>> reporter: amy denlinger is a former employee of shawn's. >> what were your impressions of, of shawn? >> seemed like a nice enough person, outgoing, typical sales, easy to get along with. >> reporter: shawn smoot, the name rang a bell with brooke's family and friends. not long after brooke's divorce, sean had hired brooke as an assistant in the insurance office. >> i remember the day that she had the interview. we had lunch right before, and she was so excited, you know? >> it was a real job. and i said, "there's gonna be so much potential for you to move up in this company." you know? i was really proud of her. >> did you feel like this was kind of the fresh start brooke needed? >> yeah, we did. we thought -- we -- we all thought it was gonna be a good thing for her. >> did she seem happy? >> oh yeah, she loved it. i think there was a couple other ladies in the office that she worked with. everybody got along, and she enjoyed it. >> she had formed -- a really, i