Love Can Be Murder

note of that. What time did you leave the restaurant?"
    "Eleven o'clock, maybe? I'm not sure."
    "What about the dance place—DeSoto's?"
    "Closing time—maybe one in the morning?"
    "Then what happened?"
    "We went back to his place."
    "To have sex?"
    She squirmed. "That was the idea, I suppose."
    "And did you?"
    "No."
    "Why not?"
    "We...were going to, but then Carl started choking me." Her voice broke and she touched the tender skin on her neck. "I thought he was trying to kill me."
    "So you killed him?"
    "Don't answer that," Mike warned.
    She ignored him. "I passed out. When I woke up, I was alone. I left the house and ran all the way back to Dr. Oney's."
    Warner made a noise in his throat. "Ms. Ryder, why do you think Dr. Seger was choking you?"
    "I... said something that made him angry."
    "What was that?"
    She glanced at Mike, who nodded. "When I was going to school here, there was a girl named Tammy Paulen who was killed on campus in a hit-and-run."
    Neither man seemed surprised. "Go on," Warner urged.
    "I was driving back to my dorm room that night, and I had my window down. I heard a scream, and when I turned the corner, she was lying in the road and a black Volvo was speeding away."
    "Dr. Seger's car?"
    "Yes."
    "What did you do?"
    "I didn't know what to do—I was in shock. I kept driving, then pulled over and parked my car. When I walked back, a car had stopped and two guys were bending over her. I knew they would help her, so I went back to my room." She swallowed. "I didn't know she was dead."
    "Why didn't you tell the police what you saw?"
    "Because...I didn't see it happen. I only heard her scream and saw the car. And the more I thought about it, the more I thought I might be mistaken."
    "You couldn't put two and two together?"
    They thought she was dumb. "Even if Dr. Seger had hit her, it was an accident. Tammy was... dead, and I couldn't see how destroying Dr. Seger's career would help anything."
    The men exchanged doubtful glances, then Jaffey gave her a tight smile. "Ms. Ryder, we know that you were questioned in the hit-and-run of Tammy Paulen. Nell Oney was the girl's academic advisor and filled us in on the details. She said that Tammy Paulen knew something that she was holding over your head."
    Her heart fell to her stomach—she thought her secret had died with that horrible girl, but could Tammy have told Nell?
    "What does this have to do with Carl Seger's murder?" Mike asked.
    Jaffey gave her the evil eye. "I think it's mighty convenient for Ms. Ryder to suddenly say that she saw Dr. Seger's car leaving the scene of a hit-and-run when he's not alive to defend himself." He pointed his finger at her. "Maybe you ran Tammy Paulen down in the street and now see your chance to pawn it off on Dr. Seger and claim self-defense for murdering him."
    She shook her head. "No, you're wrong. Besides, my car was examined."
    "But not until three days after the accident. It had been washed."
    She didn't respond.
    Jaffey slammed his hand on the table. "Did Tammy Paulen know you got on your knees for Dr. Seger? Was she threatening to tell?"
    "N-no. Tammy died when I was a freshman, and the thing with Dr. Seger didn't happen until I was a senior."
    "So you say. Then what was the big secret Tammy was holding over your head?"
    "You don't have to answer," Mike said. "She's already told you what happened with Dr. Seger. You can see by her bruises that the man nearly killed her."
    Jaffey shrugged. "Maybe she’s into erotic asphyxiation."
    Angora's eyes bugged. She'd read about that kind of thing—is that what Carl had been trying to do?
    "Ms. Ryder, did you know your cousin went to Dr. Seger's house last night?"
    She frowned. "What?"
    "She jogged over there to see what was going on." He angled his head. "What do you suppose she saw when she looked in the window?"
    Angora's stomach twisted. Roxann had spied on them? Had she seen Carl fondling her? Choking her?
    Roxann had seemed so concerned this morning on the back porch, but was she covering up her own sins? If jealousy had propelled her to follow them, maybe she had seen them together and snapped. Maybe Roxann had killed Carl with her scarf while she lay passed out on his bed. And now she was letting Angora take the rap.
    A sudden sharp pain in her chest took her breath away. She clutched the top of her dress, and fell forward in her chair.
    "Ms. Ryder," Mike said, his voice elevated. "Ms. Ryder, are you okay?"
    She was having a heart attack. She was going to die