“God. It sounds horrid.”
“It is. It’s all connected to identity and insurance fraud. But Kimora, or Geraldine, didn’t kill Archie like I’d thought.”
“No?” I settled beside him, sipping my coffee. “I hadn’t realized you’d thought for sure she was the killer.”
“I was leaning that way. It seemed like Geraldine was the most obvious person. She knew Archie the longest. The more I looked into things, the more she seemed entangled in his schemes.”
“Okay. So how did Janelle figure into this?”
He set his fork down again, looking angry. “Archie was a rat. His initial plan was to scam Janelle. But in the meantime, he fooled around with a bunch of women.”
“Did he?”
“Yes. So much for his story to Janelle that she was his first since Kimora had died. The only time he stopped messing around was when he decided he was in love with Janelle.”
“Oh.”
He winced. “Unfortunately, the damage had already been done.”
“I see,” I said, feeling muddled.
He laughed. “You look as confused as I feel. I’ll explain all the details once my brain is rested. The main takeaway is Kimora, aka Geraldine, didn’t kill Archie.”
“Who did?”
He grimaced. “Polly.”
“Polly,” I repeated. “Janelle’s best friend?”
“Yes.”
I widened my eyes. “Pollykilled Archie? Sweet little Polly?”
“She wasn’t so sweet. Apparently.” He took a few bites of egg and ate a piece of bacon. Once he’d swallowed, he said, “Archie got her pregnant.”
I’d been taking a sip, and I started coughing.
He watched me with a worried expression. “You okay?”
Nodding, I patted my chest. “Yes,” I whispered. Once the coughing had subsided, I asked, “Archie knocked up Polly?”
“Yep.” He took more bites of his breakfast.
“Oh, dear,” I murmured. “I thought she was Janelle’s bestie?”
“With friends like that…”
“Why did she kill Archie?”
He sighed. “She killed him because he didn’t want her or the baby. I mean, that’s the short version, but you get the drift.”
I shivered. “I’m sorry to say I do. Good Lord. It sounds like a soap opera.”
“Yes. A deadly one.” He pushed his empty plate away, frowning. “All that bitterness and hidden resentment, it makes me sick.”
“Definitely. But it sounds like Archie created that mess by playing around with people’s hearts.” I frowned. “Why was Kimora stalking Janelle?”
“At first, it was to rattle Janelle. The original plan was to gaslight her. Then Archie, as her new husband, could be in control of all her wealth. But he ended up falling in love with her.”
