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I said nothing.
Keith cleared his throat. “All right, let’s start making a list of people to call as character witnesses. Folks who will say under oath that you are the greatest thing since sliced bread and couldn’t kill a fly.”
“Well, forget Joe,” I said bitterly. “What about the rest of the group?”
“Rachel, Alyssa, and Paul are totally on your side. I’m not sure about Victor yet.”
“Rachel?” I couldn’t have been more astonished if he had said Batman.
“Yeah. She is really pissed off about what has happened to you and blames Tiffany Nixon and her column for pushing this thing forward so fast.”
“Are we talking about Rachel Edwards from the Black Pack?”
Keith seemed amused. “Yes. Why are you so surprised?”
“Because Rachel only cares about getting a rich husband.”
“You’re very wrong about her,” Keith said softly. “Besides, I don’t just want a list of publishing folks.” He pushed some paper and a pen in my direction. “Write down the names of everyone you have a good relationship with. Neighbors, your local dry cleaner . . . don’t leave anyone out.”
After Keith left, I called Elaine Garner. Even though she had not put up my bail, I still wanted to do the book. The money would go to Mama, who had been pinching pennies all her life. Elaine didn’t want to talk on the phone but agreed to come over for a long lunch. I warned her not to tell anyone about my location. The last thing I needed was a horde of reporters camped outside the brownstone.
Elaine drank Bailey’s over ice. I’d have to find a liquor store and then stop by the supermarket to pick up some kind of finger food.
She arrived promptly at noon with a basket of fruit and a bouquet of flowers. “Jackie, it is such a relief to see you in person.”
I took the gifts and her coat and spoke over my shoulder as I went in search of a hanger and a vase. “I don’t know how to thank you, Elaine.”
When I came back she was thumbing through a copy of Winner. There was a smile on her face. “This is a big fish, Jackie. I hope you’re trying to reel him in.”
“Not at all,” I replied crisply. “I have far more important things on my mind.”
She put the book down. “I’m not saying he should be the only item on your ‘Things to Do’ list, but he should definitely be in one of the top three slots.”
I had to laugh at that. “Come on. We have to sit in the kitchen.”
“Why isn’t there any furniture in the living room?”
I told her about the upstairs bedroom and my idea about Keith’s way of handling one-night stands as I bustled about the kitchen, fixing drinks and putting food on the table.
Elaine got a kick out of my theory. “Imagine being rich enough to indulge those kind of whims,” she sighed.
I sat down and we sipped our alcohol quietly for a moment. “Tell me what is going on, Elaine. I’m completely out of the loop.”
“Jackie, you are the only topic of conversation when I’m at work—then I watch every bit of the newscast when I’m at home.”
“So, what is the verdict?”
She shrugged. “No one really knows what to believe.”
I gazed at her intently. “What do you believe, Elaine?”
She took a deep breath. “The motive doesn’t work for me or anyone else in the book business, Jackie. Nobody in their right mind would literally kill to become executive editor. This isn’t Wall Street! We are the most underpaid people in the world. To be frank, many people think you were having an
affair with Craig Murray and things got out of hand.”
Elaine was being honest with me, but her response wasn’t what I’d expected. She was supposed to say that I was not capable of taking a human life. How could I feel so insecure inside and appear so severe on the outside?
“Well, they’re wrong,” I said sternly. “Let’s talk about our project.”
