A Taste For Danger Read online

  “Okay, thanks.” Jack hung up the phone. Well he couldn’t interview the CFO, but he needed to talk to some of the Heads here. Where to start? Victoria seemed friendly. He’d start with her. Then what’s-his-name in Accounting. He definitely needed to talk to him too.

  Careful to lock his briefcase in the filing cabinet, Jack looked at his seating chart then headed over to Victoria’s office. She was on the phone, but motioned for him to come in.

  Once again he plopped down in a visitor chair. Victoria’s time on the phone gave him a moment to assess her office. She had decorated much more than the other office’s he’d seen. She’d placed a rug over the carpet already there, inserted a frilly lamp obviously from her home, and hung pastel paintings on the wall. Several awards from Devonshire also graced her wall. Overall her office was very feminine. She finished the call, looked up at Jack and smiled.

  “What can I do for you, oh new employee that has everyone out of whack,” she joked.

  Jack smiled. He liked Victoria. She seemed like a straight-shooter, or at least acted like one. “As part of what I’m doing here I need to learn a little bit more about the company. I really don’t understand the whole business that you guys run.”

  “That’s understandable,” said Victoria. “You’ve only been here two days and most people that take jobs here have been in the industry for decades.”

  “That’s why I was hoping that I could maybe take you to lunch and get a cliff notes version of what Devonshire actually does.”

  Victoria pursed her lips and leaned back in her chair. “Let me check my schedule.” She turned to her computer. “I have a meeting in a half hour,” she said, “but it’s not important and I don’t really want to go to it so, sounds good.”

  “Do people here skip meetings often?”

  Victoria laughed. “You really aren’t from the corporate world are you? You can tell how important someone or a subject is by whether people attend the meeting or not. This one for example is being called by Eddie in Accounting. I have no interest and don’t really need to be there. Then she leaned over and whispered, “He doesn’t get many people at his meetings.”

  Jack got it. There was an internal pecking-order, regardless of rank. Victoria was telling him that Accounting and Edward were pretty low on the totem pole, and that she, by extension, existed somewhere higher. Unless the subject was important; but what was important to one Head might not be important to the group of Heads. Jack recalled again exactly why he hated desk jobs.

  “But everyone attends Mr. Hanes morning management meeting...” offered Jack.

  “Mr. Hanes is the ‘Head Head’ said Victoria as she made ironic quotation marks in the air with her hands, around the phrase. “Nothing actually takes place, but we all have to be there and report whatever bullshit we feel like because he’s technically in charge.”

  Jack liked this Victoria more and more. It would be a fruitful lunch. “Are you ready now?” he asked.

  “Sure. Let’s just stop by the secretary’s desk on the way out and let her know we’ll be gone. Then she takes messages for you.”

  “Ah.” Victoria was a fount of information.

  At Felicia’s desk Victoria made small chit-chat with her before letting her know that she and Jack would be out for lunch. Felicia smiled and seemed to be perpetually happy and friendly.

  As they stood there, Victoria with coat in hand, Bob happened by. Jack didn’t want him to think he was up to something now with Victoria so he quickly said, “Victoria and I are going to lunch, so I can get some more info on the company. Would you like to join us?”

  “No thanks,” said Bob. He didn’t seem especially concerned about Jack and Victoria.

  Okay, whatever.

  Next it was Cindy, who seemed to be going to lunch herself. She eyed Jack and Victoria. Her glance didn’t seem friendly. Unsure if he was doing something wrong again he offered: “Victoria and I are going to lunch so I can get some more info on the company. Would you like to join us?”

  Cindy looked placated. What was the deal with this woman?

  “Thank you,” she said, “but I’m going out to run errands today. Maybe another time.” She began to sign out with Felicia.

  Victoria and Jack opened the door and caught an elevator first thing. “You’re learning,” said Victoria. She chuckled. “Always keep the boss and the head of H.R. happy. Even though everyone knows you work for HQ, it will still make your life much easier around here.”

  Jack sighed.

