Info from Elliot

Chapter Twenty-two

“Lyssa killed him, plain and simple.” Elliot picked up his Reuben sandwich.         

Janelle set down the glass of water beside her empty plate. “And Lyssa is…?”

“Jed’s ex-wife. She lives in Dallas now.”

Ben’s mom?

Janelle sat in a booth at the Greenvale Deli across from Elliot Thorne, who had invited her to lunch. He said he wanted to get to know her better, but Janelle figured he had ulterior motives. Maybe it was the fact that he kept calling her babe. Sure, he was handsome, but he had to be twice her age.

Of course she had her own agenda, and getting Elliot to talk about murder suspects had been easier than she anticipated.

“So what was her motive?” Janelle pulled the notebook from her purse and hid it under the table.

“Jed was so bad to her, Lyssa had a dozen motives.” Elliot took a bite of his sandwich, holding out his pinkie that was encircled by a huge gold ring.

Amazing that ring didn’t weigh his hand down.

“But if they were divorced, and she lives in Dallas, why would she kill him?”

He chewed a moment. “To get rid of the lout, why else?” He set his half-eaten sandwich on the plate. “Lyssa always acted like a goody-two-shoes, but she had it in her to kill someone, and no one’s heard from her since Jed died. That looks suspicious to me.” He took a sip of his iced tea.

Janelle made a note while he took another bite. “Didn’t you have another brother, Elliot?”

He nodded. “Frank. Both Jed and Frank were a lot older than me.”

“And Frank was married to Ida.”

“Yeah, good old Ida.” He pulled his salad plate in front of him and speared a forkful of lettuce. “She’s been losing her marbles lately.”

“Frank wasn’t murdered, was he?”

“No.” He chewed a moment. “But Ida always blamed Jed for his death.”

She leaned forward. “What happened?”

Elliot swallowed and a slow smile appeared, reminding Janelle of Ben. “You sure ask a lot of questions, babe. Why do you want to know so much about the Thorne family?” He leaned forward and his blue eyes gazed into hers. “Maybe you’re interested in a certain handsome personage in the family?”

She almost rolled her eyes. Was Elliot referring to Ben, or to himself? “I majored in psychology, so case histories interest me.”

“Ah!” He sat back, but the intense look lingered in his eyes. “You’re a smart one—can’t get away from the books. But trust me, you don’t want to know the history of this family. You’d just dig up a lot of dirt.”

“That makes it more interesting.” She gave him a smile, but killed it a second later with a frown. She didn’t want to encourage him. “So what happened to Frank?”  

Elliot shrugged. “Frank and Jed were at a party, and Frank drank too much. When he was drunk, he got real mean, and they had a big argument. Finally Frank got in his car and drove off. Jed knew he shouldn’t let him drive home in that condition, but he was too upset to care.”

“So Frank’s car crashed and he was killed?”

“Yeah. Ran into a tree.”

“When did that happen?”

“About eight years ago.” He shook his head. “Jed didn’t kill Frank, but Ida swears it was his fault.”

“Just like you think Lyssa killed Jed.”

He cocked an eyebrow. “I’m definitely putting my money on Lyssa, even though Ben says she’s innocent. That religious stuff is just a façade. When the opportunity presented itself, she did him in.” Elliot took a bite of salad, looking self-satisfied. “I’m glad I didn’t marry her.”

“You were engaged to Lyssa?”

“Did I say that?” He captured Janelle’s hand in his. “Hey, let’s not discuss the past.” He flashed a smile, which might have been effective except for the tiny piece of green wedged between his teeth. “We have a whole future ahead of us, babe. Tell me about yourself—your likes and dislikes, your favorite flower, favorite color. What kind of chocolates do you like?” He leaned over the table and lowered his voice. “I plan to use this info to make you the happiest little woman in the world.”

What a flirt! She pulled her hand from his. “You’ll have to meet my dad. I think you’d like him. You two are about the same age.”

His eyes widened, which caused his forehead to wrinkle like an accordion. Then it smoothed out with his smile. “You’re cute. But seriously, what’s your favorite candy?”

“I’d say you’re at least fifty-two. Am I close?”

His smile faded.

“My dad’s forty-nine, and he’s very protective of me.”

Elliot stared at her—no lingering gaze this time.

“Yep, my dad really watches the men I date. He’s grilled several. I think the fact that he’s a private investigator has something to do with it.”

Elliot stood. “I think we’d better get back to the office, Janelle.”

“I agree.” She grabbed her purse. “By the way, you have a piece of lettuce stuck between your teeth.”

“What?” He ran his tongue over his teeth.

She shrugged. “I would tell my dad the same thing.”

* * *

         Until tomorrow, God bless!