“Well, ostensibly to bring us the bounty of her garden. Take a look in the mudroom—yellow squash, garlic, tomatoes, peppers.”

“I’ll take your word for it. But that was hours ago. And you’re still—”

“It was hours ago when she arrived, but only forty-five minutes ago when she departed.”

“Jesus.”

“Mena likes to talk. You might have noticed that at dinner. But, to be fair, she has some serious difficulties in her life, family problems, things she had to get off her chest. She needed someone to talk to. I didn’t feel I could cut her off.”

“What kind of problems?”

“Oh, Lord, everything from parents with Alzheimer’s, to a brother in prison for drug dealing, to nieces and nephews with every known psychiatric disorder—I don’t know … do you really want to hear about this?”

“Maybe not.”

“Anyway, I made her some lunch, tea, more tea. I didn’t want to leave the dirty dishes for you, so that’s what I’m doing now. And you? You look like you’re in a hurry to do something.”

“I was planning on reviewing the Long Falls security videos.”

“Security videos? Oh, God, I almost forgot! Did you know Jack Hardwick was on RAM-TV last night?”

“He was where?”

“RAM-TV. On that dreadful Criminal Conflict thing with Brian Bork.”

“How did you—?”

“Kyle called an hour ago to find out if you’d seen it.”

“Last time Hardwick spoke to me was from Cooperstown … midday yesterday? He didn’t tell me he had any plan to—”

She cut him off. “You’d better take a look at it. It’s in the current archive section of their website.”

“You watched it?”

“I took a quick look at it after Mena left. Kyle said we needed to see it ASAP.”

“It’s … a problem?”

She pointed to the den. “The RAM website is open on the computer. You watch it, then you tell me if it’s a problem.” Her troubled expression told him she’d already reached her own conclusion.

A minute later he was at his desk, gazing at the practiced concern and gelled hair of Brian Bork. The Criminal Conflict host occupied one of two chairs positioned on opposite sides of a small table. He was leaning forward as though the importance of what he was about to say made it impossible to relax. The second chair was empty.