Big Jack

“Can anyone verify this?”

“No, not after I left the restaurant, in any case. I took a cab home, but I couldn’t tell you the number of the cab. I wouldn’t have any reason to break into Sam’s house and steal anything, or for God’s sake kill Andrea.”

“You’ve had some substance-abuse problems over the years, Mr. Dix.”

A muscle twitched in his jaw. “I’m clean, and have been for a number of years. I’ve been through rehabilitation programs and continue to go to regular meetings. If necessary, I’ll submit to a screening, but I’ll want legal representation.”

“We’ll let you know. When’s the last time you had contact with Andrea Jacobs?”

“A couple of months, six weeks ago, at least. It seems to me we all went to a jazz club downtown this summer. Sam and I, Andrea and whoever she was seeing at the time, a couple of other people. It was a few weeks before Sam and I called things off.”

“Did you and Ms. Jacobs ever see each other separately?”

“No.” His tone took on an edge. “I didn’t cheat on Sam, certainly not with one of her friends. And Andrea, as much as she enjoyed men, wouldn’t have poached. That’s insulting on every level.”

“I insult a lot of people, on every level, in my work. Murder doesn’t make for nice ma

She started for the door, then turned. “By the way, have you read Ms. Ga

“Of course. She gave me an advance copy several weeks ago. And I bought one on the day of its release.”

“Any theories on the diamonds?”

“Fascinating stuff, isn’t it? I think Crew’s ex-wife skipped with them and made a really nice life for herself somewhere.”

“Could be. Thanks again.”

Eve waited until they were riding down to street level. “Impressions, Detective?”

“I just love when you call me that. He’s sharp, he’s smooth, and he wasn’t in a meeting. He had his assistant say so to flip us off, if possible.”

“Yeah. People just don’t like talking to cops. Why is that? He was prepared,” she added, as they stepped out and started across the lobby. “Had his night in question all laid out, didn’t even have to remind him of the date. Six days ago, and he doesn’t even have to think about it. Rattled it off like a student reciting a school report.”

“He still isn’t clear for the time of the murder.”

“Nope, which is probably why he wanted to flip us off awhile. Let’s hit the travel agency next.”

Eve supposed under most circumstances Work or Play would’ve been a cheerful place. The walls were covered with screens where impossibly pretty people romped in exotic locales that probably convinced potential travelers they’d look just as impossibly pretty frolicking half-naked on some tropical beach.

There were a half dozen agents at workstations rather than cubes, and each station was decorated with personal memorabilia: photos, little dolls or amusing paperweights, posters.

All of the agents were female, and the office smelled of girls. Sort of candy-coated sex, to Eve’s mind. They were all dressed in fashionable casualwear-or she assumed it was fashionable-even the woman who appeared to be pregnant enough to be carting around three healthy toddlers in her womb.

Just looking at her made Eve jittery.

Even worse were the six pairs of swollen, teary eyes, the occasional broken sob or sniffle.

The room pulsed with estrogen and emotion.

“It’s the most horrible thing. The most horrible.” The pregnant woman somehow levered herself up from her chair. She had her streaky brown hair pulled back, and her face was wide as the moon and the color of milk chocolate. She laid her hand on the shoulder of one of the other women as she began to cry.

“It might be easier if we go back to my office. This is actually Andrea’s station. I’ve been ma

She led the way to a tiny, tidy adjoining office and shut the door. “The girls are-well, we’re a mess. We’re just a mess. I honestly didn’t believe Nara when she called me this morning, crying and babbling about Andrea. Then I switched on the news cha

“When are you due, Ms. Newberry?” Peabody asked.

“Ten more days.” She patted her belly. “It’s my second. I don’t know what I was thinking, timing this baby so I’d carry it through the summer heat. I came in today-I’d intended to take the next several weeks off. But I came in because… I didn’t know what else I could do. Should do. Andrea worked here almost since I opened the place. She manages it with me, and was going to take over while I was on maternity.”

“She hasn’t been in to work for several days. Weren’t you concerned?”

“She was taking some leave now. She was actually due back today, when I’d pla

“When’s the last time you did talk to her?”

“A couple of weeks. I’m… I was very fond of Andrea, and she was wonderful to work with. But we had very different lifestyles. She was single and loved to go out. I’m incredibly married and raising a three-year-old, having another child and ru

“Has anyone come in asking about her or for her specifically?”

“She has a regular customer base. Most of my girls do. Customers who ask for them specifically when they’re pla

“She’d have a customer list.”

“Absolutely. There’s probably some legal thing I’m supposed to do before I agree to give that to you, but I’m not going to waste my time or yours. I have all my employees’ passcodes. I’ll give it to you. You can copy anything you feel might help off her work unit.”

“I appreciate your cooperation.”

“She was a delightful woman. She made me laugh, and she did a good job for me. I never knew her to hurt anyone. I’ll do whatever I can to help you find who did this to her. She was one of my girls, you know. She was one of mine.”

It took an hour to copy the files, search through and document the contents of the workstation and interview the other employees.

Every one of Andrea’s coworkers had gone out with her to clubs, bars, parties, with dates, without dates. There was a great deal of weeping but little new to be learned.

Eve could barely wait to get away from the scent of grief and lipdye.

“Start doing a standard run on the names on her customer base. I’m going to check in with Samantha Ga

“Morris?”

“No, Morris is ta

“Boy, that should round out the morning. Then maybe we can have lunch.”

“We’re dealing with the cleaning service before the morgue and lab. Didn’t you have breakfast a couple hours ago?”

“Yeah, but if I start nagging you about lunch now, you’ll cave before I get faint from hunger.”