Daisy had remained standing while she talked to Grover, but now she moved to the living room and collapsed into an armchair.
“I can’t believe it,” she murmured.
“What should I do?” Grover asked.
“Just tell the police the truth. And get yourself a lawyer, just in case.”
“Do you really think I’ll need one?”
“Hopefully not, but if you do need one, it can’t hurt to be prepared.”
“I’m completely at sea right now,” Grover said. His voice had risen considerably just since Daisy picked up the phone.
“Listen, Grover. This is just procedure. Just because the police talked to you doesn’t mean you’re a suspect. If you were the last person to see him alive, then they’re just doing their job. You have to remember that. I’m sure you’re not a suspect.”
“But what if I am and they’re just not telling me?”
“You’d know if they thought you were a suspect, believe me. Everything changes in the way they speak to you. I know from bitter experience.”
“I know. I know exactly how you must have felt.”
“Well, I was actually a suspect and hopefully you won’t be. Hopefully you won’t know exactly how it felt.”
Grover was silent for a moment.
“Grover? You still there?” Daisy asked.
“I’m here. Could I come over for a little while? I’ll bring wine.”
“You just said the magic words,” Daisy said, attempting to lighten the mood. “See you when you get here.”
Grover showed up just a little while later with a bottle of white wine. Daisy got two glasses from the kitchen and sank onto the sofa.
“So tell me everything. What happened when you went to talk to Walt? Was there anyone else there?”
Grover shook his head. “His wife was pulling out of the driveway just as I was getting there.”
“So the wife wasn’t home. Do you know where the kids were?”
“Walt invited me into the house. He said the kids weren’t home and that his wife had just gone to pick them up.”
“Okay, so neither the wife nor the kids were home, though it sounds like they were heading home once she picked them up. Go on.”
“I followed him into the house and he asked me to wait in the kitchen while he went to get his checkbook. He was only gone for a minute or two. Then he wrote out the check and handed it to me and I left.”
“He stayed in the house when you left?”
“Yes. He went to the door with me, but he stayed inside the house and closed the front door behind me.”
“What was his mood like?” Daisy asked.
Grover shrugged. “He’s not a really gregarious guy. I mean, he wasn’t a gregarious guy.”
“So he was quiet?”
“I would say so.”
“Did he talk about anything besides the retirement party or the bill?”
Grover thought for a moment, his eyes squinting. “I don’t think so.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yeah. He was standing in front of the house when his wife pulled out of the driveway, though. He was shaking his head and he looked furious. But he seemed back to normal by the time I got to the front door.”
“That’s interesting,” Daisy mused, half to herself.
“Why do you say that?”
“I meant to tell you this the night of the party, but I never got a chance and so much has happened since then. When I went to pick up the cranberry juice at the grocery store I saw him with a woman I assumed was his wife, but wasn’t. And then I almost hit someone with the van. The person I almost hit turned out to be his wife. I met her at the party. She saw him with the other woman.”
“Wow,” Grover breathed. “I had no idea.”
“There’s more,” Daisy said. “So much has happened in the days since I saw you last.”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean, the woman I saw with Walt was Fiona, my boss’s wife. And now she’s dead, too. She was murdered just a few nights ago.”
“Oh, my God. You’re kidding,” Grover said.
“I wish,” Daisy replied.
“So your boss’s wife was having an affair with a married man. And Walt’s wife found out about it. Did your boss know?”
“He found out over the weekend, apparently. From Walt. He came into the office Monday and was in a horrible mood.”
“Has anyone been charged with the wife’s murder?” Grover asked.
Daisy shook her head. “I guess the investigation is still ongoing. But Mark John hasn’t been arrested, so that’s a good thing.”
“He must have been devastated.”
“I’m sure,” Daisy agreed.
“So this changes things,” Grover said.
“It sure does,” Daisy agreed.
“It certainly puts Melody Beecham squarely at the top of the suspect list in Walt’s murder,” Grover said.
“That’s true. That’s good news for you,” Daisy said, pointing at him with her fork. “His wife knows he was having an affair and suddenly he turns up dead. She’s a much better choice for suspect than you are.”
“You’re right. Her misery is my good luck. I hate to think of it that way, though.”
“In a murder investigation, you have to look out for yourself first.” Daisy gave him a tired smile. “I wish I didn’t know so much about being a murder suspect, but it’s coming in handy,” she said with a wry laugh.
Grover smiled and shook his head.
When they finished their wine Grover stood up to leave. “Thanks for letting me come over tonight,” he said. “It would have been nicer under different circumstances, though.”