by S. J. Smith
“It you don’t mind Melanie, I can get that to a financial investigator to go over. Do you mind?” he asked. Mel had decided she did like Dave, and it wasn’t just for his good looks either.
“You can call me Mel, everyone does, and you can have the records. They all have the time and date I saved them. I wrote up a short description of the problem in one of the files too. I hope it helps – if I get accused of any wrongdoing I could have a hard time getting work,” she said. Dave nodded and they finished up. Then the nice gentlemen walked her to her place, a block down from the deli. She thanked them repeatedly and they promised to be in touch before they left. Once she shut the door she leaned against it sighing. Glad to be home.
*****
Home Invasion
“So basically Janey, you don’t know what is going on either?” Mel asked. Janey was an acquaintance from work and the closest person to a friend she had. They were both eggheads and had known each other in college. Janey was working in the marketing department at Super Shoes.
“All we have heard is the shop is shut down for the foreseeable future,” said Janey. “When I heard you were in the building I almost freaked. Lawrence from the executive assistant office said he had heard that they were suspicious of you. That is clearly ridiculous. You are like me, numbers and finishing the job in front of you is all you think about at work. Are you really okay Mel? It sounds like your experience was pretty intense.”
Mel could hear worry in her voice. She was touched by Janey’s concern and wondered if maybe she had a friend after all. Since she had drunk three glasses of wine and was working on her fourth she felt less inhibited and told Janey about the fire and her rescue.
“Damn, girlfriend! You are lucky to have made it. It sounds like those firemen are calendar material on top of being so brave, huh?” Janey asked. Mel blushed a little but smiled. She had seen a few office gals with firemen calendars and Janey was right. Max and Dave would not look out of place with those men in the annual calendar. Mel giggled.
“Well, they are pretty damn good looking but I am more concerned with saving my butt from an arson charge. I mean, I know I did not do it and there is no evidence, but Super Shoes has long arms. You remember how they got that building permit in an area not zoned for it last year?” Mel reminded Janey. Janey snorted. It had been a topic of whispered conversation in the break rooms for a few weeks.
“Yeah I remember. You be careful, you hear me? Ah crap, my boyfriend is here. I’ll call you tomorrow, okay?” Janey said.
“Okay, thanks Janey. Have a good night,” Mel told her and they hung up. Mel finished her wine with a smile. Janey had always been preoccupied with her boyfriend of the moment. She had also been a big proponent of setting Mel up with some of her male friends, but Mel had always been too busy. Janey’s words did get her thinking of Max and Dave though. They may be worth the time, she thought with a giggle. Then again, which would she choose? They both had their good points.
Mel decided to call it a night when she yawned three times in a row. The wine was going to her head and she was feeling the stress of the last few days. She went into the bathroom and brushed her teeth and hung up her robe. She glanced in the mirror on the way out. Not bad for a geek, she thought with a smile. Her waves of red hair looked good around her heart-shaped face. Her nightshirt and pants showed off her voluptuous figure nicely too. Maybe she should consider Max or Dave after this was all over. She was sure it would be over soon. She just wished she knew how it would end.
Shutting off the lights she went into her room and sprawled on her bed, pulling the blankets up and it was not long before she was asleep.
Her dream was a replay of the dreams she had experienced in the hospital. The room filling with a hot black smoke and she could hear the shouts of the janitor and his son from down in the basement. There was no way she should have been able to, but she was desperate to get through the door to go help them. She called out, but it was futile as she tried to rush out of her little office door. Her actions became desperate and she began sobbing as she was driven back inside by the roaring flames. Then she heard voices, angry and demanding. She felt hands on her arms and she tried to turn, screaming herself awake.
“Stop screaming bitch, you have enough problems,” said a gravelly voice she did not recognize. The only light was a little night light she had in the outlet on the far wall. There were three men in her room. They looked huge in the darkness with shadows that were frightening and she froze.
“Who are you?” she asked in a trembling voice.
“We are the cleanup crew darling. You should not be here, so we are going to make sure you die this time,” said one, as she was yanked out of bed. She felt weak and unprepared to defend herself.
“Why, I didn’t do anything!” she cried out.
“That is not what your suicide note will say. I wrote a good one for you. Listen to this,” he said. Mel felt tears coming down her cheeks as she trembled in the men’s hands. Suicide? What they were talking about?
“I cannot live with myself. I caused the deaths of the poor Mr. Jones and his son Harry. I just could not stop myself from that, so I must do this to make amends. I cannot help myself and must light the fires. God help me I am coming to you,” the man finished.
Mel felt coldness in the pit of her stomach. The company could have her killed and blame her for the deaths. Did they know she had proof of the financial misdeeds? She kept trying to come up with distracting questions as she was hauled across the room toward the bathroom. She tried to struggle but the two men holding her arms were too strong for her. She began crying out, then yelling for help and she was slapped once.
