"I doubt it. But I do expect to catch the murderer."
She giggled. "Ooh, detective, you said that just like one of those hot guys on a TV crime solving show." She made herself touch his arm and lean forward in a confidential manner. "That sure sounds like you don't think the guy we saw did it. Who do you think did?"
He grew another inch, but backed away from her. Adjusting the waist of his slacks, he stated, "Not completely sure yet. But I have an idea. And I'd appreciate any bit of information you might think of to help me out. We both want to solve this case quickly so that Mrs. Gambini's life can get back to normal, don't we?"
Selena gave him a big, innocent smile. "You can count on me, Detective. I'd do anything for Teri."
* * *
Not until much later that night, when she was in her own bedroom, did Selena let herself consider what Kidder had said at the funeral.
What had she overlooked that they had discovered in that apartment? She had been so careful about her hair. Yet they knew Rico had been with a blonde. That word had to be a key. The detective hadn't said long, white, or silver hair. He had definitely said blonde, which told her precisely what kind of hair it was and where it had been found. How could that have happened? She had shaved and scrubbed. There wasn't supposed to be any speck of herself left behind.
The fact that Kidder would not be given the opportunity to check the hair color between her legs was not enough. Nor could she be certain he wouldn't unexpectedly barge into the studio one day and catch her with her hair down... literally. The bottom line was that he now had a piece of evidence that could tie her to Rico's death, even if Kidder's suspicions weren't centered on her at this time.
But he was definitely suspicious of someone. Why couldn't the old man just accept the obvious? The average cop would have blindly followed the trail she'd left without hesitation.
She had really hated his harassment of Teri, but a certain amount of suspicion had been a possibility, until they saw the condition of the body. Kidder should have backed off by now, and he shouldn't have been hanging around the funeral asking personal questions.
If his sneaky little mind ever turned to her, all he needed was a DNA test on her hair to get a perfect match to the one they had.
Selena picked up the doll resting on the pillow beside her. "What do you think, Juliette? Do we need to make the snoopy old policeman go away?"
Not yet. It wouldn't be smart to take another risk so soon when he may still go away on his own. Let's wait and see.
It seemed to Selena that she had spent half her life waiting to see how people around her were going to behave.
* * *
"But Mommy, why do you have to get married again? After Daddy died, you promised it would just be the two of us."
"And it has been, baby, for four years. I know it's hard for you to understand, but you will when you get older. Tom's good to me... to us. He's not at all like your father. I love him, baby, and I want him to share our life. I'll still love you just as much as ever, but then you'll have his attention too. Doesn't he buy you pretty presents and treat you nice?"
Selena didn't want to give in, even if her mother did speak the truth. And she understood more about the man-woman thing than her mother imagined... especially after she had peeked into her bedroom late one night when her mother and Tom thought she was sleeping. Tom apparently made her mother very happy, happier than Selena could ever remember, but she still wasn't sure she wanted him living in their house.
"He's okay, I guess. Except for all that kissing and hugging."
Her mother giggled. "Oh, I don't know. I kind of like that part."
"Yeah, well, I don't. If he's going to marry you, tell him to keep his kisses all for you."
Her mother gave her a quick hug and laughed again. "Now, don't be such a pouty-puss. Tom is a very affectionate man. It's just his way to give hugs and kisses to people he cares about, and I know he already cares about you. I'll bet in no time he'll love you as much as I do. Don't worry, you'll get used to having a loving father for a change."
"Will I have to call him Daddy?"
"Not unless you want to."
Selena shrugged. She would decide what name fit him after he'd been around awhile. If he kept her mother smiling, maybe she could agree to call him Daddy. If not... well, if not, what she called him wouldn't matter anymore.
Chapter 12
For three days after the funeral, Teri didn't feel like doing anything but vegetating. She slept, ate, and slept some more. A dozen movies made the trip in and out of her VCR, but she couldn't recall what any of them had been about. It was as if her body and mind had decided she needed a vacation after the fiasco at the graveside and afterward in her home.
One of the less obnoxious reporters had told her the media had received an anonymous tip about the murder, but that it was their unofficial opinion that someone within the mob had spread the news. It was typical of them to take advantage of such a situation to promote their deadly reputation. As far as the media was concerned, news was news, and the bloodier the better.
Unfortunately, one newshound staked out her front yard so that he could take pictures and badger the relatives as they left. The result was that no one wanted to leave. Rico's family supplied the food and the womanpower to serve it and clean up afterward, but Teri was on the verge of collapsing when the last of them finally went home on Tuesday.
Everyone who had called since, even Selena and Drew, was asked to give her a few days before coming over.
By Wednesday morning she felt a bit more human, and when Selena called for the umpteenth time, Teri told her to come by. If nothing else, maybe she would sketch a little.
Drew's call that day also helped pick up her spirits. He had been asked to fill in for another photographer on a commercial shoot for a major Madison Avenue ad agency. He was optimistically hoping that the other's case of flu would be his big break, and Teri did also. It meant he would be out of town until Friday, but Teri assured him that although she would miss him, she would be fine... as long as he promised to come to dinner Friday night.
