Page 48 of Jane's Story
Charles nodded politely at Owen. “The police, I believe, are suspecting foul play in all three deaths. So we’re not just looking at a company PR issue. This is a safety issue for the rest of our staff, and I want to figure out how to protect them. As senior management, I’m hoping you’ll all help with this.”
“We’re all trying to save our skins and our jobs,” Lance grumbled.
Owen furrowed his brows and poured himself, Catalina, and Ashley each a glass of water. “How do they know what happened to Kyle?”
Charles looked between both parties. “We don’t officiallyknow,but the concern and evidence are substantial right now.”
Ethan and a few others I didn’t know silently entered the room and sat down.
“Either way,” Ashley grumbled, and fear emanated from her core. “To have coworkers dropping left and right isn’t what any of us signed up for. There are other jobs out there.”
Darcy showed up before anyone responded to Ashley. “Got your message, Charles. What’s going on? Do we have any news?”
Charles cleared his throat, stood, and pulled out a seat next to himself for Darcy. Then he poured Darcy a glass of water from our shared carafe. “Well, we’ve uncovered a few things. But I have a lot of unanswered questions, and we need to decide how to protect everyone, and hopefully the company, going forward.”
“We all have questions, but that doesn’t mean anyone has the answers.” Lance’s eyes were distant, and he looked as though he hadn’t slept well, if at all.
I followed our plan and set my phone to record everyone at the table, but I was careful to make it look like I’d been texting someone and not eavesdropping on the conversation. Though I hated to deface my phone, I’d colored over the red recording light with a blackSharpie.
“Are you sure you want your girlfriend here for this? You know, private company matters?” Owen interjected.
I glanced up as innocently as possible. Though I had no intention of going anywhere, I asked, “I can leave if you’d like?”
Darcy shrugged. “Doesn’t matter to me. Charles?”
Charles stiffened, obviously not used to being deceitful. “I’d like her to stay. I don’t know if any of you heard, but the police brought me to the station for questioning yesterday.”
Catalina gasped. “You’re kidding. You’re a suspect?”
“Not exactly. I think we all are. Obviously, I had nothing to do with any of this, but none of us is entirely in the clear. You all realize that, right?” he asked.
Still afraid, Ashley crossed her arms over her chest. “Seriously, not only are we possibly in danger, but now we’re being accused of murder. I’m done.”
Owen stopped her. “Not so fast, Ashley. We’re here to come up with a plan as a company to deal with this. You should at least hear what Charles has to say.”
“Thanks, Owen,” Charles said. “So, first off, we’ll need to examine our public relations and see how much of this has leaked. With today’s technology, keeping anythingprivate from the world is nearly impossible. Everything comes out eventually, so being upfront with our investors and having a solid plan to move forward are going to be our best plans of action.”
“Well, hold on.” Catalina shook her head. It was mainly fear that I picked up from her. “We can’t tell everyone three people in our company were murdered when we don’t know why or how or who did it.”
“That’s something the PR team will decide after you’ve received official police statements and autopsies.” Darcy said matter of factly, and looked at his watch. Though I knew he cared about the situation more than he seemed to.
“We won’t wait too long, though,” Charles added. “And I brought you all here for one more reason. You see, Jane and I actually think we know who the killer is and their motive.”
Stunned faces sat around the table, staring at Charles. He’d pulled off the bluff well.
“Then why don’t you tell us?” Catalina sounded exasperated. Lance nodded in agreement, but said nothing, and a palpable fear radiated from him.
“Give him a minute,”Darcy commanded.
A pair of servers entered the private dining room carrying warm garlic bread, and Charles gave them his attention.
“Can we start you all off with any drinks or appetizers?” one of them politely asked.
“Please,” Charles addressed everyone at the table, “Order whatever you want. It’s on me today.”
After everyone had ordered and the servers had left the room, Lance turned to Charles. “You were going to tell us something very important, Charles. You think you know what happened, and most importantly, who did this?”
“I don’t just have a good guess,” Charles added to his bluff. It had to be good if our plan was to work. “Jane and I actually uncovered evidence pointing us to the killer.”
