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“Not really He seemed scared And the whole ti atmy features Now and then, Cooper would pause or stuave him a look” Marzetti trembled “A look that would freeze water”

I nodded “Go on”

“Anyway, the last tie, blond uy He freakedall those questions I’m sorry about that”

“No har to me?”

“On Friday, so an audit for Kozmik Games He wanted to know if I’d reported a suspicious account in the syste about But now I’rasping for a lifeline “A with the audit? Could I get into trouble?”

“I don’t know Your cooperationinto details, I’ll tell you this It looks like they’re going to check the syste about the account you’re not telling”

“No Like I said, one day it was there, and I had no idea how it got there I told Cooper When I asked him about it later, he seemed pissed off He said, ‘I wouldn’t worry about it if I were you’ He was a ht until later when he told et back to work So, you think I’?”

I shrugged, unsure how to answer “Why don’t you let it be for now? If soht want to share what little you know If only to keep froation”

“Thank you, Ms McRae,” he said When he reached for his wallet, I told him to put it away I already had two clients involved in this h He smiled and thanked me, and then he left

I returned to my car and headed south toward the hospital in Laurel I owed Walt a visit before droppingto the office Cooper may have been paid early on not to blow the whistle and then inti mum when Diesel entered the picture after a to the sche quiet Why didn’t they kill him? Maybe because the computer nerds and their boss weren’t

killers; Diesel was Perhaps Cooper gathered the evidence against the e to trade if the people he was protecting turned against him

The unanswered question was how Diesel and Greg Beaufort had hooked up with Fullbright and the geeks froh Tina’s father, Rodney Fisher? Was he the middleman?

Heading down Route 29,more in the last week than in the previous year I pulled over to answer it “I have good news and bad news,” Little D said

I sighed “Bad news first, please”

“Tina’s alibi, Beaufort? He ain’t talkin’ no more”