Cherringham--A Fatal Fall by Matthew Costello Read Free Book Online Page A

see any lights.
    It was late. People were in bed. Which was where he should be.
    Then, half way down the road Jack heard a sound …
    The unmistakeable scuff of footsteps on the pavement behind him. He stopped dead, turned, and peered up the road into the blackness.
    Nothing.
    Whoever was there had stopped too.
    Jack waited until a car came down the hill. As it passed and its headlights lit up the pavement and hedges, Jack looked back up the hill.
    But whoever had been behind him — maybe following him — had melted into the hedges. Maybe even passed through into the field beyond.
    He turned and carried on towards the bridge.
    Then as he left the road and started up the towpath along the riverbank he waited again in the darkness.
    Had he been hearing things?
    But whoever had been walking behind him must have turned and vanished …
    If they had been following, maybe they had given up once they knew they’d been spotted.
    Okay, he thought. I’ve been treading on somebody’s toes with all my questions …But whose?

9. Unwelcome Visitors
    “And watch out for the pavements, they’re very icy,” said Sarah, as she watched Chloe and Daniel go through the garden gate and head up the road towards the village.
    “That’s because it’s winter, Mum,” said Daniel turning and grinning at her. “It’s a meteorological phenomenon.”
    “Very funny,” she said. “Have you got your lunch?”
    “Yes Mum, you already asked me. I can’t wait.”
    Cheekier by the day.
    I have to admit though — he does make me laugh , she thought .
    “See you tonight then, love,” she said, but Daniel was already off, running across the road to join his best pal, Will.
    Sarah watched the two of them spinning each other round on the icy pavement and had to stop herself from calling out loud to him to watch the roads.
    Now that he went to the same big school as Chloe, she knew she shouldn’t treat him like he was still at the primary school.
    But the trouble was he still behaved like a kid.
    Whereas Chloe, now joined by her own best mate Zoe and deep in conversation, looked like she was eighteen already.
    These hectic school day mornings won’t last for ever, she thought. Better enjoy them while I can …
    She shut the garden gate and headed off into the village.
    *
    Coffee from Huffington’s in one hand, Sarah stood in the bitter cold outside the front door that led to her office, fumbling for her keys in her handbag.
    Then she noticed that the door was slightly open.
    That’s odd, she thought.
    It was only eight-thirty and the estate agents on the ground floor never opened up before nine.
    And the little firm of accountants which occupied the middle floor were usually the last ones in around ten.
    But she wasn’t alarmed. With Christmas just days away, maybe someone had come in early to get some urgent work finished.
    She climbed the narrow staircase up the two flights to her office and again reached for her keys as she neared her own door.
    And now she was worried.
    Because her office door was open too .
    And unless Grace had beaten her to it then there’d been a break-in.
    Or maybe there was a break-in going on right now.
    Should she call out for Grace now? If someone was in there and they came hurtling out, she was trapped out here.
    She knew what she ought to do. Go quietly back down the stairs, stand outside, call Grace on her mobile. And then call the police if Grace was indeed still at home.
    That’s what she knew she should do.
    Instead she pushed open the door and went straight in, calling out loudly.
    “Hello? Anyone in here? Can I help you?”
    She stood in the empty office, her heart pounding. She looked around. The desks were as she remembered leaving them the night before. Computers were turned off. Christmas cards all standing on every spare space. The little Christmas tree in the corner stood over the small pile of presents from the local businesses.
    But the kitchen door was closed.
    She and Grace never closed