Where Rivers Part (20 page)

Her vote of confidence caused Juliet's spirits to lift considerably. Somehow in all this mess, the smart and savvy businesswoman had seen through her detractors after all. “Thank you, Alexa. I appreciate your support.”

Her boss kicked off her gray alligator stilettos, stood, and moved across the plush carpet in her bare feet to her desk. She pressed a button on her phone set. “Muriel, hold my calls, please. I don't want to be interrupted.”

Alexa returned to the sofa carrying a tray of fresh croissants from her desk. After placing the tray on the table, she sat next to Juliet and folded her feet up under her aqua pencil skirt. “Eat,” she urged.

The last thing on Juliet's mind was eating, and she was hardly hungry after the waves of nerves she'd been riding over these past hours. Still, she reached for and buttered a croissant.

Alexa dabbed the corners of her lips with a napkin and looked
Juliet in the eyes. “I realize you might be a bit confused here.” She brushed crumbs from her skirt. “Look, I like you, Juliet. I admire your knowledge and talent. Now, I need to know if I can trust you.”

“Of course.” She took a bite, unsure where Alexa was heading with these comments.

“Good. Because I need to confide something. Something that must remain between the two of us.”

The tenuousness in Alexa's voice took her by surprise. She nodded her agreement.

Alexa placed the unfinished portion of her croissant back on the tray and focused on a few wayward crumbs. Finally, she looked up.

“I think I know where the E. coli came from—and why there was an outdated pallet in the warehouse.”

 30 

U
nable to sleep, Juliet got up before dawn, pulled on her Patagonia Ultrarunners and an extra sweatshirt to ward off the chill, and headed for the trail near Levi Strauss Park. The parking lot held only one other car at that early morning hour—a couple she recognized from a marathon she'd been in last year. She waved and they waved back.

She sat in her Jeep, drinking coffee and listening to Trey Ware's morning talk show on the radio, waiting for the sky to lighten enough to make out the running path.

As soon as the faintest pink hinted at daybreak, she hopped out and did her stretching routine, with a safety whistle in her mouth for good measure. Whenever she needed to think, she went running. And after yesterday's meeting with Alexa Carmichael, she had a lot to consider.

She'd not been able to get everything Alexa revealed off her mind. Especially the astounding revelation dropped in her lap and how she'd barely been able to respond.

“What—what do you mean you know where the E. coli came from?”

For the first time that day, Alexa fidgeted. Barely able to maintain eye contact, the typically self-assured owner of her company picked
at her skirt as she explained. “Initially, when the CDC pointed the finger at Larimar Springs, I had no reason to put two and two together. Not really. I mean, I had a niggling suspicion, but when an outdated pallet was discovered—well, then I knew.”

“You knew what?” The sharpness of Juliet's tone surprised even herself.

“Let me explain—from the beginning.”

The phone set on Alexa's desk buzzed. She rolled her eyes and stood. “Excuse me.” She marched to her desk and punched a button. “I said to hold my calls, Muriel.”

“I'm sorry, Alexa. It's Harris. He . . . uh, he says it's urgent.”

“Fine.” Alexa turned to Juliet and apologized. “I'm sorry. I have to take this.”

“Do you want me to . . . ?” Juliet let her words trail as she pointed to the door.

Alexa shook her head. “No, sit tight. I'll only be a moment.”

She grabbed the receiver and pulled it to her ear, then punched a button. “Harris. I'm in a meeting.” As she listened, her eyebrows pulled together. “Well, I appreciate that, but I can't do anything about it now.” She turned her back to Juliet and lowered her voice. “So reschedule. It's not like your surgical procedures are a matter of life or death.”

Juliet cringed. Nothing felt so uncomfortable as overhearing a marital spat. Alexa rarely spoke of her family, but framed photos of her plastic surgeon husband and teen son lined the credenza on the wall opposite her desk. Several of the images included the tony couple posed with actress Lara Flynn Boyle and her real estate mogul husband Don Thomas. It was rumored Thomas and Alexa's husband were in several business ventures together.

