The Unkindest Cut - By Honor Hartman Page 0,41

were already at the dessert stage. Marylou seemed to be enjoying her chocolate mousse, but Paula was simply poking her fork in and out of a slice of pecan pie without eating any of it.

‘‘How are you, Paula?’’ I asked. ‘‘I know this has all been such a terrible shock for you.’’

Sophie picked up a menu and hid her face behind it.

Paula picked at her dessert. For a moment I thought she wasn’t going to answer, perhaps hadn’t even heard me, but then she spoke. ‘‘I wanted to be rid of Avery, Lord knows, but not like this.’’ She sighed, laying her fork aside. ‘‘He was a real shit, as it turned out, but I found out too late.’’

‘‘Someone must have hated him pretty badly,’’ Sophie said, closing her menu and placing it across her plate.

‘‘They’d have to stand in line,’’ Paula said. ‘‘He pissed off a lot of people lately.’’

‘‘It’s one thing to piss someone off,’’ I said, ‘‘but it’s something else again for one of those people to be angry enough to kill.’’

‘‘You saw him in action,’’ Paula said, looking at me, her eyes narrowed in speculation. ‘‘What do you think?’’

‘‘He was unpleasant,’’ I admitted. ‘‘But I still say someone would have to have had a really strong motive to go to that length.’’

‘‘You’re right, Emma,’’ Marylou said. ‘‘Now, Paula, you probably know everyone who had reason to hate Avery the most. Surely you have some idea of who might have killed him.’’

Paula glanced from one to the other of us. ‘‘What is this? You’re beginning to sound like that deputy who was asking me so many questions.’’

‘‘We can’t help but be curious,’’ Sophie said, shrugging. ‘‘I mean, it happened right next door to us. Plus we know you, and we met the victim. Wouldn’t you be curious?’’

‘‘I suppose,’’ Paula said, her tone grudging.

‘‘So what do you say?’’ Marylou spoke again. ‘‘Who do you think did it?’’

Paula glanced around as if to make sure no one could overhear what she was about to say. ‘‘Veronica, who else? She’s a coldhearted bitch, and Avery humiliated her in public. I think she was really angry over what he did, plus the fact that he had no intention of continuing their affair.’’

‘‘How do you know that?’’ I asked. ‘‘Or are you simply guessing?’’

Paula stared at the remains of her pie. ‘’Avery told me,’’ she finally said. ‘‘I confronted him about it last night, and he told me he wasn’t going to have anything more to do with her.’’

‘‘When was this?’’ Marylou asked.

Paula shrugged. ‘‘I don’t remember what time it was. Late, anyway. Avery was in a foul mood, and we argued. I told him I wanted a divorce, and he said it was fine with him.’’

‘‘You must have been relieved to hear that,’’ Sophie said. ‘‘Because didn’t you tell us before that he was resisting?’’

‘‘What changed his mind?’’ I asked when Paula didn’t respond right away to Sophie’s question.

‘‘I don’t know why he changed his mind,’’ Paula said, ‘‘and frankly I don’t give a damn. I was just glad he finally agreed.’’ She sighed heavily. ‘‘And now, of course, it’s a moot point. He’s dead.’’

A man’s voice spoke then, startling us all. ‘‘He certainly is, and how convenient that is for you.’’

Chapter 15

Paula had picked up her water glass and was about to sip from it when the man spoke. She set the glass down with a loud thump, and water sloshed over the edge and onto the tablecloth.

‘‘Haskell,’’ Paula said. ‘‘What the hell are you talking about?’’ She glared up at the man who had come to a halt scant inches from our table.

Marylou, Sophie, and I stared at him. It took me a moment to remember who he was—Avery Trowbridge’s agent. I had also forgotten how large he was. At the moment he loomed over us like a mountain.

Without being invited, he pulled a chair from a nearby table, twirled it around backward, and sat down with his arms across the back of it. He stared straight at Paula, ignoring the rest of us.

He laughed. ‘‘Come on, Paula, you’re not fooling me one bit with this little outraged-innocence act. Avery told me he was going to divorce you, and he was going to see that you didn’t get much out of the settlement.’’ He paused for emphasis. ‘‘Now that he’s dead, you stand to get a lot more than you would have otherwise.’’

For the first time he acknowledged the presence of other persons at the table. ‘‘What do you

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