What a Rich Woman Wants (21 page)

Chapter Twenty-Six

Lita tapped on Lesley's office door and stepped inside. She closed the door behind her.

“What is it?”

“Detectives from the sheriff's office. They're asking to see you.”

“Detectives? What's it about?”

“They didn't say.”

Lesley rose from her desk and followed Lita down the hall. “Detectives?” She crossed to where they waited in the foyer.

“Miss Robinson. I'm Detective Murray. This is Detective Peterson. We'd like to ask you a few questions, ma'am.”

“In regard to?”

“Maria Delgado.”

“I'll need more information than that if you want me to answer your questions.”

A glance slid between the two detectives. Murray did all the talking. “Miss Delgado's body was discovered on the grounds of the Challenge Project's community center early this morning. We understand you're acquainted with the deceased?”

“She worked for my family several years ago.”

“When's the last time you saw Miss Delgado?”

Lesley knew better than to answer questions like these without an attorney present. They might be only trying to reconstruct Maria's movements in the hours preceding her death, or they might be trying to find a suspect they could charge with her murder.

“Detectives, I'll be happy to help with your investigation, but I'd like my attorney present during the interview. I'm sure you understand. Shall I have him contact you and set up a mutually convenient time?”

They weren't happy about it, but Murray handed over his card. “Please do. Thank you, Miss Robinson.”

They left and Lesley's gaze collided with Lita's. “I have to make some calls.”

The first one should be to Niko, to warn him. She hadn't asked when Maria's murder had taken place, but it was sometime last night. She'd spent the better part of it with Niko, which made him her alibi. And her his.

Lesley wouldn't have resorted to murder to get rid of Maria no matter how much she wanted the woman out of her life. Still, to rule Lesley out as a suspect, to rule Niko out as one if it came to that, the cops would require alibis from both of them.

Lesley's stomach knotted while she waited for her attorney to pick up his phone. Her public relationship with Niko was well known. Her private relationship with Niko was still secret. She wanted to keep it that way. For now at any rate. When she was with him, she rarely thought beyond “now”. She hadn't seriously thought about a future with Niko. She couldn't picture it happening, even though she could see herself with him forever. How would he fit into her life? Her lifestyle? How would she fit into his?

In her social circle there was a word for what she'd been doing with Niko. She didn't care. Niko was a gentlemen. He was smart and sexy and driven. He'd overcome a lot in his life, and he'd developed character along with his natural charisma. So what if his annual salary was roughly what she spent replenishing her wardrobe each year?

I love him
. Lesley could admit it to herself. But could she overlook everything she'd just mentally debated, the same things she'd been debating for months, and still be with Niko? For all time?

“Lesley? Sorry to keep you waiting.”

“John. It's all right. I've got a problem. You remember Maria Delgado?”

“How could I forget?” John Cirillo had handled everything for her regarding Ricky six years ago. He'd kept it all quiet and confidential and smooth.

“She's been murdered. Detectives Murray and Peterson were just here from the sheriff's department. They want to interview me.”

“She was killed here? In Willow Bay?”

“Yes. She's been here for several months, I believe.”

“You've had contact with her?”

“Yes.”

“All right. We need to talk first. Then we'll decide whether to set up an interview. What does your schedule look like for today?”

Lesley let herself into the suite of offices the Robinson Group maintained on Willow Bay's revitalized Fifth Avenue. On a quiet Sunday the office was deserted, and so, for the most part, was the street outside. It had seemed the best place to meet with Niko. She wouldn't risk a visit to his house or him coming to hers. Nor would she risk meeting him in a public place. Paranoia had got the better of her since her visit from the detectives this morning. People were framed for murder all the time. Innocent citizens were sent to prison for years.

Her stomach twisted itself into a giant knot as she thought about everything her attorney had told her when he'd called her back. A couple of neighborhood kids had found Maria's body wrapped in a rug, surrounded by weeds, in the unpaved area beyond the community center's parking lot. The boys had been cutting across the lot to the convenience store on the next street.

John had set up a meeting in his office with the two detectives for tomorrow morning at ten o'clock. Lesley planned to meet with John at nine to discuss strategy.

