Murder Deja Vu

it.”
    “I’ve known some who spent longer. Anyway, you can’t go back. We need to go forward, find the son of a bitch who murdered her.”
    “Men don’t usually blab they’re sleeping with someone if they have a girlfriend,” Dana said. “That night Carl was with the woman he married. What if he had an affair with Karen and she threatened to tell? Wouldn’t that be a good reason to shut her up?”
    “I can’t see Carl murdering anyone,” Reece said.
    “Would he have said the same about you?” Dana asked.
    “Yes, and he did, but no one believed him because he was my brother.”
    Jeraldine’s phone rang. She flipped it open and listened. “Thanks, honey. Keep me informed, okay?” She turned to Reece. “Apparently one of Rayanne Johnson’s girlfriends, a woman by the name of Lurena Howe, signed an affidavit this morning. She’s prepared to ID you as someone who saw Rayanne regularly.”
    Reece smacked his hand on the table. “That’s pure bullshit.”
    Jeraldine reached for his arm. “Yeah, I know. My source is going to keep me posted.”
    Dana shook her head. “Sounds like—”
    “What?” Jeraldine asked.
    “Like Robert’s handiwork.” Dana pushed her plate aside and dabbed the napkin to her lips. “He doesn’t like to lose, and he’s capable of doing things to make sure he doesn’t.”
    Jeraldine’s brows knitted. “Are you saying he’d concoct a witness?”
    “I’m saying he’s capable of it. There are stories.”
    “Explain the word stories more clearly, honey. Because if what I think you’re saying is what you’re saying, this is a whole new ballgame.”
    “Before Robert came here, he worked for a prestigious criminal defense firm in Charlotte. I’m not sure what happened, but he was defending a drug dealer for murder when the prosecution’s star witness disappeared. The judge threw out the case. Most people thought the dealer had something to do with it, but Robert resigned from the firm shortly after.”
    “What makes you think the dealer wasn’t behind it?” Clarence asked.
    “Something Harris said about there always being two sides to a story, but he wouldn’t elaborate.”
    Jeraldine tapped her finger to her chin. “Hmm, interesting. We might have our hands full with Minette as opposition.”
    “He won his case,” Dana said. “Why would he resign unless they suspected something fishy?”
    “How did he wind up DA of this district?” Jeraldine asked.
    “Robert believes in insurance. That means digging dirt on people who can advance his career. The governor appointed him District Attorney after a short time as an assistant DA. Appointed,” Dana stressed.
    “You’re saying he had something on the governor?”
    “I wouldn’t put it past him.”
    “Something to look into,” Clarence said. “’Course he’s been in this district over twenty years. Might be hard to resurrect someone who knows what happened in Charlotte. If the former governor is still alive, I doubt he’d own up to whatever dirty business Robert dragged out of the sewer.”
    Jeraldine drained her wineglass. “We’re going to stay in Regal Falls to see how this plays out. Between email and my partner, everything is under control in Boston. I don’t want to get home and have to hop a plane back to North Carolina if something breaks loose. With that prick Minette—excuse me, honey, I know he’s the father of your children, but a prick is a prick—”
    “You won’t get any argument from me.”
    “With an unethical prick like Minette working against us, anything can happen.”

Chapter Seventeen
The Last Nail in the Coffin

    R eece woke at the sound of the phone. Dana slept curled close, her soft curves molding into him as if they were one, her fragrance a natural aphrodisiac. He didn’t want to move. This had been the first time they’d slept the night at his house. Damn the phone. He looked at his watch. Seven thirty. He hadn’t slept this late in decades. He groped for the receiver. Dana’s eyes fluttered open.
    Jeraldine didn’t bother to say good morning. “The woman who said you were a regular of Rayanne Johnson?”
    “What about her?”
    “Her landlady found her dead this morning. They’re issuing a warrant for your arrest.”
    “But I’ve been with Dana all night.”
    “Medical examiner said she’s been dead a few hours. Were you two up all night?”
    “Of course not. The phone just woke us.”
    “Can Dana verify you were sleeping all night?”
    “What