Fatal Secrets. Barbara Phinney

Читать онлайн.
Название Fatal Secrets
Автор произведения Barbara Phinney
Жанр Короткие любовные романы
Серия Mills & Boon Love Inspired
Издательство Короткие любовные романы
Год выпуска 0
isbn 9781472023506



Скачать книгу

thought he was, I’d rather not be a Christian at all.”

      She stopped chewing. The bitterness in his words bounced around their booth. She’d never heard such cold condemnation. What would her parents say to this?

      Suddenly, the ache of grief weighed down her heart. Her parents would have known the right answer. They were wonderfully compassionate. They’d taken her in twenty-one years ago, finding themselves with a small child after many years alone. It must have been hard for them to keep up with a busy little toddler.

      But enough of that. What could she say to Zane? He seemed so disappointed with God. How could she take that away?

      She couldn’t. Nor was it any of her business, no matter how sad it made her feel. With a sip of water, she swallowed the corn chip and hastened to change the subject. “You said you have a brother. Where are your parents?”

      “Dead. Both my birth parents and my adoptive ones. I was adopted shortly after I was born,” he told her tersely.

      “So what clues led you here?”

      “While I was living in upstate New York, I did a data search for the last name Kendall.” He spelled the name. “My adoptive mother only ever told me the last name and only after a good deal of pressure. She was afraid of my adoptive father.”

      His jaw had tightened again, she noticed.

      As if catching her curiosity, he cleared his throat and took a chip. “Anyway, I got a break once with some online photos from Westbrook University. So I decided to move here and set up my business.”

      He dipped a chip into the salsa. “The lead today turned out to be no good.”

      Their meals arrived and when the server left them, Kristin stared at her food.

      She snapped her attention back him, remembering why the name sounded familiar. “What did this Kendall guy study?”

      “Art, specializing in oils, I’m told. I don’t even know if he is my brother. He’s already left the area.”

      Kristin set down her glass of water. “There’s a painting in one of the lecture rooms that’s signed ‘Bobby Kendall’ with that same spelling. It could be his. It’s of Lindbergh Lake, about eighty miles from here. It’s this multiseasonal three-sectioned painting, so the artist would have needed to go there frequently to plan his work. Maybe he’s there now.”

      “I’ve checked everywhere.”

      “But there’s the Bob Marshall Wilderness Area nearby. People spend months in The Bob all alone.”

      “I’ll consider it after we’ve settled your case. Do you think your lecturer would talk about the artist?”

      “I’m sure he would. He bored me silly for a whole semester about other artists and they’re dead.”

      Abruptly, Zane laughed. “Ouch! That’s awfully critical, isn’t it?”

      “You’re right.” She smiled back.

      She liked being around Zane.

      His gaze drifted over her shoulder toward the front entrance. Suddenly, he stiffened. “Kristin, listen to me carefully,” he whispered. “Take your purse and walk toward the washroom, but don’t go in. Do it now!”

      She opened her mouth, but his icy glare froze any questions. Lifting her purse, she slid out of the booth.

      “Hurry, but don’t run,” he said quietly, taking a fake sip of water. “And don’t look around.”

      A minute later, she found herself down the dim hall near the washrooms, her heart pounding. From the front of the restaurant, the sound of a loud crash bounced down to her.

      She jumped. What was going on?

      Suddenly, a dark blur raced toward her and propelled her into the restaurant’s busy kitchen. Inside the steamy room, a young cook’s eyes widened in shock.

      Then someone slapped a hand over her mouth.

      Конец ознакомительного фрагмента.

      Текст предоставлен ООО «ЛитРес».

      Прочитайте эту книгу целиком, купив полную легальную версию на ЛитРес.

      Безопасно оплатить книгу можно банковской картой Visa, MasterCard, Maestro, со счета мобильного телефона, с платежного терминала, в салоне МТС или Связной, через PayPal, WebMoney, Яндекс.Деньги, QIWI Кошелек, бонусными картами или другим удобным Вам способом.

