“Given your relationship, you might be able to help us figure out what happened to him.”

“I have no idea. I can’t believe he’s dead.”

“When did you start seeing him?”

Penny sniffled. “About six months ago. It was right after Ms. Svitak came to town to take over the case. I thought I was going to lose my job, but she said she wanted people with history working on the lawsuit. So she kept me on. I decided to take a night out to celebrate, and I went to the 126. That’s where I bumped into Ajax.”

“Did you talk to him, or did he talk to you?”

“He saw me and came over to the bar.” She shook her head with awe. “I mean, he was so handsome. I thought that the first time I met him, but I didn’t think he’d ever be interested in me. But we talked, and we had a few drinks, and then he took me back to my motel. Honestly, I figured that would be the end, you know, a one-night stand. I really didn’t care. But he called and said he wanted to see me again. We began to meet up whenever we could.”

“Did it bother you that he was married?”

“That was between him and Ruby, not me. Plus, I was all by myself in this place. I liked having somebody to be with.”

“When did you last see him?”

“Thursday. We had drinks together at the 126.”

“Wasn’t Ajax concerned about people seeing you together?”

“We pretended it was an accident that we sat next to each other at the bar. I mean, I’m sure people knew, but we played it cool. Afterward, I met him at his house. Ruby was away with the kids, so we were able to stay there and use his bed. I liked that. I stayed with him all night.”

“What time did you leave?”

“About seven in the morning. He had to go to work, and so did I. That was the last time I saw him.”

Darrell leaned forward with a curious expression. “Did you see him on Friday night? Or on Saturday?”

Penny’s brow wrinkled unhappily. “No. He had to work.”

Darrell shook his head. “He didn’t. He wasn’t on the schedule this weekend.”

“Well, that’s what he told me.”

“Even if he was working, why wouldn’t you have seen him after his shift was done?” I asked.

“I called, but he wasn’t home.”

“When did you call?”

“Both nights. Friday and Saturday. There was no answer.”

“Did that concern you?”

“No. I figured he had to work late. And it’s not like I could leave a message or anything. He told me never to do that, in case Ruby picked it up.”

“Did you go to his house?” I asked.

“No.”

“Why not? Did you think you’d find him with somebody else?”