Be My Banshee (Purple Door Detective Agency Book 1) by Joyce Lavene, Jim Lavene

you. I bid you goodnight then.”

Chapter Eleven
     
    Sunshine awakened as she always did—with a new perspective on life—eager to decide what she would wear that day.
    She brushed her temperamental hair and washed her face with a special herbal mixture that she’d created for herself. She looked into her clear, blue eyes and smiled at her beautiful face in the mirror.
    “I know things went badly yesterday,” she told her reflection. “But things will be better today.”
    Her reflection didn’t agree with her. “What’s going to make it better? John is still dead. Or have you forgotten already? You have limited information as to who killed him. Where are you going from here?”
    She hated it when her reflection was negative. “There are several possibilities now. I can feel the threads being pulled together.”
    “But are you at the heart of that? Or is it just an illusion?”
    “I don’t have time for this today. You need to go back to sleep and wake up on the right side of the bed.”
    “Which side is that?” her reflection yelled back at her as she left the bathroom. “Wait a minute. We have more to discuss.”
    “Not right now. I’ll see you later.”
    Choosing a bright yellow dress that went well with her hair, Sunshine added purple jewelry and wore purple sandals that tied on her ankles. Everything went with purple. She avoided looking at herself in the mirror again. She needed to be on her toes if she was going to be able to use the information they had uncovered from the tattoo shop.
    Aine and Jane were already in the office by the time Sunshine arrived downstairs. It surprised her how well the pair of opposites seemed to get along after Jane’s initial fear. Usually it took her longer to trust someone. Her mind was still caught up in a small rodent’s thought processes even though she could take on the size and shape of a woman.
    “Good morning, ladies.” Sunshine went into the kitchen to get a cup of tea. “What are we looking at?”
    “I looked up everything I could find about Detective O’Neill.” Jane glanced at Sunshine. “That was per her request as a new associate.”
    “That’s fine,” Sunshine said. “You were right to accommodate her. What did you find?”
    Jane smiled nervously. “I found everything you can possibly imagine about his life. It’s like he doesn’t do anything he’s worried about hiding. Everything was in plain view—including his girlfriend.”
    Sunshine and Aine stared at the screen as the beautiful, lush, black-haired woman from the pizzeria smiled back at them. She had brilliant blue eyes and a wide mouth that was made for passion.
    “Who is she?” Aine inquired. “Can you find an image of her that shows the rest of her body? She seems thin to me. A woman needs large hips to carry healthy children.”
    “Her name is Elena Spiros. This is her picture from her driver’s license,” Jane explained. “It only shows faces, I’m afraid.”
    “What does she do?” Sunshine asked with a glance at Aine. “Believe me, these days you can tell more about someone who plans to have children by the job they do.”
    “She’s an artist.” Jane brought up a group of pictures displaying Elena’s work. “Her paintings are wonderful, very expressive.”
    The three women studied the colorful paintings as the computer scrolled through them.
    “An artist.” Sunshine shrugged. “You have a much better chance of O’Neill having children with an artist than say a stockbroker or his police partner.”
    “Good.” Aine smiled in a satisfied manner. “The search was well done. Thank you, Jane.”
    “What about seeing him last night?” Sunshine blew on her hot herb tea before she sipped it. “Did you visit him? Are things straight between you now?”
    The front door to the office opened abruptly bringing in the scent of sea air, the traffic sounds of the city, and O’Neill.
    “I’m just wondering if it’s okay if I tell my girlfriend about you.” He