Read Online The Song Never Dies by Neil Richards - Free Book Online
Authors: Neil Richards
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and that song?”
“I don’t think—”
“You weren’t there? Your husband says he was?”
That made Lauren look up fast.
“You talked to Will?”
So Will didn’t tell Lauren about me and Jack, thought Sarah.
That in itself was interesting.
Her instinct told her to play down Will’s involvement.
“We’ve talked to a couple of people who were there.”
Lauren finished her last mushroom, put down the short knife and wiped her hands on her apron.
“All right. Yes. I knew they were arguing. They’ve always argued. I just didn’t see it myself. So I really don’t know what was said.”
“I see,” said Sarah.
How convenient.
But suggesting an even more important question.
“Then, just let me get this straight. Where were you? At the party, I mean. By yourself somewhere? Some place where you couldn’t hear a thing?”
For a moment, it seemed as if Lauren was considering that as a reasonable answer.
Her eyes looked away.
If ever Sarah had met someone hiding something, it was this woman trying to cower behind her dinner preparations.
Then — maybe realising that if she had been with others at the party Sarah might already know who that was.
Instead, Lauren said, “Um, no. When they were all arguing, I wasn’t really in the house. I went out … for some air.”
She left the big fancy party? Walked out to the gardens?
For air? And she expects me to buy that?
*
Jack watched Chris Wickes pull off his helmet, a silver full-face model, then give his long dark hair a shake.
Quite the entrance, Jack thought.
Biker. Rock star. Still has his hair. Though Jack could see lines of grey in it.
Jack walked over as Wickes killed the engine on the big Harley.
“That a CVO?” Jack asked.
There had been a time that — along with his interest in sports cars, Jack thought of getting a Harley.
But when a good friend — off duty cop, riding from NYC to Adirondacks, got rear-ended and killed by a hyped-up trucker, Jack thought better of it.
Four wheels are better than two.
And a doctor he knew hit the nail on the head, calling them ‘donor cycles’.
Still, this was one impressive machine.
“Yeah. The limited version,” Wickes said.
The cycle was a brilliant gold and black, with the chrome-plated engine gleaming in the sunlight.
And the motorcycle featured a raised passenger seat, perfect for whatever female Wickes wowed as he roared into town.
“You ride?” Wickes said, now sliding off the bike.
“Oh, no. Still, got to admire the craftsmanship. Set you back a pretty penny?”
“Penny? You from the States?”
Jack nodded and smiled.
Wickes obviously liked having this expensive machine being fawned over.
But after another slow glance, from front to rear, Jack turned to Wickes, who was standing next to him, enjoying all that appreciation.
“Say. Been wanting to bump into you.”
Wickes smile faded.
“Had some questions to ask.”
The smile turned into scowl.
And Jack knew — this would not be easy.
11. Liar, Liars ….
Sarah forced herself to wait. Another technique she had learned from Jack.
Slow things down.
If someone was lying or hiding something, it’s good to let it all hang a bit.
Let those bits of doubt and self-questioning creep in.
Then: “For air? Walked out. By yourself?”
The quickest of nods.
“How long were you out there. A minute? A few minutes? Longer?”
The difficulty of making something up was closing in on Lauren Dumford.
Sarah had to admit it, this part always felt like fun.
Bit of a hunt to it all …
Lauren had turned back to her worktop now — unfortunately — empty of any task that she could use to occupy herself.
“I — er — I’m not sure. Just went out. Walked around.”
Another trap she just walked into. If you give a bit of what sounds like a detail then you’d better know exactly what that detail is.
“Where exactly did you ‘walk’ around? Down to the pool house maybe?”
And now fully boxed in … cornered, she saw
“I don’t think—”
“You weren’t there? Your husband says he was?”
That made Lauren look up fast.
“You talked to Will?”
So Will didn’t tell Lauren about me and Jack, thought Sarah.
That in itself was interesting.
Her instinct told her to play down Will’s involvement.
“We’ve talked to a couple of people who were there.”
Lauren finished her last mushroom, put down the short knife and wiped her hands on her apron.
“All right. Yes. I knew they were arguing. They’ve always argued. I just didn’t see it myself. So I really don’t know what was said.”
“I see,” said Sarah.
How convenient.
But suggesting an even more important question.
“Then, just let me get this straight. Where were you? At the party, I mean. By yourself somewhere? Some place where you couldn’t hear a thing?”
For a moment, it seemed as if Lauren was considering that as a reasonable answer.
Her eyes looked away.
If ever Sarah had met someone hiding something, it was this woman trying to cower behind her dinner preparations.
Then — maybe realising that if she had been with others at the party Sarah might already know who that was.
Instead, Lauren said, “Um, no. When they were all arguing, I wasn’t really in the house. I went out … for some air.”
She left the big fancy party? Walked out to the gardens?
For air? And she expects me to buy that?
*
Jack watched Chris Wickes pull off his helmet, a silver full-face model, then give his long dark hair a shake.
Quite the entrance, Jack thought.
Biker. Rock star. Still has his hair. Though Jack could see lines of grey in it.
Jack walked over as Wickes killed the engine on the big Harley.
“That a CVO?” Jack asked.
There had been a time that — along with his interest in sports cars, Jack thought of getting a Harley.
But when a good friend — off duty cop, riding from NYC to Adirondacks, got rear-ended and killed by a hyped-up trucker, Jack thought better of it.
Four wheels are better than two.
And a doctor he knew hit the nail on the head, calling them ‘donor cycles’.
Still, this was one impressive machine.
“Yeah. The limited version,” Wickes said.
The cycle was a brilliant gold and black, with the chrome-plated engine gleaming in the sunlight.
And the motorcycle featured a raised passenger seat, perfect for whatever female Wickes wowed as he roared into town.
“You ride?” Wickes said, now sliding off the bike.
“Oh, no. Still, got to admire the craftsmanship. Set you back a pretty penny?”
“Penny? You from the States?”
Jack nodded and smiled.
Wickes obviously liked having this expensive machine being fawned over.
But after another slow glance, from front to rear, Jack turned to Wickes, who was standing next to him, enjoying all that appreciation.
“Say. Been wanting to bump into you.”
Wickes smile faded.
“Had some questions to ask.”
The smile turned into scowl.
And Jack knew — this would not be easy.
11. Liar, Liars ….
Sarah forced herself to wait. Another technique she had learned from Jack.
Slow things down.
If someone was lying or hiding something, it’s good to let it all hang a bit.
Let those bits of doubt and self-questioning creep in.
Then: “For air? Walked out. By yourself?”
The quickest of nods.
“How long were you out there. A minute? A few minutes? Longer?”
The difficulty of making something up was closing in on Lauren Dumford.
Sarah had to admit it, this part always felt like fun.
Bit of a hunt to it all …
Lauren had turned back to her worktop now — unfortunately — empty of any task that she could use to occupy herself.
“I — er — I’m not sure. Just went out. Walked around.”
Another trap she just walked into. If you give a bit of what sounds like a detail then you’d better know exactly what that detail is.
“Where exactly did you ‘walk’ around? Down to the pool house maybe?”
And now fully boxed in … cornered, she saw
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