“Five minutes. What do you want?”

“You know what I want. The grapevine’s been alive since it happened. How long did you think it would be before you met one of us?”

She looked crestfallen. “I didn’t think it would be here. Now.”

“I had to find you first.”

“I’m sorry.”

He responded to what sounded like genuine loss in her voice. “Why? It wasn’t your responsibility to chase us down. Unless you know why Don got killed.”

Her eyes and mouth opened in shock. “What? Me? I don’t. It doesn’t make sense. He wasn’t that kind of guy.”

“What kind?”

“A crook. You know. A bad guy. He was never violent to anybody.”

“How long did you know him?”

Her foot scraped on the asphalt. “A few months. He was nice.”

“You know what he did for a living?”

She hesitated before admitting, “Sure.”

“He used to give his mom presents now and then, from his adventures. He do that for you, too?”

Her embarrassment hung between them. “A little.”

“Like what?”

“This.” She held up her hand and displayed a modest ring, sporting what looked like a fake diamond. “I have to give it back?”

Willy liked that. He smiled before saying, “I should say yes, but why don’t you hang on to it for a while. I’ll let you know down the line.”

It was a good move. Her expression softened. “Really?”

He didn’t answer, letting the gesture sink in.

“What happened?” she then asked, her voice almost childlike.

“We’re thinking he pissed off the wrong person. Did he tell you anything about what he had planned this past week?”

She shook her head. “He was happy. Feeling good.”

“Did you see the new car?”

She smiled. “He was real pleased with that. Took me for a ride. Made me nervous. I thought we’d get pulled over.”

“Here in Vermont?”

“Yeah. Up Route 5, to Windsor and back.”

Smart, Willy thought. Avoid the interstate. “Was there stuff in the back?”

“Some. Yeah.”

“He talk about where he got it or what he was gonna do with it?”

“Not where he got it, but he said he had a fence waiting for some of it.”

“When was this?”

“Maybe three, four days ago?” She glanced at her plastic watch. “I gotta go.”

“I know. Did he mention any names, or did you ever see him with anyone he might’ve worked with?”

“I got no clue.” Her body language was ramping up, her feet shifting, preparing to move.

Willy stalled her emotionally, reaching out and barely touching her sleeve. “Robin. Somebody killed him. Help me find out why.”

She placed the fingertips of one hand against her temple, her eyes welling up. “I’m so sorry. We didn’t talk about all that. It was just kind of funny. Not something that could get you killed.”

“Anybody, Robin. A name. A place. Something.”

“Corey Browne,” she said, stepping back as if she’d dropped something hot. “He was one of Don’s friends. Seemed to know what he was doing. I didn’t like him. He was scary.”