Reunion in Death (In Death #14)(27)

He sat at his desk, a big-shouldered man with a worn, wide face. He had good, clear eyes, and she had reason to know his time off the streets hadn't softened him.

He sat back, giving her a little come-ahead signal with one finger. "Lieutenant. You've been busy."

"Sir?"

"You made a trip out to my neighborhood this morning, paid a visit to Shelly Pettibone." He folded those big hands, and his face was unreadable. "I just got an earful from my wife."

"Commander, it's standard procedure to question any and all connections to the victim."

"I don't believe I said otherwise." His voice was deep, rumbling, and as unreadable as his face. "What was your impression of Shelly Pettibone?"

"That she's a sensible, steady, and straightforward woman."

"I'd have to say that's a perfect description, and I've known her about fifteen years. Do you have any reason to believe she had anything to do with her husband's death?"

"No, sir. There's no evidence leading me in that direction."

He nodded. "I'm glad to hear it. Lieutenant, are you afraid of my wife?"

"Yes, sir," Eve said without hesitation. "I am."

His lips trembled for an instant in what might have been a smothered smile. Then he nodded again. "You're in good company. Anna is a very strong-willed woman with very definite and particular opinions. I'm going to do what I can to keep her off your back on this, and as Shelly isn't on your short list, that seems very doable. But if it comes down to you or me, you're on your own."

"Understood."

"Just so we know where we stand. Let me give you some basic background here." He gestured to a chair. "My family has been very friendly with the Pettibones for a number of years. In fact, one of my sons dated Sherilyn when they were teenagers. It was a bitter disappointment to my wife that the relationship didn't end in marriage, but she got over it."

There was a framed holograph of his wife on his desk. In a subtle move, Whitney tapped it until it faced toward the wall instead of toward him. "Anna and Shelly are very good friends, and I believe Anna took it harder than Shelly did when Walter left. In fact, Anna refused to see or speak to Walt, which is why we, and our children were not at the party. We were invited, but one doesn't butt heads with Anna over social issues."

"I don't think less of you for it, Commander."

His brows arched and for another instant there was a flash of humor in his eyes. "Anna is bound and determined that Shelly marry again, or at the very least develop a serious romantic interest. Shelly hasn't cooperated. She is, as you said, sensible and steady. She's made a comfortable life for herself and maintained, to Anna's bafflement, a cordial relationship with Walt. As for Walt himself, I was fond of him."

The humor died away. "Very fond of him. He wasn't a man to make enemies. Even Anna couldn't dislike him. His children adored him, and as I know them nearly as well as I know my own, I'll say that though you'll have to follow through on them investigatively, you'll find they had no part in his murder."

"I've found no evidence nor motive that leads in their direction, Commander. Nor toward their spouses."

"But you have found Julianna Dunne."

"Yes, sir."

He pushed away from his desk, rose. "There are times, Dallas, the system fails. It failed by not keeping that individual in a cage. Now a good man is dead because the system failed."

"No system is foolproof, but knowing that doesn't make it easier when you lose a friend."

He acknowledged this offer of condolence with a nod. "Why did she kill him?"

Because he stood, Eve rose. "Her pattern had been to target a man of some wealth and prestige, develop a relationship with him that led to marriage, legally attaching herself in order to gain all or a portion of that wealth upon his death. In the three cases we know of, the target was no less than twenty-five years her senior, and she became his second wife. While Pettibone fits the general type of her favored target, no evidence has come to light that he knew her personally. She was not a legal heir to his estate, and therefore couldn't profit from his death by her usual means."

Eve took the discs of her reports out of her pocket, set them on his desk. "The most logical motive remains financial gain. I'm pursuing the possibility Dunne was hired out. We've made a first-level pass on the financials of the family and closest business associates. I've found nothing to indicate any large withdrawals, or consistent smaller ones that would meet the fee for a professional hit. I need to go deeper, and have requested authorization for a second level."

"She'd be good at it," Whitney commented.

"Yes, sir, she would."

"Her pattern's also been to move, to re-establish herself in another location after she has the money in hand."

"She's already broken pattern. But if she's left New York, it would be for another major city. And one, in my opinion, she's familiar with. She's still getting her legs under her, and would prefer the familiar. I've asked Feeney to keep in touch with the police in Chicago and East Washington. I've also asked Dr. Mira to consult. I want her to study the reports and testing results on Dunne."

"You don't intend to tag the original profiler?"