Zombie! by Peter Tremayne

Author:Peter Tremayne [Tremayne, Peter]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Lume Books
Published: 2019-07-30T22:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER XIII

June watched Father Taylor’s car disappear among the trees with a feeling of disquiet. She suddenly felt alone and shivered. When the sound of the car engine died away in the distance she turned back to the old bungalow. How long would it take Steve and Father Taylor to go to Marcus and return with the police? Three hours? Four hours? Well, at least they would return before dark. She couldn’t stand to be alone in the bungalow one minute after nightfall. She paused on the veranda and glanced around the dark forests. For a brief second she felt a chill of fear, imagining hidden eyes watching her — perhaps the eyes of Carreau’s killer.

Hurriedly she walked around the veranda to the other side of the building and sighed with relief as she saw the stocky form of Sergeant Pirogue examining the ground near to where some object, which she guessed to be poor Carreau’s body, lay hidden beneath the grey shroud of a blanket. Steve had not said, nor had she asked, exactly how Carreau had been killed but she knew by his pale face and the horror in his eyes that it had been a brutal slaughter.

She pursed her lips, making a determined effort not to think of such things.

“Sergeant Pirogue!”

Pirogue turned and straightened his back.

“Yes, ma’am? Can I do anything for you?”

“I wondered whether you would like some tea or something?”

June felt that she wanted to prolong human contact for as long as possible.

“That’s right nice of you, ma’am,” grinned Pirogue.

She returned to the house, filled a kettle and busied

herself about the kitchen. It was a short time before she took a tray out on the lawn to where Pirogue was still examining the ground. He smiled as she came up.

“It’s very good of you, ma’am,” he said. “I believe there are some seats on the veranda. I’ll just go and bring a couple down here on the lawn. We can have the tea in comfort.”

They spent some time, perhaps an hour or so, sitting in the warm sun idly chatting about St Miquelon and England and nothing in particular. Pirogue turned out to be a good raconteur and entertained June with improbable tales of island life. For a brief time the girl was totally able to forget the events of the last few days which had culminated in this terrible morning. For a brief period she had even forgotten that Pirogue was a policeman or that Carreau…what was left of Carreau…lay but a few yards away from…

“I shall have to leave you for a moment, Mrs Lambert.”

Sergeant Pirogue was standing up gazing at his watch.

Her face must have shown her concern for the sergeant smiled.

“Don’t fret none. I have to go down to Marecage and pick up a few things from my jeep. I shan’t be too long. Anyway, your husband and Father Taylor should be back pretty soon now.”

June nodded. It was true. It must be somewhere about one o’clock.

“But what about the killer?” she mumbled.

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