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gulping sobs. I moved around the desk and patted her shoulder. My handy supply of Kleenex was retrieved from my briefcase. Tears go with the territory of criminal defense.
    “I didn’t mean to upset you,” I said.
    “Oh, it’s not you. It’s just everything that’s happened. We all loved Gary — Mr. Yarmouth, and his wife, too. It’s so sad here without him. I’m sorry, I’m Beverly Klein, Mr. Yarmouth’s administrative assistant. Or I guess I should say, I was his assistant.” This brought on a new flood of tears.
    “Where is Mr. Brandeis anyway? We were supposed to meet here at noon.”
    “God knows,” she sniffled. “He hightailed it out of here a few minutes ago.”
    “Well, I’m going to sit right here and wait for him.” I marched over to one of the leather easy chairs and plunked down. “You better call downstairs and see if they’re sending some security guys up here to evict me. Oh, by the way, I’m Mary Katz. While I’m waiting, why don’t you and I talk about Gary and Lillian? Maybe you can give me some help.”
    Beverly seemed accustomed to following orders. She called off the hounds who were on their way, assuring them that I seemed harmless. Then she left her desk and took the chair next to me.
    “How can I help?” she asked. “I could never believe that Lillian would harm Gary, no matter what.”
    “You know the family well. I see that. What do you mean by ‘no matter what?’”
    “I was Gary’s assistant for fifteen years. I worked here before old Mr. Brandeis died. The Yarmouths seemed to be an ideal family, always laughing and busy with a thousand activities.”
    She was avoiding my question, so I moved to another subject. “How did Jack Brandeis get along with Gary and Lillian?”
    “Well, to be honest, Gary and Jack didn’t see eye to eye when it came to the business. See, Gary was the one with the ideas. He really built on what old Mr. Brandeis had started. He expanded sales. I guess you’d say he was a born salesman. Everyone here loved him. He always had a smile, or a joke to tell. Jack was more the detail man. He likes everything to be organized. Somehere say he’s a bit stingy, and he thought Gary overstepped his role in the business and the family.”
    “Was Jack jealous of Gary?”
    “I wouldn’t say jealous. But he did resent Gary’s relationship with Mr. Brandeis. Before he died, he appointed Gary president of Elite. I guess that hurt Jack.”
    “Is Jack close to Lillian?”
    “Well, he’s always been protective of her. She’s his kid sister, and Lillian is a quiet woman, devoted to her home and kids. I always thought Gary was good for her. He was so outgoing. If you ever saw Lillian with Gary, it was clear she adored him. I know she’d never hurt him, let alone do what they say she did.”
    “So what did you mean by Lillian wouldn’t hurt him, no matter what?”
    “I don’t want to cause trouble,” Beverly said. “I want to see Lillian get through this.” She twisted the lump of Kleenex in her hand.
    I reached over and put my hand on hers. “Beverly, if you know something that could hurt Lillian’s case, please, tell me. I need to know before the prosecutors dig up some dirt. I can’t help if I don’t know what I’m fighting.”
    “Please, don’t tell anyone this came from me.” She drew a deep breath. “Last year Gary was spending a lot of time on the Omni Hotel account. We supplied most of the hotels in the southeast. Gary said he was trying to get the national account, but he seemed to be having a number of appointments with the local manager,Maddie Rodriguez. Gary had me setting lunch and dinner reservations. Maddie was calling him here all the time.”
    Beverly stopped and looked past me. She looked frightened. I turned around and saw a tall, balding man glaring at her.
    “Well, you must be Mary Katz,” he said. He continued to stare at Beverly, who jumped up and returned to her desk. “I’m sorry. I was detained in the