do with the fire?”
“I have no idea.” Lana died in the fire and had been connected to the Halpern couple. Had she been having an affair with Darren? A fire would be the perfect way to take care of financial issues and a mistress making trouble. “Can I get the Mountain High Pancakes?”
His grin did not reach his eyes. “You think you can handle them?”
“I know I can.”
His easy expression hardened. “You’re smart, and Gideon does a fine job of keeping the peace, but if you two don’t get to the bottom of that fire tout suite, someone just might go after Elijah.”
“Tell someone to hold off for a few days.”
He studied her a beat and then tapped the counter with his fingers. “I’ll get those pancakes.”
Hardly a ringing acceptance, but it was the best she could hope for. She knew her brokered truce with him would not last long.
She ate the pancakes once they came, proud to leave Dan a clean plate. But when she reached for her wallet, he insisted her money was no good in his establishment. She thanked him and headed directly to the Halperns’ office on State Street.
The brick building was a plain one-story structure with no distinguishable features. It looked as if it had been built fifty years ago and was in need of a major renovation. In Montana, real estate was at a premium, and she bet it was still expensive to rent.
She pushed through the front door and walked up to an empty receptionist station and waited a few seconds before knocking on the desk. “Anyone here?”
In the back, she heard papers shuffle, so she followed the sound to a small room in the back where a man knelt by a copier. He had opened the machine’s front access door and was yanking on sheets of crumpled paper jammed inside.
Joan knocked on the doorjamb. “I’m looking for Darren Halpern.”
The man glanced over his shoulder. He had salt-and-pepper hair, a face weathered by the sun, and bright-green eyes that peered over a pair of reading glasses. “I’m Darren.”
She reached for her police ID out of habit but caught herself. “My name is Joan Mason.”
He rubbed the back of his hand against his damp forehead. “What can I do for you?”
“I’m a cop and in town for a few days. I know a few things about arson, and I’m assisting Detective Bailey.”
He placed a hand on his knee and, as he rose, stifled a groan. “I’ve driven by the shop. It’s awful.”
“What’s with the knee? Looks like it hurts.”
“Twisted it while I was hiking a few weeks ago. I always underestimate the terrain out here.”
“It’s beautiful country, but it does take its toll.”
Darren was not swayed by her less-than-stellar attempt at small talk. “What do you want from me?”
“What can you tell me about Lana Long?”
“I didn’t usually see much of her when I came by the shop.”
“How many businesses do you and your wife own?”
“The beauty shop and a dozen houses in town that we’re renovating.”
“Are they doing well?”
“Yeah, sure. The beauty shop had great cash flow and was supposed to keep us afloat until the rental properties came online. Ask Becca Sullivan. She should have our bank statements now.”
“When were these properties going to be available for rent?”
“Three months, four at the latest.”
“Were you highly leveraged?”
Halpern shook his head. “Sounds like I should have a lawyer with me.”
Instead of pressing, Joan shifted her line of questioning. “I’m trying to track down Lana Long,” she lied. “Someone said she might be holed up with her boyfriend.”
“I didn’t realize she had a boyfriend, but I didn’t know her that well.”
“Apparently, she was sporting an engagement ring at the diner late last week. Dan Tucker said you two shared a booth.”
“She texted Jessica and wanted to meet.”
“But you met her?”
“My wife was packing for our trip to Chicago.”
“What did Lana want to talk about?”
“She was quitting her job and heading back to Denver.”
“Did you notice her ring?”
“I did not. She kept her hands in her lap, I think.”
Darren’s face projected a mixture of boredom and annoyance, but she could not tell if the reaction was genuine. “How much do you and your wife stand to make from the insurance company when the claim is settled?”
“You’ll have to ask my wife. She handles all the finances. I handle the renovations.”
“Would she tell you if there was a financial problem with the company?”
“There wasn’t a problem.” He tapped his index finger on the copier as his expression