The Sting of Death by Rebecca Tope Read Free Book Online Page A

darling? Here, sit down. You’ve gone all pale and wimbly.’ He forced a flippant laugh, more for his own reassurance than hers.
    She echoed the sound and stood up straighter. ‘I’m perfectly all right,’ she said firmly. ‘I don’t know what came over me. It’s just turning into one of those days, where you wonder what the hell’s going to happen next. I could kill Penn for involving me in this. Why should I care ? I haven’t seen the blasted girl for five years, anyway. For all I know, she’s been missing ever since then. It’s the same as if she was dead – same effect, at least.’
    ‘It’s not the same, though,’ Laurie told her, summoning up the strength to voice his thoughts. ‘If she was dead, you’d have to give up hope of things coming right between you. And—’ he fixed her with a fierce look ‘—don’t tell me you haven’t wanted that. You’ve been waiting for her to phone or write with an olive branch, or to turn up with a new little grandchild astride her hip. Even after five years, you can still pretend it’s all just a temporary interruption to your normalrelationship. You’d have to forget all that if she was dead.’
    ‘Well, she isn’t dead. Of course she isn’t. Who said anything about her being dead, anyway?’
    ‘You did,’ Laurie reminded her. ‘And I’m beginning to think that Penn probably did, as well. I can’t think of anything else that would knock you so off balance. So sit down and tell me the whole thing from the beginning.’
    They settled side by side on a wrought iron garden seat, casting brief glances at each other’s face, but mainly addressing the lawn and the field beyond. ‘Justine’s been living on some farm near Exeter, apparently. And Penn visits her a lot.’
    ‘And you didn’t realise they saw each other frequently?’
    Roma shook her head. ‘I had no idea. I didn’t think their paths had crossed since we … well, since we fell out. For all I knew, she was still in London. That’s where I’ve imagined her.’ She threw a look at her husband. ‘Penn didn’t tell you any of this, did she, when she came here last week?’
    ‘Most definitely not. She wouldn’t have done that. It would be demeaning.’
    ‘Would it?’ Roma frowned. ‘How?’
    ‘Well, going behind your back, giving me information that I wasn’t allowed to share with you. Maybe not demeaning. Unethical. Divisive.And since I never met Justine, it wouldn’t have been very appropriate.’
    Roma inhaled deeply. ‘I’d certainly have been furious if I’d found out,’ she acknowledged. ‘Anger’s always the easy option, isn’t it.’
    ‘We all know how hurt you’ve been by the rift,’ he said gently.
    Her breathing began to thicken, and he saw the tightening of her jaw. ‘And there I was, trying to keep up the act of an uncaring monster,’ she laughed shakily.
    ‘That doesn’t matter now. Please tell me what Penn said. The whole thing.’
    ‘She apologised for worrying me, to start with. Said she’d hoped it would all turn out to be nothing, and I never need know about it. Clever of her, come to think of it. Whetting my curiosity like that. The rest is what I’ve just told you. She and Justine have been close friends since … well, all along, I suppose. She went to have a look at the cottage, last week, after Justine failed to turn up for a lunch they’d planned, and didn’t answer her phone. Apparently, there’s no sign anywhere of Justine …’ She swallowed painfully.
    ‘Didn’t she ask the farmer if he knew where she was?’
    ‘She says she did, but he was impatient and unconcerned. Apparently the cottage is somedistance from the main house, and Justine didn’t see a great deal of them. But she hinted that she doesn’t think he’s telling her everything.’
    ‘So why not call the police and let them extract the truth from the chap?’
    ‘She’s convinced they’d show no interest, because Justine’s a responsible adult, and there’s no