Ophelia couldn’t help but sigh. How freaking frustrating. “The mysterious and so-sad hunter seems to be the party line.”
Damian took another drink. “It’s the truth.”
The man was a good liar, but drinking before speaking was a tell. “Did Ace kill Hank?” She purposefully kept her voice soft.
Damian met her gaze over his mug. “I fear somebody poaching, out hunting outside of the legal season, accidentally shot Hank and became too frightened to admit it, Agent. Since they were breaking the law. That’s my final statement on the matter.”
She swallowed. “You and your brothers are like a solid wall crumbling from the inside, you know that?”
Brock stiffened next to her.
Damian tilted his head. “Meaning?”
She went with her instincts, even though she didn’t have the facts. “Brock won’t accept the sheriff position, Ace is drinking himself to death, Christian is in a category of his own, living in the wild and stalking the shadows, and you took a job in your own backyard and didn’t bother to tell any of them. Something is wrong between you four, and the only thing that makes sense is that it’s about Hank’s death. You know who killed him.” She struggled to determine if Damian might be the killer. After meeting each of the brothers, she couldn’t get a handle on who might have harmed Hank.
“Hmm.” Damian looked at her again as if really seeing her. “She’s smart, Brock.” Was that approval in his tone?
Fire flashed through her, singeing the tips of her ears. “I’m also right in front of you, Mr. Osprey. I strongly suggest you speak directly to me.”
His lips twitched. “I apologize, Agent. It’s just rather rare that any of us approve of our brothers’ women, and I wished to give him a compliment.”
And piss her off. On purpose? She watched him carefully. Was he waiting for her to protest the archaic language? “While you might have made your last statement, I’m nowhere near done, nor have I been distracted from the matter in any way. I’m surprised I need to remind you that lying to a federal agent is a felony.”
Damian laughed out loud, the sound dark and rich. “I appreciate the reminder. You’re going to be fun to have around, Olly.”
Great. Now everyone called her Olly. Wait a minute. Where had he heard that? What kind of pipeline into the town did he have? “You said you just arrived. Who have you been speaking with in town?”
He shrugged. “Nobody, but word gets around, even for those who have just arrived. I already heard that my brother is involved with an FBI agent.”
“We’re not dating,” she muttered. She wasn’t sure what they were doing, but it seemed more intense and less intimate than mere dating. Time to switch tactics, although that didn’t seem to work with these guys. “Will you identify the deceased EVE male we found the other day, and explain to me why his body disappeared?”
Damian drummed the fingers of his free hand on his perfectly creased slacks. “I have no knowledge about that poor sap, and he did not work for EVE.”
She kept track of his reactions as well as Brock’s. “The deceased wore an EVE jacket.”
Damian finished his coffee and placed his cup on the tray. “If you had a body or a picture, we might know more. All I can tell you is that we’re not missing personnel, and based on the description sent to me from the FBI assistant director requesting this meeting, the deceased isn’t a former employee. I’m sorry I can’t be of more help.”
“I’d like to look through your personnel files.” She put her cup on the tray as well.
Damian sat back, overwhelming the leather chair. “No. Sorry.” He sounded properly regretful and full of it.
“I can obtain a warrant.” She kept his gaze.
His cheek creased as if he wanted to smile again but held back. “No, you can’t. Even if the deceased body, the one that somehow disappeared, didweara jacket embroidered with our logo, he could’ve gotten it anywhere. Many of our employees donate clothing every winter to the local care units.”
She kept control of her temper. “Why would his eyes have been gouged out?”
“Animals?” Damian murmured.
“Not enough time,” she countered. “There are rumors about such killings around here.”
Damian shook his head. “Those are tales told to keep kids out of the wilds in the winter, where the threats are the weather and animals. I don’t know why anybody would gouge out eyes, but I’m not a criminalist, Agent.”
“You were in intelligence?” she asked, already knowing the answer.
He nodded and looked at his brother’s empty mug. “More coffee?”
“No.” Brock placed his cup next to the others. “What’s the problem with us looking through the personnel records here? This is just a research facility, right?”
