Evangeline

ONCE I’D BEEN back home for a few days and had settled in, I called Clarke. We had a lot to talk about, and I’d have to put my personal feelings aside the best I could if I was going to put him at ease. I shuddered. I knew it had to be done, for the greater good.

“This is a burner phone, so don’t worry about traces or recordings,” I said, as soon as he accepted the call.

“And hello to you, too, Evangeline. How are you this evening?”

“I’m pissed that’s what I am. Shep was an innocent man. A good man, who I happened to care about. You could have let him walk.”

“Like you tried to do on that bridge? What the hell was that all about? I told you to kill the cook not to give him a choice.”

I squeezed my eyes shut. “I’d hoped Shep would convince us both that he was willing to walk away and forget about me.”

“But he was never going to do that which is why I wanted him out of the picture in the first place.”

“I know, I know,” I snapped. “You were right, okay. Is that what you want to hear? Shep would have come after me eventually, and who knows who he’d tell to get me to stop. I probably would have had to kill him some other time if not then, but I don’t like that it was on your terms.”

“That’s all behind us,” Clarke said.  “Now we can focus on the future.”

“That’s exactly what I want to talk about. First of all, we need to establish a home base, and if you think I’m moving to Beaver Dick Junction, you’re out of your fucking mind.”

“I suppose you want me to move to Boston?”

“Papillion House is here. I’m set up and established in Boston, and I know there’s no way a New York boy such as yourself would rather live in Eastern Kentucky than Boston.”

“You do know about the long-standing rivalry between the Yankees and the Red Socks, right?”

“If you ever try to talk to me about sports again, it’ll be the last thing you do,” I said without a trace of humor in my voice.

“Are you gonna be like this all the time?” Clarke asked.

“What do you want from me? Just because I kill people doesn’t mean I’m a heartless robot. I kill these monsters because I care about the people they hurt. Shepard Waller was not only a good man, but he was an actual hero. I get that he was also a huge liability who would likely have turned me in but forgive me if I’m not throwing a party in his absence.”

“I’m sorry, Evangeline. I truly am. I wouldn’t have asked you to take care of Shep if I didn’t know you were strong enough to handle it.”

“So, it’s agreed. You’ll move to Boston,” I said, ignoring Clarke’s apology.

“Actually, no. It’s not. When I was shitcanned from the NYPD, they made sure word got around via the ‘blue wire’ that I was damaged goods. Landing the Sheriff gig in Black Sheep Hollow was as good as I could get unless I wanted to start from ground zero, shoveling dog shit in a K-9 patrol somewhere. You need me in a ranking law enforcement position if I can be of any real use, so I’m afraid for the foreseeable future, I’m stuck here in the Holler.”

“That’s why I’m the beauty and the brains of this operation and you’re just the badge.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“It means that I happen to be good friends with the Police Captain of the Hyde Park precinct. A good friend who happens to owe me a few serious favors. One phone call from me and you’re all but hired. As long as you don’t act like dick when you meet with him, he’ll look past any bad press from those New York assholes. Trust me. This is your opportunity to put down the sheriff’s star and pick up a detective’s shield again.”

“I can’t just pick up and move to Boston on your word.”

“I’ve done what you’ve asked, now I need you to trust me. I’ll call Captain Townsend tomorrow and see if he’ll agree to a preliminary phone interview if that would make you feel better.”

“No,” Clarke bit out with a huff. “I’m no good on the phone. Interviews need to be face to face. I come across best when I’m in the room. You’re right. If we’re gonna be partners, I have to learn to trust you. Gimmie a week to get my shit sorted out down here, and to find a place to rent in Boston.”

“I thought you could stay here with me, until you get settled in. That way you’d have time to look around and get a feel for the different areas before you rented a place. How does that sound to you?”

“Sounds like Deputy Jost is about to get the promotion of a lifetime. All for the best, really. Everyone in town already knows and likes Jost. Plus, they all think I’m an asshole anyways.”

“Put in your notice and tell everyone at the station that you’re taking a new job out of state, but don’t tell them what it is or where. In fact, the less they know about your exit, the better.”

