Al was back at his side in a second, patting his shoulder again. “It’s okay, Frank. Jack and I understand why you did what you did. Either of us might have done the same. We’ll find out who this asshole is and your family will be safe.”
“When is Heather supposed to work again?” Nate asked.
“Tomorrow,” Jack said. “Finn, I’d like you to be here when we talk to her.”
“Yeah, speaking of her, I have some other interesting information.” Finn straightened out the piece of paper he was still holding and read, “Heather Arlene Layne, born in Tacoma, Washington on July 14, 1986.” He paused and looked around the room. “Date of death, August 5, 1987.”
More shocked gasps as everyone started questioning that at the same time.
“Stolen identity,” Jack said.
“Yeah,” said Finn. “If you want, I can start looking into who she really is.”
“But how can that be?” I interrupted. “She’s been on our payroll for three years. The Social Security Administration would have caught that by now. We get notices when something’s wrong with an employee’s social security number.”
“She’s not on our payroll,” Frank said, lifting his head again and looking at me. “She’s in the computer, but we’ve never actually issued a paycheck to her.”
Oh my God. I was the worst accountant ever. How was it that I had never noticed that?
“I would imagine she didn’t really need a paycheck, did she?” Jack said wryly.
“Do you think we should call the police?” Nate asked.
“No!” The response came simultaneously from Frank, Jack and Al.
“Why not?” I asked. I could understand Frank’s reason for not wanting the police involved, but not Jack and Al’s.
“Because,” Finn explained. “They have got the case against you tied up pretty tightly. Once the police see the evidence against you, they won’t even bother to listen to anyone who tries to tell them they need to look further than that. And, there’s always a possibility that they might’ve also set you up for something else that we haven’t found yet. No, it’s best if we get a little more information before we decide whether or not to make that move.”
We were all silent for a few minutes as we digested that. And then I decided I wasn’t going to leave my fate entirely in someone else’s hands. I spent my whole life avoiding doing anything that might land me in jail, no matter how small the amount of time might be. The thought of prison terrified me.
I ducked out from under Jack’s arm and walked over to his desk. I picked up one of the cancelled checks scattered over the desktop and sat down in his chair.
“What are you doing, sweetheart?” Al asked. Jack just smiled at me. He knew.
“I am the owner of a very profitable company,” I told them. “And I am going to find out exactly how much money I have.” I smiled at the room in general, and even Frank and Finn smiled back. “And after I find out how much I have, I am going to the bank to get it.”
“Be very careful, Angie,” Frank warned. “These are not nice men we’re dealing with.”
“I will, Frank. Don’t worry.” I got the phone number for the bank from the internet and placed the call.
After explaining to a woman, who identified herself as Barbara, that the company was experiencing some problems in its accounting department, I asked her to confirm who was listed as signatory on the bank account.
“It’s still just you, Ms. Richards,” she said when she returned to the phone.
“Okay, good. Now can you tell me what our current balance is with your bank?” I picked up a pen and held it poised over a piece of paper. As she answered, I wrote $957,156.83 on the paper and turned it towards Jack. He let out a low whistle and Al, Nate and Finn all crowded around to see what I had written there.
“Thank you,” I said. “I’m going to need a cashier’s check for $957,000 even. Will that be a problem?”
“Are you planning to close the account?” she asked.
“No. Just taking some temporary security measures. I’d like to leave the account open if that’s okay.”
“Yes, of course. Who would you like the check made out to? I can have it ready for you when you get here.”
“That would be perfect. Make it out to Great Lakes Construction and I should be there to get it within twenty minutes.”
“Okay. It’ll be waiting. You can just ask for me.”
“Thank you, Barbara. I’ll see you soon.”
I disconnected the call and stood up. “I’ll be back in a flash with the cash,” I said with a wink and started moving quickly toward my office, leading a parade of five men, all trying to get my attention.
“You can’t go alone. I’ll go with you,” Jack said.
“No. I’ll go,” said Finn. “I’ll make sure you don’t get hurt.”
“Do you think I can’t protect her?” Jack retorted. “I’m going.”
“I should go,” said Al. “You guys all have other things to do.”
“No, I’ll go,” Frank piped in. “This is my mess and I should help you fix it.”
“I’ll drive you,” said Nate. “I can get you there and back safely.”
“Stop!” I said as I came to a sudden halt at my desk. There was a bit of jostling and bodies colliding as they all shut up and glared at each other. I leaned over and picked up my purse from the floor. Slinging it over my shoulder, I made a decision. “Jack, you and Finn come with me. The rest of you…well, just do whatever it is you do until you hear from us. We won’t be long.” And with that, I strode to my door, unlocked it and headed for the parking lot. Jack and Finn caught up quickly and flanked me on both sides like bodyguards.
“Will you guys relax?” I said, elbowing them both. “I can barely breathe, you’re so close.”
They both muttered apologies and gave me some breathing room as we left the building. Then the argument started over who should drive. Heaving an exasperated sigh, I walked to Jack’s Jeep and stood by the back door. Jack smirked at Finn, beeped open the locks and the three of us piled in.
Ten minutes later, Jack pulled into a front-row parking space at the bank and we all removed our seat belts and reached for door handles.
