Good Friday by Lynda La Plante

Author:Lynda La Plante
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: FIC031010 Fiction / Thrillers / Crime
Publisher: Zaffre

At eleven o’clock the following morning, Jane drove to Natalie’s via St. John’s Wood and into Belsize Avenue. She managed to park close to number 44 and walked up to the large, imposing, four-story house, then descended the steps to the basement.

Natalie opened the front door almost immediately after Jane pressed the doorbell. She was bare footed and wearing an apron over her jeans and t-shirt.

“Hi there! You found me. Come on in.”

Jane wished she’d bought a bunch of flowers, but it hadn’t occurred to her. Natalie seemed so pleased to see her, helping her off with her coat and hanging it on a hook in the narrow hallway.

“It’s small, but it’s all my own,” Natalie said, as she drew Jane into a lovely living room with French windows over-looking steps up to a walled garden.

The living room was full, with bright fabric-covered chairs and a two-seater sofa by a low pine coffee table. There was a fireplace with wooden logs and a coal bucket beside it. The walls were lined with bookshelves and there was a cabinet filled with pottery, colored glass miniatures and rows of wine glasses. There were some rather amateurish oil paintings, and stacks of magazines. It was a warm and cozy room. Natalie had lit some scented candles and the glow and smell made the room feel welcoming.

Natalie opened the French windows and stepped outside. Stone steps led up to a flourishing plant bed and there was a bench and wooden table. There were numerous potted herbs and bulbs, but a lot of the flowering plants were no longer in season. On the table there were empty bottles of wine holding melted candles, and the paved area had moss growing between the cracks. A large oak tree dominated the end of the garden and shaded most of the patio.

“I eat out here when the weather’s good, but come on back to my favorite place: the kitchen.”

“How long have you lived here?” Jane asked, as she followed Natalie back inside.

“Five years. It needs quite a lot doing to it, and as it’s a basement it gets a bit on the damp side. But I love lighting a fire in the winter. It’s cozy, which is important to me. I bought most of the furniture from charity shops.”

They went into the narrow hall and Natalie pointed to a closed door.

“That’s my bedroom. I have my mother’s old quilt, and my desk and a portable typewriter, but it needs some more wardrobe space. I’ll get it sorted one day.”

Jane had expected the basement flat to be dark, but when she followed Natalie into the kitchen it was surprisingly light.

“This is the best part. The previous occupant went to great lengths to modernize the kitchen and put in the big window.”

Jane was impressed. The kitchen was painted a bright blue, with a fridge freezer, large cooker with an extractor hood, and a wide sink with wooden draining boards. There was a painted old-fashioned wide-legged table, with four hard backed painted chairs with bright cushions on the seats.

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