Dead Man's Hand by Luke Murphy

hand dropped and her eyes were fixed with rage. “ Wait a minute, D etective. ” She jumped to her feet and raised her voice. “ Are you insinuating that I had something to do with my husband ’ s murder? Do you think that I could do that? ”
    Jimmy stood up and spoke in a calm voice . “ Easy, Mrs. Grant. We ’ re not saying that. Please, sit down . We have to ask these questions . ”
    Linda sat back down and Dale studied her. A t least part of what he saw was an act. He was sure of it.
    “ Was anyone here with you , Mrs. Grant ? ”
    “ Just the servants doing their regular prep for the following day . We ’ re preparing a wonderful birthday party for my stepson, Shawn, next week, so my helpers have been working overtime and did last night, not f inishing until after midnight. I was supervising, so all three can confirm that I was here during those hours. They sleep in the other wing. ” She pointed to the far side of the house.
    That would be easy enough to verify.
    “ Dale, can I speak with you in the other room? ” Jimmy asked.
    Dale nodded. “ Excuse us, Mrs. Grant. ”
    When Linda was out of earshot, Jimmy whispered , “ Dale, this isn ’ t an interrogation. We ’ re just here to make next of kin notification, not start a war. If we piss her off, she has the connections to make our lives miserable. ”
    “ I know , Jimmy, but we don ’ t get a second chance to watch her first reaction or hear her side. You know that. So let ’ s see what we can see—don ’ t be a wimp. ”
    “ Dale, stop jumping to conclusions. We need to do real investigating , not chase theories. ”
    “ I know , you ’ re right. But let ’ s at least look around. ”
    “ Is the warrant good for that? ”
    “ Yeah. ”
    “ Okay then, but let ’ s be respectful and professional. ”
    They returned to find that Linda had moved from the couch and was standing by the window . She gazed into the backyard at the Grecian-style , in-ground swimming pool . A separate spa was nestled into a large deck that allowed an expansive view of the grounds.
    “ Mrs. Grant, we need to search the house for anything that could help us identify your husband ’ s killer. There might be something significant here. ”
    She turned and hesitated, “ Detective s, I don ’ t think that would be appropriate. I― ”
    Dale showed her the search warrant . Linda grabbed the paper and read.
    “ I think I ’ ll call my attorney now. ”
     

 
     
    Chapter 1 1
     
    “ Rudy, Danny, please escort Mrs. Grant outside. ” Dale acknowledged his officers.
    “ I ’ m no t going anywhere! ” Linda snapped.
    “ Please, Mrs. Grant. It would be a lot easier on everyone if you just cooperated. We might discover something vital to hel p catch your husband ’ s killer. ”
    “ Fine. ” Linda grabbed the phone and started dialing as she was led outside.
    Without hesitation, the detectives went in separate directions, search ing each room before Dale discovered a small business office. “ Down here, Jimmy . ”
    Grant ’ s home workplace was twice the size of the lieutenant ’ s office at the precinct. A large white bookcase filled with hardbacks covered the back wall. A dustless , new-edition laptop sat on top of a small, gleaming desk. The room smelled of fresh varnish. The desk was cluttered with equipment needed for any businessman to work at home. A beige fi ling cabinet had been pushed into the corner and a print copy of Rembrandt ’ s “ The Abduction of Europa ” hung on the wall behind the desk.
    Dale looked down at the two-inch-thick carpet , which was stain-free and dustless. “ Does this room look recently cleaned to you, Jimmy? ”
    Jimmy nodded. “ I ’ d say. To a tee. ”
    But forensics could still find something.
    “ Okay, I ’ ll take the desk. You check the rest of the room , ” Dale said.
    First, he checked the call list on the phone, but it showed mostly calls to the casino. Then he read each item on the papers stacked on t