Behind the Night Bazaar by Angela Savage Read Free Book Online Page B

results of forensic tests, before an off-screen journalist asked if the foreign suspect had committed the murder.
    ‘All the evidence points in that direction,’ Ratratarn said.
    ‘Have the police located any eyewitnesses?’ another asked.
    ‘Interviews are still under way.’
    ‘You’ve said you regret accidentally killing the suspect. Is this because there’s some doubt in your mind regarding the foreigner’s guilt?’
    Jayne stared at the man responsible for Didier’s death. When Ratratarn looked into the camera, it seemed as if he were staring right back at her.
    ‘There is no doubt in my mind as to the foreigner’s guilt,’ he said in a tone that defied anyone to question his judgment. ‘I regret only that the opportunity has been lost to punish the offender with the full force of the law.’
    ‘And in news just through,’ the anchorman said, ‘sources reveal that murder suspect, Didier de Montpasse, previously faced assault charges in his home town of Sainte Romauld in the Canadian province of Quebec. Police say the foreigner’s history of violent crime is significant.’
    ‘What the fuck—?’ Jayne swore out loud, attracting anxious looks from the hotel staff. She mumbled an apology and retrieved her key.
    Back in her room, she took a couple of painkillers, and lit a cigarette. There was a desk against one wall with a large mirror over it and she sat down and stared at her reflection. Her eyes were puffy and glazed, and her face was drained of colour. Her skin was chafed from using toilet paper to blow her nose, and her lips seemed swollen, as if bruised by kisses.
    The man she had kissed the previous evening—her best friend, whom she loved—was the same person they were talking about on the news. The idea that Didier could commit a criminal act of violence was so at odds with his character, she was convinced there must be some mistake.
    She picked up the phone, placed a call to Bangkok and had just lit a second cigarette when the connection came through.
    ‘Your call to Bangkok, Ma’am,’ the operator said. ‘Go ahead, please.’
    ‘Hello?’
    ‘Jayne, is that you? Where are you?’
    ‘Max!’ She paused to swallow the lump that rose in her throat at the sound of her friend’s voice. ‘I’m in Chiang Mai.’
    ‘Oh, God! So you know about—’
    ‘Yes, I know about Didier. I…I was with him last night, just before…’
    ‘Oh, Jayne, I’m so sorry,’ Max said, his own voice shaking.
    ‘Hang on.’ She put down the receiver, wiped her nose, took a deep breath and picked it up again.
    ‘Last night, we went to this bar—it was part of Didier’s work—and Nou turned up. They had an argument because Nou’s been gambling again, working the beat to pay off his debts. It got pretty heated, but things seemed to have calmed down by the time I left.’
    ‘Have you—?’ Max hesitated. ‘The news reports mentioned eyewitnesses to the argument. Has anyone talked with you?’
    Jayne frowned. ‘What do you mean?’
    ‘Have the police interviewed you?’
    ‘Not yet,’ she said, her mind ticking over. ‘Shit! I should have thought of that.’
    ‘Hang on a minute. I didn’t mean to imply you should talk to the police. On the contrary, I think it’s best if you get back here as soon as you can and—’
    ‘But I can explain it,’ she said quickly. ‘I mean, you and I both know there’s no way Didier could’ve killed Nou.’
    It took so long for Max to reply that Jayne thought they’d lost the connection.
    ‘Do we really know that?’ he said finally. ‘I mean, there is the matter of what happened in Canada.’
    Jayne felt her face flush. ‘The assault charges,’ she said. ‘I saw it on the news. But that’s got to be bullshit! I can’t believe that.’
    ‘Oh, Jayne, I didn’t want to be the one to tell you this but it’s true. Didier beat up a man, beat him senseless. The charges were dropped, but that doesn’t change what happened.’
    ‘But Didier would