Broken Dolls (A Jefferson Winter Thriller) Read Online Free Page A

the rain. Is it heavy? Light?’
    ‘It’s one of those misty, drizzly rains. You know the sort I mean. It doesn’t seem heavy but you end up soaked.’
    ‘Is the park busy?’
    ‘In that weather and at that time of night?’ Johnson shook his head. ‘No, it’s just me and Barnaby. And Patricia, of course.’
    I ignored the mention of Patricia Maynard because I wasn’t ready to go there yet. ‘How are you feeling?’
    ‘A bit annoyed to tell the truth. I’d taken the car to the garage earlier and been hit with a six-hundred-pound bill. Now I was out walking my dog in the rain. I’d had better days, let’s put it that way.’
    ‘What can you smell?’
    ‘Damp dirt. Wood smoke coming from my clothes.’
    ‘What can you see?’
    ‘The cracks in the footpath. I’ve got my head down to stop the rain getting in my face.’
    ‘Are you walking quickly or slowly?’
    ‘Quickly. I just want to get home out of the rain.’
    ‘What’s Barnaby doing?’
    A smile. ‘Pulling my arm off like usual. If he wasn’t on a lead he’d be in that lake in two seconds flat.’
    ‘How do you become aware of Patricia?’
    ‘Something catches my eye. A movement from the path at the far end of the lake that leads down from the Fighting Cocks.’
    The old guy gave an almost imperceptible nod of his head and I glanced in the direction he’d indicated. Even in the late afternoon half-light the dark, narrow path didn’t look inviting.
    ‘How’s she moving?’
    ‘Unsteadily. She’s weaving like she’s drunk. My first thought was that she’d had one too many at the Fighting Cocks. I don’t want to stare, but you know how it is when you see an ambulance parked up at the side of the road. It’s impossible not to look over, right? Anyway, I watch her weave out of the trees, and it strikes me as odd that she’s on her own. There’s no sign of a boyfriend. No girlfriends, either. It’s dark and late. This is no place for a woman to be on her own. I watch more closely because she’s got me worried and that’s when I notice she’s headed straight for the lake. I run over and just manage to grab her arm in time and spin her away. If she’d gone into the lake at this time of year she would have ended up with hypothermia.’
    The rest of the story had been in the police reports. Johnson had tried to talk to her and when she didn’t respond he’d taken her to the Fighting Cocks and got the bar owner to call the police. Graham Johnson was the first person I’d met in ages who didn’t own a cellphone, a relic from a long-gone era.
    ‘I want you to back up a couple of steps, Mr Johnson, think back to when you first become aware of Patricia. I don’t want you to say anything, I just want you to picture the scene in your mind. Picture it as clearly as you can, every single detail, no matter how small or insignificant. What do you see? What do you hear? What do you smell? What do you feel?’
    I gave Johnson a few moments then told him to open his eyes. The old guy had a strange look on his face.
    ‘What is it?’ I asked.
    ‘You’re going to think I’m paranoid.’
    ‘Paranoid or crazy, I don’t care. I want to hear what you’ve got to say.’ I smiled reassuringly, waited for him to smile back. ‘So what happened? Were you abducted by aliens and transported up to the mother ship?’
    Johnson’s smile didn’t last long. The old guy’s face turned serious, and a little fearful. He pointed to a shadowy clump of trees and bushes off to his right. When he spoke, it was with absolute certainty. There was no doubt he believed every word he was saying.
    ‘Someone was watching us from over there.’

4
    tesla: u there
    ladyjade: yeah ☺
    tesla: busy
    ladyjade: u have no idea
    tesla: still on for tonite
    ladyjade: yeah
    tesla: cant w8 2 meet u
    ladyjade: me 2
    tesla: gotta go works crazy here 2
    ladyjade: ok cu l8r x
    tesla: x
    Rachel Morris shut down the IM box and her smile turned to a frown. What was she playing at? She