Playing with Fire
Chapter One
The barge she sat in, like a burnish'd throne, burn'd on the water," Banks whispered. As he spoke, his breath formed plumes of mist in the chill January air.
Detective Inspector Annie Cabbot, standing beside him, must have heard, because she said, "You what? Come again."
"A quotation," said Banks. "From Anthony and Cleopatra."
"You don't usually go around quoting Shakespeare like a copper in a book," Annie commented.
"Just something I remember from school. It seemed appropriate."
They were standing on a canal bank close to dawn watching two
barges smolder. Not usually the sort of job for a detective chief inspector
like Banks, especially so early on a Friday morning, but as soon as it had
been safe enough for the firefighters to board the barges, they had done
so and found one body on each. One of the firefighters had recently
completed a course on fire investigation, and he had noticed possible evidence
of accelerant use when he boarded the barge. He had called the
local constable, who in turn had called Western Area Police Headquarters, Major Crimes, so here was Banks, quoting Shakespeare and waiting
for the fire investigation officer to arrive.
"Were you in it, then?" Annie asked ... read full excerpt from Playing with Fire ebook
