Bel-Air Dead (Stone Barrington 20)

“Swimsuits are in the dressing room, over there,” she said, pointing.

Stone and Dino found suits the right size.

“I hadn’t expected to get wet,” Dino said, hanging up his clothes.

They walked back to the pool, and followed as the girls ran off the patio and raced for the ocean. Stone hit the water running and was stunned at how cold it was. Everybody swam out a few yards, then bodysurfed the waves back to the beach.

“Cold, fellas?” Charlene asked.

Dino’s teeth were chattering. “A little,” he said.

“Well, we don’t want shrinkage, do we? You guys hit the showers and fix yourselves a drink. We’ll be down in half an hour.”

Stone and Dino went back to the dressing room.

“I’ve never been so cold in my life,” Dino said, turning on the hot water.

“It’s a cold ocean,” Stone said.

“Thanks for the warning.”

They showered and dressed, then went into the house.

“There’s a bar in here, as I recall,” Stone said, turning into the study. He poured Dino a Johnnie Walker Black and himself a Knob Creek, and they sat down in a pair of large chairs.

“Refresh my memory,” Dino said. “Wasn’t Charlene involved with a president?”

“It was Will Lee,” Stone said, “but before he was president and before he was married. They’re both from Georgia, and he was representing her fiance, who was charged with murder. They had a brief fling; then, when the fiance was convicted, he tried to get it overturned on the grounds that his attorney was sleeping with his girl. It didn’t work.”

“I’ve read about that,” Dino said. “Didn’t he get his death sentence commuted?”

“Yes, and the rumor was Charlene slept with the governor of Georgia to effect the commutation.”

“I’d have pardoned the bastard, in those circumstances,” Dino said.

They sipped their drinks until they heard the girls coming down the stairs, giggling.

“Hey, fellas,” Charlene said. “Let’s all go into the kitchen.”

“Dino, you and Hetty go ahead,” Stone said. “I need to talk with Charlene for a minute.”

She gave him another kiss. “What’s up, lover?”

“Cool down for a minute, sweetheart,” Stone said. “I have some news, and it’s not good.”

She backed up a step. “What is it?”

“Jennifer Harris-the other stockholder Rick was counting on?”

“The one who died?”

“The one who was murdered,” Stone said.

Charlene’s face fell. “Murdered?”

“And by a professional.” Stone explained what the medical examiner had found. “I think you should be very careful for a while.”

“Why?”