Islanders. Наталья Андреева

Чтение книги онлайн.

СКАЧАТЬ impossible to identify them!”

      “You must call the police.” Seva said. “ They will decide.”

      “Yes.” Ivan agreed. “I think our session is over. On the background of this murder everything else is not important.”

      “Wow!” Arthur said suddenly. “We both left for the corridor! Now you can say that I killed him!”

      “The best defense is the attack, isn’t it?” Angelica blinked her eyes. “And in fact you are right! I have left you together and went to the balcony to smoke. I think it is clear.”

      “But you invited him there.” Arthur answered angrily. “Do you remember?”

      “By the way, I was waiting him in vain.”

      “Who will prove it?”

      “I shall go to call the police.” Zhanna said. “Don’t touch anything here and better to dismiss.”

      “Dismiss?” Lida screamed. “But one of us is the murderer!”

      “She is nervous.” Ivan said.”Not to dismiss but to go away from here.”

      Meantime Zhanna went to the door. Nobody stopped her.

      “As for the murderer.” Arthur crookedly grinned. “He is among us. I am sure it will be better to call the police.”

      “Yes!” Angelica exclaimed. “I need the protection! I won’t stay alone now!”

      “Let’s call immediately.” Vera said. “I am …” she added.”I feel terrible.”

      “We should wait for them here.” Lida sobbed. “Close to the body! Oh, I am afraid!”

      “I also feel bad.” complained Seva.

      “I don’t know what to say about myself.” Ivan reminded. “My private practice will be closed then. Could you imagine – the murder happens during the session of psychotherapy! That’s a scandal!”

      “Nobody will go to your sessions.” Angelica said. “Never!”

      “I should say.” Ivan looked at her and continued. “One of us is the remarkable actor. Nobody protested against a call to the police. Not a single person. All were for the call but in fact someone plays! Lies! What do you think, who?”

      “You are the psychologist and you will find who.” Angelica said suddenly. “What about acting …”

      At that moment Zhanna who recently had disappeared behind the door rushed into the room and cried.

      “Could you imagine? The telephone socket is broken! The wires are cut off! We have no phones!”

      “We haven’t got phones, have we?” Vera asked.

      “No phones?” Lida echoed her.

      “Be quiet.” Ivan said. “We all have mobile phones. Don’t begin to panic.”

      “Oh, my God!“ Zhanna shouted. “How stupid I am! Well, of course! The mobile phones!”

      And she rushed back in the room. Everybody followed her.

      Cut off from the Continent

      “Be careful!” said Vera to Zhanna when the last slipped in a hall and was ready to fall. She picked her up by the elbow.

      “Thanks.” Zhanna murmured and released her elbow rushing to the small table of the red color.

      “Why is it water on the floor?” Seva asked in wonder.

      “Oh,my God!” Zhanna shouted. And everybody forgot about the pools on the floor. “Where are our mobiles!”

      “What?” Ivan asked tensely.

      “They are gone! I can’t see them!”

      “Where are they?” Arthur was surprised. Lida turned pale.

      “Have a look!”

      And Zhanna moved forward that box where they had put the mobile phones. She moved it up to the end.

      Vera came the first to watch as she was standing close to and began checking by her hand on a bottom of the box hoping to find a hiding place in which mobile phones were. Then she said helplessly.

      “They are gone.”

      “Do you want to say that …” Lida put her hand on the chest. “Can we call the police? Oh!”

      “We should go downwards and try to call.” Ivan said.

      “Or ask the neighbors.” Arthur noticed.

      “The neighbors?” Ivan thought. “As I know not a single apartment on that floor is sold jet. On the ninth floor there is a repair. Builders work there till six pm. The eleventh floor is empty too. Half of apartments are sold but there still nobody was there. I know that windows are light up on the fifth floor in the evenings. May be on the seventeenth floor.”

      “How could you live there?” Arthur grinned.

      “The apartments are expensive here.” Ivan justified. “I don’t know exactly on which floor people live. But if you want we can try to go down.”

      “To my mind it’s easy to go down on the ground floor then to the street and ask somebody for the mobile.” Vera said and moved Ivan from her way. “I shall go.”

      “A very self-confident woman.” Angelica noticed. “She had found the body! And she said that I am weak!”

      “She is strong.” Arthur noticed coming out from the apartment.

      “It is better for us to keep together.” Lida said seriously and followed him.

      In the corridor where Sergey's body was she screamed and began to shiver.

      “Well, well, calm down.” Ivan came after and hugged her. “Do not look there, Lida.”

      “What happens here?” suddenly they heard the woman’s shout again from the elevator’s platform. Ivan with Lida then Seva and Zhanna rushed there. Angelica was the last to leave the apartment.

      On a platform they saw Vera pulling the handle of the door to the stairs.

      “Don’t do it so hard.” Arthur told her.” It’s locked from within.”

      “It can’t be locked! “ Angelica said. “I have come here the last and saw that the door was opened and the key was in the lock!”

      “Ah, you’re the last!” Lida looked at her. “That means you have locked the door and took the key!”

      “Arthur, I can’t.” Vera turned back to him. “You’re the man, say something!”

      He tried to open the door.

      “It’s such a heavy door!”

      “Yes, СКАЧАТЬ