Free TICK TOCK RUN (Romantic Mystery Suspense) by H Elliston Page A

must have been pretty distraught about the thought of Laura canoodling with Mark.  Maybe last night’s alcohol had Mark saying things he shouldn’t.  I wished I’d been the bar maid so I could have listened.  I laughed then blushed, imagining myself dressed up in a naughty French maid outfit, something fit for a stag meeting. 
    Before I could turn to go back in my house, a chirpy voice called out, “Hey!”
    I looked right and spotted Lee jogging along the pavement in the rain.  Perfect timing!  The nearer he got, the more my insides felt like they were bouncing along with him.  “Hey, stranger!  Where did you disappear to last night?”  I grabbed the flaps of his open jacket and pulled him through the front door.  My delight at seeing him hit me hard. 
    “I went through my brother’s belongings again.  I thought I told you?”  He pulled away and smiled.  “Who was at the door?”
    “Paul.  Laura’s fiancé.”
    Lee pursed his lips, and then poked his head out into the street.
    “Shut the door and come inside.”  I guided Lee through to the dining room, and just stood, overjoyed to have someone in my corner for the next dreaded email. 
    “You can let go of my hand now, Chelsea,” he said, failing to wriggle out of his coat using one arm.
    He draped his coat over the radiator.  “I came back late last night, but you didn’t answer the door.”
    I threw him a towel.  “I went to Laura’s.”
    He ruffled his wet hair.  “Anyway, we’ve got our work cut out for us today, trying to figure out this mess.”
    Finally, I pulled up my email account.  “No new messages yet.  Did you discover anything last night?”
    He twisted his lips in disappointment.  “No diary, no notes.  I went through all Daryl’s cupboards and even rooted in the bins.  Nothing but standard bills, application forms for credit cards and loans.  Junk.  I just don’t know what I’m looking for.” 
    I crossed the room toward the kitchen.  “What about photos?”
    “Well, his computer was smashed in, even the hard drive, so dead end there.  Nothing struck me as strange on his camera.”
    “What about his girlfriend?”  I grabbed a carton of milk, then glanced at Lee while closing the fridge door.  “Didn’t your friend ‘Phillip’ say that Daryl had been seeing someone?”
    Lee nodded, sat on the sofa and flattened his ruffled hair.  “I never met her.  It seems that no one did, which is strange.  Either she’s an illegal, got two heads or she’s married.”
    I tried not to laugh.
    “Anyway, then I checked his mobile.  There weren’t many text messages.  I guess he deleted them.”
    I stirred the coffees.  “Do you think he has this person’s number in his phone?  How creepy would that be?”
    “His contact list reads like a business pages of plumbers, electricians...  I presumed a lot of the phone numbers were clients, listed by profession so he’d know who was who.”
    I carried the drinks into the dining room and lowered myself onto the sofa. 
    “Thanks, Chelsea.”  Lee took the mug from my hand, then changed seats and sat at the computer.  “Still nothing yet,” he said, swivelling in the chair like a child.  “Did you come up with any leads?”
    “Diddly-squat.  My friends and I—”  I paused, sipping from my ‘It seemed like a good idea at the time,’ mug.
    “Did they have any suggestions about who you could’ve upset?”
    “I didn’t mention it last night.  Laura’s got enough on her plate.  Besides, they saw the email the other day and said it wasn’t worth worrying about.”
    Lee tilted his head to one side.  “Really?”  He put his mug down and tapped a pen on the desk.
    “Well, actually, Emma asked me about it last night.  She thinks it’s a virus.  My best friend… well, Laura didn’t seem concerned.  She thought it rude to call me a ‘slag’ in the email, but that’s about all she said on the subject, apart from warning me about