The Doll's House - [2]
3
Snow blindness studded her vision and her chest tightened still further. Ruby was in the midst of a full-blown asthma attack now, her panic making her breathing short and erratic. She could feel her heart thundering out a remorseless rhythm, as if it were going to explode. What the hell was happening? Was this real?
She sank her teeth into her arm. The pain coursed through her fleetingly, before she released her grip to try and suck in more air. It was real. She should have known by how bloody freezing she was. Shivering, she lay down on the bed and tried to calm herself. The thought of not having her inhaler was freaking her out, but she had to try and control her panic or she would black out. And she couldn’t do that. Not here.
Calm. Try to be calm. Think nice thoughts. Think of Mum. And Dad. And Cassie. And Conor. Think of fields. And rivers. And sunlight. Think of being a kid. And playgrounds. And summers in the garden. Running through the sprinkler. Think happy, happy thoughts.
Ruby’s chest was rising and falling less violently now, her breathing a little less desperate. Keep your cool. It will be fine. There will be a simple explanation for all this. Propping herself up on her pillows, she took a deep breath and suddenly called:
‘Hello?’
Her voice sounded strange, her words flopping dully off the exposed brick walls. The room was in darkness, save for the light that stole under the bottom of the door, providing just enough illumination to reveal her situation. The room measured about fifteen by fifteen and would have looked like any other bedsit – a bed, a table and chairs, an oven and kettle, some bookshelves – except for the fact that there were no windows. The floorboards that formed the low ceiling above were wooden but oddly betrayed no cracks or chinks of light.
‘Hello?’ Her voice quivered, as she fought to suppress the panic that gripped her. Still no answer, no signs of life.
Suddenly she was on her feet – anything not to be sat still thinking horrible thoughts. She crossed the room, working the handle of the heavy metal door, but it was locked. Frantically she did a circuit of the small room, looking for some means of escape, but found nothing.
She shivered. She was scared half to death and cold to the bone. Her eyes alighted on the cooker. It was an old gas one, with two ovens and four hobs. She was suddenly seized with the thought of turning it on. The four hobs would warm the place up and brighten it a little too. She turned the dial and pressed the ignition. Nothing. Ruby tried the next, then the next. Still nothing.
She walked round the cooker to check out the back. She didn’t know the first thing about cookers, but perhaps there was something obvious?
It wasn’t connected. There were no pipes at the back connecting it to a gas supply. It was just for show. Ruby slumped to the ground. Tears came fast now, as her confusion collided with fear.
What was this place? Why was she here? Questions spun round Ruby’s head, as she tried to process this strange reality. She was slipping fast into despair, tears rolling off her chin on to the floor.
Then suddenly a noise nearby made her look up.
What was it? Was it upstairs or down here?
There it was again. Footsteps. Definitely footsteps. They were coming closer. Stopping outside the door. Ruby jumped to her feet, alive to the danger.
Silence. Then suddenly a wicket hatch in the door slid open and a pair of eyes filled the slit. Ruby stumbled backwards, pressing herself into the corner of the room – she wanted to be as far away from the door as possible.
The sound of bolts being unlocked.
‘HELP!’ Ruby screamed.
But she didn’t get any further. The door swung open, flooding the room with light. Ruby clamped her eyes shut, blinded by the sudden burst of illumination. Then slowly, cautiously, she opened them again.
A tall figure stood in the doorway. Silhouetted by the light behind him, she couldn’t make out his features. He was just a shadow – hovering, watching.
Then as suddenly as it had opened, the heavy door slammed shut again. They were together in darkness now.
Ruby covered her face with her hands and prayed to a God she didn’t believe in, pleading with him to have mercy on her. But for all her praying, she couldn’t block out the sound of the footsteps approaching her.
4
The wind buffeted DI Helen Grace as she sped along the coastal road. She hadn’t been down this isolated spit of land before and she liked what she saw. The wildness, the isolation – it was her kind of place. With the road open before her, she ratcheted up her speed, pushing hard against the strong headwind.
Soon the crime scene came into view and she eased off on the throttle, bringing her Kawasaki’s progress down to a respectable 30 mph. DS Lloyd Fortune was waiting for her by the fluttering police tape. Young, smart, the poster boy for ethnic-minority policing in Southampton, Lloyd was destined for great things. Helen had always liked and respected him, yet still it felt odd having him as her number two. Charlie had been temporarily promoted to DS during their pursuit of Ella Matthews, but her elevation had never been made permanent. And as soon as Charlie had announced her pregnancy, it became academic – she would remain at her former rank of DC for the foreseeable future. It wasn’t fair, but that was the way it worked, the odds forever stacked against working mums.
The international bestseller that "grabs the reader by the throat" (Crime Time).First in the new series featuring Detective Inspector Helen Grace.Two people are abducted, imprisoned, and left with a gun. As hunger and thirst set in, only one walks away alive.It's a game more twisted than any Detective Inspector Helen Grace has ever seen. If she hadn't spoken with the shattered survivors herself, she almost wouldn't believe them.Helen is familiar with the dark sides of human nature, including her own, but this case-with its seemingly random victims-has her baffled.
