Extreme Exposure (13 page)

“Thank you, Chief. I’d appreciate that. I’ll pass your number along.”

Reece disconnected the call and glanced at his watch. He needed to leave soon if he was going to make it to the little wine shop on 16th Street before it closed. There were also groceries to buy, flowers to order, sheets to wash, and a condo to clean.

When had he last gone to this kind of effort for a woman? He didn’t know. He didn’t care. All he knew for sure was that he had a lot to do to make his home sex-ready for tomorrow night
—
and that Kara would be worth every rubber-glove minute of it.

K
ARA NOTIFIED
the people who’d let her take samples from their wells and heard the shock, rage, and fear in their voices. She couldn’t tell them where the contamination was coming from because she wasn’t 100-percent certain herself. But at least they knew not to drink it or give it to their livestock. She passed on the phone numbers for the county, state, and EPA water-quality offices and asked them to call her if anything developed.

“You got it, honey,” said Moira Farnsworth. “Without you’d we’d be drinking the damned stuff.”

She reached Mr. Marsh late in the afternoon and was relieved to hear he was doing well.

“I’ve got something for you,” he said, his voice betraying excitement.

“You do? What?”

“Videotape.”

She was so stunned it took her a moment to react. “Videotape?”

“Yeah. I hid one of them little video cameras in my gear and got footage from everything inside the plant.”

Kara wanted that footage, and she wanted it now. “That’s very daring of you, Mr. Marsh. Do you think anyone might have seen you taping?”

“No way. I made certain no one else was around. Besides, I kept the camera hid.”

“That’s good. When can I see it?”

“Let’s meet at the usual place tomorrow at noon.”

“See you there.”

“Video-frigging-tape!” she crowed to the rest of the I-team. “Does it get any sweeter than that?”

She was so excited about the video footage that she completely forgot about her problem with Tom. She’d known his words in the meeting weren’t the end of it. The other shoe dropped just as Kara was preparing to leave for the day.

“McMillan!” Tom’s voice poured out of the speaker on her phone. “Step into my office, please.”

“We’re with you, Kara.” Sophie gave her a hopeful smile.

Tessa shook her head. “He’s lucky you don’t sue his ass, girl.”

“Thanks.” Kara took a deep breath and walked off to face her doom.

Tom was bent over his computer reading some report on the Internet. He didn’t look at her when she walked in. “Is this going to be a regular thing, McMillan?”

She felt her pulse quicken. God, how she hated being intimidated! Why did she let Tom do this to her? “No. They were short on chaperones and would have had to cancel—”

“I’m glad to hear that.” Then Tom turned to face her and gave her a version of the “watchdogs of freedom” speech he saved for when he wanted to make someone feel guilty for having any life beyond the newsroom.

Kara listened, her fear of him gradually turning to anger. She tried not to roll her eyes, tried not to heave a bored sigh. God, the man could be a dick!

Keep your mouth shut, McMillan
.
You need the regular paycheck, remember
?

“The bottom line, McMillan, is that we are the watchdogs of freedom, the Fourth Estate. We guard the future. It’s a big responsibility, one that demands a total commitment. You already leave early every day to pick up your kid. You take time off when he’s sick. And now you’re taking time off to take him to a museum. Yes, I know you’re entitled to time off, but it’s not a matter of what you’re entitled to or how much comp time you have. It’s a question of drive, McMillan. I need to know your heart is in this.”

She couldn’t believe what he’d just said, felt her guts begin to simmer with rage. “Of course my heart is in this, Tom! I have been since the day I walked through the door.”

He measured her through eyes that seemed to lack compassion, then apparently having finished bullying her, he motioned her out of the door.

Kara turned to leave, but rather than feeling relief that it was over, she felt white-hot rage. She turned to face him, and the words left her mouth before she could stop them. “You are so full of crap, Tom! I don’t leave early every day. I leave after a full eight-hour day and then put in a couple hours every night. I work at home on the weekends. I work my ass off precisely because I know how important a free press is. I don’t need your sermonizing to tell me that!”

He looked up at her, his face devoid of emotion. “Shut the door, McMillan.”

