‘That you, Sam?’
Sam appeared in the archway. ‘Yeh. Why are you still up?’
‘Couldn’t sleep. Came down for a drink.’ Jesse watched Sam walk over and pour himself a brandy, drink it down then pour another. ‘I wasn’t expecting to see you. Have you and… have you had a row about something?’
Sam emptied his glass and poured another. ‘You could say that.’
‘Would you like to talk about it before you become unconscious?’
‘No.’
‘Did you tell her you’re…?’
‘Of course not!’
Jesse sighed. ‘You know it can’t work, don’t you, lying to her like that?’
‘Fuck off, Jesse. It’s my problem, so just stay out of it.’ He sat on the sofa opposite, pushed his hand through his hair. ‘I couldn’t tell her even if I wanted to.’
‘You guys make that spook shit up! I know what you do and the nation hasn’t crumbled into chaos… no more than usual, anyway.’
Sam shook his head. ‘The guy she was living with…’
‘The one who smashed his head in?’
‘Yeh. He’s peripherally involved in the trafficking-prostitution racket we’re investigating.’
Jesse stared across the divide. ‘What? Are you fucking mental? You’re letting yourself get emotionally involved with… you’ve fucked a woman who’s been living with a suspect? Is the child his?’
‘Yes.’
‘Sam, you need to walk away now!’
‘I can’t.’ He slugged back the brandy and put the glass on the floor.
‘What do you mean, you can’t?’
‘I just can’t.’ Sam threw himself back in the chair. ‘There’s too much at stake. And she’s no idea what he’s involved in. The kind of people who might come looking for him.’
‘So, you’re setting up house to protect her from the bad guys, are you?’
Sam closed his eyes. ‘That’s part of it.’
‘Well, you need to negotiate your way out of it. Before it’s too late.’
‘It’s already too late.’
‘For fuck’s sake, Sam! What the hell’s wrong with you? Can’t you just screw a woman and walk away?’
Sam opened his eyes. ‘No. Clearly, that’s one of the big differences between us.’ He immediately sat up. ‘Jesse, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean that. I’m not thinking straight.’
Jesse dismissed the insult with a mouthful of brandy. ‘Sam, mate, you need to think this through. The longer you carry on hiding the fact that you’re investigating her partner… her ex-partner… and the longer you carry on lying to her, the more traumatic it will be when she finds out. You know what women are like, she’ll convince herself your whole relationship is one big ploy to catch the bad guys. And you need to be sure it isn’t.’
Sam rubbed his hands down his face. ‘If I tell her the truth now, it’ll not only be the end to my being able to check out the bastard’s contacts, from the inside, it will also be the end of any possible relationship with her.’
‘And are you sure which of those two ends would be the worst?’
‘No, I’m not sure.’