Read Online Blood Prize by Ken Grace - Free Book Online

felt drained of energy. It seemed weird that winter could turn into summer in just a few short days without any semblance of a spring.
    She rounded the car-park corner into Sydney Road and stopped.
    What’s all this?
    A large group of people slumped about in front of her building. Isobel attempted to identify their faces, but the angle of the mid-morning sun, hurt her eyes.
    She recognised the uniforms.
    Hold on. They’re mine … My staff. Why the hell would they be out here in this heat?
    She raised a hand to shield herself from the glare and noticed two police vehicles parked up on the curb.
    “Let me past.”
    Isobel pushed through a group of technicians sheltering in the doorway. She entered, spotted a police officer and signalled for him to come over.
    “What’s going on? Who’s in charge here?”
    “This is a police matter, young lady. Staff are to wait outside.”
    “I’ll ask you again. Who’s in charge here?”
    The man sneered and nodded towards a woman who appeared to be twice Isobel’s size in both height and girth.
    “The sergeant’s busy, so if you could just …”
    Isobel ignored the constable and strode towards the woman.
    “You must be Isobel, the owner.”
    The sergeant extended her hand.
    “Do we know each other?”
    “I’ve already interviewed several of your staff, they described you well enough. Please, come and sit down and we can talk. It’s only natural to feel a little overwhelmed.”
    The sergeant led Isobel through a chaotic mess of overturned furniture, fallen racks of fabric and spilt chemical drums. The policewoman lifted two chairs from amongst the mess of broken equipment and sat down.
    “I’ll ask the obvious first, Isobel.”
    She withdrew her notebook and made a place on the only upright table, to write.
    “Do you know anyone capable of doing this? Enemies or rivals perhaps.”
    Isobel shook her head.
    “No I don’t. Who would do such a thing?”
    “According to your staff, there doesn’t appear to be anything missing. It seems to be some sort of threat, but if that’s the case, you’d have to know something about it, wouldn’t you?”
    “Oh please … A threat?”
    The sergeant sighed.
    “Not revenge then?”
    Revenge. Isobel stiffened. The note of cynicism in the policewoman’s voice meant she knew something.
    “What do you mean?”
    “Oh, I think you know exactly what I mean. People don’t take this kind of risk to threaten someone without a reason.”
    Isobel scowled. It smelt like Jenna-bloody-Jovanovich and her pack of rapists.
    “Look, Isobel, I’m not the SRP, but even an ordinary New-South-Wales coppa like myself, has a few good contacts. I know about the rape, unofficially that is, and I also know about your conviction for grievous bodily harm. A permanently scarred face and a wired-up jaw are bloody good reasons for revenge.”
    Isobel tried to stop the images that raced through her mind, but she couldn’t hold them back.
    Many months after the rape, some of her dorkier female classmates invited her to a birthday party. She accepted, not expecting any danger, but within minutes of her arrival, Jenna Jovanovich showed up with two other pretty looking vipers and set about baiting and insulting her.
    “Look at my nose, bitch. The SRP did this, after you dobbed on me about some bullshit rape.”
    “You know it happened. You made it happen.”
    “That’s a joke. Who’d want you?”
    Isobel felt adrenalin surge through her system, but instead of moving, she froze; her body shivering with fear and embarrassment. Her mind kept screaming. Move. Escape. Run.
    Oh God …
    Too late. Daniel and Roberto stood blocking the doorway. As Roberto entered, he threatened the seven other invited girls at the party.
    “No-one moves and if any one of you talk, we’ll kill you.”
    The boys took hold of her and Isobel remembered feeling a lump in her chest, the size of a fist. She tried to pull away when Jenna stepped towards her, but she couldn’t move. She