This story is based on "Lamb to the Slaughter" By Roald Dahl. The story had been featured in at least two shows. "Alfred Hitchcock Presents" and "Tales of the Unexpected". It is set around the 1950's

Adalind was seven months pregnant when her husband Sean entered their home, took the drink she always greeted him with from her hand and told her he was done with their marriage and would be filing for divorce the very next day.

"What have I done? I thought I was a good wife to you?" She asked with tears in her eyes.

"Now don't start getting hysterical. I'm letting you keep the kid. We'll sell the house and everything in it. I need the money for the life I want. One that isn't this boring domestic life."

"I don't understand. You love me. You once told me I was the most beautiful woman you had ever seen. You got down on your knees and pleaded with me to be yours for the rest of our lives. What changed?"

"I married you because you said you would only have sex with your husband. I thought I could have you waiting for me at home, and be able to enjoy my life. Figured whenever there was a shortage of fun women to play with, I could always rely on you to be waiting convenient for me. But you and this kid are starting to cramp my style. I can't talk to a piece of fluff anymore without some moron asking about my wife and when the baby is due. I'm leaving and moving to a city for a fresh start and people who won't bring up my wife and child."

"Our child needs their father. How can you abandon them?"

"You'll find someone else. You're still pretty. There's got to be some guy who would be willing to take care of a kid so he can get into your pants on the regular."

Sean turned his back and Adalind and went to the desk he always kept locked, pulling out banking papers and the checkbook.

Something inside Adalind snapped. She had always behaved like a proper wife. Always had Sean's every meal ready for him. Kept his house clean. She was quick to prepare him a drink when he wanted one. And not once in the three years of their marriage did she turn him away from their marriage bed.

She knew of his many affairs. Knew he slept with half the women in their neighborhood and possible the whole city. Not once did Adalind so much as show irritation to him. Instead, every time he had returned to her, she had believed that he understood where he truly belonged.

But now he was leaving her. Practically casting her and their child out into the wild? Expecting Adalind to fend for herself with little to no resources?

With divorced parents, the child would be labelled a bastard by society. Adalind herself would be looked at with shame and scorn. She and her child would face ridicule. People would question her worth as a woman because her husband had left her. There might even be those who would think that Sean left Adalind because he might not believe the child was his.

How dare he think to put her and their child through that?!

Adalind went to the chest freezer and pulled out a frozen leg of lamb.

Sean had his back to her, drinking the whiskey she had poured for him when she heard his car pull into their driveway. He had never thought much of Adalind. She was a pretty girl to him and that was all.

Being hit over the head with a leg of lamb was something he could never have anticipated.

Adalind calmly walked back to the kitchen. Unwrapped the paper from the meat, throwing it into the fireplace where a strong fire was already crackling, then she seasoned the meat and placed it in the oven.

Just as calmly, she put on her shoes and her coat, gathered her purse and went to buy vegetables at the market on the corner.

Adalind smiled and talked pleasantly with anyone she encountered. When asked how her husband was, her smile never wavered when she said, "He's fine. He's at home reading his paper and sipping his whiskey."

When she returned home, she stepped a few feet into the door, then allowed the groceries to fall to the floor where they spilled and scattered.

Finally allowing the tears to come, she ran to the neighbors home and begged them to call the police.

Seeing how distraught the pregnant woman was, they quickly did as she asked.

The police came.

Sean was one of their own. Though everyone knew he was a crooked cop. That he took bribes and sometimes roughed up lower level thugs, sometimes at the request of the higher ups, sometimes just for the fun of it.

Adalind was questioned in the kitchen while photos were taken and the crime scene examined.

"Our biggest problem is going to be narrowing down the list of suspects." Detective Hank Griffin said.

"Between the criminals he went after, the ones he made deals with, and all of the husbands he angered when he slept with their wives, there is a good chance that half of the city wanted him dead." Sergeant Wu added. "We talked to the neighbors, most of whom were either preparing dinner or watching television, meaning that no one saw or heard a thing. One neighbor did say the couple was supposed to have dinner with them. But shortly after they saw his car, his wife called to cancel. The excuse was that he tired. Maybe the real reason was that he had crossed the wrong person and knew they would go after him, and he was stressed about that?"

"Thankfully whoever did it waited until the wife was away." Detective Nick Burkhardt said. "Killing a crooked cop is one thing. But killing a pregnant woman is worth a one way ticket straight to hell."

Everyone knew Nick had a great amount of respect for women and was extremely protective of children. He had gotten some ribbing from other officers for speaking out loud that women were equal to men and should be treated with the same level of respect.

Nick thought that Adalind really deserves a lot of respect and admiration. Her husband had been a complete louse. Now she was alone with a baby on the way. The fact she wasn't completely falling apart said something about the strength of her character.

"You keep looking at her like that, and people will start thinking you killed Sean Renard to get his wife." Hank teased Nick.

