Read Online Murder in the Mansion by Lili Evans - Free Book Online Page B

and left the room.
    Upstairs
in the shower she let the tears come. She washed her hair thoroughly, massaging
the tension in her neck, remembering the headache she'd had earlier. Her
parents had been dying while she'd been at the hospital saving someone's life.
It was moments like these that you remembered in your life. She would always
remember what she was doing when her parents died.
    She
rinsed the shampoo from her shoulder length blonde hair. Since the age of
eighteen she had experimented with hair dye. Her natural color was the same as
her mother, a dark brown that was almost black. She'd shrank from being
anything like her. She'd changed her hair, she'd dressed differently, and she'd
been a doctor, not a socialite.
    And
now her mother was dead and all of the things that had gone wrong between them
could not be fixed.
    In
the bedroom she found Grant's pillow was gone. There was no apology. There was
no offer of support.
     
     
    ****
     
     
    Marianne
was still awake at one o'clock in the morning when her doorbell rang. She
dragged herself up off of the floor and shuffled barefoot to the hallway. When
she threw the door open Nick stood there looking angry and worried.
    “You
haven't been answering your phone.” He strode into the house not giving her a
chance to shut the door in his face.
    “I
have caller I.D,” she retorted.
    “And
you don't want to talk to me?” Nick turned to her. “We were fine when I picked
Daniel up.”
    “We
were,” Marianne told him. She looked at him with irritation. “I know Daniel is
safe with your parents and I spoke to him earlier. He's having a blast.”
    “Something
could have been wrong.”
    “Your
mother would have called me.”
    “I
didn't mean something had to be wrong with Daniel,” Nick told her. “What if I
needed you?”
    “You'd
call me?” Marianne scoffed. “I may be the mother of your son, Nick, but we
aren't a couple.”
    “We
were,” Nick replied. “I'd still call you if something was wrong.”
    They
stood in silence. The hallway was small, cramped, and badly lit but Nick
studied her face regardless.
    “Something
happened,” he said at length. “And you didn't call me.”
    “I
didn't know I was supposed to.”
    “You
could have,” Nick told her quietly.
    “I
don't know what we are, Nick,” Marianne ran a hand through her long red hair.
“But I don't really want to find out tonight.”
    “Okay,”
Nick replied carefully. “Will you tell me what's wrong?”
    “Sure,”
Marianne answered dismissively.
    They
turned into the living room and stopped suddenly. The small room was usually
cozy but Marianne had opened all of the curtains to let in the night. The patio
doors were open letting in a cool breeze. She had lit candles and turned on
lamps which cast an eerie glow. Across the floor were photo albums and loose
pictures. Marianne turned to Nick. Her eyes were over-bright and defiant, as if
she expected to have to justify herself.
    “I
needed to see her.”
    Nick
swallowed the lump in his throat. “Why did you need to see her?”
    “Well,
I've been thinking a lot about her. You know it's been five years.”
    “I
know. When I spoke to you two days ago you said you were handling it okay.”
Nick turned to her. He looked concerned.
    “I
was. I am. Mostly,” Marianne took a deep breath. “I want wine but I can't have
wine. So let's have tea.”
    “Sounds
great,” Nick lied. What he wanted was a shot of whiskey.
    “My
younger sister called tonight,” Marianne replied conversationally as she boiled
the kettle. “Nadia. Do you remember when I told you about her?”
    “I
remember,” Nick sat at the kitchen table. His stomach was uneasy. He didn't
like the strain he saw on her face or the calmness she was trying for.
    “I
haven't spoken to her since I left.”
    “But
she called you?” Nick asked softly.
    “She
called me,” Marianne prepared the tea cups. “My father's sixtieth birthday was
today. They had a big party. I always thought it