The gruff voice greeted her, all business. “They gonna find anything on that computer? Anything that tells ’em you committed a crime?”
“No, I swear, I have not committed a crime.”
“That wasn’t the question. Could anyone have used your computer to commit a crime?”
Cody’s face flashed before her, but no. Company computers were completely secure, requiring a fingerprint and several levels of encryption to get into anything remotely sensitive.
“No, the computer is good.”
“And the phone—no personal hanky-panky stuff?”
“A few personal calls and texts, sure. But nothing illegal.”
“Okay then. They have no proof. Sounds to me like they’re on a witch hunt. Nothing for you to worry about, even if they come back and arrest you. A trial in court requires proof.”
Amber saw about a million holes in that theory. If they arrest you. And it’s not like there aren’t people doing hard time in prison, unjustly accused and unable to prove their innocence.
The idea terrified her.
Chapter 15
Once again, Pen provided a grandmotherly shoulder to cry on. As soon as Amber called her, the older woman invited her over. Pen’s hillside home on Camelback Mountain wasn’t far away, and Amber needed the company. She needed to get outside her own four walls for a while.
She retrieved her car and pulled out of the parking garage, feeling almost immediately as if she was being watched. Was it the slightly edgy vibe of having lied to leave work, and now being out in plain sight? She chided herself—odds were extremely slim that anyone from the office would happen to spot her, and why would they care?
But, she reminded herself, the police still had her in their sights as well. She drove, eyes darting between her mirrors the whole way. Pen greeted her at the door of her spacious home, pulled her into a hug, and immediately offered tea. It was the most lovely thing about having a British friend—the tea would be hot and restorative.
“Let me just clean up here a bit while the kettle boils,” Pen said.
Amber followed her through to an area near the large French doors where Pen had her easel set up.
“The light is perfect in this spot,” she explained, picking up two brushes and setting them into a jar half-filled with some type of liquid. The canvas showed areas of brilliant color—blue in the upper third, the outline of mountains, and some undefined blobs in the foreground. “It’s to be a landscape. I’m hoping to capture the shadows on those distant hills. I still feel so very new at this, but I must say I really do enjoy painting.”
She wiped her hands and ushered Amber into the kitchen.
Sitting at the long granite breakfast bar, Amber let the morning’s events pour out. Pen listened until she ended with the visit by Greta Sash and her frantic idea of copying the hard drive on the company computer.
“I didn’t know what else to do, Pen. I know I didn’t do anything wrong, but now that my computer’s gone, I have no proof.”
“No, it was a good idea to make that copy. If nothing else, if they should try to pursue you legally, you’ve got your own set of evidence.”
“And if they find something on my computer that incriminates me?”
Pen thought about that for a moment. “Then you have a copy, and you’ll know what to do. Forewarned is forearmed.”
“I feel so helpless in all this. I can’t just sit around and wait to be accused. I need to know what they’re looking at and make a plan. Now.”
“Shall we call the others?” Pen asked. “You know we are all on your side, and we have already committed to helping in any way we can.”
Amber nodded.
“I see you brought your computer bag,” Pen said, as she began composing a text message.
“With my personal laptop and the extra hard drive. I thought it might be a good idea to keep it with me.”
“Good thinking.” A ping sounded on Pen’s phone, then another. “Oh, good. Mary and Gracie can come right over.”
Amber busied herself plugging the extra hard drive into her computer and accessing the contents.
Within a half hour, Gracie pulled up in the driveway and Sandy had responded that she would join them as soon as she could get away from the bank.
Gracie immediately rushed to Amber’s side and embraced her. “Mary and I were both questioned by the police,” she said. “Didn’t tell the detective anything. Don’t worry.”
Pen offered tea then had a better idea. “Perhaps I should prepare some lunch. Sandy will be here in a half hour or so, and we can compare stories once everyone is present. Gracie, would you like to lend a hand?”
Amber barely noticed their bustling about the kitchen or Gracie exclaiming over Pen’s canvas. She was deep into the company files on the hard drive. Mary came in at some point, followed by Sandy, and soon the five women were gathered around Pen’s dining table with a spread of sandwiches, fruit, and salads before them.
After a quick recap of the morning’s events, Pen turned to Amber. “Have you found anything helpful on your computer? Or, for that matter, anything harmful?”
“Neither one—not yet.”
“Okay then,” said Gracie. “We need a plan, and I say it begins with this Cody. If he’s the only one who had access to the suitcase with the cash in it, he’s got to be involved. Has anyone done a background check on him?”
Amber gave her a withering look, and then immediately apologized. “Sorry. But, of course I did. You don’t actually think I went off to meet a guy in Paris if I knew nothing about him.”
“Many young women do things exactly like that,” Mary reminded, then backtracked. “But you are much brighter than they are, and we’re glad to hear you thought of it well in advance.”
“Still,” Amber admitted, “even being fairly sure I knew who I was dealing with, it really does look like he pulled one over on me. I was mainly intent on making sure he wasn’t a rapist or murderer.”