  Victoria noticed. “You’d rather be somewhere else, huh?”

  Jack didn’t know how much to tell this woman, so he played it safe.

  “No, just tired.”

  Victoria nodded, satisfied.

  He drove with Victoria directing and they ended up at a nearby seafood restaurant. “Delicious and fast,” commented Victoria.

  Corporate people and their lunches. Weary, Jack wondered if he could even solve this case. Though he was no longer drinking anywhere near the amount he drank before , and he planned his bed routine to be early—he and Cheryl hadn’t been up that late—these people and their games depleted his energy. He needed this lunch. He even ate healthy for a change, ordering fish and rice.

  After they ordered, Victoria wasted no time. “So, what do you want to know?”

  “Can you give me a simple explanation of how the insurance, reinsurance, managing agents, underwriters, and government contracts work?”

  Victoria laughed. “Do you have a month?”

  “No, seriously. Can you just break it down as simple as possible? I need some kind of an idea.”

  Victoria looked skeptical.

  “Pretend you’re talking to an elementary school student.”

  Victoria smiled. “Okay, I’ll give it a whirl. I don’t suppose you’re going to tell me why HQ assigned you here?”

  “No, I’m sorry, I can’t reveal that.”

  Victoria’s eyes twinkled. “It was worth a try. Okay, here goes: “Our corporation is involved in numerous investments and we own market shares in many, many companies. We take on investors if they meet our criteria and we only take on so many per year. That keeps the dividends high for those who invest. Insurance is one of our market investments. The underwriters scrutinize the investments and the investors both to make sure everything and everyone meets our criteria.”

  The waiter appeared with their food. Jack took a bite of his mahi-mahi. Sure enough it was delicious. Victoria played with her seafood salad and asked for more water.

  Victoria continued: “The Managing Directors run divisions of underwriters and their investors. With me so far?”

  “Yup,” said Jack, in between bites of fish. The stuff melted in his mouth. Maybe there’s something to be said for dining out.

  Victoria stopped a bit to eat some of the scallops and shrimp in her bowl. Then she continued: “The government contracts are another diversification we got into about ten years ago. We don’t bid for the contracts, we run the contracting for the government, vetting them. When I say we, I mean about five levels down from Little D.”

  “Got it.”

  “The contracts go through a technical representative, a Contracting Officer Representative, and finally a Contracting Officer. Then at the end they go to Cheryl for approval, just like the Managing Directors activity eventually comes to me for approval.”

  “Thanks. I’m a little clearer now.”

  “No problem. Totally worth it to have a nice lunch out for a change.” She winked and daintily scarfed down some more seafood.

  “Can you tell me the name of the guy in Accounting again? I can’t keep up with the names.”

  “That’s Edward, but we all call him Eddie. Eddie from Accounting. He’s a Head, but he’s weird, so good luck talking to him.”

  They made it back to work and Victoria headed to her office. He ran into Cheryl Wong in the hallway. She said, “Hi.” passing, but nothing else. He guessed she was through with him. Damn. I still don’t e
ven know what the hell she wanted.

  Weary, Jack trudged back to his office. He closed his door for a few minutes to decompress. Once he felt able to wear his game face again, he opened the door back up, then checked his computer. No messages, no emails. To them he didn’t play a key part in their little system. He was the outsider brought in to disrupt them. He doubted he’d get many emails. He needed to talk to Jerry, but had no information on him. Using the seating chart, Jack found Cindy’s office.

  She was at the computer typing furiously, but motioned him in when he knocked. Then she swiveled around. “What can I do for you? I know better than to ask if you read the ‘material’ yet.”

  “I promise. Tonight. And I’ll have them back to you first thing Monday.”

  “Good.” She seemed to have gotten over her previous tantrum. “No one bothers with weekends anyway, so Monday should be fine. Just make sure you read it all!

  “Yes Ma’am. Now I have a favor to ask. I need to know how to contact Jerry Wilson.”

  Cindy raised her eyebrows and a slight frown bent her pretty mouth at the corners. Resting her elbow on the chair, she raised her left arm, stroking her chin with the thumb.

