Devon sighed.
“Calm down, Larry. She’s not accusing me. That rundown shit shack building has a dead body and eyeballs in it. Once more, your inability to get the city to let me demolish it or to build apartments has bitten me in the ass.”
He blinked.
“Eyeballs?”
She pulled out her phone and showed him the one picture she’d showed Devon.
The man looked horrified.
“Oh, Jesus,” he said, crossing himself.
Yeah, he could say that again.
“So you’re not in trouble?” he asked. “Then why did you need to see me urgently?”
He poured the man some coffee from the carafe and handed him a cup.
“Oh, I don’t know. Maybe because my fucking building has a dead body in it, and you’ve promised me that you’d get the city to let me have the permits? Maybe because I pay you to handle things like this, since it’s not legal for the city to cockblock me on that building. Or maybe because the head ofthe council is infringing on my rights to get a permit? Or how about the goddamn Deputy Director of the FBI had to come to my office to tell me that I have a dead body and body part infestation? Are any of those valid enough for you?”
Elizabeth sat back down, trying not to laugh. It wasn’t easy, either. Devon was not amused, and she didn’t blame him. He had a crime scene in one of his properties, and that put suspicion on him, even if he hadn’t been involved.
Like with he who found the body, he who owned the property also got fingers pointed at them.
The man being yelled at yelled back.
“I’m trying, Devon! Trenton Balkin, that douchebag, won’t give me an inch. I’ve been trying to do everything but bribe them to get it done.”
Well, there was that name again.
Now, they really had her attention.
Whenever a name came up multiple times from multiple people on a case, it warranted some consideration.
Devon glanced over, as something made him pause.
“Director, if I bribe a city official in order to get permits to stop shit like this from happening, is that illegal?”
She nodded in amusement.
“Yep.”
He sighed.
Then, he sat and steepled his fingers.
“Well, then, arson it is. If I’m going to jail, at least I’m going to enjoy it when I dump the gasoline on that nightmare!”
She stopped him.
“Maybe don’t do that until after I finish my investigation, please,” she said, amused.
He was to the point.
“I’ll try, but it’s on my nerves,” he admitted.
Somehow, he managed to calm down, and Elizabeth gave him credit for that. He looked ready to blow. Whatever technique he was using, she needed to learn.
