The Book of Death (Bourbon Kid 4)

still wearing his
clothes from the night before, blue jeans, black T-shirt and black leather
jacket. Beth was hopeful that they looked like a well-matched couple. And
secretly she was keen for some of her colleagues to see the two of them
together.
    Just inside the museum reception
area, one of the security guards rushed over. Beth knew him only as James. He
was a broad muscular fellow and like every other security guard that had ever
worked there his grey uniform looked a size too small. Maybe in his case it was
by choice because it looked like he wanted to show off his large pectorals. He
was a big guy in his early twenties with a blond wavy haircut and stupidly
large shoulders. A nightstick hung from a belt at his side, but in truth he
didn’t look like the kind who would need it. His fists were big enough to deal
with most things.
    ‘Beth, have you heard the news?’
he asked with a look of genuine concern on his face.
    ‘About Cromwell? Yes. Terrible,
isn’t it?’
    ‘Yeah. Shocked the hell out of
me.’ James seemed to suddenly notice that she wasn’t on her own. He stared at
JD for a second, then looked back at her, his face showing signs of confusion.
‘What you doing in today anyway? Aren’t you supposed to be off?’
    ‘Simmonds called me and asked me
to come and see him about something.’
    James grimaced. ‘Oh. He’s in his
office. You can go straight in. He’s on his own.’
    ‘Where’s his office?’ Beth
asked. She couldn’t recall Simmonds ever having an office.
    ‘Cromwell’s old office. Down
there.’ James pointed down a corridor that Beth knew well. Her thoughts turned
back to Cromwell, one of the nicest men she’d ever met, in a city full of
horrible people. He had been the only person to make her feel welcome at the
museum. The thought of him being brutally slain by a psycho with a machete was
almost too much to bear. It made her more grateful than ever to have
rediscovered JD.
    ‘Poor Bertram,’ she sniffed,
feeling an outbreak of tears coming on. ‘He was such a nice man.’
    ‘Yeah. Simmonds will be a good
replacement though. He’s already got big plans for this place. He’s gonna have
a real shake up.’
    Beth’s heart sank. Her time at
the museum was surely at an end. Simmonds, the high-flying, pony tailed,
scrotum scratching slimebag, didn’t like her. Cromwell had been her only ally
at the museum.
    JD rubbed the small of her back.
‘Hey don’t worry, I’ll come with you,’ he offered.
    ‘You can’t,’ James interrupted.
‘It’s staff only down there. You’ll have to wait here.’
    JD kissed her on the forehead.
‘You gonna be okay on your own if I wait here with this guy?’
    ‘Yeah.’ Beth looked up at him,
unable to mask the worried look on her face. She was about to head into a
confrontation with Simmonds and she was going to have to do it on her own. ‘I’m
probably going to get fired,’ she whispered.
    ‘You’ll be all right,’ said JD.
‘Just be confident.’ He stroked her hair and kissed her on the lips, bringing a
gentle smile back to her face momentarily. He still knew exactly how to make
things better for her just with a simple gesture. After a deep breath and a
squeeze of his hand, Beth headed off down to Cromwell’s old office to see her
new boss Elijah Simmonds.
    JD stood in the reception hall
with James the security guard and watched her walk away. Her body language
spoke volumes. The walk to the new boss’s office clearly filled her with dread.
    Once she was out of sight, James
wandered over to him and slapped him gently on the shoulder. ‘I doubt she’ll be
very long, buddy. Simmonds gets to the point very quickly.’
    ‘Is she gonna lose her job?’
    ‘Probably.’
    ‘Why? What’s this Simmonds guy
got against her?’
    James laughed quietly, almost to
himself. ‘You don’t know her all that well, do you?’ he said. ‘I can tell,
you’ve clearly only just met her.’
    ‘Kind of, yeah. Why? What do you
mean?’
    James patted him on the shoulder
again. ‘No offence, buddy, but you’ll find out soon enough, so I might as well
tell you anyway, she’s known around town as Mental Beth. She’s not quite right
in the head.’
    ‘What?’
    ‘Seriously, man. Ask if you can
meet her friends.’
    ‘Why? What’s wrong with her
friends?’
    ‘Nothing, man. It’s just that
she ain’t got any! No one around here likes her. If I can give you some advice,
I’d say get out of here quick. Give her a wide berth. She’s