“My father took my brother and me overseas a lot when we were younger. Had my first taste of wine in Paris when I was nine.”
“Paris when you were nine,” she said enviously. “I was in my late twenties before I even left the country one time.”
“Some people never get to go.”
“That’s true. Now I go every year, months at a time. I love it. Sometimes I almost don’t come back.”
“So why do you? Come back, I mean?”
She took a sip of wine and dabbed her mouth. “This is my home, I suppose.”
“Any place can be your home.”
“That’s true. But my family is here.”
He looked around. “Is Roger a partner in this?”
“No. This is all mine.”
“Pretty expensive proposition.”
“He didn’t bankroll me, if that’s what you mean. Bank loans and sweat equity.”
“Still, I’m sure being married to him didn’t hurt.”
“It didn’t,” she admitted. “So he’s back in town?”
“I had a cup of coffee with him at the Crib.”
“Why?”
“To talk about those death threats. For the record, I don’t think Randy is behind it this time.”
She put down her wine. “Did Sam tell you about that?”
“Yeah, she did.” He paused. “I guess Roger’s business is doing great.”
“I’m not really involved in it.”
“He relies on Bill Strauss a lot.”
“He’s the COO. That’s his job.”
He hesitated, pondering whether to mention the pipeline. He decided that was too risky. Noting her suspicious look, he said, “I’m asking more questions than you are. Sorry, it’s just how I’m wired.”
“We’ll see what we can do about that later,” she replied.
Their food came and Puller spent a few minutes digging into it. As he swallowed his last bit of fish he said, “I think you’ll get that Michelin star.”
Her face brightened. “I appreciate the confidence.”
“Not easy to carve something like this out of the wilderness.”
She finished the wine in her glass. “Are you plying me with compliments for some particular reason?”
“Just being honest. But you invited me to lunch. You said you had some questions. Why don’t you get started?”
“But you only offered opinions instead of answers.”
“I can’t promise what I can’t deliver.”
“Would you like some coffee? We get our beans from Bolivia. They’ve started to turn out great product. A special blend.”
“I hardly ever turn down coffee.”
“Have you been to Bolivia?”
“No.”
“South America in general?”
“Yes.”
“Business or pleasure?”
“I don’t travel for pleasure. I travel with a gun.”
The order was placed and the coffee arrived promptly. It was served in delicate-looking cups with a flower and vine pattern. Puller knew instinctively that Jean Trent had personally picked them. She just seemed the type to want to control things, no matter how small.
“Good coffee,” he said.
She nodded and said, “Now to my questions. Well, I really only have one. Based on what you’ve found out so far, do you think Roger’s really in danger?”
“I have no way to know if he is or isn’t. I came here to investigate the murders of an Army colonel and his family. I did tell him to take them seriously.”
“Why?”
“Just my gut.”
“I know you thought I was being very cavalier about my husband’s personal safety, but I can assure you that I think about it a lot.”
“But also like you said, he takes precautions.” He finished his coffee and set the cup down. “Do you have any reason to believe that your husband is in danger? Or that he might be connected in some way to the murders that have taken place?”
“Well, one of the victims worked at his company. But I doubt that Roger even knew her. I can’t believe that he has any connection to those people getting killed. I mean, what would be his motive?”
“Don’t know. Is Roger involved in any litigation right now?”
“He’s always involved in litigation. Usually with the EPA or some environmental group. Occasionally with a wrongful death action because of a workplace fatality.”
“So what kind of environmental lawsuits?”
“I don’t know the particulars. Generally speaking, surface mining is pretty bad for the environment. You can’t quote me on that, but it is. People get upset and they sue. If the government thinks Roger hasn’t lived up to his legal obligations or has run afoul of some regulation they come after him. He keeps the lawyers gainfully employed. Why do you ask?”
Puller was thinking of the soil report, but he wasn’t going to tell her that.
She said, “Okay, I lied. I do have another question.”
“Shoot.”
“Why are you really here?”
“I thought that was pretty clear.”
“Dead colonel? Off post? I checked you out. You’re from the 701st. They could have brought in CID from Fort Campbell. The 701st is special. So why you?”
“You know the military well, do you?”
“My father was in the Navy. Lots of men from around here were in the armed forces. And like I said, I checked.”
“Who’d you talk to?”
“I have my contacts. That’s all you need to know. And from what I found out, it seems that sending someone like you out here sends a pretty clear message. This is not just a routine murder.”
“No murder is routine in my book.”
“So you won’t tell me?”
“I’m just doing my job, Jean. Other than that I really can’t say much.”
She dropped him off at the motel. Puller watched her go until she disappeared from view. Then he turned and looked at his motel room. Then his gaze swiveled to his car. He walked toward it. Stopped about fifteen feet away. Studied it. He moved in a counterclockwise direction around the vehicle. Saw something. A bit of insulated wire with the copper seam exposed. It was tiny, a few centimeters, but the sun had hit it just right so that it gleamed like a bit of revealed gold.
He dropped to his knees and then bent his head down. He was up in a second and moved away from the vehicle. He phoned Cole.
“Got a bomb under my car. Want to get somebody over here to come get it?”
While Cole hurried there with the bomb cavalry, Puller sat on the front steps leading up to the motel office and calmly considered the situation.
Folks sure seemed to love their explosives around these parts.
And now maybe he understood the invitation to lunch.
CHAPTER
69
The bomb wasn’t as sophisticated as the ones at the abandoned house. At least that was the pronouncement of the retired ATF agent who arrived two minutes after Cole did.
Puller stood next to Cole as the bomb was removed from the car and taken away.
“Didn’t have much time,” he said.
“What?” asked Cole.
“Wasn’t as sophisticated because they didn’t have enough time to put it together.”
“Who are you talking about?”
“Your sister invited me to lunch today. She was waiting for me here. She insisted on driving. I left my car here. I really didn’t know why she wanted me to go to Vera Felicita with her, but she did.”
“She took you to her B-and-B?”
“Yeah. Then we got back, she drove off real fast, and I luckily spotted the footprint and the piece of wire. Otherwise, you’d be identifying my remains, if there was enough left of me.”
Cole didn’t say anything right away. She scuffed the dirt with her shoe, her brow furrowed in thought. “Are you accusing her of being involved in this?”
“I’m not accusing anybody of anything. I’m just presenting facts.”
“What reason would she have to kill you?”
“Well, if her husband is involved in those murders and he goes to jail, his company will probably tank and there goes her big house and her fancy B-and-B.”
“She built that place with her own money and financing.”
“So she says. But that operation must’ve cost a real chunk of change to get going. What bank would loan her that unless Roger cosigned?”