The River Knows by Amanda Quick Read Free Book Online Page A

far as he was concerned. Fiona had not committed suicide. Hastings had murdered her.
    But the second question still remained. He needed to know why Fiona had been killed. Above all he had to discover if he was responsible for forcing her into the dangerous situation that had resulted in her death.
    He drank some more brandy. A plan began to take shape in his mind.
    Some time later he went upstairs to bed. To his amazement it was not the image of Fiona’s body that disturbed his sleep; it was Louisa Bryce’s face he saw. She looked at him through the invisible veil of her spectacles, watchful and mysterious. In his dreams he chased her through an endless maze of corridors knowing that he could not stop until he had unlocked her secrets.

Chapter 6
    T he nightmare began the way it always did…
    A muffled thud reverberates down below. The sound comes from the rear of the shop. The new lock that she installed last week has just been forced.
    She is suddenly cold from head to toe, paralyzed by fear. Her heart is pounding. Panic roils her stomach. Icy perspiration dampens her nightgown. She is clutching the quilt as though it were a shield.
    Iron hinges squeak. The door is opening. The monster is inside the shop.
    He has come for her. For the past month she has lived with a growing dread. Tonight her worst fears have come true.
    She must move. She cannot stay here in bed like a terrified child waiting for the demon to find her.
    The bottom step creaks beneath the weight of a heavy, booted foot. There is no attempt at stealth. He wants her to know he is coming for her.
    She must get out of bed this instant or there is no hope. Screaming will do no good. There is no one in the room next door to hear her. She is not even certain that she could call for help. The frightening paralysis has affected her voice as well as the rest of her body.
    She forces herself to concentrate on the desperate plan that she concocted a few days ago. The act of focusing her mind on something other than raw fear gives her strength.
    Employing every ounce of will she possesses, she pushes aside the covers and gets to her feet. The floor is very cold. Somehow that helps to steady her nerves.
    Another step creaks. He is midway up the stairs now. Not hurrying. Taking his time.
    “I warned you, Joanna.” His voice is filled with a chilling lust. “Did you really think you could defy me? You are nothing but a foolish little shopkeeper. A nobody who must be taught her place in the world.”
    With the next step his voice sharpens, rage surfacing. “You should have been grateful that a gentleman of my rank was willing to give you so much as a second glance. Grateful, do you hear me, you stupid bitch? You should have begged me to take you.”
    The bedroom has no door. There is only a heavy curtain to block the intruder’s path. It is closed.
    She realizes that the window is uncovered and that she is silhouetted against the slant of light cast by the fog-drenched moon. Hastily she draws the drapes, plunging the small room into inky darkness.
    She knows this cramped space well. The monster has never seen it, though. With luck, he will fumble about when he moves into the deep shadows, allowing her an opportunity to escape through the doorway behind him.
    He is in the sitting room now, coming toward the curtained bedroom. She can hear the soft thud of his boots on the thin carpet.
    “Women like you need to be taught their place. I’m going to show you what happens to females who don’t display the proper degree of respect for their betters.”
    She picks up the heavy poker that she had placed on the floor beside the bed. The length of iron is heavy. She holds it with both hands and prays.
    There is a faint scraping sound on the other side of the curtain. At the edges of the hanging fabric a wavering glow appears. The monster has struck a light.
    So much for her plan to temporarily blind him with the darkness of the bedroom. Her nerve nearly fails. The hilt of