Chapter 10

CHAPTER 10

I phoned Whitlock, asking him about the presents Claire wrapped the night she was murdered. They’d been bagged, tagged, and opened. Most of the gifts had Owen’s name written on them, and the boxes contained things like boxer shorts, shirts, and a set of tools. But there was one gift without a name—a bottle of cologne.

Was there a mystery man in Claire’s life?

From what I’d learned, if Claire wasn’t at work, she was at home, which limited the opportunity for another man to enter the picture.

I thought about the guys I’d met in the break room at the elementary school—Colin and Bruce. But they were just two men out of many who worked at the school, I presumed. And since school was out for the day, I’d need to wait to explore the idea any further.

I parked curbside in front of a white, modern-style house, and made my way to the door. I knocked twice. The door opened. A fit, attractive man who was tall enough to be a professional basketball player offered me a curious look and said, “Can I help you?”

“Is Nadia here?” I asked.

“She’s not.”

He blinked and me, and I blinked at him, and we stood there, at a standstill.

I moved a hand to my hip, introduced myself, and told him why I was there.

“I see,” was his response.

I expected him to follow it up with a question about what my investigation had to do with Nadia, but I was wrong.

“I suppose you want to speak with my wife about Owen and the affair they’ve been having,” he said.

Right to the point.

I liked this guy.

“I … yes. How did you?—”

“Know? When Nadia found out Claire died, she confessed she’d been having an affair. She thought it was news to me. It wasn’t.”

“How long have you known?”

“Since it started. It was little things, like her coming and going at odd hours, at times when I knew she didn’t take clients. She told me some of her work hours had changed, but I didn’t believe it. Went to the gym one day when she was supposed to be working, and she wasn’t there.”

“If you knew about the affair, why keep quiet?”

“This might be hard for anyone to believe, but we’ve known each other since we were kids. Lived next door to each other. I’ve loved her all my life. I’d do anything for her. I’m sure she wouldn’t like me sharing this, but it isn’t the first time she’s cheated. I’m away a lot. Sometimes for long stretches. She gets lonely, and sometimes that loneliness leads to a lapse in judgment. Thing is, she always comes back to me, and if you can believe it, our marriage has become stronger because of it.”

I didn’t believe it at all.

But he was convincing.

I might not have believed it, but it seemed like he did.

“Have you ever spoken to Owen?” I asked.

“Once. Went to his construction site, and we took a walk. Thought about roughing him up, but I decided it wasn’t worth it. Not to mention, he seemed like the kind of guy who would run straight to the police, and I don’t need that kind of heat.”

“Has the affair ended?”

“She told me it was over.”

As I wondered whether what they’d told him was true, a car turned into the driveway and a woman got out. He looked at the woman and then at me, saying, “I suppose I should leave the two of you two talk.”

I supposed he was right.