Night Realm Read Online Free PDF

with four pillows. The pillowcases were all different. Nothing matched. Even the black and white quilt that covered the bed was a different colour and design from that of the pillows. There was a bedside table and lamp. A small TV with DVD player rested on a cabinet beside the bed near the windows. The room had built-in wardrobes and a small ensuite bathroom. The only other furniture in the room was the desk he was sitting at.
    Now that Julia’s case was over he had no cases to work on, which wasn’t good. So far he’d heard nothing from night club owner, Selena Thorne. Possibly she was just being polite the other night when he’d met her, and didn’t really have anything for him to work on.
    He shrugged. If she called, she called. If not, something else would come up.
    He took a shower for something to do and shaved the stubble from his face for the first time in days. When he was done he looked at his reflection in the mirror. His short, dark-brown hair could probably use a bit of a tidy up with some scissors. The whites around the blue of his eyes were surprisingly clear, considering all the late nights he’d had recently. His body was lean and fit and chiseled, accentuated by his olive skin and a light sun tan. He slapped his flat stomach with satisfaction and put some clothes on.
    Ryan left the bedroom and went into the old kitchen. He searched the refrigerator for something to make for dinner. He withdrew a container of leftover pasta from God knows how long ago. Through the clear plastic lid he could see flecks of green mould, so he tossed it in the bin.
    Unable to find much to eat and making a mental note to do some grocery shopping, Ryan opted for sausages and fried eggs on toast in the end. As he was cooking up enough for two, he heard the entrance door open and close.
    “Dinner’s almost ready!” he called out to his sister.
    “Not hungry,” came her abrupt reply and he heard her bedroom door slam shut.
    “She sounds like she’s in a great mood. Again,” he mumbled as he dished up plates for the pair of them, despite her saying she didn’t want any.
    The air was filled with the salivating aroma of eggs, sausages and toast as Ryan sat down at the small dining table to eat. Before him was the living room with an LCD television in the corner near the full-length glass balcony doors. There was a three-seater lounge, beige in colour, and two matching armchairs. A square wooden coffee table rested on the carpet between the furniture. Some newspapers, remote controls and a chess board sat on top of it. Through the glass doors Ryan had a view of the ocean some three hundred metres away. The outlook was partially obstructed by other buildings, but he could still see the water and a stretch of sand. It was twilight out there now, just about everyone having left the beach for the day.
    He tucked into his food and didn’t realize just how hungry he was until he’d swallowed the first bite. The food was washed down with a glass of water. When he was done, he washed his plate, cutlery and the frying pan.
    His sister still hadn’t emerged from her bedroom, so he went to her door and knocked firmly on it. “Chelsea?” The only response he got was the sound of water running in her shower.
    Ryan went out on the balcony and gazed out over the lights of Surfers Paradise by night. Twilight was succumbing to full dark now and he could no longer see the ocean. It was just an indistinct dark smudge beyond the line of buildings. Twenty floors below the highway cut a path through the concrete jungle. That road was never quiet. Even when he’d stood out there at three in the morning it was still relatively busy. Didn’t anyone ever sleep?
    A half hour later Chelsea emerged from her room and stepped into the living room. When Ryan turned and looked at his seventeen year old sister, his jaw dropped.
    “Where the hell are you going looking like that?” he demanded.
    Chelsea was five feet, six tall and had bleached blonde