Page 53 of Little Empty Promises

“I noticed a bruise on one of her wrists and a gash over one of her eyes.She told me her shoelace had come undone, causing her to trip.Most of her body was covered up, so I’m not sure if what I saw was the extent of it, or if there was more.”

“Did the bruise look fresh?”

I shook my head.“I’d say it was at least a couple of weeks old.Let’s say she wasn’t lying to me about how she’d sustained the injuries.She still lied to me about other things.Some of her facial expressions were obvious tells.Her eyes would dart back and forth at times when we were talking.And during a few of my questions, she’d flutter her eyelashes—clear tells.”

He crossed one leg over the other and leaned back in the chair.“If you had to solve the murder tonight, what would you say the motive was for her murder?”

“I’d say Cordelia was keeping tabs on her neighbors, and she either outed herself or she got caught doing it, and she was murdered because of it.”

“It’s the most obvious reason.”

“Almosttooobvious.It feels too easy.”

“What if it’s not?What if you’re overthinking it?”

Anyone other than Giovanni wouldn’t have gotten away with the suggestion, but he was right.Oftentimes, I overthought everything.

“Let’s say one of the neighbors killed her, and let’s say it was Eddy,” I said.“Why would he go to the library to murder Cordelia when he could have just broken into her house and killed her there?”

“It’s never a good idea to murder someone too close to home.”

Point taken.

“If Eddy knew Cordelia was going to be working alone in the library, he could have snuck in, waited until everyone left, and then killed her as she was locking up for the night,” I said.“Or he could have been following her, waiting for the right moment to present itself.”

“Sounds like a decent plan.”

“It does, except for one thing.”

Giovanni turned toward me.“What’s that?”

“The note Whitlock found in the library was a description of a woman.If Eddy had murdered Cordelia, or one of the other neighbors did it, they wouldn’t be carrying a note with her description on it.They already knew what she looked like.”

“Unless Eddy hired someone to do his dirty work for him.”

Another option I’d considered.

Perhaps he’d been lying low until everything blew over and he was sure suspicion wasn’t on him.Maybe Rosalyn even knew what he’d done, and she was nervous because she was covering for him.Her story about not knowing when he would return home could have been just that—a story.

Giovanni’s cell phone buzzed.He glanced at the screen and then held the phone to his ear.“Yes, Nico, what is it?”

Nico was Giovanni’s cousin and worked security at our front gate.As he began talking, I downed the last of the wine and walked to the kitchen for a refill.I’d just stepped inside when I heard Giovanni coming up behind me.He asked Nico to hold on and said to me, “A man just pulled up to our driveway, and he’s asking to speak with you.”

“What man?”I asked

“I’m not sure.He refuses to give his name or to speak to anyone but you.”Giovanni turned the phone toward me.“Take a look.Do you know this guy?”

I leaned over, glancing at the live feed from our security camera.“I know him.Tell Nico I’m on my way.”

22

I wrapped a blanket around myself, opened the front door, and made my way down to the street.Nico turned toward me, and I waved, giving him theall clearto open the front gate.

I reached the end of the driveway, looked at the man sitting inside the car, and hollered, “Seth, what are you doing here?”

He left the motor running, exited the vehicle, and walked over to me.He didn’t say anything at first, so I stood there, giving him a chance to speak before I did.Behind me, I heard footsteps, and I turned to see Giovanni making his way toward us.He stopped to chat with Nico, but I knew he was there to keep an eye on Seth.

Seth still hadn’t said a word, and since awkward silences weren’t my cup of tea, I broke the silence for him.“Seth, is there something you want to talk to me about?”

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