His brother sighed. “This is so dumb.”
I looked from one to the other. “Again, I’m in a serious relationship, Wayne. But thanks.” Apparently, he’d more than gotten over the fact that his wife had died.
He lost the smile. “I’m trying to move on, you know? You’re pretty, and like I said at the diner, I don’t see a ring on that finger.” His shoulders hunched a little bit.
“She said no, Wayne,” Spencer said, his red shirt two shades darker than his hair. “Get to the nonsense so I can go home.”
Wayne sighed and smoothed back his too-black hair. He should have let a little gray show at the temples, at the very least. “Fine. We need to file a suit against Lisa Robinson, and you’re the only attorney we know in town.”
I cast a look at his brother.
Spencer shrugged. “I’m licensed in Montana, not Idaho, and I don’t want to go through the process so I can practice here. I think it’s a stupid case, but Wayne needs to concentrate on something other than the fact that his wife was found dead.” He sounded resigned but patient. He patted his brother’s shoulder, his hand already showing a couple of liver spots.
“Against Lisa Robinson?” I asked. “Why would you want to sue her?”
Wayne reared up. “She attacked us. We went to her place yesterday, figuring she’d be open on Sunday since, you know, she owns an antique store, and the woman went crazy. She is seriously unhinged.”
Spencer nodded. “I wouldn’t be surprised if she killed Imogen and Richard. To be this angry a decade and a half after they disappeared... I hope the police are seriously looking at her.”
“I believe they are,” I said. However, her DNA was not found at the crime scene. Of course, she could’ve had an accomplice or somehow managed to kill them without leaving DNA. She was very tall, and fifteen years ago, she was probably even stronger than she was today. I made a mental note to talk to Pierce again about Lisa. “What happened?” I asked.
Wayne swallowed, the muscle in his jaw ticking. “We just went to talk to her, and the minute she found out who we were, she accused me of being a terrible husband. Said if I had kept Imogen happy, she wouldn’t have run off with Richard.”
Spencer nodded, looking tired. “I tried to intercede and tell her we all wanted the same thing, to find out who had killed them, and she lost her mind. She threw paint at us. Threw some picture frames. She even threw what looked like ink.”
That seemed to be a favorite pastime for Lisa.
“She ruined your good suit,” Wayne said.
Spencer ducked his head. “It’s just a suit, Wayne. I don’t think it’s necessary to sue the woman. She’s obviously very upset.”
Wayne frowned, the handsome lines of his face growing fierce. “I don’t care. You only have one good suit, Spencer, and she ruined it. We need to sue her and teach her a lesson.”
Spencer shook his head. “I’ll buy another suit.”
“Not by practicing obscure tax law in the middle of Montana.”
“Hey, my practice is getting stronger,” Spencer objected.
Wayne gestured in the air. “You bought that suit in Italy.”
Spencer sighed. “See what I’m dealing with? He just wants to concentrate on anything but Imogen’s death, which I understand. But come on.”
I nodded. “You know you can file suit in Small Claims Court. The suit wasn’t worth more than five grand, was it?”
Spencer shook his head.
Wayne snorted. “No, but it was a nice suit.”
“Take it to Small Claims Court. You shouldn’t have to pay for a lawyer,” I said.
“Yeah, we could do that if you want.” Spencer looked at his brother. “It’s really not that big of a deal to me.”
Wayne looked at me. “I think we should file charges then. For assault and battery. We should go speak with the police right now.”
Spencer shook his head. “I just don’t think we need to deal with this.”
“But you cut your hand,” Wayne said. “You’ve been damaged.”
