“I’ve been thinking. It’s what I do for a living, you know. A lot of my work is figuring out why people do what they do. Diamond Head is carrying a huge debt load—that sounds like junk financing. Dick’s name is on their board. That sounds like he handled the business. You were angry. That sounds like you knew about this and felt I was cutting too close to the bone.”

“Well, I’m still not going to discuss the firm’s business with you, Vic. You could be right—or you could be blowing smoke. That’s all I can tell you about this—except I’m sorry I misjudged you the other day—but I sure as hell wish you would work on something besides Diamond Head. Now I’ve got to go: I’m standing up a friend.”

“There is one other thing,” I said quickly before he could hang up. “I really need someone who will get the plant manager at Diamond Head to talk to me. He’s been stonewalling me for two weeks. That’s why I wanted the names of the directors—I thought I might know one of them.”

“You do, Vic. You know Richard Yarborough. I keep telling you that you misjudge Dick. He might respond to you if you could bring yourself to ask him in a nice way.” The phone clicked in my ear.

It had been an outside chance that Freeman would feel dismayed enough at misjudging me to help me see Chamfers. It would have required his pretending he was still with Crawford, Mead, and he was too scrupulous for that kind of shenanigan.

“Besides, hard work builds character,” I said out loud.

Before leaving for the day I called Lotty. She was still at Max’s but thought she would be well enough to go to the clinic for half a day in the morning. I asked her if she’d talked to the police.

“Yes. Sergeant Rawlings drove out here yesterday afternoon. They don’t know anything, but he seemed to think you were obstructing their investigation—I think that was his phrase. Vic …” She paused and fished for words. “If there’s something you’re keeping from the police, tell them, please. I’m not going to be able to drive without looking over my shoulder every five seconds until the men who beat me up are caught.”

My shoulders slumped. “I told the police about the guy who threatened to put a tail on me, but they think he’s clean. I don’t know what else I can do, except try to conduct my own investigation.”

“There’s telling and telling. I’ve watched you operate for years and I know you often hold back the—the key emphasis, maybe, or some little thing that will make them able to make the same connections you do.”