Second To Nun (A Giulia Driscoll Mystery Book 2) by Alice Loweecey Read Free Book Online

“Are you okay? Your face is all red.”
    Giulia touched the back of her free hand to her cheeks. “Courtesy of Mr. Flynt. I trailed him to his mistress’ house this morning and took pictures of them doing things he should only be doing with his wife.”
    Zane’s mouth dropped open. “I won’t ask to see. Is that why the second coffee?”
    “Not only the second. This one is double-strength and black.”
    Sidney’s head popped up over her monitor. “You’re drinking black coffee? Did aliens abduct you and flip-flop your brain?”
    “I’m desperate. Flynt and his sexual antics require extreme coffee measures.”
    Sidney’s eyes got big. “Do I want to know?”
    “You do not.”
    She gave Giulia a thumbs-up. “Way to take one for the team.”
    “That’s why I make the big bucks.”

Eleven

      
    Jane Pierce walked in waving her camera as Sidney and Zane hooted with laughter.
    “I have pictures!”
    Giulia fist-pumped. “Yes. Come plug in and show me this magically restored jewelry.”
    “Our Congressman brought his ex-underwear model wife to the fundraiser,” Jane said while the pictures uploaded. “Fanboys and fangirls crowded around her to get selfies. Nobody looked twice at me.”
    Giulia unhooked the USB cable from her tower. “You’ll make me very happy if our insurance fraud couple fought for one of the selfies.”
    Jane snorted. “Not a chance, but something better. They were so conscious of their image their posing pretty much did my job for me.”
    Giulia opened the folder of pictures. “Forty-seven?”
    “It’s not as bad as it looks. Can I drive?”
    Giulia relinquished her chair. Jane opened the photo viewer and clicked through the pictures too fast for Giulia to tell who was in them.
    “Here.” Giulia enlarged an image of their targets talking with a young couple in expensive-looking evening wear. “Mrs. Insurance Fraud’s nose got wicked out of joint when she priced that woman’s dress. Look at her eyes. She can paste that social smile on but she can’t control her baby blues.” She clicked to the next picture. “I heard The Scoop talking in the background and then a camera click. It wasn’t mine; I put mine on silent. Both of them posed facing right at me. I got like six in a row. Here’s the diamond necklace and earrings they claimed were stolen. Look at that sparkle. Those trinkets could pay my rent for three years. Four.”
    “You’re terrific.” Giulia watched the photos speed past again. “You’ll be twice as terrific if you caught him wearing the Rolex.”
    “You can put ‘terrific’ on my letter of recommendation, because here…” click, click “…it is.”
    In the picture now on the screen, the Congressman was shaking hands with Mr. Insurance Fraud, the latter’s sleeve pulled back just far enough to reveal the miraculously restored stolen Rolex.
    “Rhetorical question,” Giulia said. “Was our Congressman impressed by said Rolex?”
    “Nah. He had one eye on his wife’s cleavage all night and the other eye on all the men checking out his wife’s cleavage. Her dress covered her naughty bits only by the grace of God and double-sided tape.”
    “I bet The Scoop didn’t thank God for an evening without a wardrobe malfunction. Their viewers will be so disappointed.” Giulia dragged her client chair next to Jane. “ The Scoop and our corrupt politicians are blights on the county. I can’t decide which is the bigger blight. Scroll through all the pictures again, please. I want to select some of Mr. and Mrs. Fraud together and separately for the insurance company.”
    Giulia and Jane sorted the pictures into Yes, No, and Maybe folders.
    In less than half an hour, Giulia found three clean photographs of the one hundred fifty thousand dollar diamond earrings and necklace from different angles, and two of the husband with the Rolex peeking out from his sleeve.
    “Excellent job, Jane. Thank you.” Giulia rubbed her temples. “Stress headache. I may