“Too bad Nolan Friedmont isn’t the only guy who could have implicated Templeton Construction.” Fear crawled up her spine as she spoke those words out loud.
Neither of them spoke for long minutes.
“Baby, you can’t think like that,” Trace finally muttered. “It’ll drive you crazy.”
“I’m already loony, Trace. And this is serious.”
“Yes. You’re right. I know it. My boss knows it. Hell, Keegan’s boss knows it too. Everyone is doing everything in their power to ferret out the culprit and get Keegan out of danger.”
“Do they suspect the scaffolding didn’t fall by accident?” Seemed super likely to her.
“There’s no evidence to indicate anything like that yet.”
A knock at the door made Melinda flinch. She gripped her beer bottle tight as Trace stood. Every little noise had her jumpy today.
“Relax, babe. It’s Mitch.”
She glanced at the glass paneling on the front door and saw Mitch standing there while Trace crossed the room and let him in. “Highland.”
“Hey. I wanted to stop by and see how you’re doing.” He kept his voice low. He had to know Keegan would be sleeping off his trauma in wolf form.
“We’re okay,” Trace said. “Have a seat. You want a beer?”
“No. I can’t stay long. I just wanted to check in. I feel bad for taking as long as I have to get over here.”
Melinda smiled, remembering how sweet his wife was the other night. “I’m sure you’ve had a lot on your plate.”
Mitch rolled his eyes. “Don’t I know it?” He perched himself on the edge of an armchair.
“So, what’s the latest?” Trace asked as he sat next to Melinda.
He rubbed his palms on his jeans. “The scaffolding is buried in such a mangled state we may never know for sure why it collapsed.”
Melinda sat up straighter, setting her empty beer bottle on the coffee table. A tingle raced up her spine as if danger was lurking nearby. She stuffed her hands under her thighs to keep from shaking while she watched Mitch and concentrated on what he was saying.
She glanced at the door several times, itching to look outside as if there would be a line of sharpshooters standing in the driveway. Or perhaps a spirit presence.
“…I know, and Keegan is probably the only person who might be able to shed some light on this. Hopefully he can tell the authorities what happened right before the scaffolding collapsed, and hopefully he knows more about the files and where they’re located. Maybe he moved some of the paperwork to go through it,” Mitch was saying. Somehow Melinda had missed part of the conversation.
Trace wrapped his arm over her shoulders. He didn’t look at her while he communicated with her silently. “You okay, baby?”
“Not really.”
Mitch continued, oblivious to their side conversation. “Anyway, we’re all hoping Keegan is going to be fine and able to help fill in some of the gaps.”
“Weren’t you working with him?” Melinda asked, confused about the direction of this conversation.
Mitch nodded. “Yes, but we were both taking in different angles. He was the one going through the files.”
“So, what’s the problem?” Trace asked. “Get someone else to go through that cabinet.”
Mitch glanced down, his face unreadable when he looked back up. “They’re gone.”
“What do you mean ‘gone’?” Melinda asked. That eerie feeling on the back of her neck spread to the rest of her body.
“The entire cabinet is empty. And I can’t find any backup files on the computer either. It’s as if someone went into the office and wiped the place clean of evidence.” He tapped his leg with his hand. “Unless Keegan removed the files for some reason.”
Melinda’s eyes widened. She opened her mouth, but then closed it, refusing to give voice to their plight. Was Mitch suggesting Keegan played a role in this crazy farce? “Why would he do that?”
Mitch shrugged. “It’s just a possibility. The FBI is looking at this from every angle.”
Trace cringed beside her. “And one of those angles is to imply Keegan himself hid evidence and then ten minutes later nearly died in an accident of his own doing?” His voice was incredulous.
Mitch pursed his lips and remained quiet.
Trace jumped to his feet. “Are you fucking kidding me?”
Melinda thought he might throttle the messenger. She grabbed his hand and tugged him back.
“I’m not suggesting anything. I’m just warning you of one of the possibilities the feds are looking into.”
Melinda blinked at Mitch. She didn’t know the man at all, but this was insane. He was Keegan’s friend. And Keegan could very likely be the only person who could provide any information. When he woke up, he would clear his name of any questionable wrongdoing. However, his life could be in jeopardy for months while the investigation continued.