Dead Secret by Janice Frost Read Free Book Online Page A

Amy out.” Dan looked at Ava as he spoke; blushing bright red, he added, “Funny thing was, he said he didn’t like her that way.”
    “In what way do you think he did like her?” Neal asked, with a raised eyebrow.
    Dan shrugged, “Dunno. Maybe he thought she was too good for him. Amy was hot.”
    The others nodded in agreement. Neal sighed.
    “Which room is Simon’s?” he asked. The lads looked at each other and Gary pointed down the hallway at a door on the left. Neal tried the handle and was unsurprised to find it locked.
    “Are you going to kick the door in?” Dan asked, sounding excited.
    “Sorry lads, that only happens in the movies,” Ava answered, smiling, “The warden will have a master key. Much simpler.”
    Simon’s flatmates could offer no further information. They seemed relieved when Neal nodded to Ava that it was time to leave. He did not need to look back to know that all four lads had their eyes on Ava’s backside as she walked down the hallway towards the door.
    “Has Simon done a runner, do you think?” Ava asked as they made their way to the car park. Neal shrugged.
    “Probably keeping a low profile. He must know he would have been spotted with Amy on Saturday evening.”
    They reached the car and Ava slipped into the driver’s seat. “I take it we’re going to pay Anna Foster a visit?” she asked, putting the car into gear and barely waiting for an answer before heading towards the Turning Leaves Bookshop.
    * * *
    When Neal and Ava walked through the front door, Anna Foster was busy at her desk in a draught-protected alcove behind the entrance to her bookshop, tapping busily on her keyboard. Was it his imagination, or did she seem displeased to see them? Neal came straight to the point.
    “My son doesn’t live here, Inspector,” Anna Foster replied in answer to Neal’s enquiry concerning Simon’s whereabouts. “Yes, this is his home and he has a room here, and he occasionally stays over, but we both agreed it would be good for him to be with people his own age when he went to university. No doubt at this time of day, he’ll be hard at work in the library. He’s very studious. He’s exceptional, in fact.” An image of the young man Ava had described flashed into Neal’s mind. There didn’t seem to be anything particularly exceptional about him. Clearly Anna Foster was a besotted mother. Neal smiled at this, for of course, in his eyes Archie was the most exceptional young man he had ever met.
    He cleared his throat. He had been looking steadily at Anna Foster as she spoke and his professional detachment had begun to slip. Today her auburn hair was loose about her shoulders and she was wearing wide black linen trousers and a silky blouse in a floaty material that was practically see-through. If there was a type Neal preferred, Anna Foster fit the profile. There was the small matter of the age difference between them, which he thought might be as much as ten years, but was that really an issue?
    “When did you last see your son, Ms Foster?” Neal enquired, after explaining that they had checked the university library and Simon’s flat.
    “On Monday evening.” Anna turned to Ava. “We had supper at a bistro on the long hill after we bumped into you, Sergeant, and afterwards Simon went back to his flat at the university. I’m stocktaking this evening; he’s supposed to be coming by to give me a hand.”
    “Is he often out of touch for this long?” Neal asked.
    “This long? It’s barely been a day, Inspector. Simon’s a student; he has his own life. I don’t expect him to check in with me every day. “
    “But he does work for you?” Neal prompted.
    “On an informal basis. Simon loves books; he likes to help out. And of course he finds the money useful, although I think he’d help out even if I didn’t pay him; he’s that kind of person.”
    Again, that glowing maternal admiration and pride. Neal wondered how objective Anna Foster was capable of being when it