"Yeah. It said 'Stick with school' so I decided it was worth a thousand to send her some money-like something Byrne would do."
"It was a mistake typing the note-Jeffrey Byrne's office said he didn't type." Dean adjusted his position slightly, leaning in the direction of the door.
"I figured if you were chasing Byrne, I'd help you out," Burgess answered, unaware of Dean's movement.
"When did you start trying to blame the missing money on Byrne?"
"After you and the old guy came snooping around Bascomb Place. God, you guys shook me up! And then you traced me to Kansas."
"My stepfather was looking for Byrne. I wasn't sure who I was looking for. When I considered it might not be Byrne who rented that apartment in Scranton, I began to wonder how come you identified him from his picture. That made me take a closer look at you-a biker."
"What makes you so smart? I fooled that FBI jerk. I figured I was safe."
"I spoke with a lot of people who knew Jeffrey Byrne- Jonathan Winston didn't. I kept feeling a skip was totally out of character for him. Then, this afternoon, you didn't act or sound like the Jeffrey Byrne everyone described."
"You're doing pretty good, but you're still just guessing."
"Maybe. Correct me if I'm wrong. You worked for the contractor who built the World Wide office building in Scranton so you were at the opening dedication party there. You're a biker, so Byrne and you struck up a conversation-and I suppose shared a few drinks."
"He saw my biking magazine. I gave it to him."
"I wondered about that. Byrne wasn't near in shape to be looking into this tour and had no reason to write for information on it. You circled the article."
"Right again."
"I don't know why, but Byrne agreed to drive you out of his way-that's why he was out on Interstate 84 where you two found the money."
"I didn't have wheels and Byrne offered to take me to Blooming Grove. My ex-wife was supposed to meet me at a friend's place, only she never showed. That's when I found out she moved back to Russia on me." Dean could read the bitterness in his voice.
"Did you find the bags the way you told me this afternoon- when you were pretending to be Byrne?"
"Not exactly. I was the one who spotted the suitcases while Byrne was around the corner doing his business so I pitched them in his trunk without opening them. I figured they were left by some tourists changing a tire or something. Byrne didn't even know they were there until he got home." Burgess rose and crossed to the window. "Where is she? She should be finished dinner by now."