Double Down Read Online Free Page B

so that she wouldn’t be there to pay them for it. Whenever she left the office, she wouldn’t tell anyone where she was going, just said we could reach her on her cell. Lately she’s spent more time out of the office than in it. Even when she was in the office, she kept her door closed, and asked not to be disturbed. Two weeks ago, when she started putting her filing on my desk, I informed her that I was your secretary, not hers. She hadn’t spoken to me since.” Charlene had pushed the food around on the plate, but hadn’t eaten much.
    I, on the other hand, had consumed half a sandwich and all the potato salad. I tried waving my hand to signal the waiter for a refill on the diet cola, but he ignored me until Charlene looked up, and then he hurried over. Wiping my mouth on a napkin, I said, “Okay, I can see why they didn’t like her, but you said they hated her. That seems a bit extreme. Also, it doesn’t explain why Rose was so upset this morning.”
    Charlene, still toying with her salad, hesitated before answering. Finally, she took a deep breath and plunged in. “Rose knows that sooner or later Detective Stud Muffin is going to find out that she had good reason to want Monica dead. Monica slept with Rose’s husband.”
    Practically choking on my sandwich, I said, “What? Why didn’t she tell me?”
    She waved one beautifully manicured hand at me, “You haven’t been in the office hardly at all the last two weeks what with all the union negotiations. Even when you were there, you’ve had corporate exes or lawyers with you. It’s not like there’s been an opportunity for any of us to talk to you in private. The only reason I know is that I walked into the Ladies room and found Rose crying right after she found out. She made me promise not to tell you until she decided how she wanted to handle it.”
    “ How did she find out?”
    “ She went home for lunch one day, and caught them in her bed. Personally, I think Monica planned it that way. When Rose threw Danny out, Monica made sure Rose knew he was staying with her.”
    “ Okay, now I understand why everyone hated her, but I don’t believe that Rose killed her. She has a temper, but she’s not stupid. She would have killed Monica as soon as she caught her in bed with her husband. She wouldn’t have waited. She would have probably shot Danny too.”
    “ I agree, but that doesn’t mean she won’t still be a suspect. Besides, I think Rose is afraid that maybe Danny killed Monica. Rumor has it that Monica dumped Danny recently for someone else.”
    “ You have any idea who?”
    “ No. Like I said, she wasn’t talking to me, and by that time she had pretty much alienated everyone in the office.”
    Having demolished everything on my plate, I sat back, placing my napkin over the empty plate. “Anything else?”
    She smiled. “No, that’s pretty much it.” She seemed much more relaxed. Finishing her salad, she pushed the plate away and leaned in close. “Now that you’re up to date, let’s talk about Detective Hunky. Has he asked you out yet?”
    I laughed. “Are you kidding, he hasn’t even looked at me.”
    She shook her head, sitting back with a knowing look on her face. “Sweetie, you may not see him looking, but trust me, he’s looking. Even when he’s not looking, he’s aware of every move you make. If you don’t believe me, just watch Alan’s face when the three of you are together. He doesn’t like the detective’s interest in you one bit. By the way, in case you haven’t noticed, the handsome detective is rich, as well as good looking. I googled him, Nicholas Carmen Delgado of the San Francisco Delgados. His dad, Alfonso, made money buying and selling California real estate during the boom times. He took that money and invested in computer software. When he died each of the kids inherited several million.
    “ Wow. How did you find out his first name was Nicholas?”
    “ I asked. He knew my name; I thought it only fair I