Lenny Marks Gets Away With Murder


 Contents
 
 Cover
 About the Book
 Title Page
 Contents
 Dedication
 Chapter 1
 Chapter 2
 Chapter 3
 Chapter 4
 Chapter 5
 Chapter 6
 Chapter 7
 Chapter 8
 Chapter 9
 Chapter 10
 Chapter 11
 Chapter 12
 Chapter 13
 Chapter 14
 Chapter 15
 Chapter 16
 Chapter 17
 Chapter 18
 Chapter 19
 Chapter 20
 Chapter 21
 Chapter 22
 Chapter 23
 Chapter 24
 Chapter 25
 Chapter 26
 Chapter 27
 Chapter 28
 Chapter 29
 Chapter 30
 Chapter 31
 Chapter 32
 Chapter 33
 Chapter 34
 Chapter 35
 Chapter 36
 Chapter 37
 Chapter 38
 Chapter 39
 Chapter 40
 Chapter 41
 Chapter 42
 Chapter 43
 Chapter 44
 Chapter 45
 Chapter 46
 Chapter 47
 Chapter 48
 Chapter 49
 Chapter 50
 Chapter 51
 Chapter 52
 Chapter 53
 Chapter 54
 Chapter 55
 Acknowledgements
 About the Author
 Praise
 Imprint
 Read More at Penguin Books Australia
 
 
 About the Book Lenny Marks is good at not remembering. She has spent the last twenty years not thinking about the day her mother left her when she was still a child. Her stepfather’s parting words, however, remain annoyingly unforgettable: You did this. Now thirty-seven, Lenny prefers contentment and order over the unreliability of happiness and the messiness of relationships. She fills her days teaching at the local primary school, and her nights playing Scrabble with her pretend housemate, watching reruns of Friends and rearranging her thirty-six copies of The Hobbit. Recently though, if only to appease her beloved foster mum, Lenny has set herself the goal of ‘getting a life’. Then, out of the blue, a letter arrives from the Adult Parole Board. And when her desperate attempts to ignore it fail, Lenny starts to unravel. Worse, she starts to remember . . . Kerryn Mayne’s stunning debut novel is both chilling and charming, suspenseful and uplifting. And, of course, simply unforgettable . . . Contents Cover About the Book Title Page Dedication Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 11 Chapter 12 Chapter 13 Chapter 14 Chapter 15 Chapter 16 Chapter 17 Chapter 18 Chapter 19 Chapter 20 Chapter 21 Chapter 22 Chapter 23 Chapter 24 Chapter 25 Chapter 26 Chapter 27 Chapter 28 Chapter 29 Chapter 30 Chapter 31 Chapter 32 Chapter 33 Chapter 34 Chapter 35 Chapter 36 Chapter 37 Chapter 38 Chapter 39 Chapter 40 Chapter 41 Chapter 42 Chapter 43 Chapter 44 Chapter 45 Chapter 46 Chapter 47 Chapter 48 Chapter 49 Chapter 50 Chapter 51 Chapter 52 Chapter 53 Chapter 54 Chapter 55 Acknowledgements About the Author Praise Imprint Read More at Penguin Books Australia For my mum, Heather, who surrounded us with books. CHAPTER 1 Monday 16 May 2022 Lenny Marks seldom found herself unprepared. Lessons for her grade five students were religiously compiled a fortnight in advance, her tax return would be ready to submit no later than the fifteenth of July every year and her home fire escape plan was reviewed and updated each summer. Lenny knew the location of both of Selby South Primary School’s defibrillators and exactly how to use them, she serviced her bicycle regularly to keep it in prime shape and carried a bottle opener on her set of keys despite never – as yet – needing it. She found tremendous peace in this level of organisation, which was as close to happiness as Lenny Marks ever planned to be. Happiness, she knew, was unstable and quite unreliable. And Lenny was neither of those things. Instead she aimed for the contentment of a routine, which had served her quite well up to and into her thirty-seventh year. And still, despite knowing exactly what her Monday morning should contain, Lenny now found herself under the unexpected and interrogating gaze of Mrs Finlay, office administration. The clock had barely ticked over 8 am and Lenny had only just turned her teapot the requisite three times – the way her grandmother had taught her, despite it apparently not making a jot of difference to the taste – when Mrs Finlay bustled in to disturb the good order of things. ‘So, is it a secret husband?’ Mrs Finlay asked, eyes alarmingly wide and voice predictably loud. ‘Is what?’ Lenny asked. ‘Well, it’s addressed to Helena Winters. And I didn’t know who that was. A mistake, I thought, and was going to send it back return to sender. But Lora said, “That’s no mistake, that’s Lenny Marks.”’ Lenny read the front of the envelope: Helena Winters. A name from long ago and of a girl she thought she’d left well and truly behind. She didn’t reply, which failed to slow Mrs Finlay. Lenny cast her eyes around, hoping the other occupants of the staffroom were not listening. It was fairly clear they were. Or at least Kirra Reid, grade four, was. Kirra dallied over the instant hot water tap a few moments too long. It was instant hot water after all, and there was no need to wait for it to boil; it wasn’t a lengthy task. Deidre Heffernan, grade two, on the other hand, was poring over the form guide – as per usual – and had not even registered there were other people in the same space as her. ‘And I thought to myself, I never knew Lenny was married. How interesting. Isn’t it?’ ‘Isn’t what?’ ‘That you’ve been married?’ ‘I haven’t,’ Lenny replied, lowering her voice. Lenny deplored other people knowing her business and felt anxiety growing at the thought of being the subject of office scuttlebutt. ‘So why the different name then? I’ve racked my brain all weekend trying to figure it out.’ Lenny hesitated, hoping she had a quick-witted, reasonable answer that didn’t invite more questions. She didn’t and quick-wittedness had never been her thing. Perhaps she should’ve claimed a secret husband she didn’t have. Mrs Finlay, not one to be deterred, changed tack. ‘And it’s from the Parole Board, just when I thought I had you all figured out. I said to Lora, “She’s an enigma