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“I guess if... if... killing Rofal would spare innocent people... and if there’s no other way to stop him... then... maybe I could... but I’m not sure what it would take to convince me that... y’know... there really wasn’t another way...”

‘Heh. Part of me thought you’d be ready to go rip their heads off the second you woke up.’

“I mean, I am angry... but...”

‘That’s not you. I know. Would have been interesting to see, though.’

Hector nearly smiled at that.

‘Anyhow, I need to gather more information. And I think I know where to begin.’

“You do?”

‘The state of play is changed,’ said Garovel. ‘Four police officers murdered in a single day. Even Rofal can’t keep that quiet. All of Brighton is in shock, right now. The police will be feeling the pressure to respond. I’m sure they’ll have a few leads for me.’

“Hmm. You should be careful what leads you choose to follow. I think Rofal probably has another cop in his pocket. Maybe more than one.”

Garovel cocked an eyebrow at Hector. ‘Ah... huh. Yeah, you may be right. That might explain why Colt was so quick to blow his cover. He wasn’t Rofal’s only agent.’

“Exactly.”

‘Well spotted, Hector. I’ll keep that in mind.’

He tried not to blush. “And, uh... there’s something else.” He rubbed his hands together.

‘What are you doing? Hatching an evil plan?’

“No. Just... wait a second... There." He showed his palms to Garovel. “Can you tell me what this... uh... this crud on my hands is? It’s starting to bother me...”

Garovel leaned in. ‘Specks of something? Where’d they come from?’