“Why? There isn’t a person who works in this newsroom who hasn’t felt what I’m feeling right now. You begrudged Matt time off for his wedding. You begrudged Syd time off for her father’s frigging funeral. You begrudged me maternity leave. And now you bully me because I want a few hours off to spend with my son?” She was so angry her voice trembled. “The truth is this paper owes me so much
comp time there’s no way I could take it all. If I want to take a few hours to be a responsible parent to my son, then, damn it, I’m going to take a few hours, and you’re not going to get away with giving me a guilt trip about it!”

He looked genuinely surprised now. “Are you through?”

Shut up, McMillan
.
Shut frigging up!

But Kara’s blood was at a full boil now, and she was going to say it all. “You always say that we journalists ‘guard the future.’ What is that future, Tom? Have you ever stopped working long enough to ask yourself that question? Well, my son is my future. He’s a human being, and he depends on me for everything. He is my first responsibility, and I’m not going to apologize to you for trying to give him the love and care he deserves! If you don’t like that, take it up with Human Resources, because I’m through putting up with this crap! I am entitled to a fucking life!”

Then she turned, and, all but oblivious to the cheers and applause from her newsroom colleagues, grabbed her briefcase and stormed down the hallway toward the exit.

K
ARA WAS
so distracted pondering the consequences of her outburst that she was on autopilot through dinner, bath time, and bedtime stories. So much for being a good mother.

She had no idea what Tom would do. Perhaps she’d be written up. Or maybe he’d take the Northrup story away from her and give it to someone who wasn’t on his shit list. Maybe she’d find a check in her box tomorrow along with an invitation to turn in her keys and get lost.

“Read another one, Mommy.” Connor held out yet another dinosaur book.

“Not tonight, pumpkin. But tomorrow we go to the museum to see real fossils. Won’t that be fun?”

He nodded, crawled beneath the covers, and smiled up at her, innocent adoration in his eyes. In that moment, she felt terribly unworthy of that much love.

Fighting tears, she sat, running her fingers through his
silky brown hair. The scent of baby shampoo, one of her favorite smells, tickled her nose. “I love you, Connor. You’re a wonderful boy, and I love you. No matter what, you remember that, okay?”

He nodded.

She kissed his cheek and tucked the covers up to his chin. “Good night.”

“Good night, Mommy.”

He called just as she shut off Connor’s light. Overwhelmed by her confrontation with Tom, she had forgotten all about him.

This time she hit record.

“Stupid bitch! Back off now, or your son is going to grow up without a mother. Do you understand me?”

Kara’s pulse pounded, and her mind raced for some way to get him to reveal who he was or at least to confirm his connection with Northrup. “I think you have the wrong number.”

Slick, McMillan! Bet that one’s in the FBI training manual
.

“I know exactly who I’m talking to, Kara McMillan. And you’d best do as you’re told.”

“What do you want me to back off from? What am I supposed to—”

But the line was already dead.

K
ARA HADN
’
T
been able to sleep all night, but as she slipped a new dinosaur T-shirt over Connor’s head and made his oatmeal, she did her best to act like a mother who had nothing on her mind but a delightful day at the museum with her child. She added apples to the oatmeal, packed chocolate milk with his lunch, and even growled with him, as they displayed their six-inch-long serrated T-rex teeth
—
hidden by foamy toothpaste
—
in the bathroom mirror.

It was a sunny day, one of those strange Colorado winter days where it’s so warm people walk down the street in
shorts and sandals against a backdrop of snowy, white mountains.

Kara helped Connor into his car seat and then slipped into the driver’s seat. “Let’s go see some fossils!”

The other preschoolers were likewise full of growls and extra bounce, and Kara found herself laughing at their Pleistocene antics despite her other stresses.

She got the call just as they were climbing aboard the school bus that would take them across town.

“Kara McMillan?” The voice was unfamiliar.

“Yes.”

“I’m Scott Hammond. I’m an inspector with the state health department. Can we talk off the record?”

Kara settled into her bus seat beside Connor and tucked her purse between her thighs. “Actually, now isn’t a good time, but I would love to speak with you. Can I call you back later today?”

