A Fine Line Read Online Free

for a walk.”
    â€œBefore that evening did you ever accept any invitations, walks or otherwise?”
    â€œJust once, a coffee at a café near the office.”
    Consuelo paused, turned to look at me, we exchanged knowing looks, and I stood up as she sat down. It was my turn.
    â€œSignora, do you have a boyfriend, a partner?”
    â€œNot at the moment, I’m single.”
    â€œBut at the time when these events happened, you had a partner?”
    â€œYes.”
    â€œHe’s the person who went with you when you lodged a complaint the following morning, isn’t he?”
    â€œYes.”
    â€œWere you living with this person at the time?”
    â€œYes.”
    â€œWhat kind of work does your former partner do?”
    â€œHe’s area sales manager for a confectionery company.”
    â€œWas he ever away for a few days?”
    â€œYes.”
    â€œOften?”
    â€œHe was always travelling, almost every day. He’d go from one place to another.”
    â€œDid he usually come back in the evening?”
    â€œYes, he’d leave in his car in the morning and get home in the evening.”
    â€œAnd apart from spending all day away, did he sometimes take longer trips which obliged him to spend the night away from home?”
    â€œYes.”
    â€œHow frequently?”
    She did not reply immediately, but it wasn’t clear if the hesitation was due to the fact that she was concentrating on the answer or because, for some reason, the question made her uncomfortable.
    â€œI can’t say exactly. A couple of times a month.”
    â€œAh, by the way, when you went to that party with your friend, do you remember if your partner was away?”
    â€œI don’t know, it was a long time ago.”
    â€œLet me try and help you. Did you ever go out alone when your partner was in the city? Did he mind?”
    Marilisa sighed, torn between exasperation and resignation. “I couldn’t really say, it’s a period of my life I’m trying to forget.”
    â€œI’m sorry to be so insistent and to remind you of things you’d prefer to forget, but unfortunately I need an answer. Do you happen to remember if, when you went to that party, your partner was away on business?”
    â€œMaybe yes.”
    â€œMaybe?”
    â€œYes, yes, I remember, he was away.”
    â€œI’d like now to get a better idea of the timeline. Howmuch time passed between that party and the events that concern us in this trial?”
    â€œI can’t say for certain.”
    â€œWeeks, months?”
    â€œA couple of months.”
    â€œSo, since the date of the offence with which the defendant is charged is 3 April, your acquaintance presumably goes back to the beginning of February, or maybe the end of January?”
    â€œI think so, yes.”
    â€œAnd between that party and the first time you saw each other again, or spoke to each other on the phone, how much time passed?”
    â€œHe called me a couple of days later.”
    â€œWhere did he call you?”
    â€œHow do you mean?”
    â€œOn what telephone did he call you?”
    â€œOn my mobile.”
    â€œSo you’d given him your mobile number?”
    â€œYes.”
    â€œWhy?”
    â€œHe asked me for it.”
    â€œPlease don’t take this question the wrong way, but do you give your mobile number to everyone who asks for it?”
    I glanced sideways out of the corner of my eye. The prosecutor shifted in his chair. He might have been thinking of objecting, but then decided to wait and see what would happen. Nor did the judge say anything.
    â€œNo, no, I mean, it depends—”
    â€œYou had only met Signor Bronzino that evening, is that correct?”
    â€œYes, but what I mean—”
    â€œI assume you felt a particular liking for him, you trusted him.”
    She passed her hand over her face. She looked as if she was suffering. I wished I could get this over