we’re finished? Are you staying at the Crest Hotel?”
“No, I’m at the Brunswick,” she said. “I couldn’t bear to stay here, not after what happened.”
“Did you just get into town?” I asked.
She nodded. “An hour ago. The police are going to tell me exactly what happened. So far, all I know is that he was found murdered in one of the conference rooms downstairs. Someone used a knife on him.” She shuddered at the thought. At least that confirmed that she hadn’t heard my name mentioned in connection with his murder, but I doubted it would take Detective Murphy long to bring it up. We had a limited window of opportunity, and Jenny and I had to take full advantage of it. “Why don’t you go back to your hotel, and we’ll be there soon. You really should rest.”
She looked around once more, and then nodded. “That sounds good. Thank you.”
When she was gone, I dead-bolted the door behind her and smiled at Jenny. “Wow, that was close. Way to think fast.”
“It gives us the perfect excuse to finish our snooping, doesn’t it?”
I nodded. “I thought she might have heard that I was the one who found Derrick’s body.”
Jenny shook her head. “I was pretty sure we were in the clear when she didn’t attack you the second she found out who you were.”
“Yes, that was a pretty big clue. I’ve got another one for you.”
“What? Did you find something in the bedroom?”
“Come with me,” I said as I led her into the other room.
She looked around, and then said, “It’s at least as messy as the living room.”
“True, but that’s not why we’re here. Look in the closet.”
She did as I asked, glanced in, and then asked, “Does this mean Cary was lying to us? Had she been staying here all along?”
“Pull out one of the dresses and look at it.”
Jenny did, and an instant later after examining a cute little black dress, she said, “There’s no way Cary Duncan could have squeezed into this, not on her best day.”
I nodded. “Someone else was staying here with Duncan, and if I had to bet, I’d say it was Mindi Mills.”
Jenny looked stricken. “She’s going to know what her husband was up to. How awful.”
“I’d say when she starts unpacking and sees these clothes, she’s going to have a pretty good idea that they belong to someone else, and unless Derrick was a cross-dresser who could squeeze himself into something this small, there was a pretty good chance her husband was seeing someone on the side.”
“We can’t tell her,” Jenny said. “It’s just not right.”
“We offered to clean the place up and deliver the clothes to her at the Brunswick,” I reminded her.
“Yes, Derrick’s things. We didn’t say a word about his mistress’s clothes.”
I looked at Jenny a second before I spoke. “Jen, how on earth are you so sensitive about this type of stuff and still working as a lawyer?”
“They made a special exception for me, and remember, we don’t do domestic cases,” she said as she started collecting the smaller clothes.
“What are you going to do with them?”
“I can’t just throw them away,” she said.
I took a plastic bag from the top shelf, one reserved for dry-cleaning, and began folding the dresses so they’d fit.
“They’ll wrinkle that way,” Jenny said.
“Do you have any better ideas? We could always do what I suggested and mix them in with Derrick’s clothes.”
“No, that’s fine,” she said. We added shoes and some things from the drawers that clearly belonged to the mystery woman.
“Jenny, we don’t know for a fact that these belong to Mindi,” I said.
“Do you honestly think that he had TWO mistresses on the side?”
“I would guess that it was highly unlikely, but I suppose it’s a possibility. There’s one good way to find out, though.”
“How do you propose we do that?”
“It’s simple,” I said as I tied a knot in the top of the bag to secure it. “We ask Mindi ourselves.”
“I’m
“No, I’m at the Brunswick,” she said. “I couldn’t bear to stay here, not after what happened.”
“Did you just get into town?” I asked.
She nodded. “An hour ago. The police are going to tell me exactly what happened. So far, all I know is that he was found murdered in one of the conference rooms downstairs. Someone used a knife on him.” She shuddered at the thought. At least that confirmed that she hadn’t heard my name mentioned in connection with his murder, but I doubted it would take Detective Murphy long to bring it up. We had a limited window of opportunity, and Jenny and I had to take full advantage of it. “Why don’t you go back to your hotel, and we’ll be there soon. You really should rest.”
She looked around once more, and then nodded. “That sounds good. Thank you.”
When she was gone, I dead-bolted the door behind her and smiled at Jenny. “Wow, that was close. Way to think fast.”
“It gives us the perfect excuse to finish our snooping, doesn’t it?”
I nodded. “I thought she might have heard that I was the one who found Derrick’s body.”
Jenny shook her head. “I was pretty sure we were in the clear when she didn’t attack you the second she found out who you were.”
“Yes, that was a pretty big clue. I’ve got another one for you.”
“What? Did you find something in the bedroom?”
“Come with me,” I said as I led her into the other room.
She looked around, and then said, “It’s at least as messy as the living room.”
“True, but that’s not why we’re here. Look in the closet.”
She did as I asked, glanced in, and then asked, “Does this mean Cary was lying to us? Had she been staying here all along?”
“Pull out one of the dresses and look at it.”
Jenny did, and an instant later after examining a cute little black dress, she said, “There’s no way Cary Duncan could have squeezed into this, not on her best day.”
I nodded. “Someone else was staying here with Duncan, and if I had to bet, I’d say it was Mindi Mills.”
Jenny looked stricken. “She’s going to know what her husband was up to. How awful.”
“I’d say when she starts unpacking and sees these clothes, she’s going to have a pretty good idea that they belong to someone else, and unless Derrick was a cross-dresser who could squeeze himself into something this small, there was a pretty good chance her husband was seeing someone on the side.”
“We can’t tell her,” Jenny said. “It’s just not right.”
“We offered to clean the place up and deliver the clothes to her at the Brunswick,” I reminded her.
“Yes, Derrick’s things. We didn’t say a word about his mistress’s clothes.”
I looked at Jenny a second before I spoke. “Jen, how on earth are you so sensitive about this type of stuff and still working as a lawyer?”
“They made a special exception for me, and remember, we don’t do domestic cases,” she said as she started collecting the smaller clothes.
“What are you going to do with them?”
“I can’t just throw them away,” she said.
I took a plastic bag from the top shelf, one reserved for dry-cleaning, and began folding the dresses so they’d fit.
“They’ll wrinkle that way,” Jenny said.
“Do you have any better ideas? We could always do what I suggested and mix them in with Derrick’s clothes.”
“No, that’s fine,” she said. We added shoes and some things from the drawers that clearly belonged to the mystery woman.
“Jenny, we don’t know for a fact that these belong to Mindi,” I said.
“Do you honestly think that he had TWO mistresses on the side?”
“I would guess that it was highly unlikely, but I suppose it’s a possibility. There’s one good way to find out, though.”
“How do you propose we do that?”
“It’s simple,” I said as I tied a knot in the top of the bag to secure it. “We ask Mindi ourselves.”
“I’m
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