“No, don’t hurt her. She can’t look like she was hit. She did this to herself remember. Jeez you guys are idiots. How you got this job is beyond me,” said the man who had read the fake suicide confession. Then Mel heard a shout that made her heart soar. The men holding her were shocked and the shadows around her all turned to the door. Something flew through the air and the man next to her cried out and fell away. Mel jerked her arm free from the man still holding her as two bigger shadows came into the room. Suddenly there were curses and the sound of punches being thrown and connecting. Mel dove to the floor, rolling up against her dresser in the corner to stay out of the way. The cursing got louder as her tormentors seemed to be getting beaten.
“Damnit, who are you guys? Shit stop, oh, ow!” cried the voice of the man who had read the note to her. She heard another of the bad guys crying out as well and furniture fell over with a crash. She heard rapid footsteps and her front door sounded like it crashed open. Mel trembled in fear and hope until there was silence. She slowly uncurled and began looking up as the light was turned on.
“Melanie, are you alright!? Shit, come here Max!” Dave said as he bent over Mel. Mel began sobbing in relief and threw her arms around him. She had been saved. Max was next to them in seconds and checked her out for injuries.
“Are you alright Mel? I can’t see anything wrong, talk to me,” he asked and she forced herself to calm down and her sobbing slowed enough to speak.
“I am fine, really…just real…scared,” she told them.
“Whoever they were got away, they weren’t up for a fight. Too bad, I would have liked to have someone to hand over to the cops,” Max said. Both men were bending over her with concern. She wiped her eyes feeling like a wimp, but so glad they had come.
“Why are you guys here? I have never been happier to see anyone, believe me, but…” She trailed off, unsure how to ask the question. Dave smiled and pointed at Max. Max shrugged.
“I was worried about you and it occurred to me that if they had tried to kill you with the fire, they might try something else, so I called Dave and he agreed so here we are,” he said humbly. Mel smiled shakily.
“Thanks Max, Dave. You have saved my life again. They were planning on killing me and making it look like a suicide,” she told them. They both cursed and helped her up. Her room was trash
ed. Her end table was broken and so was the lamp from her second dresser. Max found a piece of paper on the floor and grimaced.
“Here is the note. Shit, it’s not even any good. It makes sense though, in a twisted way. It is a story that would be bought by the brass with the pressure from the company. I am not comfortable with turning this over to the cops yet, now that I see this. These people are going to stop at nothing to clean up their own mess,” he said. Dave frowned.
“That is what one of them said. He said he was the cleanup crew and that I would die this time,” she said, beginning to get angry. They really did want to kill her, she thought, angry and welcoming the anger. It was better than the trembling fear. Mel realized she had not been taking the whole thing seriously enough. Well that was going to change now!
“We should report this, even though we don’t even have a description to give the cops. We have the “suicide note” but that could have been written by anyone. But then again there are plenty traffic and security cameras on this block so they may be able to get a look at whoever it was. Anyway, if we don’t report this incident now, we won’t have any credibility when we eventually bring it to light. I agree though that I don’t trust your safety to anyone else. I have no idea how far Super Shoes can reach to get you. Do you trust us Mel, enough to let us look out for you?” Dave asked. Both men looked at her.
She knew that she had only known these men a short time but the look in their eyes convinced her that she could trust them. Not to mention they had saved her twice. She smiled at them and nodded.
“I would rather have you two looking out for me than someone I don’t know. My trust level for strangers is at an all-time low. Know what I mean?” she asked. They both agreed.
*****
Saviors and Lovers
The next night Mel was settling into a motel. It was nice enough without being high end. Max and Dave thought it would be safer and had been very careful getting her there, to be safe, they said. All of the cloak and dagger secrecy made her a little nervous, but at the same time she was glad she had such careful protectors.
All three of them were sticking to their theory about Super Shoes and the company’s intentions. As odd as it seemed, Mel could see a kind of logic to the whole thing. With everything being digital it was harder to keep separate books. If just one outside auditor, or even the IRS saw something strange they could conceivably could strip the computer system’s hard drives to uncover whatever it was that they were looking for. Mel sighed as she stepped into the shower.
She continued to go over everything in her mind as she lathered up her hair and body. Enjoying, as always, the soft feel of the shampoo and body wash she used. It occurred to her that she may have just touched on the surface of the financial shenanigans that Super Shoe was perpetrating. She had only been looking at it for that one day in the office. How long had they been doing it? How long had they been planning the arson?
Mel used a soft luffa over her body before rinsing. She ran it down to her flat belly and then thighs with an unconscious smile for the lovely feeling it evoked. If Super Shoe had been planning this for a while, then it could have been extremely calculated. She knew that the last year’s taxes had been squeaky clean. She had worked on them and knew it for a fact. So everything she had seen and anything else they were doing had taken place only this year. With this year’s records destroyed in the fire (or so they thought), they could use previous years’ records as proof of their fidelity, if asked for financial records by the government.
Mel rinsed off then, enjoying the clean, fresh-scrubbed feeling. She always felt energized after a good shower. The government would quite likely accept the old records, she thought, as long as there was a provable reason as to what happened to their current records. If that was the case though, then why use such obvious arson? Why not try to make it look more like an accidental fire? Dave and Max said there was no doubt about the fire being deliberately lit.