She pushed her lunch plate aside and pulled her laptop toward her. “Here are two online profiles I found before I met him. One is a simple social media account on Instagram. He doesn’t post often. He said that’s because he’s just not into the whole scene of accumulating Likes and such. But what he did post all seemed to check out. The other profile is business, showing that he works for Omni, a multinational technology firm based in New York. I checked them out, and found his picture and resume on their site. He’s got several degrees in computer sciences, programming, and a master’s in computer engineering.”
She showed them the two screens. “And here are a couple of selfies I took of the two of us on vacation. It’s clearly the same guy.”
Nods all around.
“It would seem so.” Pen voiced the common opinion. “And so we must ask ourselves, what would he have to gain by using you in this way?”
“It seems pretty obvious that he wanted Amber to be the person to smuggle the cash into the US. If you’d succeeded without being caught he would have met up and figured out a way to get it back for himself. Since the cash was confiscated, he’s disappeared.” Sandy hadn’t said much yet, but her analysis seemed spot-on.
Mary spoke up. “Amber, can you tell me … because I know nothing about this stuff … how easy would it be for someone to set up a fake social media account?”
“Simple. There’s no proof required that you are who you say, so anyone could do it. Many people do. Don’t you ever get those ‘friend’ requests from handsome men with gorgeous smiles but no history? You don’t think they really exist, do you?”
“Right. So his Instagram account could be totally bogus. And what about the work profile?”
Amber began nodding slowly. “Sure … yeah. It would take some real advance planning, but for a guy with his computer skills, probably easy enough to hack into a corporate website and add himself as an employee.”
“And of course he’d give himself super impressive credentials,” Gracie added.
“Y
ep.”
Pen sat up straighter, setting her plate aside and resting her forearms on the table. “And what about those credentials? The various university degrees?”
“I’d need to …” Amber began scrolling through the pages. “Hm. It doesn’t say what universities he attended.”
“But for a false identity to hold up well, he must have included that somewhere.”
“Most likely.”
“Let’s divide up the tasks,” Pen suggested. “University student records should be accessible. I can look into that.”
“And I can call this Omni company,” Sandy said. “It would be easy to say I’m verifying employment for a loan, doing a credit check, something like that. If he really works there, it will all check out. If not … well, I’ll just see what I can learn.”
Mary spoke up. “And I’ll be watching for this sucker, night and day, everywhere I go. And when I catch him, I’m going to kick his ass.”
For the first time since she’d flown in from Paris, Amber felt herself relax a little.
Chapter 16
Cody sat in his cubicle, keeping his head down. There was a ripple of something going on. He’d received two calls from upstairs, which he ignored. It wasn’t as if he needed this job—he’d rather be back with Amber, having a great time. Sure, the Paris gig had been fun but he knew it was the short con part of the long con. Ever since he’d come back to the States and talked with Pop, he’d been thinking of ways to twist this thing so he could join her instead of sitting here.
But, he couldn’t quit the job too soon. The whole thing about being a successful con man, according to his dad, was to get in and out without even being suspected. Omni might have caught on to his having been behind the scenes in their website, beefing up his profile for Amber’s benefit. Or maybe someone had guessed that his summer internship had technically ended months ago, so what was he still doing here? Most likely that’s what the HR calls were about.
Still, better to be slippery than to get pinned down into answering questions. Only in his most private hours would Cody admit to himself that he was nowhere near the smooth operator that his dad was. He was a lot more comfortable at a computer keyboard than facing down an accuser and talking his way out of it. Woody would be disappointed that his chip off the old block was more of a fragment.
The intercom light on his phone flashed. Damn thing. He’d quickly figured out how to silence the buzzing on the stupid desk phone, but the flashing light always set him off. He took off his headset and logged off his terminal. He would claim needing a bathroom break. Let the caller leave a message.
Another message.
He left his cubicle and meandered toward the men’s room. The 14th floor was such a sham. Technically, it was the thirteenth but buildings never had a numbered 13th floor. As such, it was the short-term hires who got stuck here. Would it kill them to paint the walls something other than dead tan, or replace the worn, unmatched cubicle dividers that had probably already done primary duty in better departments in their early years?
Shoving his shoulder against the restroom door, his critical eye took in this space as well. Beat-up tile and grout that had never been cleaned in its life. Two other guys stood at the urinals so he closed himself into a stall.
It wouldn’t hurt to make some friends at work, he’d told himself. But then Woody’s voice would intrude. “Don’t take up with drinking buddies—ever. One day you’ll have a little too much and you’ll spill the beans. You gotta keep to yourself when you’re around the same bunch of guys every day.”
So he did. He heard a flush, water running in the sink, two paper towels being yanked from the dispenser. A second flush. Eventually the door whooshed open and shut twice. He peered out and saw the room was empty, so he peed, even though he really didn’t need to. At least the stupid phone should have quit ringing by the time he got back to his cube.
