The Twilight Club by Annabel West

Author:Annabel West [West, Annabel]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781594932571
Publisher: Bella Books
Published: 2011-09-13T05:00:00+00:00

Chapter Thirteen

It was close to eleven when their taxi drew up outside the red-brick hotel. On the other side of town, much of the street comprised trade supply shops. More than a hundred years ago, when the hotel was built, many businesses had been blacksmiths. Next door to the hotel was an old horse stable that had been fashioned into a home. Houses were interspersed with the businesses. Once tiny worker’s cottages for the city’s poor, they were these days shiny and renovated, many sporting a second story. Angelique had noticed how property prices had sky-rocketed in recent years, so that even the once less salubrious suburbs were now in high demand.

Angelique shuddered as they got out of the car. She had left her apartment and gone straight to the restaurant without having to go outside, so she hadn’t brought a coat.

Stephanie glanced at the clear sky. “There’ll be a frost tonight.” She pulled open the pub door. Angelique felt her muscles uncoil in the warmth.

Wood fires crackled brightly at either side of the room. Soothing jazz was playing softly. Twenty or so women were sitting at the bar and around tables, half a dozen guys occupied a table down the back. An old man huddled in a tartan jacket, clutching a pot of beer, sat at a table just inside the door.

“Evening, Pete,” Stephanie said brightly.

He looked up. “Inspector. Nippy enough for ya?”

What Angelique had always liked about this pub was that all types were welcome. There were gays, straights, a few down-and-outs, tradesmen, suited professionals. It was comfortable.

Stephanie pulled off her scarf, shook off her red-lined tailored black overcoat. Shoving it under one arm, she reached into the back pocket of her pinstriped pants and took out her wallet. “What can I get you?” she asked as they made for the bar.

There were two barstools free. Angelique sat on one, Stephanie dropped her coat over the back of the other. Angelique recognized the barman as he turned to them. Smiling at her he narrowed his eyes, as if in thought. “It’s a French kind of name, isn’t it?”

“Angelique,” she replied. “How have you been, John?”

“Nothing wrong with your memory,” he said with a laugh. “Where have you been all this time?”

“Mostly Singapore.”

“Well, then. You’ll be wanting a proper drink in a proper pub, I would think. What would you like? It’s on the house.”

Angelique chose a liqueur, Stephanie a vodka tonic. Angelique watched her as she nodded hello to a few people near the bar. It was a joy to be with her. She had a certain style that Angelique had never tired of observing. A stranger, catching a glimpse of Stephanie in repose, might notice her athletic shape, her classic features, her somewhat detached air. But to know Stephanie the way Angelique did you had to see the way she moved. She didn’t walk, she strode. Her gestures were precise, her movements sure. While her manners were perfect, when she wanted a waiter’s attention she got it. She didn’t dodge around people, they seemed to glide out of her way.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.