Frank’s death hit him almost as hard as it did me, and the Devlin clan.” I softened my voice, pushing my impatience down. “But Frank worked with a lot of other people. Other businesses. You know as well as I do that if he found something illegal, he would have tried to report it. Maybe someone wanted to stop him.”
James walked across the store to the counter and leaned on it with both hands. “This is insane, Emma. You’re losing your grip completely. Frank and Benny designed computer systems and programs to help businesses. They weren’t spies or CIA agents, or even IRS agents. They didn’t uncover illegal schemes.”
“I’m not asking you to believe me, James. I’m only asking you to tell me if Frank mentioned anything to you about being troubled at work. You were close. He might have confided in you.”
“And not you, Emma?”
James spoke with a cruelty I’d never seen in him before. “Maybe not.” Tears burned my eyes. “I’m sorry I troubled you.” I rose to leave when James’s hand on my shoulder stopped me.
“I’m sorry, Em. I didn’t mean that.”
“Forget it, James. I shouldn’t have come here with suspicions.” I twisted free of his grip. I had to get out of that shop. With my luck, Marla would walk in at any second.
“Emma, Frank did mention one thing. I thought it was strange at the time, too, but I never put a sinister twist on it.”
His words made me pause. I turned back to face him. “What?”
“About a week before he was killed, he asked me if I’d ever taken a state bid on athletic equipment, like for a school.”
“And?” I prompted. James didn’t want to talk about this and I didn’t understand why.
“I told him Marla took care of the larger contracts and such, and I wasn’t up to speed on all the details. He wanted to know something about state laws with bidding and cost overruns and stuff like that. He did seem tense. He kept rubbing his neck, as if he was having trouble again.”
Frank had injured his neck in a car accident once, and whenever he was under stress, the old injury aggravated him. He would unconsciously rub his neck whenever he felt the muscles begin to knot.
“Did he mention any businesses or contracts in particular?”
James shook his head. “Not to me. Maybe Marla. I don’t know if he pursued this with her or not. Like I said, she’s the one with all the details in that area. She does all of the big contracts.” James smiled. “She’s done well, lately, too. Devlin’s Sportsplex has picked up some nice work with several of the high schools and colleges. Marla has a real knack for sales.”
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