Page 53 of Long Gone

He proceeded to tell me about Hugo buying the Sunny Point property, then getting the two original investors. Nothing I didn’t already know.

“Do you know who the original two investors are?” I asked. “I know one was Brett Colter, but I still haven’t discovered the identity of the other.”

“Who do you know about?”

I spouted off the short list, watching him for a reaction to any of the names. I thought I saw a slight flare of his nostrils at the mention of Pete Mooney, but my senses were slightly dulled by the alcohol chugging through my blood. I decided to pursue it because even if I’d imagined the reaction, he might know something I didn’t.

“What do you know about Pete Mooney?” I asked. “Because neither Brett Colter nor Skip Martin could tell me anything.”

“He was from Pine Bluff and he died in an unfortunate robbery attempt while he was in Little Rock.”

“But how did Hugo meet someone who lived about an hour northeast of us? He’s the only investor who wasn’t from the area.”

“Who knows?” Carter said. “Word of mouth?”

Maybe, but I couldn’t help thinking there might be more to it. “What else do you know about him?”

“Only that he was a later investor. He joined about a year before Hugo disappeared. The others were either in at the beginning or a couple of years later.”

“Hugo was meeting a potential new investor at the Sunny Point property the afternoon he disappeared. Do you know who?”

“That would be valuable information if I had it.”

“Are you suggesting that I’d have to pay for it if you did?”

“I’m not saying any such thing,” he said amicably. “I’m merely stating that whoever he met that afternoon is likely key to the investigation, and from what I heard, not even the sheriff’s investigators know.”

“Do you have any guesses?”

He laughed. “I have a ton of guesses, from Hugo Burton’s imaginary friend to the president of the bank who held the bank note.” He held up a hand. “And no, he did not meet the bank president or anyone else at the bank. I checked.”

Damn. Carter Hale was a good resource. If I could trust him.

“There were two original investors. One was Brett Colter, but no one seems to know the identity of the other,” I said. “Do you?”

“No,” he said, looking pained. “Are you sure there were six?”

“Detective Jones with the Lone County Sheriff’s Department confirmed it with me yesterday afternoon.”

He lifted a hand to his chin, his gaze becoming unfocused. After a couple of seconds, he turned back to me.

“Interesting.”

“Have you got anything else that can help me?” I asked.

“Only an offer to help you when and if I can, not only with this case but with any future cases that come your way.”

“Why?”

His amusement was back. “Why what?”

“Why help me? What do you get out of it?”

“I already told you. Skeeter likes to know what goes on in the area. In return, I might have some P.I. work for you in the future.” He held up his hand again. “All perfectly legitimate stuff.” A grin lit up his eyes. “Didn’t Skeeter and I both tell you that he’s turned legit?”

“Killing two men in cold blood doesn’t sound very legit to me,” I said without inflection.

His gaze turned cold. “And it seems to me that your silence has made you an accessory to any crime that might have been committed.”

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