Green Light (Sam Archer 7) Read Online Free PDF

on.’
    Panic in
her eyes, Vargas again tried to say something as she stared up at
him.
    ‘ I’m not going anywhere,’ Archer said, desperately trying to
reassure her as her blood ran through his fingers. ‘I
promise.’
    Vargas
didn’t reply. She couldn’t.
    And as
he stared at her, Archer saw the faintest sheen of tears appear in
her eyes again.

FOUR
    A month
later it was the third week of October. The warmth of the summer
was now just a memory, replaced by a chill that seemed to be
increasing by the day, the leaves on the trees in the city turning
golden, caramel and brown as the city residents began to get ready
for the upcoming holiday sequence of Halloween, Thanksgiving and
Christmas.
    A few blocks from his home on West 78 th Street, Josh watched leaves
fall from trees across the street and drift down onto the
pedestrians below, the branches disturbed by the slight wind. He
was sitting inside a coffee shop, a freshly-served cup of Earl Grey
tea in front of him. The place was warm and welcoming, smelling of
blended coffee and baked goods straight from the oven; as it was
mid-afternoon on a Sunday the atmosphere was muted, but under the
table Josh’s leg was jiggling with suppressed tension as his mind
raced, turning over possible scenarios.
    Unlike
those around him, he wasn’t at all relaxed.
    He
hadn’t thought it possible but what had already been a terrible few
weeks had, in the last few hours, threatened to take a drastic turn
for the worse.
    Twenty
feet away, the bell rang as the door opened, allowing a sudden rush
of cold air into the coffee shop; Josh looked over and saw Marquez
walk in, right on schedule. She was dressed in grey jeans, a black
and grey polo neck and a black jacket, the pistol and NYPD badge on
her hip briefly visible as she closed the door, her dark hair loose
around her shoulders.
    Spotting
her team-mate, she moved forward to join him, taking a seat across
the small table and blowing air into her cold hands.
    ‘ Any sign of him?’ Josh asked, as she sat down.
    ‘ Nothing,’ she said. ‘He wasn’t there. You?’
    ‘ Not a trace. I checked his apartment, his gym, his local bar,
talked to his neighbours. They haven’t seen him since yesterday
morning.’
    Marquez
swore. ‘So where the hell is he?’
    As the
pair looked at each other, confused and worried, a waitress
approached and Marquez ordered a black coffee, no milk or
sugar.
    ‘ You think he flew back to England?’ she suggested, once the
waitress had departed. ‘Just forgot to mention it?’
    ‘ I thought of that so I called Chalky. He said he and Archer
haven’t spoken for a couple of weeks. Anyway, Arch’s hearing is on
Monday. He’s not allowed to skip town. He misses that, he knows he
could get kicked out of the Department.’
    There
was a pause. Marquez ran her hand through her hair worriedly,
looking out of the window.
    ‘ When was the last time you spoke to him?’ she
asked.
    ‘ Day before yesterday.’
    ‘ How was he?’
    ‘ Pissed off. Really pissed off.’ As he spoke, Josh noticed the
look on her face. ‘What?’
    ‘ You think he did something stupid?’
    ‘ What do you mean?’
    ‘ What happened to Vargas hit him hard. That kind of shit can
mess with your head.’
    Josh
realised what she was thinking. ‘Lisa, are you kidding? This is Sam
Archer we’re talking about. That son of a bitch is harder to put
down than anyone I’ve ever met. No way would he help someone do
it.’
    ‘ No, no, I don’t mean that,’ she said hurriedly. ‘I mean do you
think there’s a possibility he went after someone? On his own,
without telling us?’
    ‘ Why would he? The case is closed.’
    ‘ Maybe he found something.’
    Before
Josh could reply, Marquez’ coffee arrived. As the female detective
thanked the waitress and picked up the cup, wrapping both hands
around it in an attempt to warm her cold fingers, Josh considered
the possibility of his detective partner planning to exact his own
justice after what