The Half-Child Read Online Free PDF Page A

Madam.’
    â€˜Oh god, don’t call me Madam. It’s Jayne.’ She handed him a business card.
    â€˜Rajiv Patel,’ the man said, exchanging it for one of his own.
    Though only a month since his uncle’s heart attack, Rajiv’s card bore the logo of Seema’s Bookshop and listed his profession as Acting Manager and Information Technology Consultant. A string of qualifications after his name suggested he was older than he looked.
    â€˜So, Miss Jayne,’ Rajiv said, nodding towards the computer, ‘how can I help you?’
    â€˜Just Jayne, please.’
    He wiggled his head again. She took it as a nod.
    â€˜I’m after novels by Carol O’Connell,’ she said, ‘an American crime writer. I’ve read Mallory’s Oracle and I’d like to see if she has any others.’
    Rajiv tapped at the keyboard.
    â€˜We have one called The Man Who Lied to Women ,’ he said, looking at the computer screen. ‘Sounds ominous, isn’t it?’
    He issued instructions to one of Uncle’s runners, and they watched as the man shuffled across to the bookshelves and pulled out the paperback.
    Rajiv winked at Jayne.
    â€˜Do you read much crime fiction?’ she asked as she paid for the book.
    â€˜I try to read a bit of everything to build my general knowledge. If what they say about a little knowledge being a dangerous thing is true, then I am becoming a very dangerous man.’
    That smile again. Jayne looked once more at the letters on his business card. Rajiv Patel was becoming increasingly attractive. She decided to take a chance.
    â€˜Would you like to have coffee with me?’
    â€˜Yes.’
    They looked at each other, both surprised.
    â€˜Though the coffee around here is not so good,’ Rajiv added.
    â€˜And on a hot night like this, maybe cold beer would be better?’ Jayne said.
    â€˜You are reading my mind.’
    Since then they’d gone on several dates. At least Jayne assumed that’s what they were. She’d almost forgotten what it was like to be romanced, so much so that spending quality time in the company of a straight man whilst not getting laid messed with her sense of equilibrium.
    The venue on this occasion was a floating restaurant on an old pontoon near the Phra Athit pier. Jayne disembarked from the ferry, taking care not to brush up against the orange robes of the Buddhist monks, and checked her watch. Rajiv managed to be so punctual despite the vagaries of Bangkok traffic, she could time it for a cold beer to arrive at the table just as he did.
    Rajiv sighed as his mobile phone screen lit up yet again with his uncle’s number. He hit the loudspeaker button.
    â€˜Yes, Uncle.’
    â€˜Are you already leaving the shop?’
    â€˜Yes, Uncle.’
    Rajiv slipped the phone into his shirt pocket, dragged the accordion gate across the shopfront and snapped the padlock into place.
    â€˜Do you think you should be going back and checking that you have turned off the electricity?’ his uncle’s voice buzzed against his chest.
    â€˜I have turned off the electricity, Uncle- ji ,’ Rajiv said, retrieving the mobile and speaking into it like a Dictaphone.
    â€˜I checked.’
    â€˜It will be very important,’ the old man said. ‘My own brother’s wife’s father’s business burned down two years ago due to a malfunction in the electrical circuitry—an accident that could have been avoided if only the master switch had been left in the off position.’
    He paused to clear his throat and Rajiv acted quickly to fend off an impending lecture about the myriad misfortunes, acts of God and other catastrophes that had the potential to destroy Uncle’s businesses and those run by his extended family members, friends and associates in Thailand.
    â€˜Rest assured, Uncle, I have followed your instructions to the letter. Your reminder call is always appreciated. I will see you