Innocent Target. Elisabeth Rees

Чтение книги онлайн.

       ONE

      The air inside the house was heavy and moist, the result of an unseasonably warm day in an Oklahoma winter that was likely to result in a thunderstorm. In the living room of her home, Kitty Linklater wiped her brow with a cool cloth, holding it to her temple and sighing. She’d worked up a sweat after sitting at her computer for almost five hours, writing her latest article for the county newspaper, the Comanche Times. She read the headline aloud: “‘Bethesda Man Challenges His Murder Conviction.’” Hovering her finger over the send button, she hesitated, knowing that the article was controversial, likely to enrage the townsfolk and increase her unpopularity.

      But Kitty was no stranger to controversy or unpopularity. For twelve months, she had been investigating the murder of a local teenage girl, found at the side of the road two years previously, her body callously burned to destroy evidence. The small town of Bethesda had reeled from the brutality of it and the residents breathed a collective sigh of relief when a man was arrested, tried and convicted of the crime. Kitty was the only person to feel devastated, because that convicted man was her beloved father, Harry, and she was now utilizing her skills as a freelance investigative journalist to try to prove his innocence. She had initially placed her faith in the justice system, hoping that the truth would win the day, but after the verdict was announced, she knew she had to begin her own investigation.

      Her cell phone rang in her pocket, shrill and sharp, causing her black cat, Shadow, to jump from her lap. He ran from the room indignantly, swishing his tail.

      She pulled the cell from her jeans. “Hello.”

      “Hey, Kitty.” The voice belonged to Sarah Willis, editor of the Comanche Times. “You’re late on your deadline.”

      Kitty was given a weekly slot in the paper, trusted by Sarah to fill it with a mix of investigative coverings and opinion pieces on the most interesting and significant stories in the county.

      “It’s done,” she said. “I’m about to send it to you now.”

      “What is it? Please tell me you’ve moved on from the Bethesda murder.”

      “I wrote another piece about my father being wrongfully accused.” She ignored the groan on the other end of the line. “It’s an important story. I have to cover it.”

      “No, you don’t, Kitty,” Sarah said strongly. “This is the third time you’ve subbed a piece about your father. It’s not right. You can’t continue to use the paper to push your own agenda.”

      “I know it looks bad, but this could be a huge story. I uncovered some new evidence that supports my dad’s claim of innocence.”

      “You did?”

      “I managed to track down a guy СКАЧАТЬ