The Second Wife Read Online Free

never got around to it. Kid’s lucky.”
    â€œHow much is that worth?”
    â€œHalf a million. The boy won’t be suffering money-wise anyhow.”
    â€œWell, that gives Jason a motive. Why aren’t you looking at him?”
    â€œThe kid loved his mother. It’s in almost every page of her diary. No way Jason killed her for half a mill.”
    â€œDon’t forget about the store and condo.”
    â€œJason told me that he thought his mother had changed her will. He believed everything would go to Brian. He was as surprised as anyone when he found out he was to inherit.”
    â€œHow convenient.”
    â€œListen, Gwen.” Cal ticked off his fingers as he made the list. “Marjory was scared of Brian. Even you have to admit that. She and Brian were not getting along. Brian was the last one to see her alive. He set up a meeting at a restaurant about a mile from where we found her body. We also know that he was capable of lying. Look at how he treated you. Any more evidence and he’d come tied up with a bow and a sign saying wife killer .”
    â€œI guess,” I said. I wasn’t convinced.
    â€œI’m going to ask you to stay out of this, Gwen. Stop nosing around. Maybe book off some holiday time. Go on a Club Med cruise and put this whole sorry mess out of your mind.”
    â€œI’ll think about it,” I said. I watched him put Brian’s file on his desk. A thought was forming in my brain that Cal would definitely not like. “I should just leave this to you to solve,” I said. Big strong you with all the brains. I resisted batting my eyes.
    Cal smiled for the first time since he’d appeared at my desk. “That’s right, Gwenny. I need to work without stumbling across you everywhere I look. You have to let the expert handle this. I’ve got everything under control.”
    â€œI’m breathing easier already,” I said.

CHAPTER EIGHT
    I waited until Cal and the other detectives left for the night. I stayed at my desk an extra fifteen minutes to make sure Cal wasn’t coming back for something he’d forgotten. He sometimes went for supper nearby and returned to work. Something told me that was probably what he was up to this evening. That would give me a half hour tops to do my snooping.
    The cleaning lady was down the hall emptying garbage cans when I snuck into Cal’s dark office. The overhead lights were on a motion sensor. They clicked on when I stepped inside. I crossed quickly to his desk. Marjory’s file was not where he’d left it. Could he have taken it with him? I rifled through the remaining papers and folders but came up empty.
    I circled the room. I flipped through files stacked on the window ledge and piled up against the wall. The clock was ticking. I raced toward the filing cabinet and tripped over a briefcase. It was on its side next to the desk. I knelt and popped open the catch. Relief flooded through me. Marjory’s file was on top. I scooped up the folder and headed to the photocopier next to my cubicle.
    I knew what I was doing could get me fired. Cal had always been friendly with me, but that would mean nothing. He wouldn’t take kindly to anyone messing with the evidence. He had a reputation for being tough and relentless when working on a case. The other detectives always said that they were glad not to be one of his suspects. I could only imagine what he would do if he saw me copying the file.
    As the copier ran off the pages, I studied the crime-scene photos. Cal hadn’t been kidding when he’d said there wasn’t much left of her. I would never have recognized this as the woman I’d met a few months before. The summer heat had done its work. A wild animal or two had done the rest.
    The printer finished and I stuffed all the copies into my big handbag. I ran back to Cal’s office and put the file back inside the briefcase. I tried to put the case back exactly