* * *
Kidder's time was almost up. In four days he had to report to Hell, and he knew he didn't deserve that sentence. The investigation that was supposed to save him had come to a screeching halt.
He thoroughly believed he had the whole picture but couldn't prove it. His old pal Hart wouldn't listen to him unless he could produce some solid evidence, or at least one witness to support his theory, no matter how much sense it made. Normally, he would have kept plodding along, searching for clues, tracking down the mysterious blonde accomplice to the murder. Normally, he wouldn't have to worry about a deadline. Hart thought he was crazy. Obsessed over what happened with Lydia. If he didn't come up with something substantial before they confined him to the Property Room, the captain would never assign another detective to follow Kidder's leads. Mrs. Gambini and her lover would get off scot-free.
He had no alternative except to jangle the weak link until it fell apart. It was time to shove Teri Gambini's back against the wall with a direct assault.
* * *
"I'm sorry, Selena," Teri said disgustedly as she set down her sketchpad. "I may as well forget it. My fingers don't want to listen to my brain today."
Selena clucked her tongue. "You're probably trying too hard. Let's just have some tea and talk awhile. I went to see that new musical comedy everybody's raving about."
For the next hour Selena kept Teri entertained with a blow-by-blow account of the play and what every person in the audience was wearing. They were both relaxed and smiling when someone knocked on the studio door.
Teri remembered to look out the window first. With an exasperated sigh, she told Selena it was Detective Kidder, and made herself count to ten before unlocking the door.
"Good morning, Detective Kidder. I hadn't expected to see you again."
He nodded curtly. "I have an important matter to discuss with you. May I come in?"
She hesitated a moment, wishing she had the courage to refuse, then stepped aside. "We were just—" She looked around the studio. For a second she thought Selena had vanished into thin air, until she saw the closed bathroom door. Turning back to Kidder, she saw him eyeing the two cups on the table. "Selena and I were just taking a break but we need to get right back to work. Would you like a cup of tea?"
"No, thank you." With hands clasped behind his back and a concerned frown on his face, he rocked back and forth on his heels a few times before speaking. "Have you given any more thought to our last conversation?"
Teri sat down and took a sip of her cooled tea. "To be quite honest, Detective, I don't want to think about any of it. In fact, I don't even remember what our last conversation was about."
He stopped rocking. "The blonde."
Teri couldn't stop the involuntary muscle twitch of her eyelid, but she tried to ignore it as she calmly replied, "If I recall, I agreed with your assumption, that she must have been the lure to get Rico into that apartment."
Kidder took a few steps toward her, making her look up from where she was seated to continue meeting his eyes. "Come now, Mrs. Gambini, you can do better. You don't believe that at all. When I first told you about the hair, you almost fainted from shock. You barely managed to answer me now. Face facts, lady. You haven't got what it takes to pull this off."
Teri felt herself recoiling, even though her body hadn't moved an inch. "What..." She choked on the question, but it had to be asked. "What are you saying?"
He moved even closer and bent toward her, so that now she had to lean back in her chair to keep from feeling his breath on her face. "We'll start with the blonde. You know who it is, or you have a very good idea."
"That's ridiculous!" Teri pushed him away from her and stood up. How could she tell him why she had reacted that way without explaining everything? It would be like pointing an accusing finger at Selena, then turning it back on herself as an accomplice. He would never believe her shock was all because of a very bad joke. "Why shouldn't I be upset? My husband was not only butchered, but just before that he had no qualms about meeting some strange woman for sex in an apartment on his route. Do you think I should simply accept all that like it was a daily occurrence?"
"You were getting a divorce... or did I misunderstand you before?"
Her hands balled into fists at her side. "Yes. We were."
"And yet there were no papers filed. I checked. I think you're the one who wanted a divorce... and your husband wasn't willing to go along with your plans. I think a man with a gambling problem as bad as his wouldn't let go of a wife right when she started raking in the big bucks."
She was certain the truth of his statement was written all over her face, yet she had to deny it or fall into the trap she sensed being set. "No, that's not true. He had agreed. I can show you the signed settlement agreement."
"But you knew he'd never make it that easy on you. Once he had that money, he'd fight you every step of the way, and you were in too much of a hurry for that. Because we both know his gambling wasn't your real reason for wanting a divorce."
She felt the trap but couldn't see where it was coming from. "We may have had some other problems, but nothing as bad as his gambling."
"That's a lie!" he shouted, marching toward her, making her back away from his sudden anger. "His gambling was your excuse to cover up for your own sins. A wife who fornicates with a man other than her husband shall be damned in Hell. And in your case, I'm going to be the one to send you there."
Teri stopped backing away. "You're insane. I never cheated on my husband in the entire twelve years we were married."
Kidder regained his composure to deliver his killing blow. "Is that so? Well, I'll admit that the two of you have covered your tracks very well. But not good enough to hide it from me."
Teri was so bewildered by his words that she stood frozen in place, gaping at him as he continued.
"The two of you obviously got tired of your long-distance affair. He got his divorce, but you were having trouble with yours. So you plotted your husband's demise. I know the how and why. I just haven't figured out where the blonde fits in."
