Excerpt from ‘Like Father, Like Son’

As promised, and the book is free here until the 5th of September
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C87B4L5J

“Hey, did you forget we were going out?” Harry asked as they drove away.

Sinjen, who had been lost in thought, his expression troubled, looked up and brightened significantly. “No. I just couldn’t get away without making Eliza angry, I could tell.”

“Oh. I thought I’d upset you. You looked like you were planning to kill me when I knocked. You aren’t annoyed about the poem?”

“Why would I be? You wanted to ask me about getting her attention or something, didn’t you?” Sinjen asked, he fished a cigarette out of his case, growing more cheerful.

“I never told you that.”

“You did. Just not with words. Besides, the number of Moonlight fellows who come to me for relationship advice, especially if it’s about Carlotta-”

“Really, which ones?” Harry said, turning to him with a very concerned expression. Sinjen laughed in response. “And, you gave them advice, or? Just, I can get her into bed without any trouble, but I don’t think she really wants me.”

“No offence, Sir. Henry, but I can’t imagine why she would. You have a reputation…”

“Well. Look, just because people think I’m a spendthrift, a gambler, womanizer and general wastrel; that doesn’t mean I’d be a bad prospect.”
Sinjen rubbed his eyebrow with one hand, and shook his head. “Well, exactly.” Harry continued, “She does that too, when I ask her, so that’s why I need the help. Or, what? You would rather screen me first?”

“Maybe I should.” Sinjen sighed.

“Fine. We have a bit of time before you are to meet your bland woman, so let’s try that house of ill repute first. We need to take some measurements, and I’m sure someone there has a ruler. Not that I don’t already know I’ll win, who hasn’t seen you naked?”

Sinjen rolled his eyes, “How did you know I wanted to see her?”

“Aww, Carlyle, I can read people too. You looked like a lovesick schoolgirl, leaning on the table with that goofy grin. I didn’t know your face did that.”
Sinjen became guarded and watchful.
“Yeah, that’s the face I’m used to, and the mean one.”

***

When they arrived at their intended establishment, they were ushered directly into their best private room.
“How much did you spend here?” Sinjen asked.

“I don’t know. I wasn’t counting.” Harry shrugged.

The Madam came in with a couple of girls, but she was disturbed. Her hands trembled as she waved the girls in, and she kept glancing back through the open door.

Sinjen asked her what was wrong.

“We had some trouble earlier tonight. Our…Jack and his friends got hurt, we had to send for a doctor.”

Sinjen took her hands. He could tell she wouldn’t have told him anything, except that it had happened recently, and she was still processing it.

He sent the girls out for a few moments, while Harry lounged on one of the couches and helped himself to a drink.

“So, tell me what happened?” Sinjen asked, “Are they okay?”

Harry raised an eyebrow.

“Well yes, but all were hurt, and Archie might- The doctor thinks it might be fine, but it’ll take a while to be sure. He’s cleaned the injury up, a broken bottle. It was only one man, but he was very impassioned.” she was struggling not to cry.
She took a handkerchief out of her pocket, before Sinjen had even reached for his. He noted, again, how neat and pretty the way she moved was.

“Tell me what happened, from the beginning. When did the trouble start?”

“He came into the main building. That part was fine, but he didn’t drink. He started looking around for one of the girls, he had no interest in anything else. So, our men tried to stop him, but he got more and more riled up. He kept calling for someone named Viola. We don’t have a girl by that name. When we tried to tell him so, he started to panic, swearing blind that she was here. Insisted he had to see her, it was life or death. Then this fight happened, and he ran.
We didn’t call the police, of course, but a number of our patrons, well, they are police, so. When they threw their weight around, this man fled. Only afterwards did I realise who he was looking for. Not one of the girls, but our cleaning woman. Nobody thought of her straight away. She wasn’t in just then; she’d taken a basket of sheets to be laundered.”

“Is she back now?” he asked.

“I can check, Sir. but why do you ask?”

“I do some private security work. I could look into it.”

Carol shot him an uncertain glance, “Is that true? Do you have a licence?”

“Of course.” he said, and hypnotised her into believing that she’d seen it. “I should speak to your brother too, if it’s alright.”

Carol nodded, and left the room.

“Do you actually care?” Harry asked. “This isn’t our problem.”

“It doesn’t have to be your problem at all,“ Sinjen pointed out, “but why wouldn’t I care?”

“You’re bored?”

“My new friend was glassed. I’m allowed to eat the guy who did it, if I want to. It can’t be that hard to find him.”

Harry sat up and looked at him over, “You actually care, don’t you? Who the hell worries about some random Madam? This kind of thing probably happens every other night.”

“I doubt it’s over the cleaning lady.” Sinjen sighed.

And the book is free here until the 5th of September
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C87B4L5J