Pack Investigator by Crissy Smith Page B

room. Even though Garrett wasn’t interested in her and didn’t find her nearly as attractive as Lily, he couldn’t take his eyes off her as she exited. There was just something about Shelby that screamed class.
    “Sorry to interrupt,” Haas said to Mike, which pulled Garrett’s attention back to the men.
    “It’s okay,” Mike said while straightening his tie and frowning. “Our conversation wasn’t going anywhere.”
    Garrett wanted to offer his ear but refrained. Maybe he’d call Mike later, since Mike looked like he needed a friend.
    “We wanted to discuss the break-in and your firm’s connection to the arson fires,” Haas stated.
    “Connection?” Mike asked and motioned for them to sit.
    Garrett waited until Haas took the left chair before dropping down into the right. They faced the desk as Mike slid into his own chair.
    Haas nodded at Garrett.
    Garrett scooted up in his chair as he pulled his backpack onto his lap. He took out the case file and opened it. “Your firm represented the Wilson Hardware firm in a lawsuit against Ralph Money.”
    “Randy handled that case but he spoke to me about it. The owner, Carl Wilson, had an employee that he wrote up for missing some shifts. Carl was about to fire him, he suspected him of using drugs, and Mr. Money kept screwing up orders. Instead Ralph claimed an injury and tried to sue but we proved he’d actually gotten it on a camping trip with some friends. We obtained some paperwork from when Ralph first had the injury treated.”
    “Did you have any contact with Mr. Money after the trial?” Haas questioned.
    “He yelled some profanities and made some rude remarks afterwards but no, we never heard from him again that I know of,” Mike said.
    “What can you tell us about the sale of the property you’re currently handling? The Hampton place out north,” Haas asked.
    “I can’t give you too much information since it’s still in negotiations. All I can really say is that a company out of California wants the land pretty damn bad. The owners hadn’t even thought about selling and are taking their time on deciding. The company believes they just want more money but that’s not it,” Mike explained.
    “What is the problem?” Garrett questioned.
    “The owners? You’ll have their information in your records from the fire, I’m sure,” Mike said.
    “Rodney and Greg Hampton,” Haas supplied.
    “Greg is all for selling while Rodney wants to keep the property. It’s been difficult to negotiate the offer.”
    “Anything feel kinky about the offer?” Haas asked.
    “No, I’ve done enough of these that it’s pretty routine,” Mike responded.
    “How about the Franks family?” Haas questioned.
    “Franks?” Mike repeated.
    “Victor or Lucy Franks?” Garrett said.
    “Those names don’t sound familiar at all,” Mike said.
    Garrett shuffled through a few pages before he saw another name. “Alex Franks?”
    Mike started to shake his head before his eyes widened. “Wait! I know that name!” He picked up papers and shuffled through them then threw them back down. “Damn it! Where have I heard that name before?” Mike jumped up and raced from the room.
    Garrett exchanged a confused look with Haas before they rose and ran after him. The door across from his office was open. Garrett reached the door first and gasped at the sight of the disaster. Filing cabinets were turned over, papers littered the floor and pictures hung at weird angles. Mike was mumbling to himself as he searched the desk.
    “Is this from the break-in?” Haas asked.
    Mike glanced up for a split second. “Yes, we cleaned the reception area and my office first. We were going to work on Randy’s office today.” He pounded his fist on the desk. “I think I recognize the name but I’m not sure. I need some time to sort through this mess.”
    “Sure, we appreciate any help you can give,” Haas replied.
    “Give me a few hours and I’ll give you a call. This afternoon I’m