Read Irrefutable Evidence: A Crime Thriller for Free Online

must come from doing so much voice-over work. A jobbing actor’s bread and butter, you know.”
    “I can see that you would be good at it. You have the right sort of voice.”
    “Thanks, but it’s mainly training the vocal cords to do the right thing at the right time.”
    He raised a quizzical eyebrow, closed his eyes slightly and let his voice fall to a lower register. “Cue mellifluous, add a drop of honey and even a credit card can sound exciting.”
    Amelia tossed back her head and laughed. “Bravo! You know, I think I’d like some ice after all. Would you mind?”
    “Not at all. I know you won’t regret it.”
    He stood, picked up her drink and turned to walk over to the fridge.
    Amelia was ready. Her hand flashed inside her handbag to retrieve a syringe. In one rapid action she uncapped the end, squirted the contents into Henry’s glass and returned it to the depths of the bag, the whole process taking less than two seconds. In case Henry had registered any movement, she picked up her phone and was staring at the screen when he turned back with her drink.
    “My boss at last,” she said, holding up the phone. “I’ve told him I’m busy and that I’ll check in with him in the morning. That’s bound to keep him up all night fretting about the Asian markets.”
    Henry placed Amelia’s glass next to her and sat down.
    “Is it true what they say about hedge fund trading?”
    “What do they say?”
    “That it’s gambling with other people’s money.”
    She laughed. “That’s a rather cynical view.”
    “So how would you describe it?”
    She paused to think, half-closing her eyes in amusement.
    “Gambling with other people’s money. But to be fair, most of the financial world can be described in that way, it’s merely a question of degree.”
    Henry raised his glass. “Here’s to gambling. Cin cin!”
    Amelia leaned forward and clinked his glass.
    “Happy days,” she said as she took a sip and watched in delight as Henry downed half his vodka.
    Henry sat back and sighed. “Ah, exquisite. There are so many subtle flavours. What do you think?”
    “I think you’re in advertising mode again, Mr Silk, but I agree, it’s delicious.”
    Amelia continued with the small talk, asking Henry questions about the theatre and acting. He was more than happy to entertain her with several amusing tales.
    After ten minutes, Henry’s glass was empty while the level in Amelia’s had hardly changed, despite her appearing to take several sips.
    “You’re lagging behind, Jane,” said Henry. “Can I top you up?”
    She heard the slur in his voice and saw the change in his eyes. As he stood, she saw him rock on his feet. She had used a strong dose since she wanted to be sure he remained asleep. It was taking effect even more quickly than she had anticipated.
    Henry paused and looked back down towards Amelia. Her face was beginning to blur and there was a strange whirring noise in his head. He took a deep breath and forced his eyes to focus.
    “Don’t know what happened there,” he said, unaware that the entire sentence came out as one word. He took a step and then stopped. “You know, I’m feeling a little odd. Might need … to lie down for a moment.”
    His arms dropped to his side. Amelia jumped to her feet and took the empty glass from his hand. “Let me help you,” she said, as she touched the base of the glass onto the small of his back and nudged him gently towards the bed. Until she gloved her hands, she didn’t want to touch him.
    Henry tried to say that that would be nice, but what came out of his mouth was incomprehensible. He wasn’t even aware of lying down and by the time his head settled on the pillow, he was unconscious.
    Amelia opened her handbag to retrieve a pair of surgical gloves. After snapping them on, she lifted Henry’s feet onto the bed, untied his shoelaces and removed his shoes. She checked the sole pattern. It was nothing special, but the stick-on repair soles were quite