Murder Most Deadly: A Verity Meadows Mystery by Ford A J

Author:Ford, A J
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2022-06-27T00:00:00+00:00

17

Verity left the hospital later that morning with her left arm in a sling. Considering the spectacular nature of her dismount from the mechanical bull, her injuries were surprisingly superficial. A shoulder X-ray showed she had suffered a shoulder separation, resulting in localised pain and mild swelling, but no broken bones. Secondary symptoms included bruised pride and profound regret.

After returning to their hotel, they grabbed a couple of hours sleep, but not before setting two alarms to ensure they were up in time for the last breakfast sitting. Leeanne was more subdued than usual, but still polished off a substantial breakfast. Verity had little appetite but forced herself to eat cereal and a croissant to line her stomach before taking her pain medication, which she washed down with plenty of black coffee. The meds had the added benefit of suppressing what would have undoubtedly been a monster hangover.

Much of their conversation over breakfast revolved around the previous night’s activities, with Verity cursing herself for making such an arse of herself, and Leeanne cursing herself for letting her do so. There had also been a fair bit of laughter as the pair recalled some of the surreal moments from last night. It hurt to laugh, but Verity welcomed it, as it allowed her to reframe her behaviour as little more than over-exuberance brought about by over-indulgence.

After breakfast, they returned to their room. Verity soon realised that getting dressed and applying sunscreen was an all but impossible task with your arm in a sling, so she had to get Leeanne to help her. In anticipation of the intense heat, Verity wore a blue floral-print maxi dress with a matching silk pashmina and straw sun hat. Leeanne wore white cotton shorts, a mint-green T-shirt with what was either a daisy or a messy fried egg on the front of it, and a bright pink bucket hat.

Shortly after midday, they took a taxi to the estate agents on the outskirts of town. It was set on the ground floor of a block of flats, wedged between a pharmacy and a kebab shop. Verity had viewed the estate agents online before coming to Spain, but, seeing it now, she was surprised by how small it was. Stepping out of the sun and into the air-conditioned office was a blessed relief. Verity removed her hat and fanned herself with it as she took the place in. The decor was mainly white with one dark-grey wall, which was dominated by some inspirational message in Spanish. Verity believed it said something about being focused on results and customer satisfaction. Furnishings were mostly white and consisted of four frosted-glass desks, moulded plastic chairs and a water cooler. The only significant touches of colour come from the 3D company logo on the back wall—the words ‘Nueva Manera’ in blocky yellow and blue text, and a sun rising behind a blue house.

Only two of the desks were in use. The desk nearest the door was occupied by a woman who greeted them in Spanish.

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