Dark Heart Surrender Read Online Free PDF Page B

‘You’ve had a tiring day. And I’m droning on about some angry teenager. I’m sorry.’
    Luca shook his head. He really didn’t want to tell Jane about his day. Particularly not about the necklace he’d found. There was probably an innocent explanation for that, he tried to tell himself. It wasn’t necessary to drag her in to it.
    ‘I like hearing you talk,’ he said instead. ‘It has this incredible calming effect on me.’ He glanced up at her, narrowing his eyes comically. ‘Except for the bits about other guys taking you out. That tends to do the opposite.’
    ‘Good. I’m glad you’re not sick of me already.’ She leaned in closer to him. ‘But seriously, I want to know about your work with Pete. It must be awful being back there.’
    ‘Yeah. It’s … well, it’s not so bad,’ he said. ‘I mean, it’s so cold and damp and abandoned, and the work is tough.’ He bit his lip. Omitting the most important detail of the day was harder than he’d thought.
    ‘What is it?’ Jane pulled away from him, her eyes sweeping his face. ‘There’s something you’re not telling me, I know it.’
    He returned her gaze, on the brink of denial, but something about her anxious expression told him that honesty was the best policy.
    ‘I found something,’ he said then. ‘In one of the huts, on the floor. Lying there like it had been wrenched from its owner.’
    ‘What?’ Jane drew her hands up to her neck, afraid.
    ‘A silver chain – a necklace.’ He let out a breath.
    ‘Is that all?’ She visibly slumped in relief. ‘I thought you were going to say you’d found a severed head or someone’s arm—’
    ‘It was lying in fresh blood,’ Luca continued, cutting through her. ‘The necklace was lying in blood.’

CHAPTER SEVEN
     
    I  upturned my backpack, knowing my bike lock was in there somewhere. Heat spread through my face, coming up from my neck, as I rifled through the various bits of rubbish lying on the corridor floor. At last I saw the lock, half trapped in my purse. I grabbed it and quickly gathered up my things and stuffed them back in my backpack.
    ‘Hey,’ said a gruff voice behind me as I got to my feet. ‘You got my brother a date yet?’
    I turned, flushed, and forced myself to smile at Polly, even though I was irritated. It was nine a.m. and mornings were never my strong suit.
    ‘Hey.’ I slung my backpack over my shoulder. ‘Good to see you here.’
    ‘Well?’ she persisted.
    ‘Well, not yet,’ I said, flustered. ‘But today. Today I’m having lunch with a couple of people.’ I glanced anxiously out of the door, spotting my unlocked bike resting against the wall.
    ‘Huh,’ said Polly, watching me. ‘Not quite so interested in me today?’
    I frowned. ‘Of course I am. It’s just I need to lock up my bike.’ I gestured outside. ‘Sorry, I’m a bit distracted.’
    She nodded, smiling a little unpleasantly. She looked different today. She’d let her hair dry naturally and it hung in thick red curls down to her waist. Her dress was black and short and tight, and her legs were bare and startlingly white. On her feet she wore green Doc Marten boots. It was a difficult look to pull off for most people, but she looked stunning.
    And she knew it. Several male students passed us, their eyes drawn appreciatively to Polly. The girls looked her up and down with suspicious, narrowed eyes.
    If she realized they were looking at her, Polly didn’t show it. Instead she stepped a little closer to me, her pretty nose wrinkling at the tip, her pale-blue eyes holding me there.
    ‘What’s your story,’ she said in a breathy half-whisper, ‘Jane Jonas?’
    I couldn’t remember telling her my surname. I guessed she must have asked Mrs Connelly, or another student. It didn’t matter, except for the way she was scrutinizing me now, which was making me uncomfortable.
    ‘What do you mean?’ I said, as lightly as I could.
    She smiled again like a sleepy cat. ‘Oh, don’t mind