Immortal in Death (In Death #3)(88)

“It’s just a matter of privacy,” he insisted. “If you had media hounding you every time you tried to take a piss, you’d understand.”

Eve knew exactly what that was like and smiled toothily. “Funny, neither of you seemed to be particularly shy of media exposure. In fact, if I were a cynic, I’d have to say the two of you exploited it. How long has Jerry been on Immortality?”

“I don’t know.” His eyes shifted to the mirror again, as if he was hoping a director would say “cut” and end the scene. “I told you I didn’t know what was in that drink.”

“You had a bottle in your bedroom, but you didn’t know the contents. Never took a taste of it?”

“I never touched it.”

“That’s funny, too, Justin. You know, it seems to me if something was in my friggie, I’d be tempted to sample it. Unless I knew it was poison, of course. You know Immortality’s a slow poison, don’t you?”

“It doesn’t have to be.” He stopped himself, breathed hard through his nose. “I don’t know anything about it.”

“An overload on the nervous system, slow acting, but lethal all the same. You poured Jerry a drink, handed it to her. That’s murder.”

“Lieutenant — “

“I’d never hurt Jerry,” he exploded. “I’m in love with her. I’d never hurt her.”

“Really? Several witnesses claim you did just that a few days ago. Did you or did you not strike Ms. Fitzgerald in the backstage area of the Waldorf’s Royal Ballroom on July second?”

“No, I — We lost our tempers.” The lines were tangling in his head. He couldn’t remember his cue. “It was a misunderstanding.”

“You hit her in the face.”

“Yes — no. Yes, we were arguing.”

“You were arguing, so you punched the woman you love, knocking her off her feet. Were you still violently angry with her when she came to your apartment last night? When you poured her a glass of slow-acting poison?”

“I tell you, it’s not poison, not like you mean. I wouldn’t hurt her. I was never angry with her. I couldn’t be.”

“You were never angry with her. You never hurt her. I believe you, Justin.” Eve soothed her voice, leaned forward again, laid a kind hand over his trembling one. “You never hit her, either. You staged it all, didn’t you? You’re not the kind of man who strikes the woman he loves. You staged it, just like one of your performances.”

“I didn’t — I — ” He looked up helplessly into Eve’s eyes, and she knew she had him.

“You’ve done a lot of action videos. You know how to pull a punch, how to fake one. That’s what you did that day, isn’t it, Justin? You and Jerry pretended to fight. You never laid a hand on her.” Her voice was gentle, full of understanding. “You’re not a violent kind of guy, are you, Justin?”

Torn, he pressed his lips together, looked at his lawyer. She held up a hand to hold off more questions and leaned close to Justin’s ear.

Keeping her face bland, Eve waited. She knew the pickle they were in. Did he admit to the staging, making himself into a liar, or did he cop to punching his lover, showing his capabilities for violence? It wasn’t a steady wire to cross.

The lawyer shifted back and folded her hands. “My client and Ms. Fitzgerald were playing a harmless game. Foolish, admittedly, but it isn’t a crime to pretend to fight.”

“No, it isn’t a crime.” Eve felt the first crackle, weakening the back of their alibi. “Neither is going off to Maui and pretending to play house with another woman. It was all make believe, wasn’t it, Justin?”

“We just — I suppose we didn’t take time to think it all through. We were worried, that’s all. After you picked up Paul, we wondered if you’d shoot for us. We were all there that night, so it seemed logical.”

“You know, that’s just what I thought.” She beamed a friendly smile. “It’s a very logical step.”

“We both had important projects going. We couldn’t afford what’s happening right now. We thought if we pretended to split up, it would add weight to our alibi.”

“Because you knew the alibi was weak. You had to figure we’d fall to the fact that either of you, or both of you, could have left the apartment undetected on the night of Pandora’s murder. You could have gone to Leonardo’s, killed her, and slipped back home without any security breach.”

“We didn’t go anywhere. You can’t prove we did.” His shoulders straightened. “You can’t prove anything.”

“Don’t be too sure. Your lover’s an Immortality junkie. You had possession of the drug. How did you get it?”

“I — someone gave it to her. I don’t know.”

“Was it Redford? Did he hook her, Justin? You must hate him, if he did. The woman you love. She started dying, Justin, the first time she took a sip.”

“It’s not poison. It’s not. She told me that was just Pandora’s way of keeping it for herself. Pandora didn’t want Jerry to benefit from the drink. The bitch knew what it could do for Jerry, but she wanted — ” He broke off, heeding his lawyer’s sharp warning a little too late.