He flopped into his chair again and thought back to Paris. A sigh.
With a furtive look around, he picked up his cell phone, connected to one of several virtual hotspots he’d created, and logged on to one of the foreign accounts. It was tempting to pull some more cash out. There was a hazy dream of getting back together with Amber and taking her someplace cool. Maybe with some of the money in the London bank they’d stay in a swanky hotel and have room service every day for a month. The French account was a little hot right now—it was from there that he’d pulled the hundred grand to send back to the States. But once things cooled off a little, he could grab some more and take her on a fabulous winter vacation to the Med, spend time on the Cote d’Azur or someplace like that.
Who would have thought—little Cody Baker from Jersey, hanging with the rich and famous. All it would take was a bit of research and putting on the Cody Brennan persona again. A smile settled on his face.
Chapter 17
Sadie Uphurst stopped by Amber’s desk about five minutes after she arrived at work the next morning.
“Hey. Feeling any better?”
Amber was better at reading algorithms than faces, but her supervisor’s concern seemed genuine. “Yeah, thanks. I guess it was just something I ate.”
“Look, I hate to pile on anything more, but I need you to come with me. We have a meeting in HR this morning.”
A rock settled in Amber’s stomach.
Neither of them spoke during the elevator ride to the 22nd floor. Sadie stood aside and let Amber step out first. To keep her from pressing the button and making a run for it? Amber let the thought slide past. She could only guess at what this meeting was about, so she focused instead on thoughts of her parents’ home in Santa Fe, with the wide open views toward the mountains on one side and the red-brown mesa where the chamisa would now be in full bloom along the roadsides.
The door to a private office stood open midway down the corridor, and Sadie again stepped aside for Amber to pass through first. She closed the door behind them.
At least, thank goodness, it wasn’t Greta Sash at the desk. This was a woman in her thirties, with strawberry blonde hair worn shoulder length, vivid blue eyes behind stylish glasses, and a warm smile. The nameplate on her desk identified her as Melanie Banjo. Amber nearly chuckled, but quickly thought better of it.
“Amber, thank you for coming,” Melanie said, indicating the two chairs in front of her desk.
As if I had any choice.
“I’m sure you are aware there is an investigation taking place within the company, something involving discrepancies in the quarterly audit. Often—actually, most times—these things sort themselves out and it’s found to be a clerical error or some type of erroneous data.”
Where was she going with this?
“As part of the investigation, we have been advised to check the computer files of several employees, including yours.”
Amber wasn’t sure what she was expected to say, so she filled the longish pause with, “Yes.”
“I’m afraid …” Melanie looked toward Sadie.
Sadie took the ball. “Amber, your work here has been exemplary, and please know that those up in the C-suite have noted and appreciated your programming skills …”
Ball back in Melanie’s court. She cleared her throat. “Unfortunately, it seems there were some irregularities with a few times you logged in.”
“What?” Could this be about a mistyped password? “In what way?”
“I’m afraid I can’t share details just yet, and believe me, this is all very preliminary still.” Something in the woman’s eyes shifted. It was a lie.
“Amber, we’re being forced to place you on administrative leave until it’s all sorted out,” Sadie said.
“What does this administrative leave involve?”
“You’re being sent home.”
“And then?”
“For now, it’s leave with pay and benefits intact,” Melanie explained. “Depending on how the investigation goes, you may have your computer returned to you and be able to work from home until an outcom
e is decided.”
“What type of outcome? I’m sorry, but I’m really in the dark here.” Had they found out about the incident at Customs? And how could that tie in with what this woman was telling her?
Melanie put a rueful smile on her face, one she probably had practiced with everyone she had to fire. “I’m so sorry, but I’m really not at liberty to say anything at this point.”
Some kind of signal passed between her supervisor and this deliverer of doom with the pretty face. Sadie stood up.
“I’ll walk with you back to your desk,” she said.
It turned out to be more than a simple walk to the desk. She stood by while Amber picked up her purse and the lonely houseplant, then accompanied her all the way to her car. As she turned to get into the Prius, Amber held out her employee ID badge. “I suppose you want this back, as well.”
“Oh no,” Sadie said brightly. “You’re still employed.”
She watched Amber’s face begin to crumple, and her voice dropped. “Honey, I hope this all turns out just fine and you’ll be back at your desk soon. Until then, I’d stay away. Your badge won’t get you much past the front desk anyway.”
Somehow, Amber held it together until she was out of the parking garage. She made it around the block before she had to pull to the curb and let out a scream.
Chapter 18
“Well, that totally sucks,” Gracie said. She’d been in the midst of gathering trash and flattening cardboard shipping boxes out in her garage when Amber drove up.
Amber gave a deep sigh and shrugged. Repeating the story had taken a little of the sting out of it. Very little. “Technically, I’m supposed to be at home right now. I’m on call to work if they want me to. It’s part of the terms of my ‘leave.’ But without my company computer or phone what could I actually do?”
Show Me the Money Page 6