"What are you raving about? What long-distance affair?" His smug expression told her he really believed what he was saying. That she had plotted with some man to kill her husband.
"Still playing the innocent, eh? Fine. I'll spell it out for you. Drew Marshall killed your husband and you helped him do it."
She staggered to the bed and slumped down on the edge. "Drew? And me? Detective, I hate to blow up your theory, but I never even met Drew Marshall until a few weeks ago. Besides that, he's a very gentle man. He'd never be able to kill another person."
"Another lie, Mrs. Gambini? Or is this another instance of you sticking your head in the sand? Save it for the jury. Your lover is an ex-con drug addict who very nearly killed several hundred people. I know exactly what kind of man he is. And I know what kind of woman you are."
Teri's mind reeled. What could she say to make him see how wrong he was? Massaging her temples, she realized the conclusions he had drawn were not all that hard to believe if you didn't know the truth. She had to appeal to whatever logic he had. "Please listen to me very closely, Detective. I met Drew the week before Rico disappeared. We have since become friends because of our work, but we are not, have not been lovers. And I did not need to have Rico killed. He had agreed to give me a divorce in exchange for bailing him out. And lastly, if I hated my husband enough to kill him, I would never have given him a gift of another woman as a going-away present!" Her conscience allowed her the two half-truths for salvation's sake.
Kidder glared at her for a long moment, but she straightened her shoulders and stared back.
"Have it your way for now, Mrs. Gambini. But let me tell you how it's going to be. When I'm through putting this case together, you and loverboy will be going away for a long time. Unfortunately, they don't have co-ed dorms in prison, so you won't get to be together in spite of all the trouble you went to. On the other hand, if you agree to testify against Marshall, tell me who the blonde is, and generally cooperate, I can almost assure you of a minimum sentence, maybe even probation, if you can convince the district attorney that you didn't really know what Marshall was planning until after it was over."
Teri's mind sorted out one important fact—he wasn't here to arrest her. Apparently it was all supposition—a hunting trip, as Drew called it—but would their innocence protect them from this hunter's trap? "Get out, Detective Kidder, and take all your false accusations with you. I've done nothing wrong, and neither has Drew."
"I'll go, Mrs. Gambini. But as TV show detectives say at this point, I'll be back."
Once he was gone, Teri's body gave in to the fear he had instilled. Her heart ran a race with her lungs and she couldn't control the trembling in her arms and legs. But she didn't cry. There didn't seem to be any tears left in her.
When Selena came up next to her and put her arm around her, Teri was startled out of a full-fledged anxiety attack. She had forgotten all about Selena.
"Are you going to be okay?" Selena asked quietly.
Teri blinked at her. As dumb as it sounded, she had to ask, "Selena, were you in the bathroom all this time?"
"Yes, sorry I couldn't help you with him, but I seem to have picked up an intestinal virus. I felt a little queasy this morning when I got up. I probably shouldn't have come over at all. What are you going to do about Kidder?"
"He's nuts. Absolutely, certifiably insane. And I'm scared to death he's going to send me to the loony bin in his place. Maybe I should file a complaint against him for harassment. But then, that might only make things worse." She took a deep breath. "Look, hon, why don't you go on home and take care of yourself? There's no way I'm going to be able to work with these anyway." She held up her quivering hands as proof of her statement.
Selena gave her a look of sympathetic understanding. "Don't worry about me. I'll be fine. You wil
l, too. Soon. I'll make sure of it."
* * *
Selena felt bad about leaving Teri alone, but she had something more important to do than sit there holding her hand until she calmed down. Although she had initially hidden in the bathroom to keep Kidder from seeing her without the red wig, the thin door had given her the bonus of being able to hear every word without either of them knowing she had eavesdropped.
She could not believe the false conclusions Kidder had drawn. There was nothing to substantiate them, yet he made it all sound entirely credible. Selena knew from all the cases she'd read about that circumstantial evidence, presented well, could get an innocent person convicted. Now she understood why he'd asked that question about Drew being Teri's old friend. He was trying to get her to provide him with proof that they were longtime lovers. How ridiculous!
Calling the media had been a risky thing to do, but she'd been certain that the more people there were who thought the mob was involved, the more the police would concentrate on that angle and leave Teri alone. Apparently Kidder wasn't influenced by the opinion of the press.
Juliette would have to be told they had waited too long. There was no time for a complex plan. They had to act quickly or Teri could be taken away from them, and that would be like losing Mommy all over again.
She hoped Juliette already had something in mind.
Chapter 13
Teri had stepped from one nightmare into another. Not knowing what had happened to Rico for a week had left her nerves ragged. Then the funeral had sapped what little strength she still possessed. But Detective Kidder was surely going to push her over the edge.
The morning after he'd made his outlandish charges, she decided to take a walk around the block. Rage flooded through her when she saw the detective sitting in a car parked across the street, watching her. She forced herself to take the walk, mainly to show him he wasn't intimidating her, but she cut it short when he got out of the car to follow her.
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