The House By The Sea

::T::Ie:l_ie:::i *:9::: level 3 Series editor:Philip Prowse TheHouseb! theSea PatriciaAspinall CanvrnnrDGE UNI\rERSITY PRESS YR E S S C A M B R I D GU E N I V E R S I TP Cambridge,New York, Melbourne, Madrid, CapeTown, Singapore,Slo Paulo,Delhi Contents Cmbridge UniversityPress The Edinburgh Building, CambridgeCB2 8RU, UK www.cmbridge.org Information on this title: w.cambridge.orgl978052177 5786 @ CambridgeUniversity Press1999 This publietion is in copyright. Subjectto statutory exception and to the provisions of relwant collective licensing agreements, no reproduction of my part may ake place without the written permissionof CambridgeUniversity Press. First published 1999 l5th printing 2009 Printedin Italy by L.E.G.O. S.p.A. A caahgue recordfor thispublication h auailablefrom the British Library ISBN 978-0-521-77578-6 paperback ISBN 978-0-521-68658-7paperbackplu audio CD pack or CambridgeUniversityPresshc no responsibilityfor the persistence accuracyof URLs for sternal or third-puty Internet websitesreferredto in this publication, and dos not guilantee that my content on suchwebsitesis, or will remain, accurateor appropriate Information regarding prices, trrel timetables and other factual information given in this work re correct at the time of first printing but Cmbridge University Pressdoesnot guarantee thc accuracyof such information thereafter. Chapter I Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Old friends .\7'aiting for Linda Mad Tom Avoice in the dark The smell of death Dead father Shestill lovesme Too many questions 'Whosefault is it? The yellow dress 6 t2 r9 24 30 35 42 48 >4 60 Characters Carl Anderson: a businessman.He lives and works in London. LindaAndersonr Carlt wife. She buys the house by the sea. Mary Banks: the owner of the Ancient Mariner pub in Little Moreton. Police Constable (PC) Grant the young policeman in Great Moreton. Melissa: a friend of Lindas. - they went to John: a journalist and old friend of Carlt university together. Tom Parker: he lives in a car on the beach in Little Moreton. Bill Parker: Torns brother and a taxi driver in Little Moreton. ChapterI Oldfriends It was lunchtime. I d been in the Jolly Sailor pub in west London for about half an hour, when I saw a man sitting by himself in a corner of the room. Although I didnt know his name I was sure I knew him from somewhere. He had grey hair and he was looking out of the window at the River Thames. I don't usually go to the pub at lunchtime, but it was the birthday of one of the other journalists at work. There were four of us. I asked them if they knew the man sitting in the corner. They looked over, but no-one knew him. I don't know why, but I just kept looking at him, trying to remember. Finally, when we were all about to go back to work, the man turned round and looked straight at me. He knew me, I could see,becausehe smiled at me. 'Who was he? Then I realised it was someone I had been at university with five years ago. I couldnt remember his name immediately. He looked so old. He started to get up from his chair and I walked over to him. As I got closer I remembered his name. 'Carl,' 'Sfhat 'good are you doing I said, to see you. here?'I held out my hand. 'John, what a surprise! It's been such a long time.' He 'Itt shool