Echoes in Death (In Death #44)(72)

“Did she read you the Revised Miranda?” Gemma demanded as she rushed back in. “She’s supposed to, and if she hasn’t—”

“Look, kid,” Eve interrupted. “Nobody here is under arrest or under suspicion. A man’s dead and a woman’s in the hospital recovering from a brutal attack. My job is to find out who did that to them. I’m going to do my job, so stop showing off.”

Gemma sulked, but she shut up and sat down beside her brother, who disguised a laugh with a cough. “You should go on upstairs, sweetie.”

“I know what happened. I looked it up. Besides, Junie’s mother was there that night.”

“Who is Junie, and who is her mother?” Eve demanded.

“I don’t have to say.”

Eve shifted back to the adults. “If I could have those names,” she began.

“Junie Wyatt. Her mom’s Catherine Frummon. You guys don’t know her mom,” Gemma said to her brother and Toya. “Junie mostly lives with her dad.”

“Abbott Wyatt,” Toya supplied. “They’ve been divorced for years, as far as I know.”

“Okay. Anything else?” Eve asked Gemma.

“Junie said her mom went whacked after it happened because Oh My God! She was there, and she could’ve been attacked or murdered. Like that. It’s always all about her mom with her mom. And she said how Dr. Strazza’s wife probably did something stupid so Dr. Strazza got killed because she thinks his wife is stupid and a gold digger and a trophy. Junie’s mom is a bitch.”

“Gemma!”

Gemma looked around her brother, at her sister-in-law. “If you knew her, you’d say the same. I’m not going to lie to the police. That’s a crime.” So saying, she smiled. “Right?”

“I can’t argue.”

Toya let out a sigh. “Off the top of my head—and you may have others, Gray—the mutual acquaintances would be Junie’s dad, Abbott Wyatt…”

The housekeeper or cook or whatever she was rolled in a cart. To Eve’s surprise, Gemma hopped right up. “I’ve got it, Miss P, thanks.” And began to pour and serve while Toya ran down a list of people.

“Okay. Can you tell me if you’ve ever used Jacko’s Catering?”

“All the time. We’re terrible cooks, and don’t mind staying that way,” Toya said. “Pauline will often make meals for the AutoChef before she goes home for the evening, or we’ll do local delivery or takeout. And we eat out a lot. But Jacko’s is a favorite if we’re having friends or family over. Not to serve unless it’s a bigger party, but they have a terrific menu and they deliver, so I can set it up as if I’ve fussed for hours.”

“Nobody’s fooled,” Gray reminded her.

“No, but it’s all in the presentation.”

“How about Loan Star Rentals?”

The quick amusement faded out of Gray’s face. “I’ve used them for staging a project, and we used them when we were working on this house, staying here occasionally. We didn’t want to furnish it until we’d made real progress. How does this apply?”

“We’re connecting dots” was all Eve would say. “According to our information, you both attended the Celebrate Art Gala in April of last year. Is that correct?”

“Yes. We missed the year before because Gray was on a project out of town, and I didn’t want to go alone. It’s no fun without him.”

“I’d like you to think back to that night. Who you met, who you spoke with. There was dancing. You probably danced with other people.”

“We had a table of friends,” Toya recalled. “It’s a lovely evening, really one of my favorite events. We spoke to so many people … I couldn’t begin. Gray?”

“It’s a social evening,” he continued. “We had a lot of friendly competition in our group and with some others we know on a couple of items in the silent auction.”

“Anyone who stands out for any reason? Anyone who bothered you or made you uncomfortable?”

“Mavis Freestone was there—talk about a standout. I actually stalked her into the ladies’ lounge and begged an autograph and a selfie for Gemma.”

“You a fan?” Eve asked Gemma.

“Anybody who isn’t is wheeze. She’s the ult.”

“Yeah, she’s pretty much the ult.”

Gemma eyed Eve, considering. “You’re into Mavis?”

“You could say that.”

“She was so sweet about it,” Toya added, “even later when I stalked her husband, who’s one of my favorite designers. They’re such a striking couple, and I loved meeting them. It was the high point of the night for me.”

“Every time I turned around Toya was off trying for another sighting.”

“I wasn’t that bad.” Batting her husband’s arm, Toya laughed. “And I stepped out a few times so Gemma and I could text our mutual excitement. That was when—” She broke off, frowned.

“When?” Eve prompted.

“Oh, nothing. Just a minor annoyance. Not worth mentioning.”

“I’d like you to mention it.”

“Well, it’s nothing, really, but it did bother me at the time. I was in this little nook, texting Gemma, and this man sort of blocked me in.”