The Armstrong Assignment (A Janet Markham Bennett Cozy Thriller Book 1) by Diana Xarissa (books for 10th graders TXT) 📕

to the bathroom and then got confused on her way back to her seat. She said she didn’t do much more than walk into the compartment, realise it was occupied, and then turn around and leave. It was fairly dark, but she thought she would have noticed if the knife had already been in place, but it wasn’t, or so she thought.”

“So that’s why you have security here,” Janet concluded.

“The Dallas police or maybe the cops in New York City called someone in Paris and asked them to arrange for me to have some protection,” Bobby said. “I’m not sure I feel any safer with them around, though, after what happened today.”

Janet glanced at Edward. He didn’t look at all bothered by what Bobby had said.

“The attempt on the plane has definitely narrowed down the list of suspects,” Janet said after a moment.

Bobby frowned. “I can’t believe one of the people that I know and trust is trying to kill me,” he argued.

He looked at the clock and sighed. “It’s not much past two o’clock in the afternoon and I’m exhausted. Jet lag is catching up with me. I need a nap.”

“It’s best not to sleep with a head injury,” the nurse said, leaving Janet to wonder just how much of the conversation she’d been able to follow.

“You can wake me every hour, or whatever you want,” Bobby told her. “But I’m going to take a nap now.”

He stood up and walked towards the door in the corner of the room. As he reached for the handle, he stopped and looked back at them.

“Edward, why don’t you and Janet go somewhere and talk? Maybe, between yourselves, you’ll be able to work out which of my beloved friends or family members is trying to get rid of me.”

Edward smiled. “That’s an excellent idea,” he said. “I think the safest place for us to have a conversation will be in Janet’s room. That’s where I’ll be if you need me. Mr. Harrison will stay here to keep an eye on things.”

He got out his mobile phone and sent a quick text before standing up and offering a hand to Janet. She let him help her to her feet and then pulled her hand away before he could hold it for too long. He winked at her as she turned towards Bobby.

“Are you certain you won’t need me for an hour or so?” she asked.

“I won’t need you for at least two hours,” he replied. “Talk to Edward or go for a walk and enjoy Paris. Be back here at five so we can go out for dinner.”

Janet nodded and then she and Edward headed for the door. When Edward opened it, Mr. Harrison was standing right outside. They exited and then Mr. Harrison went into the room and shut the door.

“Fourth floor?” Edward asked as he pushed the button for the lift.

Janet nodded, trying not to look too happy at the prospect of spending an hour or two alone with her husband.

Chapter 9

As Janet pushed her door shut behind them, Edward pulled her into an embrace. When he finally lifted his head, she sighed.

“Is that our two hours all used up?” she asked.

Edward chuckled. “Not quite. We’ve just enough time to talk about a few things.” He pulled her into another kiss.

This time, after a few minutes, Janet pulled away. She crossed to one of the couches and patted the seat next to her.

“We really do need to talk,” she reminded him. “The sooner you catch the person behind the murder attempts, the sooner we can get back to our honeymoon.”

“You’re right, of course, but I can’t help but want to kiss you,” he replied as he joined her on the couch. “For tuppence, I’d tell Mr. Jones I’m leaving and whisk you away.”

“You can’t do that to Bobby.”

“No, I can’t. Mr. Jones could send in more bodyguards, but I’m supposed to be here to get to the bottom of what’s happening.”

“So what’s happening?”

Edward sighed. “I wish I knew. I learned more from Bobby this afternoon when you were talking with him than I did during all of our conversations. When I question him, he gets evasive or simply refuses to reply. I’m not certain why he was so happy to talk with you, but I’m grateful that he was.”

“Maybe his head injury has made him more talkative.”

“Perhaps. At least I now know a little about each of the attempts on his life. That’s more than I knew a few hours ago.”

“You don’t have police reports on the various attempts?” Janet couldn’t hide her surprise.

He shook his head. “You heard what he said. He didn’t even involve the police after most of the incidents. Besides that, the American police have been less than forthcoming. Mr. Jones has requested copies of the police reports from the police in Dallas and New York, but apparently the various attempts in Texas took place in different parts of the state and are subject to different jurisdictions, and obviously, New York City is in a completely different state. As we aren’t able to officially investigate the incidents, they aren’t inclined to provide us with any information.”

“But that’s just dumb.”

Edward laughed. “I suspect, under similar circumstances, that our police at home would be just as reluctant to share information with a random American agency. Regardless, while Mr. Jones keeps trying to get more information from the American authorities, I’ve been doing the same with Bobby. As I said, he hasn’t shared a lot with me.”

“But you now know that one of the people he’s travelling with at the moment has tried to kill him multiple times. Surely the killer will get lucky one of these days if he or she isn’t stopped.”

“I didn’t