“I read you, loud and clear,” Clarke replied. “Scraping the shit that is this town off my shoes will be an absolute pleasure.”

“Let me know when you’ll be arriving, and I’ll have everything ready for you when you get here.”

“We’re going to do good work together, Evangeline,” Clarke said.

“That’s all that’s important to me,” I said before hanging up.

* * *

Six days later Clarke arrived in Boston. He’d turned in his notice with the sheriff's office and his police union representative the day after we last spoke and was currently on sabbatical until he decided to return to the force. His house in Kentucky was a month-to-month rental, so he had no issues there. He simply packed up his Land Rover and drove fifteen hours from Black Sheep Hollow to Beantown. With no boss, no wife, no friends, no work attachments, and no family to speak of, he was in exactly the position I needed him to be.

“Now that you’re here in Boston, I’d like to start from scratch if we can,” I said.

“No one would like to put the past in the rearview more than me,” Clarke replied.

“Good, because if we can’t trust each other, one or both of us could end up in jail or dead.”

“I understand and couldn’t agree more,” Clarke said.

“Okay then. Let’s get started,” I said, rolling up the metal bay door that led inside.

I’d asked Clarke to meet at our current location as soon as he got into town. I made it clear that I didn’t want anyone spotting him until he came here. No gas station attendants, no waitresses, no one. I told him to use his GPS to avoid all toll roads. I wanted him to be a ghost.

“Welcome to my office,” I said, as I hit the lights.

“This is your office, huh? It’s spacious but I’d hire a decorator if I were you.”

“We’re going to use this place as our bullpen. If you’re going to be my partner, you’re going to need to know every detail of how I work. How I research a subject, how I track them, the tools I use, and most importantly how I choose a site.” I motioned to the room. “This is exactly the kind of place I like to work. Private, industrial, far from any main roads, and without cameras.”

“Are you always so methodical?” he asked, strolling the room.

“Whenever possible,” I replied. “But there have been times, take Judge Faulkner for instance, when I had to deviate from my normal routines. I couldn’t risk having his death draw too much attention. If his death seemed suspicious in any way, it would only be a matter of time before the police would connect him to George Hanford and Henry Duplass, therefore I had to make look like an accident.”

“And a fat, old, drunk guy drowning while on vacation is pretty open and shut,” Clarke said. “My god you are brilliant.”

“You figured me out,” I retorted with a shrug. “And I still don’t know how exactly.”

“Equal parts hard work, obsession, and dumb luck,” Clarke said. “My ex-deputy and newly appointed interim sheriff of Black Sheep Hollow had something to do with it as well.”

“Is he going to be a problem for us?”

“Jost? No way,” Clarke said, dismissively.

“How can you be so sure? You said it yourself that he helped track me.”

“I told him you were a dead-end. Nothing left to look into. And besides, he was only working the case at my behest. Neither of us was ever working the case within the NYPD or the Kentucky Sheriff’s Department, so the only records are mine.”

“And where are those?” I asked.

“In the back of my SUV, along with everything else I own. I left most of the shit in my house behind for the next folks, and there wasn’t much.”

“Good,” I said. “So, there’s no one in Kentucky or New York who’ll be sticking their noses in our business?”

“I’m as unattached as a man can be.”

“That’s exactly what I needed to hear before I show you how I operate. Now, there’s only one last thing to take care of.”

“What’s that?” Clarke asked.

“This,” I replied, before injecting him in the neck with a dose of Nightfall.

* * *

Clarke

I have no idea how long I was unconscious, but when I came to, my mouth was bone dry, and my head was pounding. At first, I thought my inability to move my limbs was due to whatever Evangeline hit me with, but soon figured out that I was restrained. Bound to a table, flat on my back.

“Oh, good, you’re awake,” Evangeline said.

“What is this? What are you doing?” I croaked out.

“I told you. If we’re going to be partners, you need to learn about every step of my process.”

“Why am I on this table?”

“It would be helpful if you saved your questions until after class is through,” Evangeline said.

“Please, cut me loose,” I said, full-on panic setting in. “I get the picture. I understand how your victims feel now.”

“I told you, they’re not victims. They are projects,” Evangeline corrected. “I was the victim. In fact, I was your victim.”

