“It’s fantastic you’re getting healthy.” Mia meant it. She’d been fond of the journalist during the last case. He worked hard and was honest, which was rare these days when dealing with the media.
Lionel pushed one of his cameras farther away from his pictures. “Can you eat bread on that diet?”
“Nope,” Willie said. “No carbs except for veggies.”
Lionel returned to his pictures, apparently not interested in forgetting about carbs. Since he ate a package of spicy potato chips every day, it wasn’t much of a surprise.
Mia looked for more pins for the bulletin board. Where had she put those? “We could use your help here, Willie. Did you let go of the case when Delaney died?” Since she hadn’t, maybe he’d kept investigating. A woman could hope.
“Of course not. Although the better story was you being knocked out of the FBI after you took care of Delaney.” Willie shook his head. “That was a shitty thing.” He glanced at Kurt. “Was it because she dumped you?”
Mia kept her expression placid while Kurt sat back in his chair. “What makes you think we were dating?”
“Oh, please.” Willie rolled his eyes. “I’m not clueless.” No, he was pretty good.
Kurt twirled his pen through his fingers. “No. I didn’t have anything to do with her being let go, and I should’ve fought harder for her.” He sighed. “I screwed up.”
Willie gave him a sympathetic look. “That’s tough, man. I lost a woman once, and it hurt like hell. And Mia? She’s a keeper for sure.”
Mia cleared her throat. Enough talk about her. “Tell us what you have. I’d really appreciate it.”
“I followed Delaney’s intern for a while. But honestly, the kid’s boring. He ended up buying Marjorie’s Pizza on 4th Street in DC and now works as a restaurateur.” Willie’s eyes gleamed as he released just a couple of facts. No doubt he had more.
“Where is he today?” Mia asked.
“Shouldn’t you know that?” Willie muttered.
Kurt nodded. “We’re conducting a recent and full background check now. But I never thought the guy had anything to do with Delaney’s kills.”
Mia didn’t argue because she didn’t want to see the theory in a newspaper. “Anything else on him, Willie?”
“He disappears for a few days at a time, saying he’s starting another business,” Willie said. “I became friends with a waitress at the pizza shop, and I do check in with her once in a while. It’s interesting, but that’s all I know.”
Kurt tapped his pen on the stack of papers. “Friends?”
“I may gift her a fifty once in a while,” Willie admitted. “Now, I’ve been helpful. You need to give me something.”
That seemed fair. “An exclusive the second we find the killer,” Mia said instantly.
“Wait a minute.” Kurt held up a hand.
“No,” Mia said. “It’s a deal.” She extended her arm.
Willie took her hand and shook it as if he’d expected this outcome the second he opened his mouth. He probably had. “Excellent. I have some notes on the timing of the intern’s activities as Rodney bought the pizza place, as well as a couple of interviews I conducted with his acquaintances. I’ll meet with you this afternoon, and we can talk all about it. You know he was in touch with a few folks about the case, people not in the FBI?”
Mia straightened. “He was?”
“Oh, yeah. I’ll give it all to you this afternoon. I have notes back at the hotel.” He glanced at his watch. “For now, I have to run. I’m interviewing a couple of people about the sheriff’s death.”
Mia wanted to smack her head, but she didn’t. “The sheriff’s death was an accident. People saw him fall off the cliff.”
“Yeah, that’s not the consensus in town,” Willie said. “There’s a story here, Mia, and I hope you’re not involved in it.” He cocked his head. “There’s something real weird in Lost Lake. I haven’t figured it out yet, but I will.” With that, he turned on his heel and left.
Willie had excellent instincts for a story and always had. Mia barely held back a sigh.
Todd still stood near the doorway, watching the reporter go. He cocked an eyebrow, and Mia subtly shook her head. The last thing she needed was Willie ending up dead in her town. Todd pulled out his phone and shot off a quick text. Then he glanced at the screen. “Hey, we have to go.”
Kurt started. “Go? Go where? We’re working on this case.”
