She Was at Risk by P.D. Workman

Author:P.D. Workman [Workman, P.D.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: P.D. Workman

24

Zachary met with McLachlan’s ex-wife in her home, not a coffee shop or neutral location like his coworkers. Zachary wanted her to feel at home on her own ground. He wanted to give her a sense of control.

And he wanted to see what kind of place McLachlan had lived in, if they had lived there while they were married. Even if they hadn’t, the ex-wife would have mementos. Pictures, maybe things he’d left behind. Things that would give Zachary a better sense of McLachlan and the kind of person he was. He was already getting a pretty good picture of McLachlan.

His wife was pretty. Blond, shoulder-length hair and a thin face. She appeared younger than McLachlan in the pictures Zachary had seen of him. But it was hard to tell sometimes.

She shook Zachary’s hand, something that not a lot of women did. Her grip was dry and firm. She gave an image of calm competence. He didn’t know what she did for a living, but he imagined that she was good at it and that her clients or customers were happy around her.

“Mrs. McLachlan, it’s good to meet you.”

“I don’t go by McLachlan. I’ve gone back to Hubble. Don’t know why I ever took his name to begin with. I never wanted to be just someone’s wife.”

“Ms. Hubble. Sorry.”

“No, not a problem. You can call me Maureen. Forget about all of the mister and miz stuff.”

“Okay. Maureen. And I’m Zachary, always.”

“Come on in.” She ushered Zachary into her living room. It wasn’t a big, fancy house. Not like the mansions that the bigwig surgeons lived in. Instead, it was a little starter house like couples often got as they finished school and launched their careers. Neat, but small. It probably had all of the usual problems of dwellings in their income bracket. Knocking pipes, a leaky roof, windows that were not adequately sealed.

The living room was pleasantly furnished with a couch, loveseat, and easy chair covered with a do-it-yourself upholstery cover to make it match. The chair that Zachary sank into was comfortable enough. The room was clean, with bright sunlight filtering through the opaque blinds, pictures of Maureen and her family or friends on the walls, and some knickknacks here and there. Nothing that was readily identifiable as having belonged to McLachlan.

“This is very nice,” Zachary said. “Did you move here after the divorce?”

“No. This is where we were living at the time. We still had another year on the lease, and I said that I would pay the lease and keep the place. Forest didn’t want to pay for it, so he didn’t object. Though I imagine he came to regret it later. It isn’t so easy to get a nice place for a reasonable price these days.”

Zachary nodded. “Yes, it’s the same in Vermont. Seems like they cost more than they should.”

“It’s hard to make ends meet if you only have one income. Most people will try to find roommates to split the cost with if they’re not half of a working couple.

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