Free Blood Symmetry by Kate Rhodes Page A

tightly packed as pencils in a box. The boat my brother Will and his girlfriend Nina shared had seen better days. The Bonne Chance was a Dutch barge in need of TLC, moored at the end of a jetty. When the galley door opened, Nina gave me a tentative smile. We’d seen plenty of each other in the last few months, but she still seemed gripped by shyness. Her knitted dress emphasised her slim build, cropped black hair revealing lines of tattooed script tracing the contours of her neck. She stepped back to admit me to the narrow galley. The space had an overcrowded charm, bright enamelware filling every nook and cranny, simple wooden furniture painted in primary colours.
    â€˜Will was just talking about you,’ she said.
    â€˜Nothing scandalous, I hope?’
    â€˜He was speculating about your love life.’
    My brother kissed my cheek. ‘You’re cold, Al. You’d better sit here.’
    Will made room for me by the log burner. He looked in good shape. The shadows under his eyes had disappeared, and so had the ragged beard he’d worn for years. He was almost as clean cut and handsome as he’d been a decade ago,before his bipolar disorder took hold.
    â€˜Tell us about your new man,’ he said.
    â€˜Not till I’ve had a glass of wine. How’s work going?’
    â€˜Pretty good. I can make smoothies and clean toilets with the best of them.’
    â€˜You still like the people?’
    He nodded. ‘The juice bar’s like the United Nations. I can say hello, goodbye and thank you in Russian, Arabic and Swahili.’
    â€˜That’s three more languages than I’ve got.’
    It still seemed odd that someone with a first-class Cambridge degree in economics had ended up in a café in Covent Garden, but any job was better than none. When his illness was at its height, it had seemed like he might never work again.
    â€˜How’s the FPU?’
    Telling the truth was off limits. If he knew I was working on a brutal abduction case, it would trigger an all-out panic. ‘It’s full of boffins with no social skills.’
    â€˜You’ll fit right in.’
    â€˜Charmer.’ His upbeat mood made me chance a risky question. ‘Have you seen Mum lately?’
    His smile faded. ‘We went on Saturday.’
    â€˜God, you’re good. It’s my turn this Saturday. How was she?’
    â€˜Bitchy as hell, but I managed not to hurl anything at her.’
    â€˜Admirable self-control.’
    Tension eased from his face. ‘Have dinner with us. Nina’s made chicken casserole.’
    â€˜You don’t have to ask twice. It smells heavenly.’
    The evening turned out to be a pleasure. Will’s first relationship for a decade fitted him like a glove, his connection with Nina stronger than ever. They even linked hands under the table as we drank coffee. It was only at the end of theevening that she volunteered the news that she had enrolled at London University to do a PhD on Romantic Poetry.
    â€˜That’s wonderful,’ I said. ‘Can you stay on the boat?’
    â€˜We’ve got it for another year. My friend’s contract in New York’s been extended.’
    Will’s gaze had slipped out of focus, his arm settled round Nina’s shoulders. Witnessing their happiness made me want to shut my eyes, in case I tempted fate.
    â€˜Lola says your new boyfriend’s a cop,’ he said.
    â€˜She’s such a gossip. You met him years ago. It’s Don Burns.’
    â€˜I don’t remember him. Is it serious?’
    â€˜How would I know? The idea terrifies me.’
    Nina leant forwards, revealing a tattoo below her jaw, a line of blue-black words too small to read. ‘You deserve some happiness, Alice. Maybe it’s time for a leap of faith.’ Her soft French accent almost had me convinced.
    I walked home across Tower Bridge reflecting on her advice. Until now I’d kept my feet firmly on the ground,