“Why did he quit?”
“He said his mother was in a hospital in Michigan and needed him.”
“Was he a good tech?”
“Very good. I didn’t like losing him.”
“Was he the tech sent to the WPRA offices on any of the dates you gave me while he was still working for you?”
“I’ll have to go through the signed receipts. It’ll take me a few minutes.”
“Go ahead.”
Cy flashed Kellie a smile meant to encourage her that they were on the right track. He could have no idea of the emotions that smile stirred up inside her.
The manager looked at Cy. “Denny signed the work order for June 20. It was right after that he had to quit work.”
The set of Cy’s hard jaw spoke volumes. “I want to see his application.”
“I’ll print it out.”
Cy took the paper and stood to shake the manager’s hand. “You’ve been very helpful on this case. Thank you.”
The manager still looked dazed as they left the office. Once in the car, Cy started the engine. “I’ve got everything I came for. We’ll head back to Austin in time for you to get in some training with your horses. En route to the airport would you like to stop for a hamburger at a drive-through?”
“That sounds good.”
“I got lucky toda
y. That always gives me an appetite.”
“It’s not luck, Cy. You’re brilliant. Didn’t you want to study his work application before we left?”
“I’ll pore over it with Vic after we get back. It’ll be filled with lies, but maybe there’ll be something in it that will be valuable to the agents working on the other murder cases.”
She stared out the window. “That poor manager looked shattered. Surely he did a background check.”
“I have no doubt of it. The trouble with criminals is that they’re human beings just like everyone, and for most of the time they drift in and out of the shadows without anyone realizing it until it’s too late.”
Kellie’s gratitude for Cy and all he was doing caused her throat to swell. “I’ll never be able to thank you enough, and don’t tell me it’s nothing.”
A low chuckle came out of him. “I wasn’t going to. Since taking your case, I’ve become a husband. I never dreamed it was such a responsibility.”
“You’re probably sorry you got involved to this extent.”
“I wouldn’t have done it if it wasn’t exactly what I felt needed to be done.”
“But I feel guilty because it makes it difficult for you to have a personal life.”
“Don’t worry about that. I’ve had a personal life and barely escaped getting married.”
Her head swung toward him. “Seriously?”
He nodded. “Her name was Eileen Richards. We were engaged, but it didn’t feel right to me and I broke it off.”
“How long ago?”
“I was twenty-one and halfway through undergraduate school.”