Where Lawyers Fear to Tread by Lia Matera

Author:Lia Matera
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: MysteriousPress.com/Open Road
Published: 2021-10-15T00:00:00+00:00

29

The air between Larry and me almost crackled. We returned our napkins to the table, Larry said something polite to my parents, and we left them staring after us in bewilderment.

“Melissa Whittsen’s in Alaska right now. Mary West told me. She said Melissa went there to stay with her brother.”

“Come on.” Larry pulled me toward a pay phone. “Call Mrs. Koenig and find out if Susan ever met Bonomini’s sister.”

“Jake might have introduced them.”

“In which case, Susan knew her as Melissa Whittsen, Jake’s wife.”

“But not Bonomini’s sister? I get it.” I made the call.

“Susan knew the Bonomini girl by sight,” Mrs. Koenig confirmed, her voice tremulous. “The girl testified for that brother of hers, said how she was with him at a party when he met Mr. Pierce, the lawyer—or whatever he was—who stole our money. She said he’d have fooled anyone.”

“So Susan was in the courtroom that day? She saw Melissa Bonomini testify?”

“Susan went with me to court every day. She was an angel.”

I hung up. “Susan knew Melissa was Bonomini’s sister, all right.”

“Come on. Let’s find Jake and see if Susan knew Melissa was his wife.”

As we hurried back to Malhousie, I recounted (stopping frequently to gesticulate) Mary West’s story about the photo of Melissa with her lover. “The lover has to be Clarence Day, Larry. Melissa was with him Christmas Eve.” It occurred to me that I’d been with Gunnar Haas Christmas Eve, but that was different. “Don’t you see: Susan must have snapped that picture. She must have seen Melissa with Day and gotten suspicious about Day’s ties to the Bonominis. Maybe she thought Day had screwed up her aunt’s case on purpose—I mean, how often does a jury find in favor of an insured accountant over a white- haired old lady? That’s why she was investigating Day’s financial holdings.”

Larry kept his eyes averted and didn’t comment.

One thing troubled me, though. “Even if Susan did know Melissa was Jake’s wife, I can’t imagine her showing him the picture.” I halted again, but Tchielowicz marched on, forcing me to catch up. “She wouldn’t have interfered in Jake’s marriage that way—I mean, Susan could be cruel in a thoughtless, pompous kind of way, but I never knew her to be tacky.” I waited for Tchielowicz to agree, but he remained silent. “Besides, Susan obviously didn’t want people to know she was poking around in Day’s affairs. Look how she disguised that list of Day’s property.”

I described Jake’s reaction when I asked him about Melissa’s infidelity. “He looked right at Greg Parker’s chair. I’ll bet Nosy found the picture in Susan’s desk and showed it to Jake.”

“What makes you think Parker knew Melissa Whittsen from a hot rock?”

“She was at the law review banquet with Jake last spring.”

“Which means that last year’s staff got to meet her. Most of this year’s staff hadn’t finished their articles yet. Most of us didn’t write on till summer.”

True. Not even Susan had finished her article in time to go to last year’s banquet.

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