Perhaps, thought Mel, the company wanted to be obvious about the arson in order to scapegoat me, and so divert investigators from looking into the company’s financial malfeasance. That made sense.
Pleased with her deductions she got out of the shower and dried off. The motel had decent towels, soft and big. Mel got into sweat pants and a tank top before going to watch some television on the bed. Max and Dave had said they would be bringing dinner. She did not pay too much attention to the television as she wondered about the message she had received on her phone. A missed call from her work.
It had been from her boss’s boss, politely asking when she would feel ready to go back to work. His message was kind and sweet, yet she had never actually spoke to the man before. Besides, there was no reason for him to be calling; her normal supervisor could have done the job just as well. When the call first came in she had let it go to message because Dave had said she should not answer the phone. If someone was trying to find her and had the right equipment, answering a call could be disastrous. The message made her nervous and glad Dave had warned her. Of course Janey had called as well and she felt bad about not answering that one. She promised herself to get back to her as soon as she could.
By seven o’clock she heard a knock on her room door. She reached to unlock it and paused.
“Hello?” said Mel, warily.
“Hey Mel, it is Max and Dave,” came Dave’s voice. Mel smiled.
“Come on in,” She told them unlocking and then opening the door for them. They both gave her a smile and came in with bags forma neighborhood restaurant. Italian by the look of it. Mel’s stomach rumbled.
“How is it going, anything new?” Mel asked as she helped them unpack the dinner. Dave had brought wine too.
“The financial investigator believes that what you found was just the tip of the iceberg of whatever was going on with Super Shoes. Unfortunately, the company itself is no longer a source of information after the fire, so they are looking elsewhere,” he said.
“I had that thought too,” she told them. As they began eating she explained her thoughts and deductions from the shower.
“You could be right,” said Dave. “The people I have been talking to think our theory is possible, although they also think the company would have to be pretty stupid to try something like this. Unless it worked of course. Either way, if it is true, it is working. There is a new development that is upping the ante.
“There have been several other fires at companies about the same size as Super Shoes. Investigators are quietly looking into them to see if there is any connection with yours. An accountant died in one of the fires, and another had their financial advisor admit to the crime in a suicide letter. The suicide attempt did not work, but he is on life support and unconscious. Due to these incidents we have been given more leeway in our investigation. My boss does not think it is so cut and dried anymore. However, you are almost certainly in the clear from a legal standpoint. Far too many other things going on that you could have no influence or knowledge of.”
Dave smiled, glad for Mel to report that she was fully exonerated. He held up his plastic cup of wine to toast, which they did. Mel felt a lot better knowing she was no longer under suspicion. She felt horrible for the other deaths by fire though. She wondered what sort of people did these sort of things. She sighed and ate some more of her spaghetti.
“Oh I did get a call from someone named Janey Connelly. She works at Super Shoes. Do you know her?” Max asked. Mel smiled and nodded. “She was worried because she could not reach you. She also had a theory about the influence of Super Shoes executives, talking about a zoning issue they managed to get through the city council?”
“Yeah she mentioned that when we talked before the thugs tried to kill me. I had forgotten about it, sorry. But she has a point. They seem to know people in local government,” Mel said.
“She does indeed, and I mentioned it to several investigators who are looking into the other fires. It is beginning to look like a group of companies trying the same thing
at the same time. It’s implausible that all three companies did this without knowledge of the others,” Max said. Mel agreed and sipped her wine. She made a mental note to herself to thank Janey.
“So for tonight at least we can relax,” said Max. “There will be nothing more we can do until tomorrow, so don’t worry Mel, you are safe as we can make you and people are working on the case.” Max grinned charmingly. Mel returned the smile and reached over to pat his leg in thanks. Even through the jeans she could feel the muscled quality of his leg. He probably had rock-hard muscles all over his body, based on what she could see.
By her third glass of wine they were all laughing and sitting on the bed joking about a reality show. Mel not only really liked her two saviors but she was beginning to get turned on by them. They were all sitting on the bed, sipping wine. Every time she would look at one or the other she would notice the shape of his chest muscles under his shirt. Or the handsome line of Max’s jaw, or Dave’s piercing eyes.
She did not know whether it was being in hiding, or the wine, but she was feeling somehow freer, and wilder. It was an unfamiliar sensation. It had started with her determination to see whoever was behind the whole thing to get what was coming to them. Now she was looking at her handsome companions as something more than that. By the second bottle of wine Mel had her head on Max’s arm with a hand on his chest and had one leg under her with the other stretched out over Dave’s legs. Dave stroked her thigh as she began stroking Max’s chest. She could feel her body’s response and was beginning to get more than just turned on; she was excited!
“Are you sure about this Mel? It isn’t just the wine?” Dave asked in a low voice that sounded quite sexy to her. She turned her head and smiled at him. If she could have seen it she would have been surprised by the sultry sexiness of it.