Chapter Twenty-Eight

The name above our restaurant was The Laughing Marionette, though from all outside appearances there was nothing humorous or even remotely distinguishing between it or any of the others in the district. We walked through the open door, to be bombarded with colour. Well, varying shades of one colour.

The entire establishment was dripping with red. Red walls, red carpets, red table cloths, red roses in red vases, surrounded by red wax candles. If you were ever going to murder someone in a public place, this is where you'd do it. You could shove the body under any one of these long table cloths and no one would notice until it started smelling. I wrinkled my nose at the thought. At least the gold leafed trim broke it up a little.

Grey nodded to the woman dressed in a red skirt and an almost pink shirt at the front door, and she let us pass the small line unhindered. He led us up the red stained stairwell against the far wall to the second floor. There was only half the amou