“Well, did you ever consider the academy might be right? Perhaps Adam needs to miss soccer if he's failing Latin.” She rubbed the bridge of her nose. “Regardless, Harris, you just need to take care of the situation. I'm too busy right now.” She hung up.

“I'm sorry about that,” she said, appearing even more uneasy. She poured herself a tumbler of water from the glass pitcher on her desk, looking like she wished it held something much stronger. She returned to the sofa and cleared her throat. “Okay, let me start at the beginning.”

Alexa commenced by telling about Juliet's predecessor, a woman named Robin Ford. “I'm afraid the young woman was a bit over her head to begin with. When she wasn't able to return to her position after a disability leave, we knew we needed to fill that critical spot with someone with your background and caliber.”

“She wasn't able to return?”

“She had scheduled a maternity leave, but unfortunately encountered a high-risk situation that prompted an early departure—and then she resigned.”

Juliet remembered Tavina telling her a bit about the situation, and Greer had said something about a maternity leave, but she'd never discussed the woman with either of them much past a casual mention. There was no need, really.

“Anyway, I'm afraid Robin's head wasn't entirely in the game during all that.” Alexa took a quick sip of water and placed her glass on a nearby table, next to a Fiesta San Antonio commemorative paperweight. She shifted, trying to get comfortable. “About that same time Malcolm Stanford brought something directly to my attention.”

Without thought, Juliet chewed at her lip, wary about what she was about to hear. She'd never entirely understood her QA supervisor's story—and why he never seemed entirely on board with her work to improve the laboratory systems. At first, she'd thought he just resented the proposed changes, taking each of her assessments as criticism. But lately, she'd suspected his reserved nature might have a deeper cause.

“Admittedly, my knowledge of pathogens and coliforms was limited at the time. But Malcolm voiced concern that microbio
logical levels were showing up in the high ranges in our source water samples.”

“You mean, from the aquifer?” Juliet asked, the skin on her neck tensing. The Edwards Aquifer provided water to nearly two million people in south central Texas. “I'm afraid I don't understand. If samples raised concerns, why was the water allowed into production?”

Alexa fingered her neckline. “That's my point. At that same time, Robin Ford's attention was directed at her serious health issues. Understandably, of course. She assured me necessary precautions had been taken. I trusted her.”

Understanding dawned. Juliet slowly nodded. “Oh . . . I see.” So Malcolm had raised serious issues and his concerns went nowhere. No wonder he was a bit reluctant to play team ball. His prior coach had left the field in the middle of the game and the ball had been fumbled.

Alexa rushed to add, “We had no reason to suspect—” She faltered. “I mean, there was no way for us to know until all this.” She lifted the glass and took another drink. Her voice choked with emotion. “I—I should've paid more attention, given her health issues. It's just—well, I was campaigning for this merger, and—”

Juliet placed her fingers on Alexa's forearm. “I understand you never meant for this outbreak to occur, but the issues Malcolm raised were serious. None of that product should have made its way into a consumer's hands. Ever.”

“Robin assured me the levels were low and that our filtration and disinfection systems assured the water was safe. Even so, we held back the pallets. Which is why they remained stored in the warehouse but were never logged into distribution.” Alexa faltered. “When demand increased with the Water Circus expansion, something must have happened and the pallets were delivered.”

Alexa stood and paced, clearly distressed. “If I could turn the clock back, I would. I can't.” Her arms swept the room. “Now,
I have this company's future to consider. Not only for myself, of course.” She stood and wandered to the windows, gazed out at the gardens. “Did you know Fred Macklin is less than a year from retirement? And Dale Frissom has kids in college.” She turned abruptly. “Do you have any idea the pressure of keeping this company viable, for everyone's sake?” Her chin quivered and she stared at the floor.

“Or—” she said, her voice nearly a whisper—“what it feels like to know you are responsible for children dying? For Tavina's little boy?” She nearly crumpled then.

