Deadly Deceit Read Online Free PDF Page B

Ponytail. She smiled and held out her hand. “I’m Jessica Turner, and you must be…”
    “Brad Regan.” He spoke with a soft American accent as he shook her hand.
    He was still wearing his hair in a ponytail, which she’d normally have thought naff for a man who looked to be in his 40s. But, wearing a printed shirt loose over dark trousers, he seemed at ease with himself. She liked that about him. “You run the dive company, I believe?”
    “You’re well informed, Jessica.”
    His whole face lit up when he smiled. She could see why he was a hit with the ladies.
    “Call me, Jess.”
    “Do you dive, Jess?”
    “Afraid not.”
    “Then you’re missing something special.” He pointed in the direction of the ocean. “Just a few hundred yards offshore, the seabed suddenly drops to 7,000 feet. We call it the wall.” He paused. “You must let me take you out there. It’s fantastic. ”
    She shivered. “I’m not a fan of the deep and what’s out there.”
    “There’s very little in the deep,” he said. “The sea-life exists all around the coral reefs and inside, where the food is, although you can see the migrating whales pass through the Columbus Passage during the winter.”
    “The Columbus Passage?”
    “It’s a deep water trench that runs between the Caicos Bank and the Turks Bank.” He paused. “It’s sometimes called The Turks Islands Passage. Here, let me show you.” He beckoned her to follow him behind the bar where an old map of the islands hung on the back wall. He traced his finger along the map. “The Turks and Caicos Islands run directly south of the Bahamas, and south-east of Miami.”
    Jess knew the geography from the map attached to her background brief, but she let him tell her anyway.
    “There are lots of islands in the chain, but only a few are inhabited.” He pointed to them.
    “The Islands of West Caicos, Providenciales, North Caicos, Middle Caicos, East Caicos and South Caicos all sit in a sort of semi-circle on the northern edge of the Caicos Bank.” He moved his finger to the east. “And here’s Grand Turk, where we are, sitting on top of the Turks Bank, and Salt Cay lies just south of us.” He ran his finger over the ocean between the Caicos Bank and the Turks Bank. “Here’s the Columbus Passage.”
    “Ah, I see.”
    He looked at her. “These two Banks are like flattened mountain summits. The islands sit above sea level, with shallow water all around them. As you get to the edge of the two banks, it’s like going over a cliff. That’s where our 7,000 feet drop comes in.”
    Jess gave an involuntary shiver.
    He grinned at her reaction. “It’s wonderful out there, Jess. Please let me teach you to dive.”
    Jess couldn’t think of anything worse. But he was so enthusiastic, she heard herself say, “Maybe I’ll give it a go sometime.”
    “How about Saturday?”
    She hesitated.
    “Hi Brad!” David called out, as he returned with a large bucket of ice. “I see you two have met.”
    Jess was glad of the interruption. “Brad was on the same plane as me coming over from Provo.” She stopped, wondering whether to mention the scene with the child and Big Shot in the terminal.
    But she didn’t have to because Brad got in first. “You’ll have to forgive Roger Pearson,” he said. “He’s just been appointed Immigration Minister. It’s turned his head a little.”
    “ A little? ” David walked back behind the bar, with a sour look on his face. Clearly he didn’t think much of Roger Pearson either.
    Jess frowned. “The surname Pearson seems familiar.”
    Brad laughed. “The Pearson family are a dynasty over here. Half the islanders have British surnames from colonial days.” He turned to David, serious now. “How’s the Governor? Have you heard anything more about what actually happened?”
    David shook his head. “It was a hit and run. A vehicle slammed into the Governor’s Land Rover at the crossroads on his way down from the Ridge early this