mind, and it turned in directions his did not. He could follow A to B to C and could dig deep into the details. She saw the same facts but through a different prism. “Right.”
“Then why not have me along? He might be the type who underestimates a woman. Most men do.”
Becca’s eyes widened with amusement, but she did not comment.
Gideon shook his head. “Anyone who underestimates you does so at their own risk.”
Her grin contained a rare glimpse of humor. “I tend to agree.”
“I’ll let you in, but don’t talk.”
She held up her first two fingers. “I swear I will be quiet.”
“You’re not a Scout,” Becca said.
“The oath thing applies to everyone, right?” Joan asked.
“Don’t say a word, Joan,” Gideon warned.
“I promise.” She followed him down the hallway and paused while he made two cups of coffee.
“I don’t need coffee,” she said.
“It’s not for you. It’s for him.”
“And here I was assuming.” She shook her head.
“Can’t do that.”
“Won’t again.”
Inside the room, they found Darren sitting at the end of the table reading his phone as he tapped his foot. Gideon closed the door, and Darren rose immediately. “Did you find my wife?”
Gideon set the coffee cup in front of Darren and waited as Joan took a seat in the far corner. He sat and asked the man to do the same. “When was the last time you saw your wife?”
“Yesterday,” he said. “We were staying in town. She was very upset about the fire. She’d been on the phone most of the morning with the insurance company. I told her to be calm, but she lost it. She took off and said she needed time alone.”
“And you thought she went to the cabin?”
“It’s where she goes from time to time when she needs quiet.”
“Does she need quiet a lot?” Gideon asked.
“More lately.”
“No cell service ensures quiet,” Gideon said.
“The cabin is off the grid completely.”
“When did you decide to drive up to see if your wife was there?”
“After she visited me,” he said, nodding to Joan. “I knew it was a matter of time before the cops blamed us for the fire.”
“And now your cabin has burned,” Joan said quietly.
Gideon tamped down a rush of frustration as he shifted his chair, deliberately dragging the metal feet against the floor. “Go on, Mr. Halpern?”
“I saw the smoke above the trees as I was driving to the cabin,” Darren said quickly. “I floored it and raced toward it. I could see the fire had destroyed the building.”
“Did you go inside?” Gideon asked.
“It was still too hot. I drove back to the nearest landline and called the cops. Look, I’ve been calling my wife for hours, and no answer. I need to find her.”
Gideon sipped his coffee, taking an extra beat to gather his thoughts. “We’re looking for her. But if you don’t mind, I want to circle back to the Beau-T-Shop fire and Lana,” he said.
Darren’s brow furrowed. “What does Lana have to do with this?”
Gideon dropped his voice a fraction, as if he and Darren were allies and confidants. “Turns out she was pregnant.”
“Pregnant. Okay. A couple of the girls in the store have gotten pregnant.”
Darren was tense, but his lower limbs remained still and his hands relaxed. When folks lied, they might be able to control their face and hands, but the lower body had a tendency to shift and move, as if the truth needed to get released somehow.
“She was about eight to ten weeks pregnant,” Gideon said.
“What does that have to do with Jessica or the fires? Is there something you aren’t telling me?”
Gideon ignored the question. “Would Jessica have known about the pregnancy?”
“Sure. It’s possible. The ladies in the shop told her things, and they came to her when they were in trouble. Look, if you want to know more about Lana’s life, talk to Nora O’Neil. I think they were friends.”
“Where can I find Nora O’Neil?”
“She lives on the west side of town.” He reached for his phone and pulled up her contact information and then texted it to Gideon. “Call her. She works at Tucker’s Diner.”
His phone dinged with the text. “I’ll talk to her today.” He turned his phone facedown on the table. “Tell me about John Pollock.”
“Who?”
“Pollock. He said he knew you.” Lying was a tool in his arsenal he used whenever necessary.
Darren shrugged. “I have no idea who he is.”
“He lives up in Helena. He told me to tell you to say hi when I saw you.”