  Jack sat there without moving. What was it about this woman that made him nervous? She wore a brown shoulder-length bob, minimal make-up, and dressed in a suit and skirt today. He guessed the head of H.R. wanted to look professional, HQ or no HQ. Everyone else walked around business-casual, as Bob had said. In contrast to Victoria, Cindy had no long, polished nails, no perfectly put together look. She appeared more like a school marm. Finally, she spoke.

  “I can’t tell you any contact information for Jerry Wilson except to acknowledge that he worked here.”

  “I know, but this is important,” said Jack.

  “As head of H.R., I can’t break those rules...”

  Jack waited. He didn’t think she was finished. She seemed to look through him, making him nervous all over again.

  “However...if you were to ask for the emergency contact list, a list on which all Heads are included, you would find everyone’s information, including Jerry’s. I think it’s been updated by now, but there are old ones still in use. In fact, most people still use the old ones. Felicia keeps those.”

  Then she gave him a thoroughly professional smile that said “Good day.” without speaking.

  “Thank you,” said Jack. Cindy swiveled around to her computer again.

  Jack made a beeline for Felicia. Luckily most people were at lunch so he found her without the usual crowd who literally hung onto the counter she sat behind. “Felicia,” he said.

  She looked up and smiled.

  “Would you mind if I asked you a few questions?” While here and alone, I might as well make the best of it.

  “Sure.” She arranged her hair and looked up at him.

  “First, do you have a copy of the emergency list? I was told I should keep a copy of that with me.”

  With utmost efficiency, Felicia opened a desk file drawer, reached into a manila file and pulled out a sheet. “There should have been one in your welcome packet from H.R.” She appeared puzzled. “However, here is one you can use.”

  Jack glanced at it. Sure enough Jerry’s name was on there. It was an outdated list. This secretary worked with as much efficiency as most secretaries he’d run into. Smile and sparkle aside.

  “Thank you. The other thing I was wondering, and this might sound sort of strange, but it’s part of the job I’m trying to do for Tom.” He hoped mentioning Tom’s name would get him somewhere with this.

  “From HQ, right?” said Felicia as she smiled again.

  “I was just wondering, in the past six months or so, have you received anything out of the ordinary? I don’t even know what it would be.” He tried to butter her up. “It’s obvious to me even as a new guy that you’re the center of the office and everyone comes to you for things.”

  “Yes, it can get quite busy!” she exclaimed.

  What, busy with talking? That’s all I’ve ever seen her do...

  He continued. “I know. That’s why I thought if anything strange ever happened you would be the first person to know.”

  Felicia looked pleased. “Yes, I know most of the things that go on around here.”

  “Would you mind telling me if any of them are out of the ordinary? I’m only interested in the things that might seem strange.”

  “Well,” Felicia started in a hushed voice, “first of all, Eddie is weird.”

  “Eddie from Accounting, right? Anything else?”

  Felicia looked like she was thinking. “Mr. Hanes isn’t happy with his job. He’s already going on interviews. I take the calls sometimes.”

  “Okay.” Not much help. From what he knew about the position now, Mr. Hanes was acting out of self-preservation. His two years were close to being up. Then, just when Jack thought Felicia was going to be useless, she threw out another tidbit.

  “And Ms. White—Victoria—gets hundreds of messages each week, but she never responds.

  “Really. Hundreds?”

  “Yes, and she leaves me to deal with all the people! She won’t respond to any of the messages unless it’s one of her friends.

  “What are the messages about?”

  “I’m not sure, but they are all very unhappy people. Angry. And I tell them I’m only the secretary, but they still yell on the phone at me.”

  “That must be very hard on you.” He hoped he sounded sympathetic.

  “It is! But she won’t take them and if I accidentally put one through to her phone she comes out and yells at me later.”

  “Well that’s not very nice.”

  “No. But I just try to do a good job,” finished Felicia. She went back to smiling. Jack could swear there was nothing behind her eyes.

