It explained other things as well. In the depths of my mind a mist began lifting and disjointed pieces started to connect like a jigsaw puzzle, painting a larger and clearer picture.
I said, "How did you learn of the affair?"
"By chance. I saw them together."
"Where?"
"At a party in an officers' club. A closed event, just British officers and officials and their guests. Good music and food and wine. All the men in uniform and suits and all the women in evening dresses. Everyone polite and charming and well-mannered. Just what life should be like. Like in a movie. I was there with an infantry second lieutenant I was seeing. I didn't care what other Jews thought of me. I wanted to be with civilized people, to feel that I was in Europe."
"And Esther was there?"
"With Clapper. I saw her, but she didn't see me. They didn't stay long. Clapper was eager to get her out of there, to where they could be alone. It was almost obscene. My date told me they had been seeing each other for two months or so. I was stunned."
"You never spoke to Esther about it?"
Leah shook her head, but only after a slight hesitation.
"Did you speak to her about it or not?" I demanded.
"No."
"But you told someone."
Leah didn't answer. I took a step closer, towering over her. She shrank back against the door, casting her eyes down again.
"Who did you tell?"
"Gerhard," she whispered.
"Strauss?" I asked. From the police report I knew Gerhard was his first name.
A quick nod.
"Why did you tell him?"
Again she didn't answer, and this time I grabbed her little chin in my hand and jerked her head up so she had no choice but to look right into my eyes. What she read in them started her shaking. Tiny sweat beads glistened along her hairline.
"Tell me now, damn you, or I'll—"
She blurted out her answer. "Because he wanted to know if Esther had any dirty secrets."
I tightened my grip, squeezing her jaw. "Why? To what purpose?"
She grimaced in pain, whimpering. "Because he wanted something to hold over her so she would sleep with him."
For a moment, a bubble of silence engulfed the kitchen. The only thing I could hear was the rapid humming of blood past my eardrums. Then sound returned—the ticking of the refrigerator, the chirping of a bird outside, Leah's quick, shaky breaths.
Her chin felt cold and damp. I released my grip on it, wiping my hand on my trouser leg. My fingers had left red marks on her jaw and cheeks. I took a step back from her. I wanted some distance between us. Otherwise, I knew, I might strike her. The urge to lash out was buzzing in my hands and arms. Leah hugged herself, trembling as if caught in a freezing gale without a coat. I was the opposite. I felt hot. My blood boiled with anger. The sort of anger that demands retribution.
"You knew Strauss was after Esther?" I asked, my voice thick and hoarse and strange.
"He told me. I didn't blame him. Her beauty was breathtaking. The first time I saw her, I remember thinking that
"And you didn't care? Despite him being your lover?"
Leah's eyes gazed directly into mine. They were fearful, but utterly devoid of shame. "Gerhard and I weren't exclusive. I was poor. He had lots of money. Life can be hard without money and so much easier with it. Gerhard would give me money and gifts—he even paid my rent sometimes—and all I had to do was be available to him. It was fun. He's very generous. I had no claim to him. I knew he chased other women."
"But Esther wanted nothing to do with him, did she?"
"Nothing," Leah said. "Gerhard tried to get close to her a few times, but Esther always kept her distance. Even after he gave her the necklace, she didn't warm up to him. It drove him crazy."
"And he wouldn't take no for an answer."
"Gerhard is not used to being refused."
"So he decided to force her into bed," I said, acid burning in my stomach. That stinking German snake. "And you gave him the means to do it."
She said nothing. Her arms tightened around her chest.
I shut my eyes and held them closed for a count of ten, telling myself to remain calm, that this was not the time to lose my temper.
When I had my anger down to a simmer, I opened my eyes. "Tell me what happened. Leave nothing out."
She swallowed hard. This time I didn't rush her. We were past the high point of resistance. She would tell me everything.
"It was two days before Esther and Erich were killed. Gerhard asked her to stay late—he made some excuse, I don't remember what. When they were alone in his office, he started kissing her, tried to tear off her clothes. Esther resisted, pushed him away, and slapped his face. Gerhard made some remark about her owing him for the pearls, so Esther ripped them off her throat and threw them at him."
"So that's how you got the necklace. As payment for your betrayal of Esther."
"It was broken," Leah said abstractly. "Fixing the clasp cost a lot of money."
"The hell with the clasp," I snarled. "Tell me the rest of it."
