Dead Men-Dan Shepherd 5 by Stephen Leather

Author:Stephen Leather [Leather, Stephen]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Suspense, Thriller
ISBN: 9780340921715
Amazon: B002V0924W
Goodreads: 1260978
Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton
Published: 2008-04-28T00:00:00+00:00

Shepherd felt something warm pressing against his back and a hand on his thigh. He opened his eyes and found himself looking at his clothes, piled untidily on an unfamiliar chair in the corner of the room. He closed his eyes again and cursed silently. His assignment had been to get close to Elaine Carter, not to climb into her bed.

‘I know you’re awake,’ she whispered.

‘How?’

‘Your breathing changed,’ she said.

Shepherd rolled over and smiled.

She smiled back. ‘Well, this is awkward,’ she said.

‘It’s fine,’ he said.

‘I don’t make a habit of sleeping with the neighbours,’ she said. ‘Mind you, old man Hutcheson was in his eighties and did smell a bit.’

‘I’m sorry,’ said Shepherd.

‘For what?’ she asked. ‘What the hell do you have to apologise about?’

‘I sort of feel like I took advantage of you.’

Elaine sat up and wrapped the duvet round herself. ‘I’m a big girl, Jamie. I don’t let people talk me into doing things I don’t want to do. Are you thinking you made a mistake, is that it?’

‘No, it’s not that.’

‘What is it, then?’

‘Elaine, you were pretty emotional last night, with the cops and everything. I was a shoulder to cry on, I didn’t expect . . .’

‘That I’d fuck your brains out?’

Shepherd laughed. ‘Yeah, you did that right enough.’

‘No complaints, then?’

‘No complaints.’ He sat up and propped his pillow behind his neck. ‘Still awkward?’

‘A bit.’

‘I guess it’s been a while, has it?’ he said.

‘What’s been a while?’

‘You know . . .’

She smiled mischievously. ‘I’ve no idea what you’re talking about.’

‘You know, since you . . .’

‘Had sex?’ She was amazed. ‘Do you think I’m a nun?’

Shepherd felt his cheeks flush. ‘I just thought . . .’

She arched one eyebrow. ‘Yes, Jamie, tell me what you thought.’

‘You’re making this really hard for me, Elaine.’

Her hand crept along his thigh. ‘Hmm, yes, I can see that.’

He shuffled away from her and pushed the duvet down as a barrier between them. ‘I’m serious.’

‘Are you now?’

‘You were upset because they were asking questions about your husband. You still . . . you know . . .’

‘Love him?’ Elaine sighed. ‘Robbie’s been dead for a long time, Jamie. Do I still love him? Of course, but it’s the memory I love now, not the man. Timmy, too. I love them both as much as I ever did, but they’re gone and I’m still here. Robbie’s picture is on the mantelpiece because I can’t move it. His parents come round every weekend. How could I tell them I’ve put their boy’s picture in a drawer somewhere, locked it away like a dirty secret? I’ll never put it away, no matter what happens in my life. The same goes for Timmy. Timmy’s my son and will be until the day I die. I saw Robbie die on my kitchen floor and I saw Timmy die in a hospital bed, with tubes in him and a machine beeping. But that doesn’t mean my life has stopped.’ She pushed away the duvet and reached for him.

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