"You won’t believe it," Harper said.
"Believe what?"
I wandered over to the window. My jaw dropped.
A car had stopped in front of Jake’s house, and a woman climbed out.
That had to be the cousin. Shouldn’t she be behind bars?
I saw the detective hand her the keys to the house and return to the car to drive off.
"We got it all wrong?" I asked. "Because I can see her, this very moment, walking into Jake’s house.”
“Then go over and talk to her," Harper said. "If you want, bring her over to theBlue Moonfor a drink or a meal. Or whatever."
"How is that possible?" I asked. "I was so sure. Unless the cops gotit wrong again."
"Go now," Harper said again. "Don’t you want to hear what’s going on?"
I did. And so did Cosmo. We ran downstairs as fast as we could.
Outside, a gust of wind cooled my hot face. I didn’t want to appear too rushed.
She’d already entered the house when I rang the doorbell. It echoed in my ears.
She opened it, looking surprised. There were dark rings under her eyes, and it looked as if she’d been crying for weeks.
Her skin was slightly blotchy, and she had a baseball cap pulled low over her face. It didn’t suit her. I got the impression it wasn’t her usual style.
She hadn’t worn it in the car.
“I’m sorry to disturb you," I said. "I live next door."
"You’re Bex Merriweather," she said.
"That’s right."
She gave me a faint smile. "My cousin and your aunt were great friends."
"They were."
We both fell silent for a moment. I should have thought of a reason to come over beforehand, but I hadn’t, so I had to improvise.
I quickly scanned her. She was by no means off the hook with me yet. But if I could cross her off, it would help. She seemed nice enough, older than me, but not by too much. And well-preserved. Nothing ostentatious or blingy about her.
But also, nothing that said she needed money so desperately that she would kill for it.
She gazed at me, waiting for something to come out of my mouth.
"Mind if I come in?" I asked.
“Sure.” She stepped aside to let me through.
I followed her through to the den. Turkish carpets lay on the floor, their colors muted with age. Everything was pristine.
Jake must have had a cleaner, unless he was a lot tidier than me, I thought. Why hadn’t I thought of that before? That would be another person with access.
Which gave me an idea. "As you probably know, my aunt passed away," I said awkwardly.
