Page 54 of Darling

“Did you enjoy your time in confinement?” Detective Hook asked, rubbing his hands together. “Next time we’ll stick to the schedule, won’t we?”

“I hope there will not be a next time,” Fyodor said. “What do you want from us?”

Detective Hook smiled brightly, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “From you? Nothing. In fact, you, Charles, Minsu, and Ominotago are free to go. You’ve served your purpose tonight. Genevieve, Trevor, and Brian, come with me.” He turned sharply on a heel and walked out into the hallway.

Wendy followed them all out of the room, pausing by the door as Tinkerbelle stopped in front of Ominotago. Tinkerbelle gave her a quick kiss on the cheek and hugged her tightly.

To Wendy’s surprise, Ominotago hugged her. “You’ve got this, Wendy,” she said quietly. “It was an honor to meet you.” Ominotago kissed Wendy on the cheek and squeezed her shoulder hard, then followed the officer.

Charles stuck out a hand for Wendy to shake, but she pulled him into a hug anyway.

Minsu wrapped himself on the outside of Charles and Wendy’s hug. “You’re the real deal, Wendy. Even if you are named after a sandwich restaurant,” he said tenderly into the side of Charles’s neck.

Charles smacked him on the back of the head.

“Fine. Sorry.” Minsu laughed. “It was NICE to MEET you, TOO. You can add me on social media or whatever; I have them all.” He followed Ominotago down the hall.

Charles rolled his eyes fondly and went after him. “Good luck,” he called over his shoulder as he walked away. “You can add me, too.”

Fyodor had been hanging behind on purpose. Curly, Nibs, and Tinkerbelle all watched gleefully as he sauntered up to Wendy, arms tucked behind his back.

“It was really nice to meet you,” Wendy offered. She could feel her cheeks getting hot again.

Fyodor nodded. He gestured to her face. “Another to match, da?” he asked softly. The tips of his ears were bright pink.

Wendy was confused. “What?”

“HE WANTS TO KISS YOUR CHEEK,” Minsu shouted horribly from fifty feet down the hallway.

“Oh my God,” Wendy said as embarrassment burned up her entire body. “Oh my God, oh my God.”

“Just do it,” Curly said in anguish, also red with second-hand embarrassment. “Detective Hook is gonna come back.”

Wendy turned to Tinkerbelle in mild panic, but she was just grinning unhelpfully and watching them like it was some kind of show.

Fyodor raised an eyebrow, as if to ask for permission, then cupped the side of her jaw.

“I SAID FOLLOW ME. DO YOU IDIOTS WANT TO BE PUT BACK IN CUFFS?” Detective Hook shouted from the interrogation room down the hall.

Fyodor wasn’t the type of person to bend to threats. He gentled his grip to a caress and leaned down slowly, making sure not to crowd Wendy, waiting cautiously for any signs that she didn’t want this.

“Yes,” Wendy said finally, though it felt bad to have to force the word out of her throat while Curly, Nibs, and Tinkerbelle, were all watching.

As soon as he had permission, Fyodor nuzzled the side of Wendy’s forehead with his own, and pressed not one, but three quick kisses to the cheek that Ominotago had left bare. He pulled back just an inch and gazed at Wendy, eyelids low and cheeks rosy. “You call me, da?” he said breathlessly.

“Yes,” Tinkerbelle said, grabbing Wendy’s hand and dragging her limp body toward the interrogation room. “She will absolutely call you, Fyodor.”

Detective Hook was just as irate as he’d sounded from the hallway. He was standing behind his desk, pacing back and forth, but stopped to look up as Tinkerbelle and Wendy entered the room.

“We’re wasting time,” he snapped. “The longer Peter has to regroup after these attacks, the better he is at avoiding them. You should know that, Genevieve. You’re not like Wendy—you have no excuse.”

Tinkerbelle raised her chin at Detective Hook and folded her arms. “I am like Wendy, that’s the entire point. Me and Ominotago are just like Wendy because if we weren’t, she wouldn’t be here. He wouldn’t have picked her.”

“That’s not the point!” Detective Hook shoved his index finger in Tinkerbelle’s face, but she didn’t flinch; she wasn’t afraid of him at all.

“You know what I’m talking about,” Hook said. “You’ve been doing this longer than she has. If Ominotago would have worked for this, I would have gone with her—she’s clearly the smartest of you lot—but she visibly hates Peter too much for it to work. You’re all just generations of the same trap for him, and both of you are going to be expired to him soon.”

“God, you’re such a dick,” Tinkerbelle spat. “I notice you’re not wearing your wedding ring anymore. Big surprise on that front.”