out his chest. “Surely Mr. Timmons has some idea of what happened.”
Ignoring the aide’s sarcasm, Dawson nodded. “We’re working with the Freemont police. At this point, nothing significant has come to light.”
Lillie had hoped coming to work today would ease her anxiety. Standing between two men playing a game of one-upmanship made her wish she had called in sick.
The best way to rectify the situation was to send Dawson on his way. “Thank you, Agent Timmons, for all your help. I’ll be fine from now on.”
He glanced at his watch. “I want to update General Cameron on what happened. I’ll stick around until he arrives.”
Mark raised his brow. “I thought you didn’t have additional information?”
What was it about men? They were always in competition.
Edging away from Mark, she rounded her desk and dropped her purse in the bottom drawer. “The general’s tied up this morning, Dawson, but I can pencil you in later.”
At that moment, the outer door opened and General Cameron stepped into the office. Mark and Dawson came to attention.
Lillie smiled. “Good morning, sir.”
In his early fifties with a square face and receding hairline, the general nodded to the two men and then softened his stern expression as he turned to Lillie. “The staff duty officer called me at home and told me there had been a shooting at your house. You’re all right?”
“I was never in danger, besides...” She extended her hand toward Dawson. “Special Agent Timmons arrived shortly after the shooting. He followed me to post to ensure I arrived safely.”
The general extended his hand. “Thank you for helping Lillie.”
Dawson accepted the handshake. “The Freemont police are handling the investigation, sir. I’ll be working with them.”
“Any leads?”
“Not at this time.”
“Keep me abreast of the situation.”
“Will do, sir.”
The general nodded to his aide. “Morning, Mark.” He then headed through another door that led to his inner office suite.
Lillie pulled out her desk chair. Before she sat down, the outer door opened again, and Karl Nelson hustled into the office. Forty-something and slightly out of breath, the head of Nelson Construction smacked of small-town wealth in his hand-tailored suit, starched white shirt and red tie.
“I’m early for my appointment with the general, Lillie.” Five-ten and wearing twenty extra pounds, Karl approached her desk. “I heard about the shooting. Are you all right?”
“I’m fine, Mr. Nelson, but I wish I could say the same for Granger Ford.”
Karl harrumphed. “The man was a murderer. He never should have been released from prison. In my opinion, he received his due.”
Dawson flinched. “I beg to differ, sir.”
Lillie’s stomach tightened. If only Dawson could shrug off the comment and not let the contractor get under his skin.
“What’s that?” Karl turned, as if only now realizing the CID agent was in the room.
“Granger Ford was recently released from prison, Mr. Nelson, because of new DNA testing that proved the trial was a mockery of justice.”
So much for hoping everyone would get along. Glancing from Dawson to Nelson, Lillie felt like a drop of water on a hot iron.
Dawson pointed his finger at the contractor. “People in this town stood by and allowed an innocent man to go to jail.”
Nelson’s eyes narrowed. Before he could respond, the door to the inner office suite opened.
General Cameron stood in the doorway, his hand outstretched. “Glad you stopped by early, Karl. We’ll have more time to go over the plans for the new museum.”
The construction company owner shrugged off his displeasure with Dawson, returned the handshake and followed the general into his inner office.
Once the door closed behind them, Lillie looked at Dawson, willing him to understand she needed to get to work. “You’d better go.”
Digging in his pocket, he pulled out Granger’s key and dropped it into her hand. “I’ll stop by later this afternoon and follow you home after work.”
Before she could object, he was gone, leaving her stomach in knots and her nerves stretched thin. She glanced through the window as he hurried along the sidewalk to his car.
Handsome though he was, Lillie needed to realize the special agent was trouble, and right now, she had more than enough to last a lifetime.
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