Beautiful Lie the Dead (41 page)
Green stood at the open door watching him walk down the driveway into the night. He seemed to be enjoying the soft magic of the Christmas lights on the fresh snow.
Green heard Sharon come up behind him, felt her arms slide around his waist. “Such a lonely man. Do you think he's loved her all these years?”
Green thought of the photos of the children in Jules's apartment. Of the tender fingertip touch between him and Amélie. Of the resolutely solitary life he'd led.
“Possibly,” he said slowly. “I think he loved Amélie, would have loved to be a father to her, but I don't think loving a woman came easily to him. He put the welfare of her child before his love of Lise. He's been paying ever since.”
“Such a waste, for all of them.”
He smiled faintly. He felt equal parts of sorrow and hope. “But at least he has reconnected with Amélie.”
“A daughter of sorts.” She paused and tipped her head to look up into his eyes.
“Yes,” he said in answer to the question he saw in them. God help me.
Behind every good writer there is a critiquing group, and in my case, I am indebted to the continued patience and perceptive advice of fellow writers Joan Boswell, Mary Jane Maffini, Sue Pike and Linda Wiken. Another friend and fellow writer, Robin Harlick, provided advice and information about setting, and my nephew Paul Cullum helped decipher the mysteries of ISPs. I'm grateful to Emma Dolan for her wonderful cover design and to my editor Allister Thompson and my publisher Sylvia McConnell for their ongoing support and belief in me.
For his humour and insight, which persists even after eight novels, I'd like to thank Mark Cartwright of the Ottawa Police for his technical information and advice. Since part of the action in
Beautiful Lie the Dead
takes place in Montreal, I'd also like to thank the Service de Police de la Ville de Montréal for their assistance with Montreal police procedure, in particular Detective-Lieutenant Denis Bonneau of the Major Crimes Section, and Agent Jean Pierre Leblanc of PDQ26. Any errors in police procedure, whether accidental or intentional, are mine alone.
Most importantly, I'd like to thank Napoleon & Company for continuing to champion the cause of excellence in Canadian crime writing despite all the challenges posed by the modern book industry.
Since this is a work of fiction, all the characters are the creations of the author and any resemblance to people living or dead is purely coincidental. Most of the locations, such as Schwartz's and Lester's in Montreal, are real; however some liberties have been taken in the interests of the story.
Barbara Fradkin was born in Montreal and obtained her PhD in psychology at the University of Ottawa. Her work as a child psychologist provides ample inspiration and insight for plotting murders.
The novels in the Inspector Green series are
Do or Die,
Once Upon a Time, Mist Walker, Fifth Son, Honour among
Men
,
Dream Chasers, This Thing of Darkness
and
Beautiful
Lie the Dead
, the fourth and fifth having won the Arthur Ellis Award for Best Novel in 2005 and 2007.
An active member of Canada's crime writing community, Barbara resides in Ottawa with assorted pets and children.
More info can be found at
www.barbarafradkin.com