Downward Facing Death Read Free Page A

don’t tend to go to those lengths. If help hadn’t arrived so quickly, you may not be opening at all.”
    Keeley blanched as the reality of the situation began to hit her. Ben went on, seemingly oblivious to her distress.
    â€œForensics will be back tomorrow to see what—if anything—they can find in the way of evidence to identify the perpetrator. It wasn’t a particularly professional arson attempt, but it was definitely deliberate.”
    â€œBut who would do such a thing? And to an empty shop?” Keeley shook her head. Whatever she had been expecting upon her return to Belfrey, it wasn’t this.
    Arson. It sounded so, well, sinister.
    Ben looked at her intently.
    â€œUnfortunately, arson is often one of the easiest crimes to commit and one of the hardest to prove. But there are usually two reasons: revenge for some kind of grudge, or an insurance scam.”
    â€œWell, I certainly had nothing to do with it.” Keeley drew herself up to her full height—just under five foot four—and glared at him. As gorgeous as he might be, she wasn’t going to stand here in her own shop and be accused of something so heinous. Or at least, he was making it sound heinous. She wondered if he really was hiding something, or if the mysterious air was just part of his ego trip.
    Ben didn’t bat an eyelid at her indignation.
    â€œIf you say so. In that case, Miss Carpenter—Keeley—you need to ask yourself this: Who carries enough of a grudge to attempt to derail your business?”
    Keeley couldn’t answer him. There was no one—how could there be? She hadn’t set foot in Belfrey for ten years, and everyone had loved her father. Perhaps her mother hadn’t been quite so popular, but Keeley couldn’t think of any reason why anyone would want to do this to her. And besides, who carried a grudge for ten years? She shook her head mutely at Ben, who continued to regard her with an intensity that made her uncomfortable. To think, for years at school, she had longed for him to look at her.
    â€œYou’re absolutely certain,” Ben said slowly, “that you only arrived in Belfrey today?”
    â€œYes!” she snapped, exasperated. “I told you, you can check.”
    He went on as if he hadn’t heard her. “And you have no quarrel with any of the residents in Belfrey?”
    Keeley was becoming seriously annoyed. She took a deep breath, trying to remember everything she knew about staying calm in the face of anger. It seemed the ancient yoga masters of India had never had to deal with the likes of Benjamin Taylor.
    â€œHow about a man named Terry Smith? Remember him?”
    His question confused her enough that she momentarily forgot her fury at him. Clearly, his questions were leading somewhere.
    â€œNo, I don’t think so. My mother might. Why, do you think he did this?” If that was the case, why insist on interrogating her ? Then Ben’s next words took all the breath from her body, like a sucker punch to her stomach.
    â€œHardly. Considering that he was found dead upstairs.” Ben jerked his head up to the ceiling, indicating the studio flat above the shop, where Keeley had planned on holding evening classes. Her gaze followed the direction of his movement with a kind of morbid curiosity.
    â€œDead?” she echoed.
    Ben nodded, his full mouth flattened to a grim line.
    â€œNot just dead. Murdered.”
    Keeley stepped back and away from him, pressing her hand to her chest and feeling her eyes widen in disbelief. She groped for the kitchen counter and leaned against it, forcing herself to relax. Ben just continued to look at her with no trace of sympathy. Surely he didn’t think her responsible for that ?
    â€œMurdered … but why?”
    â€œWell, that is precisely what I intend to find out. You’re certain you don’t recall him?”
    Keeley shook her head. Then she began to feel angry