Shadow of Doubt (A Kali O'Brien legal mystery) by Jonnie Jacobs Read Free Book Online Page A

party Friday except that Jack had the flu. Marlene dropped by briefly to bring some brownies she’d baked, but I don’t think you met her.”
    As we wandered back toward the kitchen, I got her to give me a list of Eddie’s friends and co-workers, and a promise to go over everything once again in her own mind. “What we want to do is point the police in a different direction,” I told her. “Get them started thinking about someone besides you.”
    “But they'll have to prove I did it, won't they? Even if they can’t find anyone else.”
    “Proof comes later. At this point, it’s more a question of coming up with the most likely scenario.”
    And that didn’t bode well for Jannine, who based on what she’d told me, fit the scenario to a tee. That fact must have dawned on her too, because she seemed considerably gloomier than she had an hour and a half earlier.
    “It doesn’t look good, does it?” she asked softly.
    I had to admit it didn’t.
    “You know though,” she said, as she walked me to the door, “if I was going to kill him, why would I leave my gun sitting right there practically in plain view?”
    If I were a prosecutor, I could think of several reasons, but I wasn’t, so I kept my mouth shut.

Chapter 5

    Outside, the day was still grand — the air fragrant with the scent of mountain lilac and freshly turned soil, the sky a clear, deep blue the likes of which we never see in the Bay Area. My spirits, however, were considerably less bright.
    With almost no effort at all, I could see the State’s case taking shape, and it wasn’t a comforting sight. They would see motive in the fight Jannine and Eddie had that morning, play up the fact that she hadn’t seemed surprised when he didn’t come home at night, might in fact find therein the cause of her anger. They would argue that she’d taken the children to her mother’s, then tracked or lured Eddie to a remote spot and killed him, using a gun to which she clearly had access.
    It was a tidy picture. I wondered, bleakly, if there was any truth to it.
    I stood by the car for a moment, enjoying the sun’s warmth on my back while I tried to organize my thoughts. The story in that morning’s paper had been largely a re hash of yesterday’s news. The police were continuing their investigation, and while there were several leads, no arrests were imminent. I would have found the report heartening, particularly the part about “several leads,” except I thought there was a good chance it wasn’t entirely accurate. When the law enforcement folks aren’t forthcoming with details, reporters are forced to make do with an assortment of stock phrases. I had a feeling today’s column was nothing but generic news-speak. It made the next step pretty obvious, however.
    I’m no fonder of tilting at windmills than the next person, but I thought I should give Benson another shot. The cops undoubtedly had information I would find useful. I was willing to risk being thrown out on my rear for the chance to learn some of it.
    The desk sergeant was once again intent on poking at the computer terminal in front of her when I arrived. She didn’t even bother to look up.
    “Benson’s out,” she barked.
    “Still?”
    “Again.”
    I noticed a nameplate I’d missed the day before. A. Helga Smelski. I wondered what the “A” could possibly stand for that she would choose to go by Helga instead. Some pretty awful possibilities came to mind. Or maybe she just liked the name Helga. It suited her, anyway.
    “I thought you said he was going to be back today,” I said.
    Helga poked a few more keys, then hit a switch to her right The computer made a whirring sound, then began to print out a list of some sort. Finally, she looked up. “He was back. Now he’s gone again.”
    “Can I leave him a message?”
    Helga squinted one disapproving eye at me, as though I’d trampled her prize rosebush, but she handed me a piece of paper and a pen. I wrote a quick note, then