Dire Straits Read Online Free PDF

than that, she’d become a friend. And as I’m learning, it’s handy to have a mate who owns a dry cleaning service.
    She finally sobers up and looks at me a seriously. ‘You’re in trouble?’
    I bite my lip and nod.
    ‘You look like what you really need is a stiff drink.’
    I sigh. ‘That’d be nice. Unfortunately I can’t stay. I need to deal with,’ I pause for a beat, ‘other things.’
    She nods in understanding. ‘If there’s anything else I can do…’
    ‘Thanks, Becks.’ I smile tightly and deposit the bag of clothes onto the counter in front of her. ‘I really appreciate this. Can I pick these up tomorrow morning?’
    ‘You mean you’re not prepared to trade in your leather jacket for that dress?’
    I tug at the bodice self-consciously. I like the dress but it’s not really suitable attire for a private investigator. Not if I want to be taken seriously.
    ‘Not just yet. Although maybe Tam will make it the new uniform when he sees me.’ I try to keep my voice flippant, but my stomach remains a tight ball of tension.
    ‘Yeah. I’d love to see what some of those hulking brutes you work with look like in a flowery dress.’
    ‘With a bow at the back.’
    She smiles, masking the worry in her face. ‘Naturally.’
    ‘I’ll be back first thing in the morning.’
    The door jangles, signalling the arrival of a new customer.
    ‘Thank you! Come again!’ Rebecca trills to me, in full shopkeeper mode.
    I sweep a dramatic curtsey from behind the customer’s back then make a hasty exit. As soon as I’m outside I turn on my phone. It flashes with three missed calls and all of them are from Tam. I suppose at least he’s not working under the mistaken assumption that I am now in police custody. It doesn’t really mean much though. If he’s behind the plot to frame me for O’Shea’s supposed murder, he’ll already have the cops in his pocket and be aware that neither the daemon nor I were present at the house when they arrived.
    I’m not prepared to speak to him over the phone. When I talk to him, I want to look into his eyes. Right now, he can wait. I’ve got other things to sort out.
    I’m about to jab in the number I need when I reconsider. I gaze down at my phone for a moment then slap my forehead. I’m a prize idiot. If the police are looking for me, all they’ll have to do is to track my phone signal. Until I’m completely sure about what is going on and who is on whose payroll, I’m not willing to hand myself in for questioning. I wouldn’t trust the police; there are too many tales of corruption at all sorts of levels for some of them not to be true.
    I glance back at The Steam Team. The police will already be able to follow me there. I’m tempted to go back inside and warn Rebecca but I decide against it. I know I can trust her and I’ll only spook the customer who’ll be more likely to remember me. No, better to ditch the phone now and pick up a burner instead. Without further ado, I drop it onto the pavement and crunch it under my heel. Then I turn my attention to the car and frown.
    It may be a rusting heap of junk, but it’s my rusting heap of junk. But now it’s covered in blood and the longer I keep it, the more likely it is to become a liability. Its only saving grace is that it’s too old to have an in-built GPS system which can be used against me. I could leave it here – after all, the phone will already have led the police to this location but I’m concerned about the blood. I don’t need any more evidence tying me to O’Shea’s attack than there is already.
    I climb in and drive off. I know just the place to park. Right now, though, despite having a vague plan of action, I’m feeling less like Sam Spade and more like a fully paid-up member of the Keystone Cops. Hanging on to my phone is the sort of rookie error that’s keeping me at the bottom of the heap at Tam’s. If I’m going to get out of this unscathed, I need to be a hell of a lot smarter.
    The