Delusion in Death (In Death #35)(94)

“So he had trouble at home?” Eve asked, all attention.

“Oh, I wouldn’t say that.” But his face clearly did. “But that added pressure, and demands on this time, his attention, so I’d give him some input, another set of eyes, you could say.”

“I’m sure he appreciated it.”

“It wasn’t a big deal,” Callaway said, glancing down in modesty. “I’m sure he’d have done the same for me if I’d needed his help. In any case, I just wanted to walk, so I walked and ate lunch. Nancy’s so emotional right now. She hasn’t been able to get a handle on things. I’m happy to lend a shoulder or take on some extra work, but I needed a break.”

“I understand. Were you ever in sight of the café?”

“I walked by it, on the other side of the street. I actually thought about going over, getting a latte, but I didn’t want to deal with the crowd, the noise. They’re always busy at that hour.”

“Exactly.” Eve shot Teasdale a look. “You’d know that as you’d had lunch there regularly.”

“Everybody at the office had, one time or another. I was just walking, trying to settle. I’d nearly gone the other way, to the bar, just to … but I couldn’t.”

“You were walking,” Eve prompted.

“Yes.” He stared up at the ceiling. “Just taking the air. It was brisk. Not as cold as today, and it felt good to be out, to be moving. There was so much on my mind. You can’t imagine how many people in the office want to talk about it, ask questions, ask for details.”

“Because you were there, right there.”

“Yes. Something I’ll never forget. Even if I could, people in the office, reporters, and of course, the police, ask questions, bring it all back.”

“Of you especially.” Eve tried to add a note of sympathy. “Steve left early, then Weaver left. But you, you were there almost till it began.”

“Yes. Just minutes before. I … wait, wait. I saw Carly.”

“Carly Fisher?”

“It had to be her, going into the café. The red jacket she wears, with the floral scarf. I caught a glimpse of the jacket and scarf as she went in. I didn’t really register, didn’t really think about it. But now I wonder if that’s another reason I didn’t go in.”

“You didn’t get along?”

“No, not that. Carly was very driven, very focused on advancing her career. She’d often pick my brain for an assignment or project. That was fine.” He waved that away, a man burdened, but accepting the weight. “But I wasn’t in the mood yesterday. In fact, I remember now, seeing her made me decide to go back, just close myself into my office. But I saw her, poor Carly. I must’ve been one of the last people to see her alive.”

“Like Joe.”

“Yes. This is very upsetting. Could I have some water?”

“Absolutely.” Eve rose, got a bottle herself and offered it. “Just take your time, Lew. What did you do next?”

“I might have walked just a little more, then I turned around, and …”

“You saw something.” Eve leaned toward him. “What did you see?”

“Who,” he murmured. “It’s who I saw. I saw Jeni.”

Eve sat back, once again leveled a stare at Teasdale. “You saw Jeni Curve. Where?”

“Across the street, maybe a half a block—less, I think, from the café. But I’m used to seeing her around. I didn’t think about it, didn’t even retain it—or so I thought.”

“What was she doing?”

He closed his eyes, balled his fists. “She was talking to someone. A man. His back’s to me. I don’t see his face. He’s taller than she is. Yes, taller, broader, and wearing a black coat. He—does he give her something? I think yes, yes, she puts what he gives her in her coat pocket.”

“What next? Think!”

“I—I hardly paid attention. He kissed her—lightly, on both cheeks. Like a salute. He walks away, and she walks toward the café. This doesn’t seem real.”

“Did you see him with anyone else?” Eve demanded. “Did you see where he went?”

“I only know he walked in the same direction I was, but across the street, ahead of me. I stopped to look in a shop window, just to stall going back to the office. I didn’t see him again, or Jeni. Or any of them.”

“Lew, I want you to think and think hard. Did you ever see Jeni Curve with CiCi Way?”

She set both of their photos on the conference table. “Do you ever remember seeing these women together?”

“I can’t be sure. I’d see Jeni so often—in the offices when she made deliveries, or in the café when she picked something up. Even around the neighborhood. I can’t be sure if I saw her with this other woman.”

“You can’t link the two of them together,” Teasdale pointed out. “You’ve got Curve walking into the place she worked, and Way at the bar—with friends. You’ve got nothing that ties them to this.”

“We push on Way again. We can take Lew in, let her see him, shake her up. Would you be willing to do that?” Eve asked him.

“Anything I can do to help.”