Winding Up the Serpent

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Book: Read Winding Up the Serpent for Free Online
Authors: Priscilla Masters
something?’
    â€˜Decent?’ The word seemed out of place here, wrong – ridiculously so. She was almost tempted to laugh. Instead she spoke in a calm, flat voice. ‘You know the rules,’ she said. ‘I don’t want anything touched. And for the record, Sergeant, I think it would take a damned sight more than a clean sheet to make this woman decent.’
    He met her comments with a mocking look. ‘Judging her already, Inspector? And I think you’ve decided it’s murder already without ...’ he wagged his finger in front of her face ‘a shred of evidence to suggest it.’
    â€˜Come on, Mike,’ she said, waving an expansive arm around the room. ‘There’s everything to support it. This room feels like a ...’ she paused, ‘a love nest, but the main character is missing. Where’s the man – or sign of him?’
    Mike chewed his lip. ‘It’s a drugs-related accidental death or an expensive suicide,’ he said. ‘The drama came from her.’ He pointed his index finger straight at the dead woman’s head. ‘Like those film stars, ma’am. She couldn’t quite make it in life so she dies the way she wants it – stylish.’
    Joanna raised her eyebrows. ‘Maybe, Mike, but let’s not make premature judgements. They account for some of the biggest cock-ups the legal system has ever known.’
    Mike scowled. His neck grew a fierce red and he mumbled something about seeing whether the police surgeon had arrived yet.
    In a couple of minutes he was back, shaking his head. ‘No sign.’ He joined her at the window. ‘Ma’am,’ he said, ‘No one came in this way. It’s a clean sill, and no one could have hooked this window on the catch. This woman died alone.’ His eyes looked hard and bright. ‘Inspector,’ he said softly, ‘take my advice. Don’t make a tit of yourself by making this one up to a full-blown murder investigation just to justify your pips. It’s obvious what happened. It has to be drugs. She simply dressed up and OD’d.’
    â€˜Thank you, Mike,’ she said. ‘Thank you very very much. I really needed your advice. I don’t know how I’ve got so far without it.’
    He went red and looked around the bedroom.
    Joanna felt suddenly overwhelmed by the claustrophobic atmosphere. ‘It’s so damned sordid, isn’t it?’ she muttered, but Mike’s face was set.
    â€˜She died on her tod in this pathetic, make-believe love nest,’ he said stubbornly.
    She felt her shoulders sag. ‘Oh – I hate that word.’
    â€˜What – tod?’
    â€˜No,’ she said softly. ‘Love nest,’ and she winced.
    A gust of wind threw the curtain upwards and she sniffed. ‘Perfume,’ she said. ‘Can you smell it? Strong perfume.’ She sniffed again. ‘And no aftershave.’
    But the scent brought her to a definite conclusion. ‘She was waiting for a lover,’ she said. ‘He might not have turned up but she was waiting for a lover.’
    Then, ‘I want the scene of crimes men to strip this room completely. Take the house apart if necessary. I want to know who the man is. Tell forensics I want every bloody cell from that bed.’
    She looked at Mike thoughtfully. ‘All right,’ she said. ‘I may be wrong. I’m prepared to admit I may be barking up the wrong tree, but I bet my bottom dollar she had sex last night and I want to know with whom.’
    Mike was near the door. ‘So the missing lover is “our man”, madam.’ He spoke in an appalling mockery of a cheap New York twang.
    â€˜I intend to find out. And Mike,’ she glanced at the set face, ‘don’t call me madam, will you? My name’s Joanna. Every now and then you forget yourself and call me that. Just do it all the time, will you please?’
    Mike shook his

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