Help Me Heal

Chapter 22

Noodle and beef salad with cilantro had been a new meal for Hank to try. He had very much enjoyed it, and had completely emptied the large bowl that Kalinda had served it in.

"That was a delicious," he said. "And I don't mean nice but I'm saying delicious, I mean delicious."

"Glad you enjoyed it," Kalinda said happily. She took his bowl and his empty beer bottle and headed for the kitchen. "Another beer?"

"Please." Hank sat back and relaxed on the couch. Kalinda had told him to make himself at home. The fact that he felt able to do so on his first time visiting said a lot. They had gotten very comfortable around each other very quickly.

"So, what's the news you want to tell me?" Kalinda asked, returning with a beer for Hank and a glass of red wine for herself. She sat back down beside him and snuggled up to him.

"Don't repeat this to anyone. The reason Deputy-Superintendent Miller came to see me is the higher-ups have decided they want me out of Intelligence. She wanted to offer me some advice – to take the option to retire with full pension before the hammer comes down. I'm going to do just that."

Kalinda had moved so that she could look him in the eyes. "Christ on a bike, Hank. Why are they forcing you out? And how is this happening when I've been working for you for less than two weeks?"

"The timing sucks, I know. Believe me when I tell you I had absolutely no idea this was going to happen until Miller dropped the bomb on me. But once she laid it all out, I saw that taking my pension and getting out is the best option. To answer your other question, they want me out basically because they can't stand my personality or the way I do my job. To say I've never made friends in high places would be understating it. But don't get hung up on it, this isn't a bad thing. It's a good thing actually."

"How so?" she asked, willing to hear him out. She took a big sip from her wine glass.

"For a start, we won't have to worry about dating each other and working together anymore."

"That is a good point," she admitted.

"Yes. And secondly, I've already got something lined up. Erin and I have done a lot of talking and we've decided to start up a private detective service." As he was speaking, he was adjusting what he planned to say because he was considering it less and less likely that Kalinda would join them by the moment. "In an ideal world I'd try to recruit you, but I feel you wouldn't want to leave Intelligence right after joining. Am I right?"

"No, I couldn't do that," she said, confirming his suspicions. It was fine, and expected, albeit disappointing. As he had told himself before arriving, he had to accept her decision without resistance. "Quitting a job two weeks in would look horrendous on my record. Not to mention that Intelligence is a big opportunity for me. It's bloody crap that you're going, however there isn't any uncertainty in my mind about how successful you'll be as a private detective. To be honest, leaving Intelligence might rid you of some baggage too."

Hank hadn't considered that. Now that the thought was in his head, he wondered if it might be true. He saw Anna Avalos in his mind's eye. Her death was something he would carry for the rest of his life, Intelligence or no Intelligence. Maybe the change of scenery would help him with moving on though? That seemed possible.

"You might be right about that," he said.

Kalinda put a comforting hand on his led. "Sorry if I sounded selfish just now. This is a huge blow for you and you're being treated unfairly, yet I made it about me. That wasn't on."

"Don't be silly," he said, resting a hand on top of hers. "It was a shock to you as well and it's only natural to think about how it might impact the job you've just taken. The timing is really bad, it's true. You'll do great work with Intelligence whether I'm there or not though. There is one thing I want to ask: Assuming things keep going well for us, and assuming the new company works out, would you consider joining at a later date?"