Page 33 of Fever

“Just send them in an attachment before 6 p.m.,” she said into the phone. “I can’t wait for them any longer, yes, thank you.” She dropped the phone on its base and turned her attention to us.

“Ms. James, Ms. Summers, how are you ladies today?”

“We’re doing just fine,” I said.

“As I told you over the phone,” Carla said, “I need to put in some vacation time starting right now.”

Mrs. Rosenburg motioned for us to sit down. “Is everything okay?”

“I would like to take a leave of absence until this investigation is over. Working in the same environment with my offender is uncomfortable in more ways than one.”

It wasn’t a complete lie, but it wasn’t the full truth either. Really, being walked to the door because the drug test came back with marijuana in it was the last thing Carla could take. It would mock her even more, especially when she was sexually assaulted. She crossed her legs and sat back.

“I completely understand,” Mrs. Rosenburg replied. “Company policy does state that you need to give notice a week in advance to take a leave of absence. However, in this case, I’m going to go ahead and approve it. Besides, between the three of us,” Mrs. Rosenburg lowered her voice, “I never liked him anyway. I knew he would be one of the first ones to go. His comments about women are unacceptable, and I’m surprised he hasn’t been fired before now.”

Carla’s eyebrows shot up. “So you believe me then?”

Mrs. Rosenburg waved her off. “Of course, honey, every woman in this office believes you.”

“So, tell me what’s up with the theatrics. Why am I going through being investigated?”

“You know why, because the creep has to try and take you down with him by saying you do drugs. We’re not going to have a problem with that, are we?”

“Oh no, definitely not,” she lied again.

“Good, I’d hate to lose you. Good help is hard to find.”

Mrs. Rosenburg turned to her computer screen, her fingers pecking away at the keyboard. Two seconds later, her printer warmed up, and a piece of paper slid out.

“Fill out this form. Now, you have two weeks’ worth of vacation time to use, but this investigation will be over in a week, so how much time would you like to take?”

“I’ll take the full two weeks.”

“I don’t blame you,” Mrs. Rosenburg said. She set her sights on me. “How about you, Ms. Summers, do you need to take vacation time, too?”

“I put mine in this morning with Mr. McDonald.”

“Have you had a problem with Roger also?” Mrs. Rosenburg frowned.

“Not in the way that would warrant an investigation. Trust me, if it ever happens, you’ll be the first to know.” Besides Josiah. The thought skimmed across my mind so fast I almost let it pass me with no recognition of it. Why would I need to tell Josiah anything? Suddenly I felt a bit uneasy. I wasn’t the type of woman who got ahead of herself. I was open, honest, and agreeable most times. So, having that fleeting thought was unsettling.

“That’s good to hear. Keep me updated,” Mrs. Rosenburg said.

Carla continued to fill out her paperwork as I sat there trying to take my mind off Josiah.

---