“It’s possible,” Tony says slowly, as if considering it for the first time, “but I don’t see how. And why would they want to? Why shut down Rick’s project? What would be in it for them? It’s not like he was building over endangered land, threatening to kill off the last of a species.”
“I heard Declan Everett was angry Rick bought the land before he could.”
Tony scoffs, and I follow him into the kitchen. “Land development can be cutthroat, sure, but they’ve been in competition for years. M&H has lost out on land to Everett. It’s the way it goes. Rick was well-liked in the city. Conscientious. Gave a lot of money to local charities. No one had a bad word to say about him, and people were disappointed when he left. I’d be hard pressed to find anyone who wanted to hurt him that way.”
I want to believe that, but someone did something, and I intend to find out what.
“Can I have your phone number? I’ll be in touch if I find out anything else.” Beau already gave it to me, along with his address, but I’d rather use a number he gives me himself. Our connection will feel more sincere, and he’ll be more apt to talk to me if I have more questions I need to ask. He rattles off a number that I enter into my contacts app. “Thanks. I’m still not sure what I’m looking for. I’ll ask Beau if someone can look at the warning system. Do you think they’ll be able to find anything after all this time?”
“Equipment is usually left out in the open. It’s built to withstand that kind of exposure,” Tony says, wrapping up our conversation and lingering near his front door. He wants me to leave, and I take the hint.
“Thanks for talking to me,” I say, sliding on my coat and pushing my flats over my thin socks. I dressed in jeans and a sweater, not wanting to appear too professional in case he didn’t believe I wasn’t speaking to him in an official capacity.
“When I watched you come up my walk, I knew I had to. It’s been eating at me ever since I woke up in the hospital. I want you to figure out for me as much as for Rick. I don’t want to live the rest of my life thinking I killed two people and almost Rick, too.”
I pause near the door, my hand on the doorknob. “Do you know how Rick scarred his face?”
Tony shakes his head. “Some damned fool left his toolbox sitting out in the open. Rick knew the second things started going south, and he tried to warn the workers on the fourth floor. He was too busy trying to get their attention to watch his step, and he stumbled. When he fell, he hit his head on the toolbox’s sharp edge. When the boom came down seconds later, the impact split his face open. From what I’ve heard, if he hadn’t hit his face against that toolbox, he might have had a chance to roll out of the way. It stunned him. He always cared more about his crew than himself. He would have died a million times if it would have kept those two ironworkers safe. Take care, Devyn.”
“You, too.”
Mack’s waiting and holding the door open for me the second I step onto Tony’s porch. I can’t forget someone—no, not someone, Stevie—is after me, and wanting to keep my promise to Rick, I hurry to the car, taking cover in the SUV. While he navigates the roads to M&H Development, I use my notes app and write down all my impressions and what Tony said about the rain, mud, counterweight, and his warnings dashboard.
I’m starving by the time I walk into Rick’s office, and Talia is sitting with her laptop and a platter of sandwiches and plastic containers of soup at the conference table.
“This looks amazing,” I say, whipping my jacket off and settling across from her at the table. “Where are Rick and Beau?”
“Meeting,” she says, nibbling on a chip. “I’ve been getting some homework done. How did it go?”
I bite into a turkey and cheese sandwich and swallow before I answer. “Good. He’s a nice old man.” I explain what Tony told me about the warning signs, the counterweight, the rain. “Something isn’t adding up,” I say, opening a small bag of ranch chips. “How was your night last night?”
“You want to know if I had sex,” she says, reaching for a container of chicken noodle soup.
“Not necessarily. I can’t be a hypocrite. You know I did. Rick and I didn’t wait all that long, either, before hopping into bed.”
“We didn’t. We had more to eat, and we talked a bit. I told him about my time in rehab. He told me about working here without Rick. Not exactly chitchat, but we didn’t get very deep, you know?”
I nod. They only met yesterday.
“Then I got ready for bed, and we said goodnight.” She looks down at her laptop, clicks a few keys, and shuts the top.
“That sounds...okay. Why do you sound sad?”
She jerks a shoulder. “It’s stupid. I barely know him. He shouldn’t be able to hurt my feelings.”
“What happened?”
“I heard him answer the phone, and I could tell it was a woman on the other end. She was asking him if he wanted to go out, and he said he couldn’t, that he had to keep an eye on someone for a friend. He made me sound like a chore.”
“I’m sorry.” I push my sandwich away. “He’s always been a partier.”
“I know. That’s the worst part about it. After I heard him, I did a search on my phone, and he’s with a different woman every night. I was starting to have feelings for him, and, ugh!” she says, rubbing her cheeks. “It’s not his fault he’s a player, and it’s not his fault I’m spinning daydreams. He lives here anyway, and I don’t know if I’m well enough to move back to the city.”
I think she’s right about that, but I don’t want her feeling any more insecure or apprehensive than she already is. Watching her recovery, doing her best not to backslide, and taking care of herself is one thing, hiding and running because she’s scared is another. “Did he say anything about it this morning?”
“I acted aloof, because I was hurt, you know? He thought I was mad you were going to question the crane operator without me, and he spent the ride to the office telling me how you’d get more answers out of him by yourself, blah, blah, blah. It didn’t occur to him I heard him last night.”
“Maybe it’s better to leave well enough alone,” I say tentatively. “We’ll be going back to Portland soon, and Old Harbor is a nice town. Maybe you’ll meet someone there.”