“You guys are not coming in with me. Wait here,” I ordered.
More arguing on their part. More sighing on mine. “For Pete’s sake, you two! You can see right into the bank from here. You’ll be able to watch every move I make. I’ll be perfectly safe. I don’t want to draw any more attention than we have to.”
They looked at each other and shrugged. “Okay,” Jack agreed. “But we’ll be right here watching if you need us.”
“Yeah, good. Thank you,” I said, rolling my eyes as I got out of the car.
I strolled back to the car seven minutes later with a bounce in my step and a big, fat check in my purse. I looked at Jack and Finn, who were watching me as I approached the car, and couldn’t suppress a wide smile. They were both returning the smile when I slid into the back seat.
We all started to laugh before I even had the door closed behind me. “Oh, my God,” I said. “I feel like I just robbed a bank!”
“Did you get the money?” Jack asked.
“Yes, of course. And I couldn’t believe how easy it was!” I opened my purse and pulled out the check. “Call the other guys and let’s all go to lunch.” I handed the check to Jack, then turned to Finn. “I’m starving – and Jack’s buying!”
The relief we felt at having the bulk of Jack’s money safely back in his hands made us all laugh in a borderline hysterical way. Then Jack called his dad and the six of us celebrated what we considered to be our victory with a very expensive lunch.
Chapter 21
By Thursday morning, I was feeling relaxed and refreshed. I had enjoyed my quiet evening of reading while Jack and Nate had dinner with Al, and got to bed at a decent hour. My period was over, my emotions felt stable and, despite the knowledge that there were unknown bad people out there, determined
to send me to jail, I felt optimistic.
During lunch the previous day, Finn had apologized for his attitude toward me and I had accepted it without hard feelings. I understood why he had acted the way he did and let it go. He was currently working on finding out who Heather really was and who she associated with, and Jack and Al had assured me they would never let me get sent to jail for something I hadn’t done.
Jack had a meeting he had to attend out of the office, so I was gathering the information he would need to take with him when Frank appeared at my door, looking as if he hadn’t slept well the night before.
“Heather didn’t show up this morning,” he told me.
“Did she call?” I asked
“No. What if she found out that I told Jack and Al what was going on? Or that the money’s gone?” His hands were shaking and he was holding on to the door knob for support.
“Jack?” I called out.
“Right here,” he said, coming into my office. “I don’t think she could have found out so quickly,” he said to Frank. “It must be coincidence.”
“But you don’t know these guys. They find out everything. Oh, God…my family.” He was visibly shaking from head to toe and I was afraid he was going to collapse. I half-stood, readying myself to go to him, but Jack got there first.
“Frank. Go home. Do what you have to do to protect your family. Is there anywhere you can go where you’ll feel safe? Maybe out of town?”
“No, but I’ll find someplace.” He let go of the door knob and grabbed Jack’s hand, shaking it between both of his. “Thank you. I am so sorry for all of this, Jack. I’ll make it up to you. I promise.”
“I don’t want you to worry about that. It’s okay. Listen, call my dad. If you can get to Florida, I’m sure he won’t mind if you stay at his house there for as long as you need. You concentrate on your family and we’ll take care of things here. My dad can let you know when it’s safe to come back. Are you okay to drive? I can take you home if you need me to.”
Frank straightened his posture and took a deep breath. “No. I can drive myself. Thank you, but I have to go. Right now.”
“Okay, go,” Jack said. “And be careful.”
“I will.” He looked across the room at me. “Angie, you be careful, too. I’m worried about what might happen to you if they find out what you did.”
“Don’t worry about me, Frank,” I said, standing up. “I’m sure I’ll be fine.”
“I wouldn’t be so certain,” he said. And then he surprised me by hurrying across the room and hugging me. “Take good care of yourself. Be vigilant. These are not men who are bothered by hurting people.”
His words scared me more than I wanted to admit, but I patted his back as I returned the hug. “I’ll be careful, Frank. You just worry about your own family and stay safe.”
“I’ll do my best.” He pulled away from me and shook Jack’s hand again. “Thank you,” he said. “I won’t forget your kindness.” And then he was gone.
Jack lowered his head and rubbed his temples before looking back up at me.
“Headache?” I asked.
“Just a little tension, I think.”
I retrieved some ibuprofen from my purse and handed them to him and watched as he swallowed them without water.
“Frank had a point about your safety, Angie. Maybe you should come and stay at my house for a while. I’m not comfortable with you being alone.”
I looked at him while I considered the idea. I felt sure no one was going to hurt me, but I didn’t want to live in a fool’s paradise, either. The threat was real and Jack’s concern was evident.
“Okay, that’s probably not a bad idea,” I agreed. “But you’ve already promised to have dinner with Finn and Nate tonight and you have to go to Chicago on Monday.”
“Shit. I forgot about Chicago. But I can cancel my plans with Finn and Nate. It’s not anything that I have to do – and you’re more important.”
I smiled at him. “Thank you, that’s very sweet. But don’t cancel your plans on my account. You guys don’t get much opportunity to spend time together. How about this? I’ll stay home tonight, with everything locked up tight, and then I’ll come to your house tomorrow night and stay for the weekend.”
