Page 85 of Little Empty Promises

She let out a long sigh.“This isn’t what I wanted, any of it.I wish I could go back, but it’s too late for all that now.”

Octavia took a seat across from me, the gun still aimed at my chest.“I’m guessing you have a lot of questions for me.”

“If I ask them, are they going to be answered?”

“Perhaps.”

“You were waiting for me.How did you know I was coming?”

“Your mother called right after you left.We got to chatting, and she told me you’d been looking at the photos she’d taken.You made an excuse about having an errand to run.She didn’t believe it was just an errand, but she didn’t put it together.And why would she?She has no idea about my involvement.”

“My mother has looked up to you for years,” I said.“When she finds out what you did, she’ll be devastated.”

“Not when she finds out …ifshe finds out, and she won’t.As you were leaving her house, she saw you slip the photo of Dustin into your bag.She said you had a look on your face, the same look you get when you’re about to solve a murder.I assumed you’d put enough together to come for me, and I was right.I also know what you’re like, and I knew I’d have a little time to figure things out before you turn me in.”

“And what am I like?”

Octavia crossed one leg over the other.“You prefer to solve a murder before you bring the police into it.You like to be sure.You pride yourself on it.I doubt they know you suspect me, not yet.”

She’d pegged me well, but she hadn’t gotten itallcorrect, a fact I decided to keep to myself until the time was right.

“What I still don’t understand is why you had Cordelia killed in the first place,” I said.

“What makes you thinkIhad her killed?”

“After Cordelia was murdered, a piece of paper was found in the library with a description of a woman.It was a perfect match to Cordelia.That same day, the library manager saw a strange man lurking around.The man was your buddy?—

Dustin.”

She furrowed her brow, looking irritated.“Oh, for heaven’s sake.How could he be so sloppy?If you want something done right, you have to do it yourself.No matter.In terms of evidence, I’m afraid you're falling a bit flat.”

“I’m not done yet.Once I confirmed Dustin was in the library the day Cordelia died, I went to the office.I did some digging on him, and I’m sure you can imagine what I found out.Seems he’s been putting out fires for you for a long time, which isn’t a surprise since he works for you.”

She rolled her eyes, grunting, “I should have never asked him for help.”

“You still haven’t told me why you had Cordelia killed, but I’d like to venture a guess.Cordelia saw something she shouldn’t have, and she was murdered because of it.”

“She’s a nosey little thing—well, shewasa nosey little thing.”

“What happened at the park?”

“The gathering went as planned, and afterward, everyone left.I stayed behind for a while.I thought everyone had gone, but later I learned Cordelia, who’d come with your mother, had also stayed behind to go for a walk.”

“That still doesn’t explain why she’s dead.”

“I made a mistake, a foolish one, and Cordelia happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time when I made it.”

We stared at each other for a time.Though she was the one with the gun in her hand, the perspiration gathering around her forehead suggested she wasn’t as confident as she wanted me to believe.

“What was the mistake?”I asked.

“I fooled around with a man, and I got caught in the middle of it.”

“Fooled around with a man who wasn’t your husband, you mean.”

She nodded.“It wasn’t my finest moment, and I figured it wasn’t a big deal.It was a one-time thing.I’d decided it wouldn’t happen again.”

“When I was at my mother’s house earlier, she was raving about the renovations in the park.In particular, the bathrooms.If I had to guess, I’d say your rendezvous happened there, and Cordelia caught you in the act.”

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