Abacus

She is one cunning bitch.”
    “ What makes sense now?”
    “ You remember at the listening post, when Cheung and Hoskings were shagging?”
    “Yes, it’s hard to forget… I have thought about that a bit.”
    “Well , when they were at it, do you recall the cat would disappear?”
    “Yes , that’s right, there was no cat when they were getting it on.”
    “And I bet when you went to the house to lock her up, there was no cat to be seen. ”
    “You ’re right. You know, I specifically looked for it but I couldn’t see one,” Randall said, now having a clearer understanding of what Hobbs was getting at.
    “And, I bet there was no cat bowls and I bet she wasn’t worried about a pet cat when you took her away.”
    Rand all shook his head. “The cunning bitch… she was the bloody cat.”
    Hobbs chuckled. “No wonder they didn’t talk about the murder, she was onto us. And the crazy sheila was playing games by purring into the microphone.”
    Randall ran his fingers through his hair, a little embarrassed that he had missed the connection. “And they didn’t give a shit about reading the papers, for the same reason.”
    Randall sat dumbfounded; Cheung was a lot craftier than he had given her credit for. She was also a lot crazier. “So the whole screaming sex sessions they were just staged for us to enjoy,” Hobbs said.
    “I’m afraid s o, my large friend. The thing is, I think the whole cat charade was put on for me,” he said, leaning back in his chair.
    “What do you mean? ”
    “ I think it was a clue to let me know that she was the cat I shagged at the swingers’ joint, and I missed it,” Randall said with raised eyebrows.
    “Well , don’t beat yourself up over it. How could anyone think that a woman is crazy enough to pretend to be a cat into a covert police microphone?”
    Randall pushed the keyboard aside and folded his arm s on the desk. “Anyway, my large friend, the issue now is how does Helen fit into it all. I’m not sure whether she set up the whole thing so Cheung could get info from me, or if it was an innocent mistake and they were just fuck buddies.”
    “I see,” Hobbs said.
    “I called the RPA psych ward today and they told me Helen has taken off and she cannot be contacted. They sent someone to her unit and it is also empty. She has just vanished, so, under the circumstances it is probably better that someone else tracks her down.”
    “So you want me to try to find her?” Hobbs asked helpfully.
    “Yeah , mate, as a priority. Then we’ll be able to establish if she was helping Cheung. I will speak to Jesse and let him know what is going on.”
    “No problem, boss,” Hobbs said, getting up to leave.
    “What did you want me for a nyway?”
    “Umm, I wanted my shot at the title. The ribs are good now, and you said you w ould put up the title,” he said, ducking and weaving an invisible opponent.
    Rol ling his shoulders back while putting on a brave face, Randall said, “Sure, I’ll give you a shot at the title. When are you thinking? Next week?”
    “How about at lunchtime today? I’ve got my gear with me. Have you got yours in the locker?”
    Everyone knew Randall kept his gym bag in the locker at work, so he was cornered. “Yeah, I’ve some gear in the locker. You want to take on the champ, let’s get it on,” Randall said, feigning enthusiasm.
    “Great,” Hobbs said eagerly.
    Randall watched Hobbs’ s huge frame squeeze through the door opening. Shit, this is going to hurt.
    * * *
    Instead of a hearty lunch, Randall soon found himself on the receiving end of a pummelling at the Police Boys Club.
    “You al l right, boss?” Hobbs asked, reaching down to help up a very sore, dazed and tired opponent.
    “I’m right,” h e barked, picking up the bloodied mouthguard that had been dislodged by a huge fist. Randall crawled on hands and knees to the corner of the ring, where he awkwardly pulled himself up the ropes like a drunken spider. He was stubborn and determined, but today he may have met his match. He felt his jaw was swollen on one side and he was a little giddy, but wanted to fight on. He held his gloves up and peered over the top as Hobbs advanced. He was not going to go out defending, he was going to go out swinging.
    He summoned the last of his energy and ran towards Hobbs , throwing a flurry of left and rights. Hobbs seemed to sense that he was going for a knockout and joined him punch for punch as a flurry of arms filled the ring. With