Yeah, she could see that.
She’d seen the fallout at the other one.
As in a body.
“What happened?” Devon asked as he handed them each a cup of coffee, and then, they switched when he got them backward. “I’ll remember for next time. The Director likes light, and Agent Cantrell likes dark.”
They didn’t mind.
They’d drink it any way it was made. They weren’t picky when it came to coffee.
“Well, hopefully, there won’t be a next time, unless we’re at one of the President’s shindigs.”
Again, he smiled.
So, she dropped a bomb.
“I’m here because a vagrant was found shanked in your building.”
He sat with his cup of coffee, and sipped it. The whole time, Elizabeth was watching him. He was handsome, but she didn’t see anything about a family in his information Gene was digging up.
Someone might be single, or he might keep his personal life out of the limelight.
Or spotlight.
“I’m sorry to hear that. Can I help with the burial? I don’t believe anyone should be dumped in a pauper’s grave. I know that’s what will happen.”
She was to the point.
“I’ll find out for you, but there’s more. Tell me about this building, and I’ll tell you the rest. I will say you don’t seem shocked that this particular building is problematic.”
He laughed sardonically.
“That building is the bane of my existence,” he admitted before punching in some information on his computer.
Then, he turned his screen.
“When my father passed, he was working on a deal to help revitalize the city. This building, that building, and two others were in the deal. He got them for a good price. I think the seller conned him, since the city council is a nightmare. He tucked that place into the grouping, hiding it among gems. I know I keep saying this, but Market Street is a nightmare. It bears repeating.”
Oh, he had no idea.
She waited.
“Last year, about three days after he passed, the attorney got the information to me, and I had four buildings here. Normally, I work mostly out ofSalt Lake City, but I was raised here. My mother and father divorced when I was seven, and Iwent back and forth. I lived primarily with my mom, here in this city. This is home to me, and I loveHolladay.”
Gene was making notes on his phone, even though MATE was sending information out to the car in real time for Ethan to make his profile.
“At first, I was excited. I saw this place, and the other two buildings, and I immediately saw them as a way to bring more industry into the city. The best part of this city is the proximity of where it is. You can commute intoSalt Lake City, and live economically here. So I planned on picking up where my father left off.”
She was curious.
“And you’ve never seen that building?”
He laughed.
“I wish. I drove up last year, and drove away from it as quickly as I could. Immediately, I headed over to the council building, and put in renovation permits. It’s an eyesore, and I don’t want my real estate tied to that. Only, city council has made me jump through every hoop imaginable. All I want to do is tear it down, or make it into apartments, but they keep stalling. I’m to the point where I’m going to hire a fire company to come in and burn it down just to get it gone. I’ve been fined for drugs there, and for vandalism, and for it being an eyesore—that I can’t fix because they won’t let me.”
It sounded like he wanted to be done with it.