/9j/4AAQSkZJRgABAgEASABIAAD/4RORRXhpZgAATU0AKgAAAAgABwESAAMAAAABAAEAAAEaAAUA AAABAAAAYgEbAAUAAAABAAAAagEoAAMAAAABAAIAAAExAAIAAAAUAAAAcgEyAAIAAAAUAAAAhodp AAQAAAABAAAAnAAAAMgAAABIAAAAAQAAAEgAAAABQWRvYmUgUGhvdG9zaG9wIDcuMAAyMDEzOjA2 OjIyIDE0OjA0OjE2AAAAAAOgAQADAAAAAQABAACgAgAEAAAAAQAABXigAwAEAAAAAQAACKYAAAAA AAAABgEDAAMAAAABAAYAAAEaAAUAAAABAAABFgEbAAUAAAABAAABHgEoAAMAAAABAAIAAAIBAAQA AAABAAABJgICAAQAAAABAAASYwAAAAAAAABIAAAAAQAAAEgAAAAB/9j/4AAQSkZJRgABAgEASABI AAD/7QAMQWRvYmVfQ00AAf/uAA5BZG9iZQBkgAAAAAH/2wCEAAwICAgJCAwJCQwRCwoLERUPDAwP FRgTExUTExgRDAwMDAwMEQwMDAwMDAwMDAwMDAwMDAwMDAwMDAwMDAwMDAwBDQsLDQ4NEA4OEBQO Dg4UFA4ODg4UEQwMDAwMEREMDAwMDAwRDAwMDAwMDAwMDAwMDAwMDAwMDAwMDAwMDAwMDP/AABEI AIAAUQMBIgACEQEDEQH/3QAEAAb/xAE/AAABBQEBAQEBAQAAAAAAAAADAAECBAUGBwgJCgsBAAEF AQEBAQEBAAAAAAAAAAEAAgMEBQYHCAkKCxAAAQQBAwIEAgUHBggFAwwzAQACEQMEIRIxBUFRYRMi cYEyBhSRobFCIyQVUsFiMzRygtFDByWSU/Dh8WNzNRaisoMmRJNUZEXCo3Q2F9JV4mXys4TD03Xj 80YnlKSFtJXE1OT0pbXF1eX1VmZ2hpamtsbW5vY3R1dnd4eXp7fH1+f3EQACAgECBAQDBAUGBwcG BTUBAAIRAyExEgRBUWFxIhMFMoGRFKGxQiPBUtHwMyRi4XKCkkNTFWNzNPElBhaisoMHJjXC0kST VKMXZEVVNnRl4vKzhMPTdePzRpSkhbSVxNTk9KW1xdXl9VZmdoaWprbG1ub2JzdHV2d3h5ent8f/ 2gAMAwEAAhEDEQA/AOnZ9ZPqyxu1vTbI866j/wBVcnZ9Zvq1W/1K+mPY/wDfbTSD/neouUTFwCzB MR+WEI+UIh1fu0DvxH/CLlfX1lfWuvfb8RvoMfRWxzbdHFzC8bv0XqN+hsb9Jc2/omWQJsrg6id3 9X9xdi7HF977v0c1VH0xdqwvG61+5n+F9DFruu9L9/0FKxmKyqqqyljxTSa2WG0Wx6VthdXUzaz9 JmZb93p7si/7PX6P83b6iX32UaiBxG/6o39THPlse1H7Xif2Flf6Wr73f+QS/YWV/pKvvd/5BdMK unjEc8vtcQGsDw3a/e93Ox59DbWyq9np1+t7/wDCf4NjOpwXue45BxgHlvpGl8taOPznfpHt/m6n u3+qpfvctdJaGvkl+UVv3XF2P2vNfsLK/wBLV97v/IKQ6Jk+kW+pXO4Hl0RDh+4t7KbUzJsbRrSH foz7j7T9H3WNY53+vpoYa6IDXawW6HUatlv7yf78yL/Yr7tj7H7XD/YWV/pKvvd/5BL9hZX+kq+9 3/kFtJJe/k7j7EfdsXY/a4v7Cyv9LV97v/IJLaSS9+fcfYr7ti7H7X//0Aep9yiXTwrtWL051oYf V2nXcXgdv6qjk4OMx49NztsSPdJ+GjVhcdmjbs+9Dxc3qGdlN9FrXhtbWub6W1pr1+luqe17Hb1Q w2luTX6cgiYLW7yAGnd7A6t/0Pp7LPVYz31+9XPra1mBjYl2MCW2uc1287o9ocONq5p3UcvYXN9M w0n6JnQf1lb5fHeMSgBG7+0S/SYZ54Aka/Y9W+5285H6y11Qczc9nqETYy/7Y4vs+m33/orP0v8A wqa27MaSyiu55ftFpeLPoNFY/R1WWP8Ab/oPtHqPo/wS5OnqmZYzd7O44P8A5JXsD9sdQsdXh0i5 1bS+wgQ1jf3rLHvaxn/f1LKOUAkygK3P8pLBmxmt/sd/IyH7bbXstyce2xjnb2vDW1s9Zzmsutst dXa19tNjPS2VojrciC4nJDiHH1DXYxjB+j0cym76e1mz1Mayr9HXX6qwcluVjYrcl2bhPa9zq211 Pc5xLI9T2w32N3bdyou6jlhjnDZ9EuBgwYH9ZIDLLYx37S/75JzY/F0rp9aySXHe6XO0cdT7nyXe /wDtKELJs6xmbh6bWHcdCWny/lfykh1TOAl/ptH9X/zJO9mfh9qz7zj8fsdZJY/7av8A+D/zT/5J JL2J+CvvWPx+x//RpseN+9ji9saqdljGmv0xssMtBdxLlkte5jt1b5gbgJEz7vbt/ssVunNx7XNb b7RJEmRH9b913uWVKHXduCST6012V9HYHS8MvafEAOa5vP8AKeuRdWxzSWGCWu0+IK7Hrz3u6NDC HsaWE99Q7/yK5ZrK7G+32vg6fJTcoSMev7xWZBr9Gt0vHsuaKmRve8NbOgkgcr0XN6n0z6p4R6Ji VDIfi0i/qlpG31cm4D7Lj/yma7/S/wBB6FP/AHIXGfUrHF3VqG2wa2WNteDwQwG3b/4ErOPc/q/