“I’m only here to help you, I told you that. I thought we trusted each other.”

“Trust you? Never in a million fucking years would I trust you. You not only forced me to kill the only man I’ve ever loved, but you made me film it for you. What kind of sick fuck would ask someone to do that? And how arrogant would he have to be to think I’d ever spend one single solitary moment as his partner after that?”

“But, you told me—”

“I told you what you wanted to hear. That we could live together, that there was a job waiting for you here in Boston, that one day, maybe you’d get to put your dirty fucking paws all over me.”

“You lying whore,” I spat out.

Evangeline laughed. “You’re any better? You told me and your deputy that you were working a joint case with the NYPD. That was a lie. You told me all about your family back in the holler. Also, a lie. Every other thing that comes out of your cocky mouth is a lie.”

“Why not just kill me? Why make me believe that we were on the same side?”

“Because I needed to make sure that you’d cut all ties in Kentucky before I could get rid of you. I couldn’t chance any loose ends, so I had you tie them all up for me before joining me here.”

“I can’t believe I ever trusted you.”

“You really thought you had me under your thumb, didn’t you?” Evangeline asked.

I laughed. Hard.

“I am very curious to know what you could possibly find funny at this moment,” she asked.

“You want to talk about power over you? Sure, you might be able to kill me, but for the rest of your dumb whore life, you’ll know that it was me who made you kill that fucking cook.”

“You sure about that, city boy?” I heard Sheppard Waller ask and turned my head to see him approaching the table.

My blood boiled at the sight of him, very much alive and well.

“I saw you die,” I said, hardly believing what I was seeing.

“You saw magic tricks and props courtesy of an old friend. A retractable stage knife, some phony blood and guts, and an air hose hidden under the water that led out to a patch of reeds on the shoreline. That way I could breathe while face down in the water while appearing dead from the surface.”

I pulled at my restraints with every ounce of strength I had. “I’m going to fucking kill you both!” I screamed.

“No, you won’t,” Evangeline said. “And you won’t use me for whatever sick fantasies you had dreamed up for me either. Tonight, you and your abuse will come to an end.”

“You can’t honestly think that I’m anything like the scum you’ve killed before,” I challenged.

“You’re no different than every other man whose ever abused me, and tonight you’re going to die like they did. Under my terms. Under my control.”

“Shep, come on, man. You’re not really gonna let her kill me, are you?”

“I am,” he said. “Partly because I think she’s dead right about you. About what kind of man you are? You abused your power as an officer of the law, and frankly I just hate your fuckin’ guts.”

“But also, because I promised him that you’re my last project, Clarke,” Evangeline said.

I laughed again. “Right. You don’t really believe that do you, Shep? Come on man. She’s lying to you. Now that she’s tasted blood, she won’t be able to stop. You gotta know that.”

“You’re wrong,” she said. “You’ve been wrong about me the whole time, and what’s more important, Shep was right. I don’t need to do this anymore. I’d rather spend my time in the light with Shep, Mouse, and the kids at Papillion House instead of in the dark, hunting monsters like you.”

“If that’s true, then you can let me go.”

* * *

Evangeline

“I told you earlier, if we can’t trust each other one of us was going to end up dead. Well, Clarke. I’m afraid I just don’t trust you.”

I cut Clarke’s throat with one, deep, quick cut of my straight razor, having promised Shep that I wouldn’t torture him first. Honestly, it was an easy request to grant. I just wanted all of this finished.

Clarke writhed within his restraints. His face draining of color as his eyes turned red.

I put one hand on Clarke’s chest and one on his forehead, looking him in the eyes as he gurgled blood, gasping in futility for air that would never reach his lungs.

“Shhhhh. This will all be over soon,” I whispered, telling Clarke one final lie. From my experience, I knew it could take up to four or five minutes for a person to die from this type of wound, and I’m not even really sure why I felt the need to comfort him at all.

Maybe it was because, outside of Shep, Clarke was the only other person who knew my secret. The only other person to see the side of myself I kept hidden from the world.

Shep stood back as I stayed with Clarke, comforting him until the final moment of his life passed.