He conjured up a smile. “Gee, thanks for the ego boost.”

“That’s not what I meant.” She surveyed him and sighed. “I don’t envy you this part of your job.”

“Goes with the territory.”

“Did she tell you anything helpful?”

“Helpful as in giving us ammunition to nail her husband, no. But after she digests everything—and has a talk with Jackson—she may reconsider. You ready to go home?”

“I can get a cab if there’s somewhere you have to be.”

“I’ll drop you off en route.”

She didn’t protest.

He followed her out the door, into the elevator, and to his car.

Not until they were buckled in and pulling out of the parking space did she speak. “What happens next with the case?”

“We continue to dig. I’m going to talk with a few of Jackson’s coworkers, keep the heat on. We also have eyes on him periodically—and we’re not trying to be covert about that. I want him to think we’re watching him 24/7. That should keep him from trying anything else until we get definitive evidence against him.”

Unfortunately, the man had covered his tracks well. Finding evidence could be a matter of if, not when. A possible outcome he wasn’t yet ready to admit to Eve.

“Does that mean I can go about my business as usual and forget about hiring Phoenix?”

“Do you have a busy weekend scheduled?”

“If you mean will I be running around doing errands, no. I plan to finish the floor in the living room. That will keep me housebound other than going to church on Sunday.”

“Don’t bother to call Phoenix, then. I’d offer to take you to services, but the youth group from my church has its annual weekend campout, and I always volunteer.”

“That should be fun.”

He hiked up one side of his mouth. “Depends on how you define fun. Watching over a group of ten-to-twelve-year-old boys for thirty-six hours is a challenge. Many of them have never spent a night in the woods. We’ve had more than a few freak out during a coyote howlfest at midnight.”

“I can imagine.”

“So tell me about today’s program. I was only able to listen to bits and pieces. Any unusual calls?”

She glanced at him as he maneuvered the car out of the garage and headed toward the highway.

Uh-oh.

Unless he was misinterpreting the vibes, she was debating whether to reintroduce the subject they’d discussed during the drive down in the dark.

Please don’t, Eve. I’m not up for that after talking to Meg.

As if she’d heard his silent plea, she launched into an account of the exchange she’d had with one caller who was convinced the American Revolution had been about slavery, not taxes.