“No, this is important. Northrup is crawling all over this place. They’ve been here since Monday. You need to get down here. Their attorneys are scouring through our records, telling the state attorney which documents they can include in your open-records request and which they can’t.”

Kara felt a surge of fury. “That’s illegal. They can’t get away with that.”

“It’s worse than that. They know about Henry Marsh. He came to me a few months ago, gave me photos, told me what was going on out there. I made official records of it but kept his name hidden in my own personal files. When I arrived this morning, those files had been taken. Based on what you asked for in your open-records request, I figure he’s been speaking with you, too.”

Kara couldn’t believe what she was hearing and chose her words carefully. What if this were just some clever ploy to get her to admit the whistleblower’s identity? “I can’t discuss my investigation, Mr. Hammond. I can’t even be certain you’re who you say you are.”

“I understand. But please hear me when I say I’m afraid
for Mr. Marsh’s safety, ma’am.” The man’s voice got quieter as if he were afraid of being overheard. “And if you’re seriously pursuing this story, I’m worried about you, too. These guys aren’t going to write you a letter to the editor. They’re going to beat the shit out of you with baseball bats.”

CHAPTER 10

K
ARA
’
S MIND
raced. And even as she tried to find a way around it, she knew she had no choice. She needed to get to the state health department immediately
—
and she needed to warn Mr. Marsh.

How in the bloody hell had this happened?

“Mr. Hammond, would you be willing to talk with me off the record when you’re someplace where you can speak freely?”

“Yes. I’m in the phone book. Call me at home later. I have to go. I’m in over my head as it is.” Then he hung up.

Kara looked down at Connor, who was playing with a plastic stegosaurus and knew she was going to break his heart. “Connor, I just got some very bad news. I need to go into the paper right away.”

He stopped playing and looked up at her, a child’s disbelief in his brown eyes. “Why, Mommy? You said you were coming with me to the museum.”

“I know, Connor, and I’m so, so sorry, but there are some bad men, and they might hurt someone if I don’t go warn him.”

“Can someone else warn him?”

Kara reconsidered it for a moment, shook her head. “I’m the only one who knows who he is and how to reach him. I promised him I wouldn’t tell anyone his name.”

“You promised to come with me to the museum.”

“You’re right. I did. But now I find I can’t keep that promise, and I feel terrible about it. I’m sorry, pumpkin. I’ll try to make it up to you somehow.” Kara climbed out of the seat, leaned over, and gave Connor a kiss on the cheek. “Make sure you get a good look at the T-rex so you can draw me a picture, okay?”

Connor’s chin quivered and tears gathered in his eyes.

Kara hugged him against her. “I love you more than anything, Connor. I hope some day you’ll understand. I’ll come get you as soon as I can today.”

She turned and scooted down the narrow aisle, ready for what was certain to be a horrible confrontation with Janice.

Connor’s teacher took the news better than Kara had anticipated. The older woman listened, a disapproving I-told-you-so look in her eyes. “Well, I wasn’t entirely sure you’d remember, so I signed up one extra parent just in case.”

Janice’s words felt like a slap across the face, but Kara bit back her anger. “It breaks my heart to disappoint Connor this way, but, truly, there is more at stake than I can explain. I’m sorry.”

As the bus drove away, Kara spotted Connor staring sadly at her out the window. Regret lanced through her gut, knife-sharp. Through her tears, she smiled and blew him a kiss.

F
EELING ALMOST
sick and beyond furious, Kara reached the state health department in less than twenty minutes and found Joaquin already waiting for her, his camera at the ready. She’d already called Tom and demanded in her best don’t-screw-with-me voice that he contact the press association attorney and send a shooter right away. She didn’t have the time or the patience for a rehash of yesterday. Apparently he got the message, because he said nothing about her outburst but promised to do as she asked.

“Hey, Karalita. What’s going on?”

She filled Joaquin in quickly. “My guess is they’re shredding everything they can and just hoarding the rest. My goal
is to get my hands on as many documents as I can and figure out whether they did leak the whistleblower’s identity and how in the hell they got a hold of it to begin with. I’d like you to just start shooting and not stop.”