Read Online The Slowest Cut by Catriona King - Free Book Online

thought it had all gone to plan but once outside the classroom Gerry Warner shoved her to the floor and sprinted off in the direction of the stairs. Thirty seconds later she heard an almighty thud and she knew that he’d been stopped by Liam’s foot or fist. It didn’t matter which; Liam had been right. Warner wasn’t behaving like an innocent man, so they wouldn’t treat him like one.

Chapter Seven
     
    John was meeting Craig at six o’clock, which left him with four hours to fill and he thought he might as well fill them with the case. It would give them a conversation opener before he bored the ass off Craig about Natalie. He flicked on his computer and scrolled through the latest lab results; nothing. Although that didn’t mean that they weren’t available. It sometimes took hours for things to be put on the intranet.
    There was only one real way to find out if they were ready, so John voted with his feet and took the lift to the fifth floor. He was so deep in thought when the doors slid open that he stepped out without looking. John’s lack of attention was rewarded by a feminine sounding yelp and the clatter of papers falling to the floor. A slim woman with long blonde hair was standing in front of him, holding her nose and gazing dolefully down at the shambles John had made of her files.
    “Oh God, I’m sorry. Did I hurt you?”
    The woman lifted her eyes from the mess at her feet and half-smiled, removing her hand gingerly from her face for him to look.
    “Is it bleeding? Only I’d rather not have a nose-job this afternoon.”
    John stared at the woman’s face, horrified by the appearance of a bruise. He touched her reddening nose warily with one finger, his practiced medical hand able to tell that it wasn’t broken. He exhaled gratefully and smiled.
    “No fracture, thank goodness. But you’ll definitely have a black eye.”
    John hunkered down quickly to gather her notes and handed them to her in an unruly heap, babbling in a flustered tone. “I hope they weren’t for something important? I’ll help you rearrange them, if you’ve got the time?”
    The woman smiled at his obvious embarrassment and extended her free hand. “Katy Stevens. I’m an endocrinologist at St Mary’s Trust.”
    John stared at her for a moment then realised that he’d left her hand hanging rudely in mid-air. He grasped it so firmly it made her wince and he apologised again. John waved her to a bench beside the lift.
    “Katy Stevens? You know my girlfriend, Natalie Ingrams, don’t you?”
    A smile spread across the woman’s small face, throwing the darkening bruise into stark relief against her tan. John winced again. She looked like someone had punched her.
    “Yes, we’re great friends. We see each other practically every day at the M.P.E. on the Lisburn Road.” Katy’s smile became a grin and she nodded. “You must be John. She talks about you a lot.”
    The mix of pride and concern that John felt at being discussed showed on his face.
    She laughed. “It’s all good, I promise. Natalie thinks you’re wonderful. Although for God’s sake don’t tell her I told you that. She’ll kill me.” She glanced around the lab, indicating the rows of steel machines. “Do you work here?”
    “Downstairs. I deal with the dead, I’m afraid.”
    “Does that mean you’re afraid of the dead? Or you’re apologising for dealing with them?”
    John laughed. “The latter. It doesn’t make for great dinner party conversation.”
    “Unless you’re with doctors, in which case we’re all fascinated.”
    “Or the police. They’re even more fascinated, trust me.”
    John glanced at Katy’s face again, marvelling at how pretty she was, even with an enormous bruise. Her next words surprised him; they were accompanied by a rueful frown.
    “I dealt with the police last year. About the death of a young mother. After I got over the shock of being interrogated, I have to say they did a good job.”
    “Oh? Who