In Death 17 - Imitation in Death

How about. the night of September second, between midnight and three?"
     
     
Julietta snatched up her calendar again, keyed in. Again; Eve saw the slight change cross her face, "I had a meeting with an associate. I can't tell you precisely when I got home as I didn't make note of it, but.I think it was after nine, maybe close to ten. I was tired, and went straight up to bed since Tom was working."
     
     
"So he was home the entire night.'"
     
     
"Why wouldn't he be? He was working..-I took a pill and went to bed. I told him I was going to, so he'd hardly have left the house because of Jed. Tom's completely devote, and somewhat overprotective of led. What is this?" , "That's it for now. Thanks for the time."
     
     
"I think I'm entitled to some sort of--2'
     
     
"If you still want, we can talk about that article." Mavis popped to her feet. "I just need a minute first."
     
     
She scooted out of the office with Eve, then dropped her voice to a whisper. "So? Did she kill somebody or what?"
     
     
"Doubtful. The worst I figure she's done is cheat on her husband with whoever called her on her private 'link."
     
     
"She did? She is? How doo you know?"
     
     
"Plenty. of tells. Look, if you don't want to deal with her, you can leave with me and Peabody. We'll get you home."
     
     
"No, it's chilly. A spread in Outre's like my fantasy. And it'll give a boost to my disc sales. Won't hurt Leonardo's biz either.. It cooks for all of us. We did good, right?"
     
     
"We did good."
     
     
"Night or day, day or night. Hey, what do you think about Vignette or Vidal?"
     
     
"What are they?"
     
     
"My baby. Vignette for a girl, Vidal for a boy. They're French. We're experimenting with French names, and I ditched Fifi. I mean, who names a kid Fifi?"
     
     
Eve. didn't know who, might name a kid Vignette either, but made. a. noncommittal mouth noise.
     
     
"Somebody will call her Viggy," Peabody said. "Which rhymes with piggy, so she'll be Piggy Viggy in school."
     
     
Mavis looked horrified. "You think? Deep-six Vignette." She gave her belly a comforting rub. "Plenty of time to come up with something, else. Catch you later." She swung back into Julietta's office.
     
     
"Impressions, Peabody?" Eve asked as they rode down. "She looks, great, and she'll come up with something better than Vignette or Vidal."
     
     
"About Julietta Gates, you moron."
     
     
"I know, I just wanted to annoy you. Sir," she added when Eve looked at her. "Used to running the show, and likes it. Dresses for power even more than style. Ambitious. She'd have to be to have gotten where she is at her age. Strikes me as a little cold-blooded. There's no zing when she talks about her kid. -That was a good catch with the extramarital. Blew right by me. Then when -you said it, and I played it back, it was right there. The way her voice changed, the body language."
     
     
"And from the way her face flushed up, I'd say the voice on the other end was letting her know a few games they'd be playing at their one o'clock today. I'm going. to want to confirm the dish on the side, in case we need to push on her later."
     
     
"We going to surveil?"
     
     
"No, don't want to risk her spotting either one of us this close to our little interview. I'll see if Baxter can handle it. How much does a kid like hers talk?"
     
     
"At that age, they rarely shut up. Hardly anybody but immediate family can understand them, but it doesn't stop them from talking."
     
     
"She met her side piece on Sunday, you can take that to the vault. And she had the kid with her. Wouldn't he tattle to daddy?"
     
     
"She probably told him it was a secret."
     
     
"Huh." This was foreign territory, so she took Peabody at her word. "Kids keep secrets?"
     
     
"No, but she doesn't strike me as the type who knows. her own kid very well. And the boy seems pretty tight with his dad. My best guess is he kept the secret until she was out of hearing, then blabbed. Daddy, me and Mommy and Uncle Side Dish played on the swings, but it's a secret."
     
     
Eve let it play in her head, and nodded. "And I doubt it's the first time. Daddy knows what's going on and wouldn't that irritate him?
     
     
Wouldn't he be a bit put out? Here he is, staying at home watching the kid, taking care of the house,_ while she's running around town-and Europe-with some other guy. Playing with some other guy with his son in tow.
     
     
Yeah, that's a real pisser.
     
     
"Mother and whore," she said as