Page 62 of The 6:20 Man

“How would you really know whether or not you’re the father, if you had sex with her?”

“Who says I had sex with her? And I didn’t kill her.”

“Some guys kill women who are pregnant by them.”

“But she had already terminated the pregnancy. So where’s the motive to kill her?”

Stamos looked at him funny. “I . . . You . . . I guess you’re right about that.”

He looked out the window and bit into a celery stick.

“What else did the cops want to talk about?” she asked.

“The usual stuff. Alibis, polygraphs. They lied to me to try to get me to confess.”

“How did they even know to talk to you?” asked Stamos.

“I’m sure they’re talking to lots of people.”

“I wouldn’t be too sure about that.”

“Did you get a strange email the day they found Sara’s body?”

She sat forward, tense once more. “Strange email? No, I didn’t. You asked me that before. Did you get one? You mentioned it talked about details of Sara’s death. What exactly did it say?”

“I think it was just somebody trolling or something,” he said vaguely. “I couldn’t really understand it. It was all over the place. And I have no idea who sent it.”

Stamos didn’t look like she believed him. He decided to change the subject before she pushed him further on it.

“Someone I talked to said there were no suits on the fifty-second floor that morning.”

She stared at him, puzzled. “There should have been.”

“I know. Sara’s office was on that floor. But there was a seminar at the Ritz that morning for the M and A Division. All hands on deck. And the support staff don’t show until nine.”

“What are you saying?” she asked.

“Just that it’s either a coincidence that there was a seminar that morning. Or it wasn’t.”

She processed this and came away looking even more stricken.

He said, “I was in here having lunch on Saturday. Brad Cowl was here with some of his usual posse.”

“I’m surprised you would do that. I’m surprised you’re here now.”

“Hell, I’m probably not going to make the cut. So why not enjoy a few good free meals until they give me the boot?”

“You sound like a prisoner awaiting execution,” she noted.

“And maybe some people would be fine with that.”

She didn’t comment on this jarring statement. “Why did you mention Cowl?”

“Because he gave me a look that I can’t explain. I mean, why would the guy even know who I am?”

“You’re a rookie, Travis. And he knows it, even if you think the guy doesn’t notice the newbies. Brad Cowl lives and breathes this place. And he was probably pissed to see you in here. You’re supposed to be eating crackers at your desk and busting your ass to make him more money. So you got the look.”

“What’s he really like?”