right.
“No, excuse me for mentioning it. Now, do you think this unfortunate development of ours has a bearing on your client’s case?”
Paul shook his head. “I don’t know, sir. On one hand, since it’s mostly my files and some files in human resources on the main server which have been tampered with, it has to be considered.” Paul tapped the paper. “All of these incidents however are direct, rather than indirect. As we know, criminals seldom take a two-pronged approach to any kind of harassment.”
“So, you think your client’s still in danger, eh?”
“I do. Just before the meeting, I was told that her cousin has gone missing, and while that’s of concern, it may not be relevant. This computer thing is happening at the same time, but again, that may not be a connection either.” Paul appreciated the ability to run his thoughts by the older man. He needed objectivity about the whole mess, and he had already realized he didn’t have it. “None of it negates the danger to Ms. Hagen. The police now seem to think her cousin, Mister Chance, may not have been a victim as they originally assumed.”
He had to remember to tell Torie that news. Tibbet had let that fall when he called Paul earlier, just before she arrived. “This computer situation may be related, but—”
“But it might not be,” Pratt finished. “Awful lot of coincidence, however. Seems as if this harassment of hers has been going on a while.” He indicated the article.
“At least five years. Since she and Todd Peterson called off their wedding.”
“You mentioned your list of coinciding incidents. May I look at that?”
Paul grimaced. “I have the original notes, but the document I created to match them is one of the ones destroyed by our hackers.”
“Interesting. I know we had planned to discuss this today, but with the emergency partner meeting, my time to do so has disappeared. I’d like to reschedule our meeting to tomorrow morning. Let’s go over all of these notes together. Perhaps an old set of eyes may see some new connections.”
“Some of the connections are fairly obvious, sir,” Paul explained as they made their way to the door. “Whenever Todd came home from his travels, both he and Torie experienced some sort of mishap. The dates and times of the occurrences coincide with Todd’s visits in the U.S.”
“Interesting. Have you shared this with the police?”
“In the main. I’m meeting with Detective Tibbet, the detective in charge of Todd’s murder investigation.” The very phrase made Paul wince. It still wrenched at his heart to think about his friend.
Pratt Sr. rested a hand on his shoulder, stopping him just in front of the large doors. “Son, it won’t be the first friend you lose, but I hope it will be the only one you lose this way. I had a great deal of respect for Todd Peterson. Knowing both of you since before you took the bar through Melvin Jr.” Pratt’s voice sounded slightly choked. “Well, it’s difficult to lose anyone of his age, my son’s age. You understand.”
Paul could only nod.
“He was a good man. I know I said this to you at the time, but I am sorry for your loss.”
Paul ducked his head. He knew the grief would be written plainly on his face. “Yes, sir.”
In answer, Pratt simply gripped Paul’s shoulder a bit tighter, then let go. “Now, have Martha call my assistant, get us set up for the morning. We’ll work something in, even if it’s over coffee and breakfast.”
“Thank you, sir,” Paul managed in a modulated tone, in spite of the memories choking his throat.
Passing through the halls, Paul acknowledged the hails of his peers and accepted their congratulations. He was thankful for the distraction. With the walk to his office punctuated by such good cheer, as well as some open envy, he was able to recover his equilibrium. Everything was off balance, and it was making him distrust his own judgment.
How could he be objective about anything when he was still grieving the loss of someone he’d known for so long? Then, to have Torie be involved, and to have become involved with Torie…
The thought of her hot and passionate beneath him, the image of her, the thought of her delicious moans of completion made him detour to the men’s room. It wouldn’t do to walk into his office, knowing she waited there, with anything less than a clear mind. Thoughts of her tangled up his senses so badly, he needed a moment to compose himself.
He didn’t even turn on the hot water. He splashed straight cold water, nearly glacial, on his face. It helped to clear his mind and divert his thoughts. He pushed the towels into the bin as the door opened.
“Oh, hello, Paul,” Melvin said. Irritation was obvious in his demeanor. “Done with the meeting?”
“Yes, thanks.” Paul picked up his paperwork, but Melvin blocked his path. “What’s up?”
“It’s been a long time coming,” Melvin said, his eyes hard.
“What?”
“Todd. I’m sorry he’s dead, but he lived a crazy life.”
Fury clouded Paul’s mind to hear his friend dismissed so tersely. For Melvin, whom he and Todd had nicknamed
Paul bit back the words that clamored to spew forth. Through his anger, he recognized that Melvin was baiting him, hoping for Paul to say or do something stupid, something rash.
It was a pattern Melvin employed to get people fired. People he disliked. People he wanted out of the way.
“He lived a better life than either of us,
