A Killer Stitch by Maggie Sefton Page A

burrowing interview style. Judging from how anxious Diane was now, Kelly figured she would crumple like a dry leaf if Peterson went after her.
    Waiting until they’d finished eating before she resumed her questions, Kelly sipped her coffee and ventured into neutral territory. “What kind of work do you do, Diane?”
    Diane hesitated before she answered. “I’m a landscaper. Got my degree from the university years ago. That’s where Jennifer and I met.” She gave her friend a quick smile. “I’ve been working with a local landscaping company for several years, but…but I’ve missed work recently and been late a lot, and my boss kind of gave me a warning the other day. So I’m getting kind of nervous now. I mean, I can’t afford to lose my job.”
    â€œWhy’d you miss work? Were you sick?” Kelly probed, even though she sensed she knew the answer. She wanted to hear Diane say it out loud.
    â€œI’d…I’d had too much to drink the night before and slept right through the next morning,” she admitted in a soft voice as she stared at her clasped hands.
    â€œNot good, Diane,” Jennifer said. “You know that.”
    Diane’s head dropped lower. “Yeah, I know.”
    Kelly could feel Diane’s despair coming at her in a wave. Jennifer was right. Diane was deep into depression and despair. And if she had been drinking so much she would sleep the next day away, that only made it worse.
    Even though she knew her questions were forcing Diane to confront the very things that had sent her into a tailspin, Kelly knew she had to continue. How else could she help her? And maybe, this sober questioning in the harsh light of day would cause Diane to rethink her self-destructive behavior. Maybe.
    â€œWhy don’t you tell me about the night of Derek’s death,” she ventured in a gentle voice. “Jennifer said he called you while you were at the bar, right?”
    Diane looked out into the café. “Yes, he called while I was there. I couldn’t believe it. I mean, we’d had that awful fight the week before, and there he was on the phone, sweet-talking me like always. Like nothing happened.” Her bitter tone returned.
    â€œWhat’d he want?”
    â€œHe wanted to get laid, that’s all,” she said with a disgusted snort. “Begged me to come on out to his place. He wanted to make up. Promised we’d have a new start. He said he was only joking that night at the bar. He knew that I’m the only one who really loved him.”
    â€œWhat’d you say?”
    â€œI told him he was a lying bastard, and I wasn’t going up there. I told him he could screw himself.”
    Kelly glimpsed a spark within Diane that she hadn’t seen as yet. Anger. Normally, that could be a good sign for someone who was putting an end to a bad relationship. But in this case…
    â€œGood for you,” she told Diane. “Sounds like you’d had it.”
    â€œDamn right. He’d been using me for three years, and I was sick of it.”
    Kelly paused. “Then why did you go up there that night? What happened to change your mind?”
    Diane shook her head, as if she couldn’t believe what she was about to say. “Everyone at the bar had heard my conversation with Derek, and they were laughing and all. But a couple of guys told me I should give him another chance. One guy said I should at least hear what Derek had to say.” She closed her eyes, clearly not wanting to see what was in her head. “I can’t believe I let them change my mind.”
    â€œHad you been drinking?” Kelly probed.
    â€œOhhhh, yeah,” she admitted. “I had a couple more after the phone call. The guy kept on trying to persuade me. Jeeeez. He was like a salesman, almost.”
    Jennifer leaned closer. “Do you remember the guy’s name? Was he a regular?”
    Diane nodded.