promising to dig deeper into the lives of Edwards and Victoria Fischer.
Koltan had no desire to share this intimate little detail. He felt like a fool. What was Victoria doing there? What was she up to? Was this her plan, to get into the company her father once owned? To do what? Why is she here? Did she feel that her father was wronged in some way, is that why sh e’ d here?
There were too many unanswered questions filtering through his mind that his head felt like it would explode. He picked up his briefcase and left the office. This time, it was he who was trying to avoid her. What would he say to her the next time they met? Should ask her why she joined the company? Did their relationship mean anything to her?
He was behind the wheel of his car when it occurred to him that maybe there was something from the past that he knew nothing about. The archives flashed through is mind and he alighted the car, returning to the building and descended to the basement.
“ Mr. Koltan ?” The male clerk was surprised to see his boss. He was the same clerk Victoria had met when she retrieved her files.
“ How are you today ?” Koltan had no idea what the ma n’ s name was but he gave a smile ,“ I just need to get some files .” He was in the room with the stacks of boxes when he asked ,“ How often does Miss Brennan come down here ? ”
“ She came a few times, sir, but I have n’ t seen her in a couple of weeks ,” the man replied.
“ Thanks ,” Koltan replied.
There were dozens of boxes with hundreds of files dating back nearly two decades. He started with the most relevant for the year Edward Fischer lost the company, only some of the files were missing. All the files relating to the takeover and the two divisions that were involved were not there.
He closed back the boxes and walked out of the room .“ How long have you been with this compan y…,” Koltan looked at the nametag and asked ,“ Jorge ? ”
“ Many years, sir, around eighteen ,” the man answered.
“ Wh o’ s been here longer ? ”
“ Well, let me see. Other than Mr. Grey and some board members, Maureen from Accounts has been here longer ,” he informed Koltan.
He had no idea what he was looking for, let alone asking about these people. All he knew was that something was n’ t right with Victoria and he aimed to find out. He had no idea what happened fifteen years ago, all he had to go on was what his father told him. He was just a boy then, so there was no reason for him to know.
According to Harmon, Edward Fischer made some bad decisions with the manufacture of some products and it caused him to lose credibility with the stakeholders. He was voted out and someone else made CEO. There was a unanimous no confidence vote and request for him to retire. H e’ d sold all his shares in a bid to save that company before the shareholder meeting so there was nothing he could do but leave.
Was that the whole story? He needed to know before confronting Victoria. What if she was innocent and just wanted to work with the company her father built? He remembered on her arrived how disappointed she was that Harmon was not around. Why?
He had no idea when he left the Fischer Industries building or how he got home. His mind was in a haze the entire time, thinking about the possibility that Victoria used him and that the only reason she was there was to get back what her father had.
* * * *
“ I need to know what the connection is, officer ,” Koltan insisted.
“ We already closed the case. The man committed suicide ,” the man in blue replied.
“ I do n’ t need you to reopen the case, just let me read the ma n’ s notebook ,” he told the cop.
The officer, with thick brown hair and brown eyes, looked intently at him .“I’ ll see what I can d o… wait here ,” he got up from behind his desk .“I’ m only doing this because of the note he left
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