"Robb, J D - In Death 11 - Witness in Death" - читать интересную книгу автора (Robb J D)

WITNESS IN DEATH

J. D. Robb


CHAPTER ONE
There was always an audience for murder.
Whether it took its form in horror or glee, in dark humor or quiet grief,
mankind's fascination with the ultimate crime made it a ripe subject for
exploration in fact and in fiction.
At its bottom line, murder sold tickets and had packed theaters throughout
history. Romans had pushed and shoved their way into the Coliseum to watch
gladiators hack each other to bloody bits. Or, to alleviate the boredom of the
day, by catching a matinee where a few hapless Christians were pitted against
happy-to-oblige lions for the amusement of a cheering audience.
Since the outcome of these uneven matches was pretty much a sure bet, the crowd
hadn't packed the stands to see if maybe this time the Christians would win the
day. They wanted the results and all the blood and gore they offered.
People could go home pleased that they'd gotten their money's worth -- and more,
that they themselves were alive and whole. Vicarious murder was a simple way of
reassuring yourself that your personal problems weren't really so bad after all.
Human nature, and the need for such entertainment, hadn't changed very much in a
millennium or two. Lions and Christians might have been passe, but in the last
gasp of winter in the year 2059, murder still sold strong and bumped the ratings
in the media.
In a more civilized way, of course.
Families, wooing couples, the sophisticated, and their country cousins continued
to queue up and plunk down hard-earned credits to be entertained by the idea of
murder.
Crime and punishment was Lieutenant Eve Dallas's business, and murder was her
specialty. But tonight she sat in a comfortable seat in a packed house and
watched the canny business of murder play out onstage.
"He did it."
"Hmm?" Roarke was every bit as interested in his wife's reaction to the play as
he was the play itself. She leaned forward in her chair, her arms crossed on the
gleaming rail of the owner's box. Her brandy-colored eyes scanned the stage, the
players, even as the curtain came down for intermission.
"The Vole guy. He killed the woman. Bashed her head in for her money. Right?"
Roarke took the time to pour them each a glass of the champagne he had chilling.
He hadn't been certain how she'd react to an evening with murder as the
entertainment and was pleased she'd gotten into the spirit. "Perhaps."
"You don't have to tell me. I know." Eve took the flute glass, studied his face.
And a hell of a face it was, she thought. It seemed to have been carved by magic
into a staggering male beauty that made a woman's glands hum a happy tune. The
dark mane of hair framed it, those long, sculpted bones; the firm, full mouth
that was curved now in the faintest of smiles as he watched her. He reached out,
ever so casually, to skim those long fingers over the ends of her hair.
And those eyes, that brilliant, almost burning blue, could still make her heart
stumble.
It was mortifying the way the man could turn her inside out with no more than a