Clean

Zusatztext “A fun blend of Chinatown and Blade Runner.”—James Knapp! author of State of Decay “[A] tightly-written futuristic detective story set in an alternate Atlanta… This crisp debut marks Hughes as a writer to watch.” — Publishers Weekly Informationen zum Autor Alex Hughes has written since early childhood, and loves great stories in any form including scifi, fantasy, and mystery. Over the years, Alex has lived in many neighborhoods of the sprawling metro Atlanta area. Decatur, the neighborhood on which Clean is centered, was Alex’s college home. Klappentext The first in a new series about a telepathic private investigator. OA fun blend of "Chinatown" and "Blade Runner."NJames Knapp! author of "State of Decay." Original. Leseprobe CHAPTER ONE My first interview of the night was Esperanza Mensalez–Már, a thirty–something woman dressed in a pink–pressed suit I suspected cost more than my last paycheck. Not that I’d seen the paycheck, but that was the kind of impression she gave off, like she had too much money to cope. She was here as a suspect in the death of her husband. A uniformed officer escorted me, today’s babysitter to make sure I didn’t break any laws while interrogating. He took a menacing position at the back of the room and glared at the woman like she was his worst enemy—exactly what I wanted. I entered, carrying my props: an old–fashioned ream of paper and two sharpened pencils. From the tape they’d given me, I’d pegged Esperanza as a control freak. So I threw the paper down crooked, spilling it everywhere, adding the pencils so they rolled along the table, then slouched back in the chair. I grabbed one of the pencils just before it hit the floor and started tapping it on the table. Tap, tappity–tap. Tappity–tap, tap, tap . Just for fun, I altered the pattern every now and then to keep it grating on her nerves. I stared at Esperanza for a long time while the pencil tapped against the table. Since Lieutenant Paulsen had exiled me to the interview rooms again, I’d be here three hours or more with nowhere else to go; I thought about that hard, knowing some of it would leak into my face. After ten minutes, her hand shot out and flattened mine against the table, stopping the pencil. “Stop,” she said. “Just stop.” Once her hand touched mine, I had what I needed. “I’m required by law in this situation to tell you I’m a Level Eight telepath.” Her hand shot back immediately. She wiped it against her skirt by reflex, as if she’d touched something slimy. The cold mask she’d worn had transformed into a look of abject horror. “You—” “I’m also required by law to tell you that skin–to–skin physical contact increases my ability to read your mind. Under certain conditions, it can be hazardous to your health and mental well–being, so for most people it’s considered wise to avoid all physical contact with telepaths.” I quoted the standard write–up the Guild gave the public. In reality, touch was only dangerous when the telepath wasn’t expecting it, and I’d figured her to do just what she had. So I’d blocked as a precaution. Any normal could have told you all she was thinking about was the tapping anyway. She started to say something, but I cut her off. “I’m very impressed, Esperanza.” “It’s Mrs. Mensalez–Már,” she said evenly, steel in her voice. I’d hit a nerve. I slouched back in the chair and started tapping the pencil again, staring at her patiently. I’d noticed in the previous interviewer’s tape that the more he attacked her on a point of her story, the more she’d get cold and professional. So I’d back up, let her own fears work on her a bit. See what would happen. She couldn’t take the silence long. “You can’t possibly—” “I can feel how much you hated him,” I stated calmly, in the tone of voice you’d use to start a long story. “But the hyphen o...

Dettagli sul prodotto

• Autori: Alex Hughes
• Editore: Ace Books
• Lingue: Inglese
• Formato: Tascabile
• Pubblicazione: 04.09.2012
• EAN: 9780451464750
• ISBN: 978-0-451-46475-0
• Pagine: 352
• Dimensioni: 107 mm x 173 mm x 24 mm
• Serie: Mindspace Investigations Novel; Mindspace Investigations; Mindspace Investigations
• Categoria: Narrativa > Science Fiction, Fantasy