Palmer-Jones 03 - Murder in Paradise by Ann Cleeves Read Free Book Online Page A

of the house was always dark.
    Melissa sat in the kitchen. She was remembering the dance they had on the island when she came with James. They had been married on the island. They had been married in the church. She had told him that she had no faith but he said that it did not matter. Everyone was married in church. He did not believe her when she said that she had no family to invite, but he did not press her.
    Sandy and Agnes had been married just a few years before and were very happy and lighthearted. They had made her feel welcome and wanted. They had been great friends, the four of them. Later she and Agnes had become pregnant at the same time, and when she lost the baby Agnes had been the person who had given the most comfort. It pleased her to know that life continued, and her sister-in-law’s swelling belly was a sign of hope that she, too, could carry a baby again. But although there were other pregnancies none of the babies survived and as Agnes’ family grew, Melissa became bitter and distant.
    She knew that she needed help. But who on Kinness could give it? There was an elderly nurse, a spinster, who played the organ in the church and taught the children in Sunday school. Could she go to her and say:
    “Help me. I can’t bear my husband to touch me”?
    The nurse had never been touched, seemed to know nothing of frustration or desire.
    In England there would be places to go, people to see—sympathetic doctors, marriage guidance counsellors. Once, a long time ago, she had suggested to James that she should go south to seek advice, but he had been hurt.
    “I can look after you,” he had said. “I can care for you. You don’t need other people.”
    Now he would be glad for her to go, but it was too late. She was frightened to go to the south of the island where most of the houses were gathered. How could she get on an aeroplane and go to England?
    I’m ill, she thought. I live too much in the past.
    She heard the door of the storm porch banging. She hoped that it was the wind but she knew it was James.
    He was still holding the powerful torch he had been using to search for Mary. She blinked and covered her eyes with her hands.
    “What are you doing, sitting here in the dark?” he said. As usual irritation and concern were mixed. “The engine’s still on, you could have put the light on. Besides, it’s very late. You should be in bed.”
    “Yes. I didn’t notice the time.”
    She’s getting worse, he thought, I must do something, get a specialist from the mainland maybe. But the last doctor from the mainland had given her tranquillizers and she had not taken them.
    She stood up. She was wearing a dressing gown and as she stood up it fell open, so that he could see her neck and the top of her breast. Her skin looked very white in the light of the torch.
    She saw him looking at her.
    “I’m sorry,” she said.
    “I’m off out again,” he said. “ I’ve just come in to get changed into warmer clothes. Mary is missing. I doubt if she’s strayed this far up the island, but I said I’d look on the mountain. Don’t wait up or me. It’ll take a while.”
    But he was still looking at her.
    “I love you,” he said.
    As he walked out of the door, and the chill air hit him, he thought: it’s not love I feel for her. It’s lust. Then he thought: there are worse sins than lust, and he went out onto the island.

Chapter Four
    When Sarah woke the bedroom was bright with sunshine. She had a hangover. At the instant of waking she thought that she was still in Cornwall. The clarity of the light was the same. Then she felt the headache and remembered where she was. She stretched. She supposed that there was no hurry to get up but she wanted to explore the island. She wondered if Jim had made any tea. There was no noise in the kitchen. She got out of bed and put on a thick jersey on top of her nightdress. The lino felt cold on her feet. There was no one in the kitchen. She plugged in the electric kettle