A Future Murder by Linda Mather

Author:Linda Mather [MATHER, LINDA]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2022-08-29T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Sixteen

Alan got to his feet, weaving slightly. The next second, he plunged forward over the car. Jo almost dropped the phone as she sprang forward to steady him. She managed to stop him rolling back onto the ground just as two men rounded the corner. She heard their boots on the gravel as she wedged Alan’s unconscious weight against the windscreen.

‘What the fuck’s going on here?’ A bulky man with a muscle-bound gait pointed to her phone, which was lying on the car bonnet. ‘Who’s that you’re calling? You can switch if off for a start.’ He made a lunge for it, but Jo got there first.

‘It’s OK, it’s off.’ She held up the phone so they could see she’d ended the call. From a quick glance at him and his younger, thinner mate in their builders’ boots and paint-stained clothes, Jo realized these must be the decorators, returning to the job and needing their keys. But before she could speak, the larger man thrust a scowling face into hers. ‘I should have known he’d be trouble.’ He jabbed a stubby finger towards Alan, who had slumped forward, bent oddly. ‘But who the hell are you?’

Both men were standing too close. ‘Back off,’ Jo said, but her voice had a waver in it. She reached into the pocket of Alan’s parka, located the keys and held them out. ‘Here are your keys. My friend’s been attacked and I’m calling an ambulance now.’ She dialled 999 while they stood in front of her.

‘Attacked? By who?’ the younger man scoffed.

Jo ignored him and started giving the details to the ambulance service, and his boss jerked his head, indicating it was time to leave.

‘All right,’ he said. ‘We won’t hang around. We’ll only get in the way. He might have had a heart attack.’ The square red face in front of her registered something approaching concern. Or it could have been alarm. He’s probably heart attack material himself, Jo thought, watching them leave with relief.

Thankfully the ambulance was as quick as they had promised and within ten minutes a paramedic was checking Alan’s vital signs while the other questioned Jo. They soon had Alan seated on the ground, at which point he rallied enough to tell them he was fine, although his skin was still grey-white and the cut was bleeding steadily.

‘You’ve been concussed,’ the paramedic said as she prepared a wheelchair. ‘So we will have to take you to A&E to be assessed.’

‘Did you call Macy?’ Alan asked and Jo assured him she had.

‘I’ll call him again and I’ll come with you,’ she said. ‘I’ll follow in my car,’ she added to the paramedics.

‘You will need to report the incident to the police.’

Jo nodded but was rescued by the ringing of her phone. She couldn’t identify the number but knew it was significant. ‘Sorry, I’ll have to take this,’ she said.

A well-modulated female voice spoke in her ear. ‘Hello, this is Cheryl Frost of the Quality Assurance Agency. Is this Jo Hughes? I’m returning your call.

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