Page 34 of The Arbiter
A heavy pause follows.
DETECTIVE:“There's a strong possibility it’s a body of Jake Sullivan.”
For a second I don’t understand the words. Jake. My ex.
My fingers tighten slowly around the phone.
ME:“What?”
DETECTIVE:“The body was discovered near the outskirts of the morgue. It’ll be transported to your facility for examination soon.”
My heart starts beating harder. Jake is dead. The thought should hit me like a shock. But something else surfaces first. The ballroom. The dance floor. His voice against my ear.
“He won’t bother you anymore.”
My breath catches. At the time it sounded serious. Yes. But I didn’t know he would take it this far. Now the memory feels different. Colder. We talked about Jake. The message. The harassment. He must have taken him before our dance. No. After. It wouldn’t be possible to do it that quickly. Would it?
Suddenly the whole night begins rearranging itself in my head, like pieces of a puzzle finally sliding into place. He looked at me like a man who had already made a decision. Because he did. A terrifying one. A sick, twisting thought pushes its way into my mind.
Did he do it for me? Did he think he was protecting me? Or, was it something worse? Jealousy. Possession. Or somethingelse entirely. Because Jake wasn’t just my ex. He was a cop. And if the Arbiter killed him… then this wasn’t just personal.
Which means when I walk into the morgue today… I already know what I’m going to find. And the worst part is, I’m almost certain whose work it is.
From the couch Lucy groans again, burying her face deeper into the pillow.
“Please tell me that wasn’t important,” she mumbles.
I swallow, forcing my voice to sound normal.
“It’s work.”
Technically not a lie. My heart is beating too fast now. The fog from the alcohol is gone completely. Jake. Dead.
I push away from the counter and move toward the bedroom to get dressed, my mind already racing ahead.
They’re bringing the body to my facility. Which means I’ll see him. Which means I’ll have to open that body bag, and examine the body.
The thought should make me feel something. Sadness. Relief. Anger. Instead I feel… nothing. Just confusion. Because another thought keeps circling in my head, darker each time it returns.
Jake was last seen with me. The memory of the private lounge flashes through my mind. His voice. His anger. The way he pushed me. And the fact that no one else was in that room. The doors were closed. For several long minutes, it was just me and him. My stomach sinks.
If the police start asking questions, and they will, I’m the last person who saw him alive. The woman he abused. Which means I’ll also be the first person they’ll look at.
I pull on a clean shirt with shaking hands. Maybe they already know that we argued. Maybe someone saw us go there together. Maybe… I stop.
The moment I walked out. The hallway outside the salon. And the man standing there. Watching me. My shadow. He appearedafter. Not before. Which means if anyone connects Jake’s death to the Arbiter… they won’t see him. They’ll see me.
I grab the keys from the table and head for the door. Lucy lifts her head weakly.
“Where are you going?”
“Work.”
She rolls her eyes.
“You’re insane.”
Maybe. Or maybe I just already know something she doesn’t. And the urge to tell her everything is getting stronger. She’ll find out about Jake one way or another. I’m tired of keeping secrets. Especially with her. I love her. But I have to deal with this first.