“Okay, but I don’t really like it. You being there all alone tonight makes me nervous. We really don’t know yet what’s going on with Heather and whoever it is she’s working with.”
“I see your point. What if I have my mom come over and stay with me tonight?”
“Make it your dad and you’ve got a deal.”
“Sexist,” I accused.
“Realist,” he countered.
“Maybe I should just spend the night at their house,” I suggested.
“Even better.” He smiled and was moving forward as if he was going to hug me when Chet Rickman, the VP of Operations, appeared at my door.
“Ready to go, Jack?”
“Yep,” Jack said. “Angie, is that paperwork ready?”
“Yeah, I’ll get it.” I gathered up the proposal and its attachments from my desk and handed it to Jack.
“Thanks. I’ll see you later this afternoon. Call me if anything important comes up.”
“I will. Good luck.”
“Thanks. See ya, Ange.”
“See ya, Jack.”
They walked out through Jack’s office, where Jack grabbed his briefcase and then I heard his door close as they left.
I sat back down at my desk, trying to decide what I felt like doing. Then it occurred to me that no one was working on the payroll. Shit. I hated that job. Seeing no other choice, I resigned myself to spending the rest of the day on that mind-numbing chore and forced myself out of my chair to go pick up the payroll information from Heather’s empty cubicle.
I was yawning at my desk, depressed by the thought that I might be stuck with the payroll permanently unless I could convince Jack to replace Heather, when Nate came in.
“Hey,” I said, smiling and happy for the distraction. “Where have you been all morning?”
“I’ve been finishing up the work on the server,” he said, smiling back. “And I’m happy to report it’s done. Now all I have to do is finalize the recommendations for your new IT department and I’ll be finished.”
“Good news,” I said.
“Yeah, it’s been a long week. Want to go to lunch? I have a craving for a Coney.”
“Oooh! That sounds great!” Nate and I both swiveled around to see Marla standing in the doorway. “You guys don’t mind if I come with you, do you? I haven’t had a Coney in such a long time. I’ll just get my purse and be right back.”
She scurried off and Nate and I looked at each other. “What just happened there?” Nate asked.
“I think we just got company for lunch.” I laughed at the thought of Marla eating a hot dog smothered in chili, mustard and onions. She didn’t strike me as the type. I didn’t know why she was so determined to keep me and Nate from being alone together, but her antics were making me laugh and I found that I didn’t mind at all if she came along.
“Any chance we can ditch her?” Nate whispered.
“Unlikely,” I whispered back and gathered up my own purse as Marla returned.
I spent the next hour being entertained while Marla tried to be subtle in keeping Nate and I from having any direct contact at all. She hopped into the passenger side of Nate’s car before I had a chance to do so, leaving me to sit in the back alone, while she chatted with Nate, or me, but never both of us at the same time. The woman had an endless supply of conversational topics.
When we arrived at the restaurant, she deftly maneuvered herself into the booth next to me, leaving Nate, who was wearing a “what the fuck” kind of look on his face, no choice but to sit alone across from us.
She plowed through her Coneys like a trooper and, like me, she used a knife and fork to do so. Nate took the more masculine approach and picked his up to eat, leaving splotches of chili all over his hands.<
br />
“Your hands are going to smell like Coney all day,” I informed him, the first words I had been able to fit into the conversation since we sat down.
“I consider that a good thing,” he said and Marla and I laughed as he caught a dripping glob of chili and onion with his tongue, preventing it from being added to the mess on his hand.
Marla seemed to notice she had been lax in keeping us from talking to each other and started a new conversation with Nate. When we were done eating and, in my case at least, uncomfortably full, she grabbed the bill from the table.
“My treat,” she said. “As a thank you for being so nice and inviting me to come along.”
Nate caught my eye as Marla was digging in her purse, scrunched up his face and mouthed, “Invited?”
I turned away quickly, knowing the laugh was going to come out. I pressed my lips tightly together and squeezed my eyes shut as I pretended to be looking through my own purse, willing the urge to go away. But I couldn’t get the look on Nate’s face out of my mind and the laugh came out in the form of a rather loud snort.
“Bless you,” Nate said promptly, trying to save me.
“Thank you,” I said. Then the ridiculousness of us trying to pass off that noise as a sneeze hit me and I started laughing in earnest. Nate joined in and even Marla was giggling until I got myself under control.
“Something tickle your funny bone, Angie?” Marla asked, looking at me and winking.
“Not really,” I said, reaching over and squeezing her hand. “I’m just having a good time. Thank you for lunch.”
“My pleasure. We’ll have to do this again sometime.”
“I’d like that,” I said sincerely.
Thinking a real friendship might be starting between us, I listened with a half-smile on my face as Marla chatted with Nate all the way back to the office.
Chapter 22
The day had taken its toll on me and I was feeling tired when I got home from the gym. My stomach was still a little upset from overeating at lunch, so I made a cup of peppermint tea, changed into pajama pants and a tee shirt and, forgetting I was supposed to call my parents about spending the night, I sat down on my couch, excited to get back into the romance I had started reading the night before.
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