I feel a little lump in my throat as I follow my friends up the steps of the Queensbeach Civic Hall. A glass of champagne is pressed into my hand as soon as I step through the door, and an army of waiters walk around offering dainty canapés.
“Hey, isn’t that the guy off Eastenders?” Rhett whispers, as we glance over at the Mayor’s table.
I look but I don’t really care. This time last year, I would have been thrilled to meet a soap star, but right now all I care about is spending time with my best friends. It’s so wonderful to have the four of us back together again, even if we won’t remain four for much longer.
“You want to dance?” Deacon asks, as the orchestra starts to play.
“You know what? I don’t think you’ve ever asked me that before,” I marvel.
“There’s a reason for that!” Rhett winks.
Turns out Rhett’s right. Deacon has no sense of rhythm. He steps on my toes, trips over his feet and whirls me into a table. Lord of the dance, he is certainly not.
“Told you,” whispers Rhett, as we sit down again.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I lie.
“Oh, come on!”
But I refuse to admit it’s the truth. Deacon is probably the worst dancer I’ve ever known, but he’s my boyfriend and I find it kind of endearing.
The next morning I pour myself a strong cup of coffee. It was a late night and I’m glad I had the forethought to book the day off work. Home seems like home again, now I’ve got Fluffy back. He rubs up against me as I open my desk drawer and pull out the big pile of mail that’s been waiting for me since I got out of jail.
Most of it’s junk mail, plus tons of bills, which I don’t need to worry about because Deacon took care of all that. Then I notice a handwritten envelope, right at the bottom of the pile. I glance at the date on the stamp. It must have been sitting here for several weeks. I don’t recognise the writing, so I’m a little curious as I open it and read the childish scrawclass="underline"
If you are reading this, you have probably already killed me.
I screw it up tight – and toss it in the bin, but it’s too late, I’ve already seen it. Her voice is in my head:
I want you to know that I forgive you.
I have prayed for you as you must pray for me.
Do not mourn me, for I am in a better place now.
I am with you and I will watch over you always.
To the Reader
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About the Author
Lorna Dounaeva is a quirky British crime writer who once challenged a Flamenco troupe to a dance-off. She is a politics graduate and worked for the British Home Office for a number of years, before turning to crime fiction. She loves books and films with strong female characters and her influences include Single White Female and Sleeping with the Enemy. She lives in Surrey, England with her husband and their 2.5 children, who keep her busy wiping food off the ceiling and removing mints from USB sockets.
You can follow her @LornaDounaeva on Twitter or at www.lornadounaeva.com
More Books by Lorna Dounaeva
A beauty queen is missing.
Troubled mystery writer Jock witnesses the disappearance of beautiful May Queen, Sapphire and is determined to help find her. But he soon discovers that Sapphire is not the person he friends thought she was. Is there a deeper reason why Sapphire wanted the title so badly? Did she know more about the May Queen Killers than she let on?
May Queen Killers is a very British mystery set on the English/Welsh border.
Dedication
For Denis. Thank you for believing in me and my dream. Thank you for the endless cups of coffee and homemade cakes. Thank you for the technical support when I wanted to throw a brick at the computer. Thank you for restraining me when it still didn’t work.
Acknowledgements
There are so many people I would like to thank but I’ll do my best not to make it sound like a drunken Oscars speech. In particular I’d like to thank Margaret James, Maria Dounaeva, (my sister-in-law is my clock), Rob Barker, Mimi Dendias, Rory Matheson, Greg Malcolm, Faye Malcolm, Virginia Malcolm and Clifford Malcolm.
Thanks also to all my early readers, Lizzy Cooper, Freya Barker, Nicola Welch, Tracy Donovan, Irene Woods, Lorna Day, Heidi Dexter, Sam Fryer, Katherine McCarthy, Donal McCarthy, Barbara Graffham, Anna Britton, Dawn Wylie, Liz Richards, Clare Berry and Becky Cullen.
Cover design by Marcin Koziello (Grafire Studio).
© 2013 Lorna Dounaeva. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.