Детектив-инспектор Хелен Грейс расследует серию преступлений, в каждом из которых похищены два человека. Похититель ставит свои жертвы перед страшным выбором – убить другого или умереть самому. Как долго продолжится эта смертельная игра, зависит только от Хелен. Ведь этими похищениями маньяк шлет послание лично ей.
Detective Helen Grace faces her own dark compulsions in the new thriller from the international best-selling author of Pop Goes the Weasel and Eeny Meeny.In a world where disguises and discretion are the norm, and where one admission could unravel a life, a killer has struck, and a man is dead. No one wants to come forward to say what they saw or what they know – including the woman heading the investigation: Detective Helen Grace.Helen knew the victim. And the victim knew her – better than anyone else.
THE FOURTH DI HELEN GRACE THRILLER BY BESTSELLING AUTHOR M J ARLIDGE 'Helen Grace is one of the greatest heroes to come along in years' JEFFERY DEAVER In the dead of night, three raging fires light up the city skies. It's more than a tragic coincidence. For DI Helen Grace the flames announce the arrival of an evil she has never encountered before. Because this is no firestarter seeking sick thrills, but something more chilling: a series of careful, calculating acts of murder. But why were the victims chosen? What's driving the killer? And who will be next? A powder keg of fear, suspicion and dread has been laid.
From the international bestselling author of Eeny Meeny comes the second thriller in the truly excellent series * featuring Detective Helen Grace."A man s body is found in an empty house.A gruesome memento of his murder is sent to his wife and children."He is the first victim, and Detective Helen Grace knows he will not be the last. But why would a happily married man be this far from home in the dead of night?The media call it Jack the Ripper in reverse: a serial killer preying on family men who lead hidden double lives.Helen can sense the fury behind the murders.
Это продолжение приключений Арсения Строганова и доктора Агапова на берегах Невы. "Если бы у меня была вторая жизнь, – мог бы сказать Эраст Петрович Фандорин, – я бы провел ее вместе с ними здесь, в Петербурге!". Мои дорогие читатели! "Гроссмейстер" получился не хуже, чем "Талисман". Читайте, наслаждайтесь! Содержит нецензурную брань.Эта книга – участник литературной премии в области электронных и аудиокниг «Электронная буква – 2019». Если вам понравилось произведение, вы можете проголосовать за него на сайте LiveLib.ru http://bit.ly/325kr2W до 15 ноября 2019 года.
«Нептун Гранд» всегда был самым роскошным отелем приморского городка, несмотря на сомнительную репутацию и громкие скандалы, что, казалось бы, преследуют элитных гостей отеля. Когда одна из постоялец неожиданно утверждает, что подверглась нападению в своем номере со стороны сотрудника отеля, владельцы «Нептун Гранд» в панике обращаются за помощью к Веронике, чтобы выяснить правду. Дело представляет собой запутанную смесь неопровержимых фактов, таинственных происшествий и сомнительных свидетелей.
«ИСКАТЕЛЬ» — советский и российский литературный альманах. Издается с 1961 года. Публикует фантастические, приключенческие, детективные, военно-патриотические произведения, научно-популярные очерки и статьи. В 1961–1996 годах — литературное приложение к журналу «Вокруг света», с 1996 года — независимое издание. В 1961–1996 годах выходил шесть раз в год, по подписке не распространялся, в 1997–2002 годах — ежемесячно; с 2003 года выходил непериодически. В настоящее время выпускается ежемесячно, доступно получение по подписке. [Адаптировано для AlReader].
Эдгар Уоллес — один из популярнейших английских авторов детективного жанра, создавший за 34 года своей литературной деятельности 173 произведения, в том числе знаменитого «Кинг Конга». «Нет ничего увлекательнее романов Уоллеса!» — заявляла английская пресса 20-30-х годов.
«Дюссельдорфский убийца» — детективный роман выдающегося британского писателя и драматурга Эдгара Уоллеса (1875–1932). Фрау Кун была очередной жертвой Дюссельдорфского убийцы: ее убили кинжалом поздним февральским вечером. Полиция и журналисты начали расследование, не подозревая, что убийцей является известный в городе человек. Уоллес Эдгар — популярный автор детективов, прозаик, киносценарист, основоположник жанра «триллер». Эдгар Уоллес Ричард Горацио — автор множества трудов: «Тайна булавки», «Зеленый Стрелок», «Лицо во мраке», «У трех дубов», «Мститель», «Шутник», «Пернатая змея», «Ворота измены», «Фальшивомонетчик», «Бандит» и других.
Когда на Youtube появилось прощальное видео Алексея, в котором он объясняется в любви к своей жене на фоне атаки талибов на британскую миссию в Афганистане, никто даже не подозревал о том, что это обыкновенный фотограф, который в попытке не потерять работу принял предложение сделать репортаж о старателях, добывающих изумруд.