Faraday 01 The Gigabyte Detective Read Online Free PDF Page A

perfume, had brushed her hair thoroughly to make it shine in the candle-light. She was sitting on the settee and there was gentle classical music playing.
    He came in hesitantly, almost as though he suspected a trap.
    “You’ve been a long time.” But she kept her voice deliberately light and friendly.
    “Yes.” He cleared his throat. “I - er - I bumped into Dominic Yates. Do you remember him?”
    “Of course I do. What did he have to say for himself?”
    “Not a lot.” He hung his head.” In fact we mainly talked about us.”
    “About us? Do you mean about you and me?”
    He transferred his weight from one foot to the other. “Yes. I was telling him about how we seemed to have drifted apart in recent months.”
    “You discussed that with him?” She couldn’t keep the anger completely out of her voice.
    “Let’s face it, Charlie, the old magic seems to have gone. You and I are always rowing nowadays. We never seem to agree on anything any more.”
    His comments seemed to make her freeze inside. This was serious and unexpected. But she was careful when she said, “If that’s the way you feel, don’t you think you ought to have discussed it with me first instead of some bloke you hardly ever see.”
    “I felt I needed to talk to someone who wasn’t emotionally involved - to be able to test my thoughts on someone who wouldn’t blow up in my face. Besides, I reckon I see him more than I see you these days.”
    The cynicism in his voice hurt. She was quiet for a long time, thinking through the meaning of the twist that the conversation had taken. “So what is this leading up to, Mitch? What have you and Dominic Yates decided to do about it?”
    “Charlie.” He moved towards her but she pulled away and he didn’t try to follow her. “We’ve got to face the facts. No partnership like ours will last unless each of the partners thinks the other is the most important person in their life. I’ve realised for some time that I’m not as important to you as your job.”
    She shook her head and took a breath to reply but he hurried on. “The question I needed to ask myself is whether you’re still the most important thing in the world to me.”
    “And am I?”
    He looked straight into her face for the first time. “I realised, when I was honest with myself, that it was more important to me to stay here than go with you to Torquay - not that you’ve asked me, of course.”
    “I see.” She was silent for a while, digesting the import of his words. “So - where does that leave us?”
    “Well, Dominic said he had spare room, so I went round to look at it.” He turned away guiltily. “I can move in over the weekend if I want to.”
    She gulped. “And do you want to?” Her heart was pounding in her chest. Surely things hadn’t got that bad.
    “Since you’re off on Monday.” He still wouldn’t look at her. “I thought I might as well grasp the nettle, so to speak.”
    “But you can stay on here while I’m in Devon. It’s only for three months, Mitch.” Charlotte thought that would give them a chance to pull back from the brink if they decided they still needed each other.
    He shook his head. “I couldn’t afford this flat by myself - not on my salary.”
    “You know that money doesn’t matter, Mitch. I’m going to keep the place on anyway. It’s better for it to be occupied while I’m away.”
    “No,” he said, “I don’t want to be supported by you.”
    “Oh, you’re so bloody proud!” She grabbed his arm and swung him round, forcing him to face her. “What’s the point of making some stupid statement of principle like that? You won’t save me anything by moving out if I’ve got to pay the rent anyway. And the Devon and Cornwall Police Authority will be meeting my subsistence costs while I’m down there, so I’ll be able to afford it.”
    His eyes slid defensively away from her again. “It isn’t only that, Charlie. You know as well as I do, that if I stay here, we’ll