“Now take it easy. This is something you don’t have to face alone. You have me. There’s not much I can’t fix.”
“He didn’t do it,” she said tonelessly. “He wouldn’t do a horrible thing like that.”
Knowing Johnny, O’Brien thought it was just the thing he would do.
“That’s only your opinion,” he said gently. “He’s your brother and you’re fond of him, but you’ve got to consider what other people will think. He’s got a pretty bad reputation. He behaved badly…”
“I tell you he didn’t do it!” she exclaimed, jumping up and facing him. “You talk as if you have proof…” She stopped, her hand going to her mouth. “That policeman doesn’t think he did it, does he?”
O’Brien shook his head.
“He doesn’t know a thing about Johnny.”
She went over to the window, her back turned to him. He watched her, experiencing the sense of pleasure the sight of her tall, slim, beautifully proportioned body always gave him.
“Then why do you think Johnny did it?” she asked.
“Look, this will get us nowhere. He was in town last night and she was murdered. It’s as simple as that.”