Miss No One Mark Ayre (children's books read aloud TXT) 📖

about what happened at the school. Given what she has said about the alleged shooter, it might also be in her best interest to confess any previous meetings she has had with this man."

Abbie smiled. How careful Christine was, and fair play to her. Ana was a lawyer, and as with the police, you had to be oh so careful what you said in their presence, even in unofficial settings and during conversations that could undoubtedly not be entered into evidence in any future trial.

Still, whatever Christine said, Abbie knew it would take one more push to get this fish into the boat. She nodded to Ana, who ignored everything Christine had said to proceed with the planned strategy.

"Before Kilman died, he revealed he believed he knew the reason corrupt police officers would want to kill him. It relates to Isabella's kidnapping."

Ana stopped. Didn't go on. This was all part of the plan; it drew Christina in. Once she asked the question, Abbie would know they had her.

Silence.

Silence.

Then, the intercom crackle.

Then, "What was his theory?"

Both Ana and Abbie smiled.

"He said they wanted him dead because he had said no to Ndidi. Ndidi brought him a plan or a suggestion today, and Kilman said no."

Silence.

Ana looked at Abbie, who nodded again. This time she was not suggesting Ana go on. She was saying, Got her.

Silence.

Ana wasn't so sure but trusted Abbie, to a degree, and kept her council.

Silence.

Then, the intercom crackle.

Then, "Okay. You'd better come up."

Given Christine had already been unsure about letting Ana up when she believed the lawyer to be alone, Abbie did not expect the detective's mind to be eased when she realised Ana had employed subterfuge via the information she had left out of their conversation. Namely, information regarding her secret companion.

Christine opened the door, saw Ana, and bit her lip. Though the building had no lift and Ana had traipsed up four flights of stairs to reach the door, Christine still looked as though she might try, with polite words and a firm tone, to make the lawyer leave.

Then Abbie entered stage right.

Christine's eyes widened as had Ndidi's, and she turned a hateful glare to Ana, who appeared unfazed by the wrath.

"We need to talk," said Abbie.

"I'm calling the police."

Abbie stepped forward as Christine tried to slam the door. With a foot and a hand, she prevented the detective from shutting them out.

Rather than attempt to fight Abbie and force her from the flat, Christine turned and rushed deeper inside.

Abbie followed, Ana hot on her heel.

The door opened into a short corridor. A door on the left led to the living room/kitchen, one on the right led to the bedroom, and one at the end opened into the bathroom.

Closing the front door behind them, Abbie and Ana took the left door and stepped into the living room. A small but cosy space comprising a two-person sofa, a TV, a couple of bookshelves, and a kitchen tucked into one corner at the end.

Due to a lack of room, there were no sofa-side tables. Christine had been enjoying a glass of wine which sat on the floor beside the sofa. Her mobile had rested on the arm. As Abbie entered the living room, the detective was collecting her handset and unlocking the screen.

"Deja vu," said Abbie. "Ndidi did exactly the same when I arrived at his place."

This stopped Christine. The phone screen was unlocked, but she looked up at her unwelcome and uninvited guest rather than dialling one of her colleagues or going straight for 999. Abbie knew this gave her only seconds to further delay Christine's initial plan. She started by stating her suspicion as fact.

"The person responsible for Isabella's kidnap is Orion Becker. I believe his plan is to rob the mob-run casino in this lovely little town of yours. Possibly, he coerced information out of sources including Gary that would assist him plan and execute this robbery. He has certainly kidnapped Isabella Ndidi because he needs Detective Idrissa Ndidi to achieve something to do with the police for him. Kilman stood in the way of whatever this thing was. That they have resorted to kidnapping Isabella indicates no corrupt officers are working for Orion of Ndidi's level or higher. That Kilman, of a higher rank than Ndidi, could block their plan indicates they would have been better off kidnapping the child of a more senior officer. Maybe Ndidi was the only one with a young child they could access. I don't know. What matters is Kilman rejected his plan and therefore had to go. Presumably, whoever has replaced Kilman will sign off.... blank."

Following the speech, Abbie took a breath. When Christine remained across the room, phone in hand, unmoving and speechless, Abbie moved further in. Leaning beside the seat, she picked up the glass of wine and sniffed.

"Smells good," she said. "Unfortunately, I don't drink when I'm saving lives, but if you wanted to do a drinks run, I'd go for water. Doesn't need to be filtered. I can see you have a tap, so as long as you own glassware, we're good to go."

Mention of drinks seemed to snap Christine from her reverie. Glancing back at the tap, she paused, then returned to Abbie. She did not make a move to fill a glass. Nor did she offer around biscuits.

"If what you suggest is true," said Christine. "That is all the more reason to make an official statement at the station. It's all useful. It could make a big difference."

Abbie shook her head. "No one would believe me. Certainly not soon enough. Kidnapping is risky business. Orion wouldn't have taken Isabella unless they were ready to move. My guess is they’ll try and rob the casino tonight, so we need to act now. I need to know what plan Ndidi brought to Kilman. That’s the lynchpin. It could explain everything."

Christine looked over Abbie's shoulder to Ana. Like Ndidi, she was still holding the phone up though she had done nothing with it. Like