Dan Sharp Mysteries 2-Book Bundle by Jeffrey Round

Author:Jeffrey Round
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Dundurn Press
Published: 2014-04-01T00:00:00+00:00

The following day at three o’clock, Dan turned up at the coffee shop on College Street to find Ted Killingworth waiting. He looked much as Dan remembered — black turtleneck, rock star glasses, and a silver strand around his neck. Everything pricey. Everything annoying.

“Surprised?” Ted asked from behind the cobalt glare of his lenses.

“Should I be?”

“No. You’re a very smart man. That’s why I hired you.”

Dan waited. He wasn’t going to make things easy for Ted.

“I suppose you’re wondering why I hired you to find my father after all these years.”

“It’s not my business to know why.”

“No, but I have a strong suspicion that you find me a trifle on the despicable side.” Ted waited, but Dan gave no response. “I’d like very much to reassure you as to my motives.”

Dan nodded. “Shoot.”

“I spent years trying to understand why my father left, but I never found a satisfactory answer. Sometimes I hated him” — he shrugged — “mostly I hated him. But other times I wondered and even worried about him. Why didn’t he care enough to let us know how he was? The days of wondering are mostly behind me now, but I’ve been an addict for most of my adult life and I feel as though I’ve spent too many years paying for something that wasn’t my fault.” He removed his sunglasses. The dull glaze was gone. “For the record, I’m in recovery. At least that’s what they call it.”

Dan offered a smile, his first concession in Ted’s direction. “How’s it been so far?”

“The first week was like a year in hell, the second even longer. Some days it rains fire in my hands and back, other times I feel like I might implode.” He looked at Dan. “You’ve caught me at a vulnerable moment. I think that’s the reason I’m here right now.”

“You think that learning what happened to your father will undo some of the damage?”

“Maybe. At the very least I’m hoping it will give me some peace of mind.” Ted suddenly looked worried. “Will I be shocked by what you’ve found?”

“You might. What are you expecting?”

Ted considered this. “I don’t think he’s alive. I’d be very surprised if you told me otherwise. I never really bought the story that he left us for another woman. I think we would have heard from him eventually. I think something happened to him, but I don’t know what.”

“Your instincts were right. As far as I can tell, he isn’t alive. When I said I had proof, I meant proof of a sort. I can’t produce his body. As for why he left, it wasn’t for another woman.” Dan caught Ted’s glance and held it. “Your father was planning to leave your mother for another man: a gardener named Magnus Ferguson.”

Ted’s mouth gaped. He recovered quickly. “Okay, well — you’ve delivered on your promise to shock me. Can you prove it?”

Dan walked him through the evidence, explaining his father’s relationship with Magnus, the false charges concerning the assault on his mother.

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