Juliet rushed to her side. “Oh, Alexa. Don't—you didn't mean for this to happen.” In a strange warp of worlds, she found herself comforting her boss, rubbing little circles on her back the way her mother used to when Juliet's heart was hurting.

She took a deep breath, trying to let all the information sink in.

Alexa Carmichael had made a fatal error in judgment and would indeed need her if this company was going to survive this mistake. “We'll figure this out together,” Juliet promised.

Relief flooded Alexa's face. She quickly wiped at her eyes with her perfectly manicured nails and thanked Juliet for her understanding.

Alexa claimed the former QA director had failed to properly perform her duties. More than as a career, the woman had obviously viewed her role at the company as a mere job. “She probably would like to have resigned earlier, but she'd lose her insurance,” she suggested. “Not an option for a woman with a high-risk pregnancy.”

Still, how could someone with any knowledge of the potential risk choose to look the other way and take a chance others might be harmed?

And Juliet had other questions. Like, who had deposited the envelope on her car? And why couldn't she find any discrepancies in the testing, the lab statistics, and the tracking systems?

She posed the most obvious question.

“Why are we not talking to this woman?” she asked Alexa, making a quick decision to keep the envelope to herself. At least for now. “Surely this would not only provide closure on this investigation, but culpability could be transferred. At least to some extent.”

“Larimar Springs would still be liable for any employee's actions that caused damages. As an ex-employee, she could be a loose cannon and we wouldn't be able to control what she said or what she might do to deflect her own liability. This way, I stay in control and save the company. In terms of the victims, I can make certain anyone damaged by this mess is made financially whole.”

The fact that money could never recompense the lost life of a toddler remained unspoken.

Alexa placed her hand on Juliet's forearm in an insistent gesture. “I've taken charge of the situation out there in the warehouse, and I'm absolutely confident there is no additional tainted product available to the public. The CDC will conclude that very soon.” She released her grip on Juliet's arm and leaned back. “I've mulled this over and over. Crisis managers everywhere would advise to let the story run its course and die quickly. And they're right.” She lifted her chin, seeming to have no illusions about the gravity of what was ahead for the company she loved. “I'm not prone to starting another flurry of media right now. Larimar Springs has taken a huge hit, but we'll weather this. In the end, our company will become a beacon for food safety. I've instructed Ellen to research and make a recommendation as to how we could form an auxiliary nonprofit to raise funds and champion these issues. Every move I make in the days ahead will ensure the Larimar Springs brand will be synonymous with compassion for these victims and with food safety.”

Juliet now rounded the bend in the path, feeling a certain comfort from the rhythm of her shoes hitting the pavement. She breathed deeply, taking in air quietly scented with notes of cherry sage and dormant cottonwood stands on the limestone bluffs just ahead.

What her boss had said next, no one could have seen coming.

“Going forward, this company can't afford any risks. That's why I've made a critical decision.” The woman's eyes lit with feverish commitment.

Alexa Carmichael stood with her hand on the back of a side chair, a woman of no illusions, not of her personal goals or of what she wanted for her company. “I'm impressed with how you've handled this entire situation, of the integrity and commitment you've shown.”

Juliet let a humble smile form. “Thank you. I appreciate that.”

“Your level of expertise is critical to our future progress. That is why as soon as this is safely behind us, I plan to name you president.”

Her heart stopped beating, then drummed several beats to catch up. She tried to catch her breath. “I'm sorry. What?”

Alexa gave her a confident smile. “You heard me, Dr. Ryan. But we have to keep this between us at this point. The timing for the announcement will be delicate. Still, I'm confident this move will serve to further our company focus on safety going forward, and will provide a greater level of confidence with our bankers and with Montavan International. Cyril really likes you, I can tell.”

Her boss clapped her hands. “As I see it, my decision is a win-win.” She moved to her desk and wrote in her day planner while explaining that Dale, Fred, and even Greer would report to Juliet in her new role. “Your compensation package will reflect your advanced position with the company, of course.”