LIZ HOLLIDAY’s story in this volume is her first crime sale. Previously involved in the science fiction field where her stories have appeared in various anthologies and magazines, she lives in London and is working on her first novel.
ANDREW KLAVAN is the author of three international bestsellers Don’t Say a Word, The Animal Hour and Corruption. An American presently settled in London, he previously wrote a series of thrillers as Keith Peterson, and the screenplay for Michael Caine’s A Shock to the System.
PERFECT CASTING by CHRISTOPHER FOWLER
It was the season of sulphur. The autumn air already held a sharp smell of fireworks. Just beyond the edge of Regent’s Park, the keepers were raking a bonfire. Peter Tipping noticed spirals of sparks above a sore amber glow of dead leaves just before he turned into the north end of Baker Street. Night had fallen before five. For the next few months darkness would achromatize the days. London was a private city in winter. People remained hidden inside, leaving the buildings to come alive in damp air.
The curving cream stone of the apartment block drew close, and then he was standing below the entrance. Reluctantly withdrawing his hand from the warmth of his overcoat pocket, he pressed the brass stud and bent close to the intercom, waiting for the familiar sound of Jonathan’s voice.
‘You’re late, Peter.’ A hurt tone filtered through. The buzzer sounded, and he stepped up into a marble hall. Beyond that, rich crimson carpet and a trellis lift. Chalfont Court was not at home to the twentieth century. There was still a porter’s lodge beside the main entrance, still a mahogany box affixed to the wall for the placement of calling cards. The building lodged liverish retired colonels, ancient widows with tiny hyperactive dogs, a couple of discreet escort agencies and a few old show business types.