Deception Walk (A Lacey Fitzpatrick and Sam Firecloud Mystery Book 22) by Melissa Bowersock

Author:Melissa Bowersock [Bowersock, Melissa]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: New Moon Publishing
Published: 2019-10-13T22:00:00+00:00

~~~

FIFTEEN

She returned to Deborah’s desk and waited. The assistant was on the phone, the handset cradled between her ear and her shoulder, both hands typing on the keyboard of her computer.

“All right,” she said into the phone. “Yes, Thursday at ten. You’re all set… You’re welcome. Goodbye.”

“Busy day,” Lacey noted.

Deborah blew out a breath. “You have no idea. Ever since…” Deborah’s eyes strayed to the empty desk opposite hers, and her mouth pinched shut. “Anyway, let me see if Mr. Leiderman’s ready for you.”

“Thanks,” Lacey said.

Deborah got up and went to the door furthest on the right. She knocked once and pushed it open. Leaning in, her words were muffled, but Lacey heard the answering male voice.

“You can go right in,” Deborah said. As before, she left the door ajar.

Lacey went through her introduction again. Jim Leiderman was tall and thin, with tightly curled brown hair that would become an Afro if it wasn’t kept short. He had a high forehead and hazel eyes that crinkled at the corners.

“Sit down,” he said, motioning to the chair in front of his desk. His office was similar to Bruce’s, perhaps a bit smaller. “So you’re a PI, huh?” he asked.

“Yes.” Lacey handed a card over.

“You making progress?” he asked as he read the card.

“I think so,” she said. She liked his casual, friendly attitude.

“So who did it?” He sat back in his chair and grinned at her.

She smiled back. “I don’t know yet. Who do you think did it?”

“Oh…” He waved a hand in the air and made a rude noise. “Could have been anyone. She was a bitch and a half. Everyone hated her.”

Lacey blinked at him. “Oh? That’s… quite a statement.”

“But true,” he said, serious now.

“Why did everyone hate her?” Lacey asked.

He laughed. “You name it. She chased anything in pants. She was selfish and greedy and would lie like a rug. She was not a team player, and wouldn’t lift a finger to help anyone else.”

“Quite a litany,” Lacey said. “Yet she was executive assistant to the vice president. How does that happen?”

“Sleeping her way to the top,” Jim said. “And stabbing in the back anyone who got in her way.”

Lacey startled slightly at the stabbing in the back comment, but knew he meant it metaphorically. Jim was so open about all this, she decided to join in.

“Did you sleep with her?” She noticed a picture on the credenza behind him, a rather portly woman with a wide, genuine smile.

He grinned at Lacey. “Nope. Not my style. But she tried.”

“Who did she sleep with?” Lacey asked with an answering smile.

Jim waggled a finger at her. “I could guess, but that’s not for me to say. I probably wouldn’t know all the names anyway. Once I shut her down, she’d barely speak to me.”

Lacey backtracked. “You said everyone hated her. Anyone hate her enough to kill her?”

Jim rocked back in his chair. “Well, the obvious answer is yes,” he said. “But the real question is who.”

Lacey tipped her head at him.

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