Read Online Fillet of Murder by Linda Reilly - Free Book Online Page A

know he wasn’t the most pleasant man to deal with, but he’d been under a lot of pressure lately. And now he’s—” Jill’s eyes grew watery.
    â€œWhat kind of pressure?” Talia asked gently. She helped herself to another cup from the spectacular teapot.
    â€œMostly from his ex. She’s a half owner in the lighting shop. I guess she wanted him to make some sweeping changes, changes he would’ve hated.”
    â€œLike what?” Talia asked.
    â€œPretty much a complete overhaul of the place. Plush newcarpeting, updated window treatments, that sort of thing. She felt the place was too stodgy, that it was deterring the younger buyers—especially the ones who had plenty of dough to spend and could easily go elsewhere.”
    Talia hadn’t realized Phil had a business partner. Maybe the police should be looking at
her
as a potential suspect. Didn’t Rachel say Turnbull referred to his ex as the K-witch?
    â€œJill, forgive me for being so blunt, but . . . honestly, what did you see in Phil? You are so amazingly gorgeous, you have a daughter you adore, this wonderful shop—” Talia broke off, realizing how insensitive she must sound.
    Jill’s voice grew quiet. “Phil and I have a history, Talia. We go way back. Oh, don’t worry, I know he did everything in a skirt, so to speak.” Her smile was achingly sad. “In the end, he always came back to me.”
    Yeah, for a guaranteed roll in the hay.
    Talia had so many questions. Not the least of which was: what about your husband?
    Jill laughed. “Now I can read your mind. You’re wondering where my dear, devoted spouse fits into the picture.”
    â€œI guess so.” Talia shrugged. “
Is
he devoted?”
    â€œOh absolutely—to his job. If I really want to rev up the fire in his furnace, I just give him a spreadsheet filled with scads of lovely numbers. Gets his
blood
flowing every time, if you catch my drift.” The irony in her tone was unmistakable.
    â€œWere you thinking of leaving him for Phil?”
    Jill laughed. “Good heavens, no. Are you nuts? Phil would’ve made a rotten husband. He didn’t like kids much, either.” She frowned, and a tiny crinkle formed between her eyes. “I can’t believe I’m speaking about him in the past tense. It seems so . . . surreal.”
    Talia felt a surge of sympathy for Jill. Right or wrong,the relationship she’d had with Turnbull had been a significant part of her life. “Murder never makes sense,” Talia said, and then a thought struck her. “Jill, do you have any photos of Carly? I’d love to see them.”
    A grin spread across Jill’s face. “Oh gosh, I just got her school picture. It came out really good—well, of course I’d think that, right?” She went over to the oak counter that housed a sleek cash register, and reached underneath it for her handbag. She dug out her wallet and sat down again, extracting a photo from one of the slots. “Here, this is her third-grade picture.” She gazed lovingly at the photo and then handed it to Talia.
    â€œOh, Jill, she’s adorable,” Talia said. The little girl’s curly hair, a pale shade of auburn, framed a sweet, heart-shaped face. The impish twinkle in her dark brown eyes spoke of a child who was loved deeply and felt secure in her nook of the world.
    Talia peered closely at Carly’s face. Was she the same little girl in the photo Talia had found in Turnbull’s showroom? There was a least a four-year age difference in the two pictures, and kids changed a lot from toddlerhood on. And even if the two photos were of the same child, did it mean anything? Couldn’t it simply have fallen out of Jill’s handbag during one of her assignations with Phil?
    Talia didn’t realize she’d been studying the picture so intently until Jill slipped two fingers over it