Read Online A Murderer Among Us by Marilyn Levinson - Free Book Online Page B

be.”
    “That doesn’t give me any comfort.”
    He blinked, revealing that his eyes were closer to hazel today. “I would be remiss if I gave you false comfort, especially after this morning’s incident. Looks like you got someone angry, Mrs. Krause.”
    “The only person who comes to mind is Warren, aka Marshall Weill. I hope you’re checking out his whereabouts this morning.”
    “We already have.”
    “Oh.” Lydia’s felt her ears grow warm and knew they must have been blazing red. Damn, it wasn’t like her to tell a professional how to do his job. She’d lost all sense of propriety because Claire Weill’s murder had involved her in a deep and personal way.
    Lydia frowned. “Maybe if I hadn’t exposed him, this never would have happened.”
    Detective Molina stood. “Mrs. Krause, don’t start blaming yourself. You might have been the catalyst for something we know nothing about—yet. You were right to bring Weill’s past actions to the attention of your community. Who knows what else will come to light? We’ve only begun to look into every aspect of the Weills’ lives, past and present.”
    “Thank you,” Lydia murmured. “You’ve been very kind.”
    “For a police detective, you mean.”
    She laughed, admitting to the thought. “Would you like a cup of coffee?”
    “I’d love it. By the way,” he said, pointing to the statue of Family in the corner, “that’s one beautiful work of art. So are the sculptures in the hall and the dining room.”
    “Thank you.”
    “Are you a collector?”
    “My husband was a sculptor. I have five of Izzy’s pieces. My daughters each own one. The rest are in museums and galleries.”
    “Oh. Is he…?”
    “Yes. He died earlier this year. Which is how I ended up living here at Twin Lakes.”
    “I’m sorry.”
    In the kitchen, Molina sat at the small round table and stretched his arms overhead. They made small talk as Lydia ground coffee beans and filled the carafe with water—about life in Suffolk County and Lydia’s recent retirement. Detective Molina said little about himself and nothing of the incident that had brought him to Twin Lakes. Lydia felt at ease in his company. She liked the way he listened to what she said. Really listened, as he drank from his mug of coffee and ate several of the tiny delicious white chocolate cookies from Trader Joe’s she always kept on hand. Listening was a trait very few people possessed.
    As he stood to leave, Lydia felt a moment’s panic and the urge to detain him.
    “I almost forgot to tell you what I learned when I spoke to Doris Fein yesterday afternoon.”
    He pulled out his notebook and pen. “Who is Doris Fein?”
    “A resident here. A friend of Claire Weill’s, or was. I believe Marshall may have given her some bad financial advice. Doris told me Claire was obsessed with her husband even though he ran around. She said Claire had started taking herbal capsules to make her look and feel younger. The way she said it—kind of hush-hush—made me wonder if this supplement was legal.”
    “Interesting,” he murmured.
    She watched him jot all of this down.
    “Anything else you remember?” he asked.
    Lydia thought. “Just that Claire thought her husband was having an affair, though Doris didn’t know if that was true or simply that he was busy handling people’s finances. Though Doris did say Marshall was a flirt.” She gave a humorless laugh. “But we already know about that side of him.”
    He nodded, his expression gentle, his eyes now apple green. “Do you have Mrs. Fein’s address and phone number handy?”
    Lydia went to get the Twin Lakes telephone directory. As Molina copied down the information, she had a sudden thought. “Do you want me to contact you if I hear anything else about Claire Weill?”
    He shook his head, but he was smiling. “Please don’t start playing detective like that woman Angela Lansbury used to portray on TV. What was her name?”
    “Jessica Fletcher,” she