Taking Care of Business (14 page)

Dix eased into a chair in the business centre with a heavy sigh. One-handed, he logged in to the Allied network while he held his cell to his ear with the other. Christ on a crutch, what a mess.

'Yes. Carlina Southam. I want to know what she's been accessing on the network,' he said to the IT guy once he'd answered.

As his assistant, Carlina had the ability to view and print virtually anything. He hoped she wouldn't be stupid. But now that he'd thought on her last comment a while longer, he really wondered just what she'd meant by someone who appreciated her.

When the network tech came back online and told him what Carlina had been into just minutes before and what she'd sent to the printer, Dix cursed violently. Exhaling sharply, he ordered her locked out of the network immediately.

He scrubbed his hands over his face. He needed to find Leah and he needed to find her right away.

'What?' Kate looked up when he tapped on the door to the adjoining room where she'd been working.

'Carlina's been in the system recently. Just minutes ago she accessed and printed out our new distribution plan and the contracts with Nationwide and Point Place.'

Kate's eyes widened. 'Interesting. Let's walk and talk.' She gathered her things and they moved towards their cluster of conference rooms. 'She must have run right to the office after she left here. You know this means she's already had someone in mind. I mean, the woman can't be stupid if she survived being your personal assistant, not if you weren't enjoying her company in other ways. So she's not stupid and she's clearly a woman who feels scorned. That equals big problems.'

He winced and she snorted.

'So it's time to circle the wagons. Do you have a copy of her employment contract with the addendum? Get that and also you need to see just what else she's been printing. Check her emails. Freeze her out of the system immediately. At least you've got the non-compete and the confidentiality agreement.'

He held up a stack of papers. 'I had them fax over the addendum with the non-compete and her basic contract.

I've printed out the printer logs as well so I have back-up of what Carlina's been up to.'

'Smart. Now to find Leah. I don't want to scare you, but she's going to be hot about this.' She sighed. 'Too bad it's not just you. Then I could be amused at your expense when she knocked your head off and ate it with some salsa on the side.' She indicated a tall dark-haired man he'd seen around the conference. 'Oh there's Band . . . er . . . Brandon. He's the conference-services manager. He'll probably know where Leah is.'

He'd been about to get her to spill what she'd started to call the conference guy when she caught his attention.

'Brandon, have you seen Leah?' she asked.

'Yes, she's using my office to meet with someone. It looked pretty intense.'

'Let me guess. Blonde? Female?'

Brandon nodded, admirably not showing any lurid interest in the issue. 'Just down that back hall.'

Just then, Kate's cell rang and she looked at the display with a frown. 'That's my office. I need to take this. Come find me if you need my assistance. I think for now it's best I stay out of the immediate situation.'

He agreed. Smart call.

'I'm quitting,' Carlina announced again with a quiver of her lip that didn't seem entirely put on. 'I just thought you should know.'

Considering Leah was the Head of Human Resources for the entire company, that seemed like a smart decision. 'You know you'll need to give two weeks' notice, Carlina.'

'No! No, I don't.' Carlina opened her briefcase and pulled out a sheaf of papers that looked too pristine to be anything other than newly printed. She waved the papers at Leah. 'I have a right of early termination.'

'Let me see that.' Leah took the papers and looked them over. 'You realise you'll forfeit your termination package, including all accumulated vacation hours and bonuses? And that you can't contest this later should you decide to? That means you can't come back and apply for unemployment citing extenuating circumstances or something.'

'Of course I know it! I work for the legal department!' Carlina sniffed.

Leah studied her, wondering what the hell was going on. 'It's very unprofessional to leave without notice. You can't expect to get a good recommendation from me or from Mr Dixon.'

'Oh.' Carlina laughed harshly. 'He'll give me a good recommendation. Not that I need one.'

'You're leaving for another company?'

'I got a new job, yeah.'

Leah sat in silence for a minute, puzzling this through. 'Carlina, I have to ask you. Did something happen?'

Carlina didn't answer at first. Her eyes shifted from side to side and she sniffled loudly. 'Can't a person just quit for no reason?'

Leah didn't have the other woman's file in front of her and couldn't be expected to remember all the details of her employment, but, from what she could remember, Carlina had garnered decent if not exemplary progress reports. Dix had certainly seemed satisfied with her, though Leah had wondered if that had as much to do with Carlina's big chest and blonde hair as her proficiency at her job.

'You've had good progress reports and even got a bonus this last quarter. If something happened to change how you feel about working for Allied, Carlina, it's my job to find out what it is. We don't like to lose valuable employees.' It was a standard mouthful of words Leah didn't really mean, but she had to cover all the bases. If Carlina had a complaint that could come back to haunt them later, Leah needed to document it. It was too bad the world had gotten so litigious, but that was the way things worked.

'Let's just say I got tired of not being valued.' The emphasis on the last word twisted Carlina's mouth into ugliness. 'I'm going to work for a company that values me.

That's all. I don't have to explain myself to you. Or anyone!' 'But you do have a non-compete agreement in your contract.' Leah was glad the woman had brought a copy, though Carlina didn't seem pleased Leah had brought up that point.

'Fifty-mile radius from Allied.'

'Any of Allied's offices, I think.' That was their standard contract.

'I'm fine.'

'Can you tell me who -'

'No.' Carlina shook her head. 'And you shouldn't even ask me that. I'm sure it's not legal.'

It wasn't illegal, but Leah conceded. 'Well, if there's nothing I can do to convince you to stay and you won't share with me your specific issues, I guess all I can do is say good luck.'

Relief washed over Carlina's face the way Technicolor washed over Dorothy when she stepped out of her house and into Oz. Leah didn't understand it, but at least the woman wasn't crying or snivelling, or, thank God, threatening some sort of discrimination or harassment lawsuit. Leah had had a few of those over the past couple of years and they were a nightmare, all around.

