Death Vetoes The Chairman (Lizzie Crenshaw Mysteries Book 7) by Teresa Watson Page B

the right side of the building near the parking lot. “I honestly don’t know how to tell you this, Lizzie,” Steve said.
    “Tell me what?”
    “Winthrop’s lawyer has friends in high and low places. He drove down here, talked to a couple of people, made a few calls, and got the TRO cancelled.”
    “What do you mean, he got it cancelled?”
    “The clerk called to tell me. It was thrown out because of lack of evidence.”
    “Lack of evidence?” I snapped. “How much more evidence do they need? My dead body?”
    “Lizzie,” T.J. said, trying to wrap his arm around my waist. I stepped away from him, and he let his arm drop.
    “His lawyer called another judge, who listened to the recording. She said that Winthrop clearly requested that you stop recording, and therefore you violated his right to privacy by refusing to stop it.”
    “How could I? He had me pinned to the wall,” I retorted as I felt a tear roll down my cheek. I angrily wiped it away. “So what you’re saying is I’m basically screwed.”
    “I didn’t say that,” Steve hastily replied. “But we’re going to have to come up with more proof.”
    “Forget it,” I said. “Just let it go.”
    “You can’t do that, Lizzie,” Jake said.
    “Yes, I can, and I am. It’s easy for you to say ‘don’t quit’. You’re not the one who has to deal with telling the story over and over. No wonder so many women don’t report the harassment and the assaults. Who wants to keep living it over and over? I certainly don’t.”
    “If you give up, then he wins,” T.J. said. “What about the next woman he goes after?”
    “Don’t lay that on me, Thomas Jefferson Roosevelt. Don’t you dare lay that guilt trip on me. I’m responsible for one person, and that’s myself. And even that is too much to handle right now. If he wants to win so bad, let him. If you want to fight him, go right ahead. Leave me out of it. I’m done.” I turned and walked back into the building. The flowers were on the desk when I went into the office. I stared at them for a minute, awkwardly picked them up and threw them at the wall. The sound of shattering glass echoed off the walls. I shoved a bunch of papers into my bag and left.

Chapter 11
    Despite what I said, Jake and Steve began digging deeper into Ethan’s past. Jake believed that there was an obvious pattern of established behavior, starting with Jessica back in high school. If they found anything, they were wisely not sharing it with me.
    Things were a little strained between T.J. and I for a couple of days. After shattering the vase of flowers against the wall, I had gone home and stayed there. All of my work was being done from home. He had come over that first night, but I had refused to answer the door, not even for pecan pie from Maddie. He had wisely put the pie, along with dinner, in a bag on the porch and left.
    I really wanted to call Trixie, but she was out of town on business, and I didn’t want to bother her. As for my mother, Amelia, I wasn’t sure where she was. After their honeymoon cruise, her new husband had whisked her away to England. I was beginning to wonder if she was ever going to come back.
    Working from home made me realize that I didn’t have a decent office. I wandered around in the backyard, checking out the space I thought I might need to add a new room to my late grandmother’s house. Debra left me the money; I might as well put it to good use. Since Trixie was remodeling the Gentlemen’s Club, she would be able to recommend a reliable contractor when she came back.
    Another thing I realized: there was no way I was going to be able to work in my office at the newspaper again. I’m not sure how I had managed to go back after that day, but standing there, listening to Jake tell Dale what happened made everything come back in full force. I saw it all: when he grabbed my wrist as he sat in the chair; trying to break free; being slammed and pinned to the wall…it played out in