed-out, naked woman in my bathroom."

I blinked to see Aidan, three blurry versions, hovering over me. I managed to mutter, "Rat."

He recoiled. "Whoa, don't be calling me a rat. I told you I'd be gone an hour. When I saw the bathroom door was locked and you didn't answer, I busted in to find you passed out in the tub."

I groaned as I pushed up from the wet porcelain. "I didn't mean you were a rat. I meant I got attacked by some. They came out of the ceiling." I pointed.

He frowned. "Are you sure? Because there weren't any when I came inside."

"Well then they must have fled out another hole because I distinctly remember the little bastards falling on my head." Ugh. A glance at my body showed fewer red scratches than I would have expected.

"If you say so. Can you get up?"

"Yeah." Not entirely true. When I went to stand, a dizzy spell had me swaying, and only Aidan's arms around me kept me steady. While his chest felt nice, and he smelled even better, I couldn't help but be me.

"I knew you'd try and cop a look."

He snorted. "Ah yes, because an unconscious, snoring woman is so sexy."

"Hand me a towel."

"With pleasure." He whipped it around me before snapping, "Think you can handle the rest on your own?"

The room didn't spin, so I nodded. "I should be okay to get dressed."

"I'll be outside the door. Holler if you need help."

"What if I can't yell because I pass out?" my reply.

"If I hear a thump, I'll come back in."

That would work.

He exited, closing the door behind him, but it didn't latch, the cracked jamb showing he'd kicked in the panel instead of picking the lock. Had he panicked? He didn't seem the type.

I held on to the vanity and peered at myself in the mirror. My face remained surprisingly blemish-free. My soaking hair dripped down my spine. It went well with my clammy skin and pruned feet. The water must have kept running while I was slack-jawed and drooling.

Where had the rats gone, though? The door had been closed. Unless Aidan lied about seeing them, which made no sense.

I dressed, feeling steadier by the second, before dropping to glance behind the toilet and then under the vanity, where a three-inch gap kept it from sitting on the floor. The hole and chunks of plaster I could see at least gave me one answer. The rats had made a new exit.

I emerged to find Aidan leaning against his bedroom door.

"You're going to need to call an exterminator," I stated.

"You still going to keep with the rat story rather than admit you slipped and fell?"

"Look under your sink cabinet and tell me I imagined it."

I stepped aside so he could enter and crouch for a gander. He whistled. "Fuck me. Those bastards chewed their way into the wall."

"Told you."

He rose to his feet, lips pursed. "I'll handle it."

"Good. Although, keep in mind if a regular exterminator doesn't work, you might have to file a report with the bureau."

"Don't tell me they're the cursed kind?" he groaned.

"Couldn't tell, but given they poured out of a second-floor ceiling? Very possible since they usually prefer to be underground." I didn't add the fact they didn't gnaw on my unconscious body provided another clue they might be of the Grimm variety.

"I'll keep that in mind. You okay to get to your place?"

"If I wasn't, would you carry me?" I taunted.

"I am not throwing out my back for you."

"I am not heavy," I retorted, stung by his comment.

"Good for you. Still not doing it."

"I see chivalry skipped you when it got handed out."

"What is your problem with me, Red? You've done nothing but cop me attitude."

"I don't have a problem. What you've experienced is my shining personality. If you ask me, it resembles yours quite a bit."

For some reason that made him laugh, a deep chuckle that tightened the muscles in my lower belly. "Touché, Red. Guess I'm not the most personable guy."

"Nope, but I can't judge since I can be a bitch." I shrugged.

"That's kind of harsh."

"But true. I don't take shit. I do like to dish it, though."

He grinned. "Ditto." Then, to my surprise, he added, "Sorry if I came across like an asshole."

"Sorry I fucked up your ceiling." My friends would be shocked to hear me use the S word.

"Bah. Shit happens, although next time you have a clog, give me a shout."

"Will do. And thanks again for the use of your shower. Hope the door won't be too hard to fix."

"It won't take much to get it working right again."

Look at us making nice. "Guess I should go to my apartment."

"I'll walk you there."

"Afraid I won't make it?"

"Yeah."

I didn't argue. If I got dizzy and fell, who knew when I'd be found?

"Stairs or elevator?" he asked as we exited, my bag of stuff hanging from my shoulder.

"Usually stairs, but may be better if tonight I use that coffin on a pulley." I grimaced.

A snort escaped him. "And here I thought I was the only one who hated them."

"Never could stand elevators. It doesn't help how many movies I've seen with them plummeting."

What I could now add to my list of things to dislike about elevators? How the close proximity to a virile male made my womanly senses go haywire. I seriously had to stare at the buttons lest I look too lustily at him. Must be a side effect from smacking my head.

Ding. The elevator doors opened, and he watched from the opening as I made my way to my apartment. It felt so far away, especially with the pounding headache. But did he offer to help? Nope. He respected my wishes, and in truth, I didn't need him. I made it to my door all by myself, but what did it say about me, a strong independent woman, that, for once in my life, I would have liked to lean on someone?

My hand shook trying to use my key, and I muttered, "Fucking lock."

I didn't realize he'd closed the distance between us until he took the keys from me and unlocked the door. He held it open, preventing the pneumatic hinge from slamming it in my face. I entered my place and dropped my bag.

"You sure you'll be okay?"

I shrugged. "A few Tylenol and I'll be right as rain."

"You might have a concussion that needs checking out."

"I am not going to a hospital." Hated the places.

"What if your brain is bleeding or rattled?"

"Why, Aidan, are you trying to stick around so you can watch me sleep?"

"No!" His nostrils flared.

"Good. I'll be fine. Not my first blow to the head. Nor the hardest." I'd once been knocked out by a donkey and didn't wake up for almost an entire day.

His gaze strayed from me to the coat rack with the bright red cape I'd hung on it. "What the fuck is that?"

"An old souvenir from back in the day when the Little Red Cap curse thought it would get me."

"You beat it?" He sounded surprised.

"Hell yeah, I did. I told the big bad wolf to take a hike with a kick to the balls and then sent the huntsman packing too."

"Did the wolf end up going back to normal after?" he asked.

"I don't actually know." Said with a frown. "Most likely he did. His sole purpose was to eat me."

Aidan cleared his throat. "I should go."

"Okay. Thanks for the shower."

"No problem. Yours should be ready by tomorrow. Night, Red."

"Night." I shut the door and leaned against it. Wondering what the fuck just happened.

I'd flirted with the ornery neighbor.

And he flirted back.

Wait until I told the girls at the bureau.

Only it turned out I didn't have a chance.

We had another murder.