The outer door opened and Niko came toward her. Her heartbeat sped up the way it did whenever she was near him. She took in the expression on his face, serious but determined. Capable. Her stomach knotted further. There was a very good chance he was headed for a fall. Her addiction to him could ruin everything he'd been working for.

He stopped a foot from her and made no effort to come closer, either to greet her or embrace her. They studied each other before Lesley turned away, stepping back into the office and taking the chair behind the desk. Niko sauntered in after her, slumped into one of the chairs on the other side and trained his gaze on her face.

Having the desk between them bolstered Lesley's courage. She licked her dry lips. “We need to get our stories straight.”

“There is no story. There's only the truth.”

“I know. But the truth will ruin everything you've worked for. The truth will…”

“Ruin your reputation?”

“It will ruin
your
reputation, Niko. The slightest hint that I've shown some kind of favoritism toward the Challenge Project because of our personal relationship will not be good for either one of us.”

“You're my alibi.”

“And you're mine.”

“Were you hoping I'd lie about us being together?”

Lesley had hoped it wouldn't be necessary. Niko couldn't see what it would mean to both of them to have their private relationship made public. She could tell by the look in his eyes that she'd hesitated too long to answer. “No.”

“You don't sound too sure about that.”

She'd seen Niko angry before. Seen his frustration. She could see those same emotions building inside him now.

“I'd never ask you to lie. Especially not to save my reputation. I know you wouldn't do it to save your own.”

“The truth sometimes has unpleasant consequences,” Niko said. The anger and frustration she'd sensed before were gone. Thoughtfulness had taken their place. “But a lie…that leads to secrets, which usually lead to something worse.” He pinned her with his gaze. Lesley didn't know if he was referring to his own past, to hers or to this very moment, but it seemed as though he'd just issued her a challenge. He was ready to face the consequences of going public with their relationship. Was she?

“I didn't kill Maria and neither did you. Maybe our best bet is to figure out who did. Who's got a grudge against both of us, and a big enough one against Maria that would make it worthwhile to see her dead?” Niko said.

“She's only been in town for a few months. Who knows what she's been doing? But the only person I know she's had contact with and who might wish her harm is Steven.”

“Exactly. Is he capable of it?”

“I hate to say this, but yes. Given the right set of circumstances, I think he could be.”

“He's ambitious.”

“Yes.”

“Ruthless.”

“Yes.”

“Vindictive.”

“We have no proof. We don't even know if Maria saw him that night or if he told her who her father was.”

“If he did tell her, I bet he wasn't subtle about it. Maria was unpredictable. They could have argued. Maybe she came after him.”

“Maybe,” Lesley agreed. She knew firsthand how nasty Steven could be. How far he'd go to protect his own interests. It was all too easy to imagine the scenario Niko had painted. “I agreed to be questioned with my attorney present. I suggest you do the same.”

“I plan to.”

“You have an attorney?”

“Yes.”

Lesley couldn't hide her surprise. But Niko was a cop. Of course he'd know better than to do an interview without a lawyer present. “Good. I was going to make that nonnegotiable. I don't want you to lose everything you've been working for.”

“I didn't do anything wrong,” he reminded her as he came around the desk. “Except spend the night with you.” He drew her up and looked into her eyes. “Remember that old song? ‘If being with you is wrong, I don't want to be right'?”

“I think it's, ‘if loving you is wrong, I don't want to be right'.”

“Yeah. That's it. Loving you. Come here.”

Chapter Twenty-Seven

“Do you think he'll even let us in?” Niko asked as Lesley parked in a space near Steven's townhouse.

She peered up at his home. “I don't know. He might think it will look suspicious if he doesn't.”

They made their way to Steven's door and rang the bell, listening to the chime echo inside. In less than a minute Steven pulled open the door and stared at them.

“Lesley.” He nodded at Niko. “What's up?”

“We'd like to speak with you for a few minutes,” Lesley said.

“About what?”

“About Maria, Steven. Surely you've heard her body was found yesterday morning.”

Steven folded his arms across his chest. “Yes, but I don't see what that has to do with me.”

