Tonight I Said Goodbye (St. Martin's Minotaur Mystery) Read Free Page B

didn't commit suicide. Besides, if his family's alive, then it's much more likely he was murdered. So until somebody can prove they're dead, I'll pretend the police are looking in the wrong direction."
    "You don't sound too enthusiastic."
    "I'm not. I've got a bad feeling we're going to take the father's money so we can stick our noses in this mess, and then the cops will hold a press conference a week or two from now and announce that they found the bodies of the wife and daughter where Weston dumped them. I hope that's not true, but it's hard not to think about it."
    "So why take the case?"
    "If someone wants me to investigate something as bad as this old man does," I said, "I'm damn well going to give it a try."
    She ran the tip of her tongue across her lips and frowned. "I can't help wondering about it myself, just because of the line of work he's in.The nature of the business makes the whole thing seem a little more sordid, doesn't it?"
    "A bit." I leaned back and put my feet up on the desk.
    "So," she said, changing the subject, "how's
Angela
?"
    "Why do you say her name like that?" I asked. "Like you're laughing at me?"
    She raised her eyebrows and tried to look innocent. "Laughing at you? Not at all. Don't be so defensive. Now, what's the deal with you two?"
    "Angela and I have gone our separate ways."
    "Really? I'm sorry," she said, but I could tell she wasn't at all. "Might I ask why?"
    "We were very different people," I mumbled. "She was, ah, a bit--"
    "Of a ditz," Amy interjected.
    I frowned. "I wasn't going to say that."
    "Oops." She grinned. "My mistake."
    "She wasn't a ditz," I said. "And you only met her once, so you're hardly one to judge."
    "Once was enough, Lincoln."
    "And how's your love life? Your sexy news-anchor boyfriend, Mr. Jacob Terry?" I said, dropping my voice to a deep baritone.
    "We're fine."
    I smiled. "What is it that most attracts you to him? The romantic musk of his cologne, or the gallon of hair oil he uses to shellac that striking mane into place for a windy live report?"
    "Jealous," she said, "that's what you are."
    "Almost uncontrollably," I said with a nod. "It's hard to sleep at night."
    "Joke if you want to, Lincoln, but I know the real reason you and Angela didn't work out. You can't stop thinking about me."
    I pointed at the door. "Hit the road, Ace. I've got work to do."
    She smiled and got to her feet. "So do I. But I expect a phone call in the next few days to let me know what you've found out."
    "I'll call."
    Joe returned half an hour later, and we left to visit John Weston. While he drove I filled him in on what I'd learned from the articles, which was basically nothing.
    "I hope this old man's not as loud and fiery as you say," he told me. "I don't deal well with those types."
    "You mean your peers?"
    "Silence, boy."
    Weston greeted us at the door in a cloud of cigarette smoke. He shook Joe's hand when I introduced them.
    "I sure as hell hope you don't drag your feet like your partner," Weston said to him. Fond of me already.
    "Neither of us will do any foot-dragging once we've agreed to take the case," Joe said. "But he's the one who had to talk me into it, sir. Not the other way around."
    "I don't give a damn about that anymore. Just get started."
    He led us into the living room. I quickly headed for the recliner on the far wall, leaving Joe to struggle with the torture chair.
    Weston returned to his position on the couch and held up a notebook. "I've been working on this since you left yesterday," he said, nodding at me. "I've written down as much information about Wayne as I could think of. I tried to keep it focused on the recent stuff, of course, but I gave you some background, too. I figured it might all be useful."
    I looked at Joe, and I could tell he was seeing what I already knew. John Weston might be grieving, and he might be temperamental, but his focus was on resolving this investigation. In many situations it's hard to get the victim's family to put aside their