that could help me move forward on stable ground.
“We need to call the police, Adam!”
“Calm down.”
“I will when you call the police!”
“Let me think.”
A sharp intake of breath. “You know something. You’re not telling me. What?”
“Panic won’t solve anything.”
“Panic? Go to hell, Adam. Some man was standing by my bed while I slept, doing God knows what…Jesus!”
“I know, but…”
“Do you know who it was?”
“Of course not.”
“Does it have anything to do with the brick in our window?”
“I doubt it.”
“Doubt it? So you don’t know.”
“I told you I don’t know who it is.”
“But it could be the same person.”
I needed space. Turning away from her I walked out of our bedroom.
“Don’t you walk away from me!” Knew I’d get that. Didn’t matter. I couldn’t hold my face steady in front of her any longer. I walked toward the kitchen.
“Adam,” she continued, following me out…
To the kitchen…
Shit .
I remembered the beer can just as she saw it and let out another scream.
Not really sure how I calmed Suze down, but part of it was by offering to get her out of the house, to come with me to the office. In times of crisis, activity is a great antidote. And I think for both of us, getting out of the house — and the feeling of violation now soaking into it — was a relief in itself.
“Listen,” I’d said. “There are some answers at the office. We won’t be long.”
She’d nodded. I think in her mind she suspected that our intruder was someone who’d been associated with me at FMP. She knows I’ve had to cut down a few bad eggs, and that I usually did that without empathy. It made logical sense to her that a disgruntled employee was behind it, so going in to the office was the first step in making it all good again. I let her think that, trying to figure out how to best explain the unexplainable. So I formulated a plan: try to reach Viniteri (I’d already tried a couple more times and would try again during the drive). I also was curious to see the file that Kyle had left on my desk. I can understand how Suze wouldn’t find that as important as this other matter, but ultimately it probably was more important.
I did try Viniteri again during the drive. Twice actually. He didn’t pick up. Damn him. We’d certainly discuss this when his invoice came in.
As usual, I was one of the first to arrive. I pulled into my parking space, and we got out of the car.
“You okay?” I asked. We’d not spoken much during the drive.
“Better,” she said. “Could use a cup of coffee.”
“Best chance this time of the morning is the K - Cup machine by the sales office.”
She nodded. When we got off the elevator, she went in that direction. I was glad; I wanted to go to my office alone. I walked down the quiet hallway and started to feel the comfort of routine. I have to admit, this is my element. Where everything just fits together. That was why after turning on the light, my first move was to open the folder left behind by Kyle. I sat back in my chair (custom - designed for my body size, ergonomically perfect) and lifted the folder. I opened it, and as I read I felt the blood drain from my head.
Good God.
I sat back and tried to process what I’d just read. It was completely unexpected. Kyle was an asshole but he was good. I swung around and turned on my computer monitor to check e - mails , to see if there was anything relating to this. As I watched the new messages pop onto the screen, my eye caught one that I’d not expected.
From Viniteri.
There was a knock on my door. Dammit. Not now. I looked up, and saw Perry Edwards from HR. I could tell from his expression that I’d made my annoyance at his interruption obvious, so I tried to smile.
“What’s up, Perry?”
“Sorry to interrupt, boss. I guess I was just wondering…”
“Go ahead.”
“Well, did your buddy hire that PI? Curtis Viniteri? The one you were asking me about
“We need to call the police, Adam!”
“Calm down.”
“I will when you call the police!”
“Let me think.”
A sharp intake of breath. “You know something. You’re not telling me. What?”
“Panic won’t solve anything.”
“Panic? Go to hell, Adam. Some man was standing by my bed while I slept, doing God knows what…Jesus!”
“I know, but…”
“Do you know who it was?”
“Of course not.”
“Does it have anything to do with the brick in our window?”
“I doubt it.”
“Doubt it? So you don’t know.”
“I told you I don’t know who it is.”
“But it could be the same person.”
I needed space. Turning away from her I walked out of our bedroom.
“Don’t you walk away from me!” Knew I’d get that. Didn’t matter. I couldn’t hold my face steady in front of her any longer. I walked toward the kitchen.
“Adam,” she continued, following me out…
To the kitchen…
Shit .
I remembered the beer can just as she saw it and let out another scream.
Not really sure how I calmed Suze down, but part of it was by offering to get her out of the house, to come with me to the office. In times of crisis, activity is a great antidote. And I think for both of us, getting out of the house — and the feeling of violation now soaking into it — was a relief in itself.
“Listen,” I’d said. “There are some answers at the office. We won’t be long.”
She’d nodded. I think in her mind she suspected that our intruder was someone who’d been associated with me at FMP. She knows I’ve had to cut down a few bad eggs, and that I usually did that without empathy. It made logical sense to her that a disgruntled employee was behind it, so going in to the office was the first step in making it all good again. I let her think that, trying to figure out how to best explain the unexplainable. So I formulated a plan: try to reach Viniteri (I’d already tried a couple more times and would try again during the drive). I also was curious to see the file that Kyle had left on my desk. I can understand how Suze wouldn’t find that as important as this other matter, but ultimately it probably was more important.
I did try Viniteri again during the drive. Twice actually. He didn’t pick up. Damn him. We’d certainly discuss this when his invoice came in.
As usual, I was one of the first to arrive. I pulled into my parking space, and we got out of the car.
“You okay?” I asked. We’d not spoken much during the drive.
“Better,” she said. “Could use a cup of coffee.”
“Best chance this time of the morning is the K - Cup machine by the sales office.”
She nodded. When we got off the elevator, she went in that direction. I was glad; I wanted to go to my office alone. I walked down the quiet hallway and started to feel the comfort of routine. I have to admit, this is my element. Where everything just fits together. That was why after turning on the light, my first move was to open the folder left behind by Kyle. I sat back in my chair (custom - designed for my body size, ergonomically perfect) and lifted the folder. I opened it, and as I read I felt the blood drain from my head.
Good God.
I sat back and tried to process what I’d just read. It was completely unexpected. Kyle was an asshole but he was good. I swung around and turned on my computer monitor to check e - mails , to see if there was anything relating to this. As I watched the new messages pop onto the screen, my eye caught one that I’d not expected.
From Viniteri.
There was a knock on my door. Dammit. Not now. I looked up, and saw Perry Edwards from HR. I could tell from his expression that I’d made my annoyance at his interruption obvious, so I tried to smile.
“What’s up, Perry?”
“Sorry to interrupt, boss. I guess I was just wondering…”
“Go ahead.”
“Well, did your buddy hire that PI? Curtis Viniteri? The one you were asking me about
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