Straub put up his hands in mock surrender. “Hey, I’m just trying to lighten things up here. And just so you know, I already talked to the nurse. She gave me the good news. I like the guy, okay?”
Danvers calmed down, turned to Pine, and said, “What do you want to talk about?”
“Last night.”
“I have nothing more to say. And I’m not leaving my post.”
Pine eyed Straub. “Okay, do you have time for some coffee?”
Straub again looked in concern at Danvers, who avoided his gaze. “Sure. You okay with that, Jerry?”
Danvers just gave a curt nod.
Pine led Straub to a small kitchen that had a table and chairs and a coffeepot and some coffee cups. They poured themselves some coffee and sat at the table.
Pine ran her eye over Straub. He was a little older than she, maybe late thirties or so. He was around six-three and lean, but the breadth of his shoulders promised great strength. A bulge under his jacket indicated the location of his pistol. His hair was light blond, thick, and wavy. His features were ruggedly attractive, and Pine figured he could have his pick of the local ladies.
“So what’s the deal with Jerry?” asked Pine.
Straub shrugged and looked uncomfortable. “Look, he’s fiercely loyal to Lineberry. Nothing wrong with that.”
“Well, some might say he’s over the top. He was Secret Service, I understand.”
“Uniformed Secret Service,” amended Straub.
Pine sat back. “Really? I didn’t know that.”
“I can tell by your look.”
“What happened then? Why did he leave there? He’s too young to have pulled his years for a pension.”
“I don’t like telling tales out of school.”
“Make an exception here. It could be important.”
“Well, the scuttlebutt was that Jerry was on track to become a full-fledged Secret Service agent. But it got derailed, and he didn’t make the cut.”
“How?”
“No idea. You’re a fed. One little thing is off, you don’t get moved up. But hey, it worked out for him. He makes a lot more money doing this than he would protecting the president or running down counterfeiters.”
“What do you think of him?”
“He can be excitable. You saw that. And he is very protective of Lineberry. I’m a professional too, but I look at it as a job. Jerry looks at it as his…”
“…life’s work?”
Straub took a sip of coffee before answering. “Something like that,” he said quietly.
“Talk to me about your security plan.”
“Sometimes both of us are on duty depending on the situation, like when you came by the house that day. At night we have electronic surveillance around the whole perimeter and it’s wired with alerts to our cell phones. So it’s not like we have to be up all night patrolling or watching a security monitor. I mean, the guy’s rich but it’s not like he’s a celebrity or anything.”
“Do you sleep on the premises?”
“Yeah, only a few hundred yards from the main place.”
“And last night?”
“Mr. Lineberry told us he was driving with you to Atlanta and did not require our services.”
“How did Jerry take that?”
“He was never a big fan of Mr. Lineberry’s going out alone.”
“Does he have anyone who oversees his penthouse in Atlanta?”
“Yeah, full-time housekeeper–property manager and a maid. They have sleeping quarters on premises.”
“I was there last night with him and saw nobody.”
Straub sat back. “Huh. You went to the penthouse?”
“It was at his suggestion.”
“He might have given the help the night off. I don’t know.” He eyed her curiously. “Maybe he wanted to be alone with you.”
“What did you and Jerry do last night?”
“I went to sleep. Like I said, we have quarters behind the main house. Two cottages. Well, cottage doesn’t do it justice. They’re nicer than any house I ever lived in.”
“And Jerry?”
Straub shook his head wearily. “He said he was going to track Mr. Lineberry on the app.”
“The app?”
“Yeah. It’s no big deal. But all the cars have a transponder and the app uses a sat tracker to show the location of the Aston Martin.”
“So Jerry would know when we were coming back?”
“Well, that’s the whole point of an app like that.”
“When did you find out what had happened?”
“When Jerry called me last night. Well, I guess it was early morning by then. He said Mr. Lineberry had been shot and was being taken to Americus. That’s why he’s so upset. He thinks he should have been there for Mr. Lineberry. Dude would take a bullet for the man, I can tell you that. In that regard, he would’ve made an excellent Secret Service agent.”