Читать онлайн «A Dark and Twisted Tide»

Автор Шэрон Болтон

About the Book

Former detective Lacey Flint quit the force for a safer, quieter life. Or that’s what she thought.

Now living alone on her houseboat, she is trying to get over the man she loves, undercover detective Mark Joesbury. But Mark is missing in action and impossible to forget. And danger won’t leave Lacey alone.

When she finds a body floating in the river near her home, wrapped in burial cloths, she can’t resist asking questions. Who is this woman, and why was she hidden in the fast-flowing depths? And who has been delivering unwanted gifts to Lacey?

Someone is watching Lacey Flint closely.

Someone who knows exactly what makes her tick . . .

Contents

Cover

About the Book

Title Page

Dedication

Epigraph

Map

Prologue

Saturday, 28 June

Chapter 1

Thursday, 19 June

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Tuesday, 12 February

Chapter 14

Friday, 20 June

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Chapter 26

Chapter 27

Chapter 28

Chapter 29

Sunday, 23 March

Chapter 30

Saturday, 21 June

Chapter 31

Sunday, 22 June

Chapter 32

Chapter 33

Monday, 23 June

Chapter 34

Chapter 35

Chapter 36

Chapter 37

Chapter 38

Friday, 4 April

Chapter 39

Tuesday, 24 June

Chapter 40

Chapter 41

Chapter 42

Thursday, 26 June

Chapter 43

17 May

Chapter 44

Friday, 27 June

Chapter 45

Chapter 46

Chapter 47

Chapter 48

Chapter 49

Chapter 50

Saturday, 28 June

Chapter 51

Chapter 52

Chapter 53

Chapter 54

Chapter 55

Sunday, 29 June

Chapter 56

Chapter 57

Chapter 58

Chapter 59

Chapter 60

Chapter 61

Monday, 30 June

Chapter 62

Chapter 63

Chapter 64

Chapter 65

Chapter 66

Chapter 67

Chapter 68

Chapter 69

Chapter 70

Tuesday, 1 July

Chapter 71

Chapter 72

Chapter 73

Chapter 74

Chapter 75

Chapter 76

Wednesday, 2 July

Chapter 77

Chapter 78

Chapter 79

Chapter 80

Chapter 81

Chapter 82

Chapter 83

Chapter 84

Chapter 85

Chapter 86

Chapter 87

Chapter 88

Chapter 89

Chapter 90

Chapter 91

Chapter 92

Chapter 93

Chapter 94

Chapter 95

Chapter 96

Thursday, 3 July

Chapter 97

Friday, 18 July

Chapter 98

Author’s Note

Acknowledgements

About the Author

Also by Sharon Bolton

Copyright

A DARK AND TWISTED TIDE

SHARON BOLTON

In memory of Margaret Yorke, who was my neighbour, my mentor and my friend.

And according to the success with which you put this and that together, you get a woman and a fish apart, or a Mermaid in combination. And Mr Inspector could turn out nothing better than a Mermaid, which no Judge and Jury would believe in. Charles Dickens, Our Mutual Friend

Prologue

I AM LACEY Flint, she tells herself, as dawn breaks and she lifts first one arm then the other, kicking hard with legs that are longer and more powerful than usual, thanks to a stout pair of fins. My name is Lacey, she repeats, because this mantra of identity has become as much a part of her daily ritual as swimming at first light. Lacey, which is soft and pretty, and Flint, sharp and hard as nails. Sometimes Lacey is amused by the inherent contrast of her name. Other times, she admits it suits her perfectly.

I am Constable Lacey Flint of the Metropolitan Police’s Marine Unit, Lacey announces silently to her reflection in the mirror, as she dresses in her pristine uniform and sets off for her new head quarters at Wapping police station, taking comfort in the knowledge that, for the first time in many months, a police officer feels like who she was meant to be.