“Maybe nothing,” Lesley said. “But both Niko and I have been questioned by detectives. We're under suspicion simply because we had contact with Maria. I would appreciate it if you'd give us a few minutes of your time and your expertise. That's all. We're a bit out of our element here.”

Niko had to give Lesley credit for playing to her ex-husband's ego. He practically preened at the suggestion that she was in need of his expertise.

Steven stepped back. “A few minutes is all I have.” He directed them into the living room. Lesley perched on the edge of the sofa. Niko took one of the club chairs. Steven took the other.

“Now how is it you think I can help you?” he asked Lesley. He seemed perfectly willing to ignore Niko, which was fine with him.

“As I said, the detectives questioned us because we've had contact with Maria in the past few weeks. I'm assuming they plan to question everyone who did. Did you see her after we spoke the other day?”

“No.”

“So you didn't give her the photo I gave you?”

“No.”

“That means she didn't know Bradley was her father.”

“Apparently not.”

“It's funny. I thought she'd come to you again. Try to get you to help her.”

“She didn't.”

Niko knew Steven was lying. His answers were too clipped. Too professional. As a state's attorney he'd surely cross-examined and coached hundreds of witnesses, done hundreds of interviews. He'd know to keep his responses short and sweet, direct and to the point. He had the distracted air of a man just hoping a problem would go away.

“You told me she kept coming around, asking for your help.”

“Correct. Forgive me, but I don't see how questioning me about my interaction with Maria helps either of you.”

“I'd hoped if she came to see you, maybe she let something slip, gave some clue about what she was going to do next or who she was going to see. Perhaps that would tell us how she died or who was responsible.”

Niko admired Lesley's earnestness and concerned tone. Even though it was all an act. But it did the trick, Steven was practically jumping at shadows at this point. Niko cleared his throat, drawing Steven's attention away from Lesley. “Excuse me, man, but can I use your bathroom? Too much coffee this afternoon.”

Steven gave Niko a look of irritation. “Down the hall on the left.” He pointed.

“Steven,” Lesley began as Niko made his way down the hall, “what do you think we should do? We didn't have anything to do with Maria's death, but—” Lesley's words died away as Niko closed the door to the half bath. He gave himself a minute before he flushed the toilet and opened the door, allowing the toilet noise to cover the sound of his footsteps heading for the kitchen. He glanced around at the open floor plan of the kitchen, breakfast nook and family room, then circled the kitchen island, looking for anything out of place.

The wrought-iron frame of the table in the breakfast nook was missing its glass. Four chairs were pulled up neatly around the empty frame. Niko's gaze dropped to the tile floor. It looked clean, except some of the grout had an uneven, grayish stain. He glanced over his shoulder as he took the empty vial of luminol from his pocket and quickly pretended to spray it on the grout.

“What do you think you're doing?” Steven charged Niko, but stopped short when Niko straightened and held the bottle of luminol out toward him. “What the hell? I'm a state's attorney. You think I don't know my rights? Get out of my house, both of you.”

“I've got a better idea,” Niko said. “Why don't I call Detective Murray and invite him and his partner over? Tell them to bring CSU with them. What do you think will happen when they get a black light in here?”

Steven's gaze dropped to the tile. His face fell. His shoulders slumped. “They'd need a search warrant.”

“They could probably get one easily enough, don't you think? If I mention the broken table, the stain in the grout, your connection to Maria?” He lowered his tone, the way he would to let a suspect know he had no way out. “They're doing an autopsy. You know the kind of tests they'll be running. How would you follow the trail of evidence?”

Lesley appeared behind Steven. Her gaze met Niko's. He nodded almost imperceptibly.

“Steven?” she queried in a hushed tone.

That seemed to be his undoing. He crumpled onto one of the bar stools, his face in his hands. “It was an accident,” he moaned. “She cut me with a knife and I shoved her away. Her head hit the table.” He shook his head, still hiding his face in his hands. “I just wanted her to go away,” he muttered. He sighed and lowered his hands. He stared out the window as if he was looking at something only he could see. “I just wanted her to go away.”