Marcella takes a few steps toward me.
“You want me to trust you? Then don’t leave me alone like this. I know my gun is in that bag. Give it to me.”
“I’m sympathetic, but I’m not stupid.”
“Then leave me something,” she says.
The bruises are bad, but they’re not what get to me. It’s the burns. That kind of thing is methodical. Thought out in advance. Someone’s idea of a good time. And even though Marcella is an asshole, I told her she’d be all right down here.
I reach into my coat and take out the black blade.
“You see this knife? It means a lot to me. There’s only one other like it in the world. If something should happen to it, I’m going to be angry. If someone tried to use it on me, I’d be even angrier. Understood?”
“Understood,” she says.
I hold it out to her. She shakes her head, so I set it on one of the scoring tables. It’s not until I’ve picked up the duffel and am over by the door that Marcella snatches up the knife. She frowns at it.
“What the hell kind of knife is this? It looks like it was made by Fred Flintstone.”
“Remember those Hellions from yesterday?”
“A wee bit.”
“They made it. That’s bone.”
She holds the blade up to the light.
“This knife is from Hell?”
“Yes. And keep your hand away from the blade. It’ll cut through just about anything. Take a finger or your whole hand off before you know it.”
“And you’re giving it to me?”
“Don’t be stupid. It’s a loan. I’ll want it back when I’m done.”
She raises her hand and brings the knife down on one of the folding chairs. It splits into two pieces.
“Nice,” she says.
“Yes it is. Like I said, don’t lose it. But feel free to kill anyone who comes in here who isn’t me.”
“You don’t have to tell me twice, Boy Scout.”
“I’m going now. No one will bother you while I’m gone.”
“But you’re giving me the knife anyway.”
“I don’t think they will, but I’ve learned not to underestimate people’s desire for self-destruction.”
I close the door quietly and go back upstairs to Sandoval’s office.
The roaches have joined her and Sinclair.
“Good. You’re all here.”
Sandoval looks surprised.
“I thought you’d left.”