Stone nodded. “Ash?”
Ash glanced up from the notes he’d been taking, surprised. “Yes, Mr. Barrington?”
“What do you think?”
“Oh, eh…I agree with Mr. Cantor, I mean Bob. If anything, I would think Yates would want Ms. Hirschy to hook up with someone else. That way she’d be more motivated to give in to his demands and get the divorce behind her.”
“That’s my thinking, too.”
Ash looked pleased to hear that.
“Bob, thanks for looking into this,” Stone said.
“I do have a question,” Bob said. “Did you know Yates is Ms. Hirschy’s second husband?”
“I’m sorry?”
“Ten years ago, in Los Angeles. She married a man named Stefan Howard the day she turned eighteen. I take it you were not aware of that.”
“I was not.”
“Perhaps because it was annulled a few weeks after it occurred.”
“Do you know why it was annulled?”
Bob shook his head. “I stumbled across the information while looking into Yates, but since Howard wasn’t who you wanted me to dig into, I didn’t check any further. If you—”
Bob’s phone began vibrating.
“Mind if I take this?” he said. “It’s my guy in Chicago.”
Stone motioned for him to go ahead.
“Bob Cantor,” Bob answered.
He listened for several seconds, then pulled out a pen and began writing in his notebook.
“When?…Uh-huh…Uh-huh…Which hospital?…What are they saying?…Okay. Thanks for letting me know.” He hung up and said to Stone, “You’re not going to believe this. Leonard Yates was jumped on his way to work this morning and is in the hospital with a severe concussion and a broken nose, among other things.”
“Was it random or was he targeted?” Stone asked.
“No idea. Yates isn’t saying much of anything, and apparently there were no witnesses.”
“I can’t help but wonder if he received a warning similar to the one Weston was given.”
“You think the attacks are connected?” Ash said.
“We’d be foolish if we didn’t at least consider the possibility.”
“If you want me to pursue that,” Bob said, “I should probably fly out there and see if I can talk to him myself.”
“I’d appreciate that, Bob. Thank you. Talk to Joan. She can handle your travel arrangements.”
Bob slipped his notebook back in his pocket. “What about the first husband?”
“I’m seeing Sara’s uncle on Friday. I’ll ask him what he knows. If it seems like he could be a suspect, I’ll have you look into him.”
“Works for me.”
