Page 24 of The Murder Club

“Cool.” She turned to stare at the house where Pauline Hartford died just hours ago. “What are you looking for?”

Bailey took a second to consider her answer. It was one thing to do this sort of thing on the computer. They looked at reports and images that were available to the public, as well as chatting online with witnesses who were willing to answer their questions. It was completely different to have someone staring at her as she scrambled to think clearly.

“Did Mrs. Hartford have any enemies?” she finally asked.

Janet shrugged. “She wasn’t very friendly, but I can’t imagine that she left the house often enough to have enemies.”

Bailey assumed that meant she hadn’t had a feud with anyone in the neighborhood.

“She lived alone?”

“Yes. She had a maid who came in once a week, but her only family was a grandson who showed up on occasion.” Her eyes widened as she sucked in a sharp gasp.

“Did you think of something?”

Janet eagerly nodded. “Yesterday.”

“What happened?”

“I saw Kevin . . . . Kevin Hartford, that’s the grandson. He showed up at the house.”

Bailey felt a small thrill of excitement. It might be weird, but she enjoyed playing detective. It was like solving a puzzle.

“Do you know what time he was there?”

Janet considered the question. “It had to be around five o’clock,” she told Bailey. “I was in the kitchen cooking dinner when I glanced out the window and saw his car in the driveway.”

“You’re sure it was his?”

Janet rolled her eyes. “You can’t miss it. He drives a silver BMW with fancy wheels, even though my husband claims he hasn’t held down a job in years.”

Bailey understood the woman’s reaction. It was annoying to see people living way beyond their means when you were pinching pennies. But Bailey had been raised to take pride in earning things, not having them handed to her.

“If he was the only family, then I assume he was the heir,” she murmured, assuming that Mrs. Hartford was handing out money to fund her unemployed grandson.

“Probably. Unless she left her stuff to charity.” Janet snorted, as if she found the mere thought amusing. “Which I very much doubt. She wouldn’t even buy a box of Girl Scout cookies from my daughter.”

“Do you happen to know what time he left?”

“I know exactly what time,” Janet surprised her by admitting. “I was glancing at the clock because I was waiting for my casserole to be done. It was 5:25 when I heard him slam the front door. It was really loud. I glanced out to see him jump into his car, and a few seconds later he squealed away like he was mad about something.”

Bailey arched her brows. Now, that was the sort of information that captured her attention. Why would the grandson be angry? The most obvious explanation would be Pauline withholding the cash that he presumably needed if he was unemployed. There was nothing like money to rip a family apart.

“And then Mrs. Hartford presumably went outside and fell into her pool?”

“Yep.”

“Did you see her after he left?”

Janet shook her head. “The fence is too high to see into her backyard from my kitchen. I have to be upstairs.”

So, there was no actual proof that Mrs. Hartford was still alive after her grandson left. He could have killed her and then staged his dramatic exit for everyone to notice him leaving. They would assume they’d argued and Mrs. Hartford had been upset enough to have accidentally stumbled and end up at the bottom of the pool. Then again, revealing they’d been in a fight might make him a prime suspect if her death hadn’t been labeled an accident.

“What are you thinking?”

Janet’s question interrupted her musings, and Bailey shoved aside suspicions of Kevin Hartford. There was still no proof it was murder.

“Last night was pretty chilly. Why would she be out by the pool?”