"I just can't understand why a man would want other women when he had a wife who looked like that waiting for him at home." Nick defended.

"Maybe the killer was trying to tell us that Sean had brain damage." Wu suggested.

Nick's eyes searched for Adalind, finding her at her kitchen table, drinking from a mug with her hand on her round belly. He couldn't help the thought that if she was his, he would resent every second he had to spend away from her.

How Sean could willingly spend his time with other women or being friendly with low lifes was beyond Nick's understanding.

"I just wanted to see how Adalind is doing. I'm Mrs. Phoebe Wurstner, from next door. Dreadful thing to happen. And with her being heavy with child, too. I do hope some kind man comes along for her, so she won't have to raise the baby by herself."

"Phoebe! Let the nice policemen do their job."

"I am helping them with their job. Everyone knows the police have to ask the neighbors questions. And I know everything that happens in this neighborhood."

"Excuse me? Who are you?" Nick asked.

"Rupert Wurstner, but everyone calls me Bud. This is my wife Phoebe. We live next door."

"Adalind and I have tea together most every afternoon. And sometimes, when her husband is working late, she comes over for dinner."

"How often does she have dinner at your house?" Nick asked.

"Lately it's been at least once a week." Phoebe answered. "I suppose her husband was trying to get more money before the baby arrived."

All of the officers in ear shot knew that Sean had no reason to work late. They were sure that what had really kept him away from home was either a shady deal, or a women.

Not that any of them was going to tell that to his widow or neighbors.

Hank pulled Nick and Wu to the side, out of earshot of the neighbors and the widow.

"There's a chance that whatever Sean got up to the past few weeks is what got him killed."

"What do you think is the bigger probability? A shady deal gone bad or messing with the wrong man's girl?" Wu asked.

"It could be a little of both." Nick said. "What if he was getting too friendly with the wife or girlfriend of a thug he was dealing with?"

"You think Sean would be that brazen and foolish?" Wu asked.

"I think if he was willing to cheat on that beautiful woman sitting in the kitchen, he was capable of a lot of stupid things."

Nick walked back to Bud and Phoebe Wurstner. "Did any of you see or hear anything."

Both shook their heads no.

"I'm afraid I was busy getting dinner ready." Phoebe said.

"And I was watching the kids play." Bud said but was then corrected by his wife.

"Please, you were watching television." She turned to the police officers. "When he watches TV, he can drown out everyone and everything. The kids were running around the house yelling and screaming, climbing on all of the furniture, but I bet he could still recite the newest commercial that aired."

"That seems to be the same problem we've had with all of the other neighbors." Wu said. "There would be no reason to look out their windows at that time, not when there was too much to do in the house."

"This is a pretty quiet neighborhood. Or, it used to be." Bud said. Everyone's got the same nightly routine."

"A city thug wouldn't know that, right? He would think to come in the middle of the night when everyone would be asleep."

"He might know." Nick said. "I heard Sean complained a number of times how quiet it is in suburbia. That every man in his neighborhood does the same thing every night when they arrive home. They're greeted by their wife and their kids, they sit in front of the television and they sit down to dinner. The most exciting it gets is if some family has another family to dinner. Or during the summer when there's a backyard cookout. I thought that sounded like a dream life but Sean said it was a nightmare."

"And if he complained about his boring life to his criminal companions, they would know when would be the best time to get revenge on him." Hank said.

"With all of the enemies Sean has made and there being zero witnesses, I'm starting to think this is an unsolvable case." Wu stated.

No one was going to say it outloud but everyone was thinking that it was really Sean's own fault for why his murder could never be solved. He had made far too many enemies in the course of his life.

Nick decided that if he couldn't solve the murder, than he could make sure the widow and her unborn baby would have the best life possible.

The men walk into the kitchen to let the widow know they were done with processing the scene.

"What smells so good?" Wu asked.

Adalind smiled. "The leg of lamb."

"But I thought you didn't have any food in the house and that's why you went to the store? Did you put the leg of lamb in when you came back?" Hank asked.

"I had meat. And I had a pie baked for dessert. I didn't have vegetables." Adalind explained. "I put the meat in the oven before I went to the store."

"And it's been cooking all this time?" Wu asked in surprise. "It must be dried out by now."

The sergeant took it upon himself to go to the oven and pull out the meat.

"Hey!" Hank exclaimed. "That doesn't look dried out at all. That looks pretty good."

"Why don't you boys have a seat at the table? I'll gather some things up and you can enjoy a meal." Adalind offered.

"We couldn't impose like that mam." Nick protested.

"It wouldn't be an imposition." Adalind returned with a sweet smile that set his heart racing. "It will just spoil otherwise."

Nick insisted on helping out and soon a lovely dinner was set on the table with all of the officers at the scene gathered around it and feasting happily.

In no time at all, the food was gone and the officers were complimenting the lady of the house on her fine cooking.