  “Felicia, you’ve been a very big help. Thank you. Can we keep this conversation just between you and me? Okay?”

  “Sure,” said Felicia. The phone rang as she finished. “Devonshire Incorporated,” she answered as he walked away.

  Back in his office, Jack stared at the brick wall outside his window. Glad it was Friday, he now appreciated Tom starting him right away yesterday. A whole week of this stuff at once would fry him. At about ten to five, he started to gather his things. As he did, Victoria popped her head in the door. He started to smile and say hi, but then saw that her face looked spastic and angry.

  “I thought I explained everything over lunch,” she said with her hands on her hips. “I don’t know why you went to Felicia, but she doesn’t know anything. She’s just a secretary!” Victoria’s face was red. She spun around and left.

  Jack guessed there would be no more lunching with Victoria. He’d lost the only ally he thought he could count on. Her emotional tornado sapped the rest of the little strength he had left. He put on his coat and headed out. As he walked by Felicia, she was still smiling, still happy, no change in demeanor. He guessed why she was the social hub now, and it wasn’t the bowl of candy.

  “Goodnight, Felicia.” Jack stayed in self-preservation mode. Who knows what Felicia told anyone at any time. He didn’t let on Victoria had stopped by. One thing is for sure, he thought as he drove out, I’ve hit on something. I just have no clue what it is.

  Arriving home he surveyed his apartment anew. The depressing scene loomed out at him. He hit the sack early. No drinks, no T.V, and this time no couch. On Saturday, for the first time in six months or more, Jack cleaned his apartment. Out went the old pizza boxes and delivery crates. Up went all the alcohol into cabinets. Then he went to the grocery store and bought eggs, milk, sandwich fixings, soups, salad bags, and frozen dinners. He was going to need his strength. No more goofing off. This case hit Jack in his weak spot: politics and corporate shenanigans. He would have to become more adept and fast.

  Chapter Eight

  After putting the groceries away, Jack ate his first semi-healthy lunch at home in the last six months. Then he called Jerry Wilson. Jerry agreed to mee
t with him at a nearby bar. Cindy’s files had not slipped his mind either. He vowed to read them tonight. Dismally, he reminded himself that none of this had anything to do with embezzling.

  The two met at the bar around 4:00 p.m. Late enough to miss the lunch crowd and ahead of the heavy drinkers. Jerry picked a bar that was to Jack’s taste as well. Besides a gourmet menu if one wanted to eat, the bar displayed deep wooden walls; dark red booths and heavy wooden walls, suggested an atmosphere of privacy. Here, people kept to themselves.

  The two shook hands, and Jack ordered a draft and some water. He wouldn’t be drinking much this weekend. Jerry asked for a bourbon and coke. Then the two inspected each other. Jack guessed that his counterpart had about ten years on him. Except for the gray hair, he seemed fairly similar to Jack. He also had piercing blue eyes and wore a wedding ring.

  Once they had their drinks, Jack started in. “I appreciate you meeting me like this.”

  Jerry shrugged. “When you said you were hired to pick up where I left off, I became interested.”

  “Why is that?” asked Jack.

  “Because the whole time I was there, I got the distinct impression that they didn’t actually want me to solve the problem.”

  “I know you held a different role than I do,” said Jack.

  “Yeah. My guess is they tried it one way with me, having someone as the Head of Heads at Little D, and when that didn’t work they decided to try it again with a different position. Maybe one with more freedom.”

  “So as the boss you weren’t able to get anywhere?”

  “Not too far. But again, I sensed that they closed ranks and I don’t just mean at Little D.”

  “You mean at Headquarters too?”

  “That’s exactly what I mean. I know that the books don’t match. I know that a number of people have secrets going on beneath the surface, but that’s about all I know. They canned me after six weeks.”

  “Six weeks? Damn.”

  “Yeah. Came as a surprise to me too. Then they brought in their current Mr. Hanes to run things, and my guess is he plays nice and is just doing his time. He wasn’t hired to find anything out, that’s for sure.”