Murder in Waiting - Lynn Cahoon Page 0,25

know. My feeling was, the position wasn’t well paid. I put a star by that note and listed off two questions on a second sheet: the one I’d sent to Justin and a second one, how did California deal with alimony now? I’d been out of family law for several years, so things could have changed. And digging into legal work would help me keep my mind off Greg and our minifight.

I went back to the main page. Was there anything else I knew? Then it hit me. Frank had okayed kicking the Mission Wall off the upcoming list of projects to review, but he’d changed his mind and was going to put it back on. That I knew from his own statement to me.

The real question was why he had been so quick to take the wall off the list. And what had changed his mind? Had the wall been part of the motivation behind the killing? Maybe there was someone who didn’t want the historical certification of the wall to go through.

Like a developer who wanted to buy the place. Or the mayor, who wanted to get a kickback from the developer? Or Greg, who wanted to set up the area as a barbeque pit? Of course, Greg was off the list because he was, well, Greg. But he’d actually been relieved when I had a reason for Frank to stay alive. Did that mean I wouldn’t have been off the list just because I was Jill? I pondered that question some more as I went to the fridge and got out a quart of rocky road.

Relationships. They were as bumpy as a road filled with land mines. Which made me go back to the first question. Who had Frank been married to and what had been the agreements in the divorces? Maybe he’d been widowed five times. He could just have been really unlucky in love. Either way, it was time to do some research.

I keyed in my access to the law library at the local university and started working. Hours later, Emma nudged my leg and I looked up to see that it was already past six p.m. Greg hadn’t called or come home, which didn’t surprise me, but I thought maybe he might try to clear the air sooner rather than later. I studied the notes I’d made as I’d worked. I’d done a great job in tracking down three of Frank’s five marriages. Now I just needed to finish. But first we’d go for a run, then I’d get some real food into me. Again.

I stood and let Emma outside, then ran upstairs to change. As I thought about my plans for the evening, I considered my sugar consumption, especially when I was emotional or stressed. The quart of ice cream had gone down without me even noticing how amazing it tasted. Today I’d run and have a healthy dinner. Even if my love life was rocky. And I would only eat one treat a day. And I needed to enjoy it, not be working on something else and not even notice I was eating.

Pleased with my new resolutions, I finished tying my shoes and ran downstairs. But as I grabbed Emma’s leash and a bottle of water, someone knocked on the front door. I set the items down on the entry table and opened the door. A woman stood on my porch and stared at the house like she was measuring square footage. The professional dress and her attention to detail told me all I needed to know. She was a Realtor.

“Good afternoon,” She put on a smile that could win a local beauty pageant, if not regionals. She held out a small hand with her nails recently manicured into a bright orange that somehow matched her suit. “I’m SaraBeth Marston and I’m looking for savvy homeowners like you who want to get out from under an older property and into a newer one, where you don’t have to worry about the hot water heater. Am I right?”

“Actually, this house isn’t for sale.” I went to close the door. Now I’d have to wait for her to leave before I could take Emma running. And daylight was burning. Besides, the highway would get crazy crowded with commuter traffic if we didn’t leave soon.

“Oh, I must have been informed incorrectly. Are you sure you’re not interested in an offer? I have a client who’d pay top money for a cute little cottage like this.