Page 12 of Lawman’s Witness

Like her sister, she suspected the woman Jack Marshall killed had been a lover based on what she’d seen just before the murder. Did that mean that Jack’s wasn’t a happy marriage and that his perfect public life was a facade?

Why would the man take such a risk otherwise? she wondered. Look what he’d be giving up if he went to prison, not to mention toppling from the pedestal he now stood on. If she could prove what he’d done, he’d lose much more than just his freedom. His whole life would come crashing down—and so would his wife’s.

She realized that he either got off on the danger, or he was so arrogant he thought he’d never get caught or maybe he couldn’t help himself. No matter why he cheated let alone killed, Jack Marshall had an Achilles’ heel. His weakness made her feel a little better.

One of the four garage doors opened at the house, and she watched as an expensive sleek car backed out. As the door closed, the driver headed in her direction, making her hurriedly pretend to dig in her purse for something as the car drove slowly past.

She managed to get a look at the wife. Mrs. Jack Marshall was so frequently photographed, usually alongside her husband, she was easily recognizable. Like her house, Christine was exactly what Amy Sue had expected.

The woman had an air of wealth and privilege as she drove past. Her hair was cut in a perfectly sculpted short blond bob. Diamonds glittered at her earlobes. Huge sunglasses hid her eyes. She didn’t give Amy Sue a glance as she turned onto the street and headed south.

Curious as to where the woman was going, Amy Sue shifted into gear and followed her. Even as she did, she questioned why. How could it possibly help prove ths woman’s husband was a murderer? Still she kept driving, telling herself she had to know the lay of the land, which meant understanding the world Jack Marshall lived in.

She suspected the woman was meeting friends, attending some charity function meeting, getting a massage or her having her nails done. Dressed the way she was, the one thing she wasn’t going to do was help her husband bury a body.

No surprise, Christine drove to what looked like a pricey salon. When she turned into a parking lot, Amy Sue did the same. As she watched Mrs. Marshall disappear inside, her cell phone rang.

“Hi, Josie,” she said answering on the third ring.

“You promised to check in,” her sister chided.

“I am. Right now, I’m about to go inside a very fancy hair salon to see about getting myself a new hairdo.”

“That doesn’t sound like you.”

“Which is exactly what I should do. I’m tired of being me.”

Silence, then, “You scare me when you talk like that,” her lawyer sister said.

“Don’t worry, I’m fine,” she said. “Anyway, I’m in good company. Jack Marshall’s wife Christine just went into the salon.” Before her sister could try to talk her out of whatever she planned to do, she said, “Gotta go.”

Disconnecting, she got out, headed for the salon door. She told herself that Jack wouldn’t have told his wife about the eyewitness who accused him of murder, let alone admit that he’d gone out to her ranch to spy on her. Which meant Christine Marshall wouldn’t recognize her.

As she pushed open the door and got her first scent of expensive hair products, she had a sudden thought. What if Jack’s wife did recognize her?

Jack wouldn’t have told her about Amy Sue accusing him of murdering the woman he’d been seeing. But if he had, that would put a different spin on things. But it seemed unlikely even if the wife knew about her husband’s dalliances.

Amy Sue studied the elegantly dressed woman being led to a spot across from her in the salon. Christine chatted with the hairstylist like a woman who spent a great deal of time here, a woman who took good care of herself and had every reason to protect the fairytale life she and Jack had built.

Christine felt the woman’s eyes on her. She was used to people noticing her. They often did a double take. Spending so much time as she did with charities and fundraisers and social events and the publicity that went with it, people recognized her. They would pass her on the street and stop walking, thinking they knew her. Not that she got as much attention as her husband, but then again, her face wasn’t plastered all over the television screen as often as his.

Normally it didn’t bother her when she felt someone staring at her. But after this morning, Jack and his latest affair had been on her mind more than usual. She couldn’t shake the feeling that he’d become involved in a dangerous entanglement that would cause them both harm.

Feeling someone watching her, she had looked up and locked eyes with a young blonde woman. A prickle of alarm shot through her at the intensity of the woman’s stare. Before the blonde dragged her gaze away, Christine glimpsed distress in the woman’s eyes and quickly lowered her gaze.

The exchange had left her a little shaken. Was this one of Jack’s old indulgences? Or the new one that had him acting so strangely? The blonde was young and certainly pretty enough, but looked almost too sweet for Jack. She didn’t look like his type, unless he’d changed his preferences.

With a sliver of concern boring under her skin, she worried that this woman was the mistake he couldn’t seem to shake.

That thought unsettled her for the rest of her appointment. She hadn’t realized how upset she was until she chipped one of her nails on the salon chair and had to have it repaired before she could leave.

By then the blonde was gone, but not forgotten.

Worse, Christine feared she would see the young woman again.

After spending over a hundred dollars to have her hair shampooed and conditioned, trimmed and blown out, Amy Sue slid behind the wheel of her SUV, pulled her hair back up into a ponytail and left the salon having learned little, but with less money. Her hairstylist had told her how lucky she was that her booked appointment had cancelled. Amy Sue realized how true that was as she had glanced around the salon to see that all the clientele resembled Christine Marshall in varying degrees.

The only good that had come out of it was that she’d been able to watch Jack’s wife from a couple of chairs away. Everything about the woman spoke of money and breeding. She was classically beautiful, clearly in great shape, living a pampered lifestyle. She didn’t look like a woman who was aware that she had a cheating husband, let alone a murdering one.