She stood to stretch her hand across the desk. 'I'll have to prepare the appropriate paperwork, of course, which I won't be able to get to until I'm back in the office, but I'll call Jeanette to make sure she gets the process started. Should we consider this your exit interview?'

'Yes.' Carlina's palm was unpleasantly sweaty in Leah's. 'Sure.'

'You realise once I make the call you won't be allowed back in Allied's building without a security officer, right?'

Carlina's expression closed and her eyes went shifty again. 'I already got all my stuff.'

That wasn't necessarily good. When employees quit or were fired, Leah usually made sure to supervise them cleaning out their offices and had security escort them from the building, a fact Carlina, as a member of the legal department, certainly would have known. Yet there she stood with only a briefcase, not a file box full of purloined sticky notes and extra rolls of tape.

'OK, then.' Leah's smile had nothing to do with her wishing Carlina well and everything to do with the fact this interview was over and she could turn her attention, hopefully, back to Brandon. She glanced at the clock. She wasn't needed for the afternoon session with the bigwigs for another couple of hours.

Pleeeeenty of time.

Without another word, Carlina got up. Her briefcase banged the arm of the chair, then the desk. Before she had time to turn to the door, it opened and banged the chair, which she'd shoved aside. Brandon apologised, stepping out of her way, but the only place for him to go was around the desk next to Leah and even then the space was tight.

Not that she minded, but it was distracting.

Carlina hadn't taken but one step towards the doorway when Dix showed up, leaning against the frame as casually as a man waiting for a bus.

She froze like a deer in the headlights and Dix barely held back a sneer.

'Going somewhere, Ms Southam?' He wanted to laugh at the look of surprise on her face. 'For someone who doesn't want to be thought of as a dumb blonde you're sure working hard to act like one.'

Leah's eyes flew wide for a moment but she hid her confusion quickly.

He stood in the doorway barring Carlina's exit.

'Dix?' Leah asked.

'You can't stop me from leaving. I just quit.' It was actually pretty ballsy of Carlina to stand there and pretend she wasn't holding a case filled with stolen documents.

'Why, I can actually. When you're in possession of stolen property. That is what's in the briefcase, am I right? If I'm not, you'd better produce those papers and right away or I will call the cops.' Dix couldn't believe her nerve.

Leah moved to intervene. 'Cops? What's going on here?'

'Oh, she didn't tell you she'd printed out copies of our new distribution plan and the contracts with Nationwide and Point Place?'

Carlina's heavily lined eyes narrowed on him but he didn't care if she was angry. He'd paid her well, treated her with respect and she'd just tried to fuck him over and for what? Clearly this had been her plan for a while if she had a place to run to when she left. It wasn't just about Kate and what she'd seen in the parking garage.

'It's not very clever to use your own log-in code when you're stealing from a corporation's legal department. It's so easily verified.'

Carlina spewed a very undignified curse as her mouth spread into a flat line of frustrated rage.

'Oh now, sweetheart, don't get all flummoxed. Just admit defeat. Give me the documents and anything you've removed from Allied not belonging to you. That way we can avoid any more drama.' He probably shouldn't have said 'sweetheart' but he'd fallen back to sarcasm to keep from calling her a crazy bitch.

Carlina began to squawk about his not being able to search her without a warrant, as if he were bound by the need for one. Christ. Leah looked pale and the conference guy watched through observant eyes.

Dix's smirk broke and he shifted to stand closer to Carlina. 'Well then, shall we call the police, Ms Southam? I'm sure they'd love to hear all about what you've been up to. They might even care that I'm holding you here until they arrive. Do you like to gamble?'

A big part of Brandon's job was knowing when to stay the hell out of the way. Right now was one of those times. Leah and Mr Dixon had confronted that blonde woman in his office and, from then on, everything had started going downhill.

It wasn't the first time he'd been asked to call the police, but, even though he'd started dialling, Dixon had told him to hold off. Apparently they needed to deal with this on their own. That was Brandon's cue to leave.

He checked on the conference space and found nothing out of place. The food had all been delivered and set up without problem and the Allied employees were taking full advantage of it. He made sure there were enough beverages and glasses and that the coffee carafes were full.

Nobody had to point out the importance of the two men and one woman who'd just arrived. He could tell by the low-pitched hum of conversation that preceded them as well as their expensive suits, shoes and accessories. They all carried iPhones and leather cases he guessed cost more than his month's salary.

These must be the big bosses he'd heard Leah say were on their way. He stepped up to them. 'Excuse me? Are you here for the Allied Packaging and Shipping conference?'

The men both turned but it was the woman who answered. 'Yes, we are.'

'Brandon Long.' He offered his hand and she shook it. 'I'm the conference-services manager here. The room for the next session is being prepped right now, but we've got some food and beverages set up for the break.'

'Thank you, Brandon.' The woman squeezed his fingers and gave him an up-and-down glance he didn't miss. 'Bob, Roger, I'm starving. I'm going to grab a bite.'

'I ate on the plane.' Roger patted his ample stomach. 'We need to meet with Leah Griffin and Charles Dixon, son. Any idea where they are?'

'Yes, sir. They're meeting in my office. How about you all help yourselves to something to eat or drink and I'll go get them?'

Roger looked at the spread of cheese, crackers and small pastries. 'Well, OK, maybe just a bite.'

The business centre had a small kitchenette area in a corner where the two halls met to make it easier to set up and break down food and drink service. Brandon filled a spare carafe from the cabinet with hot water from the dispenser and grabbed a mug along with a few Earl Grey tea bags and some packets of sugar. He didn't know how Leah would take her tea, but she didn't impress him as the artificial-sweetener sort.