Page 49 of Enticing the Fixer

“She’s gone on vacation and won’t be back for a couple of weeks.”

That’s a bit suspicious. I show up, and she disappears? “Planned?”

“Yes, she’s had her vacation planned for six months. A trip with her mother on a cruise.”

Fine. Maybe not a coincidence. “And Carla?”

“Dude.” He leans back into his chair, making it squeak. “She’s the most annoying creature on the planet. I can’t get anything done without her waltzing in here and plopping her butt down on my desk or having her watching over my shoulder.”

“What’s her area of responsibility?”

“She’s over managerial operations.”

“And what do you do?” I lift a pen off the desk and twirl it between my fingers. I’m aiming for interested, but unassuming.

“I’m responsible for financial accounting.”

“How long has Carla worked for the company?” I can get the information from Kinsley, but by switching lines of questioning, I’m hoping to keep him off kilter. I’ve discovered that the longer people talk, the less they can keep their feelings and biases in check.

Keith doesn’t seem shady enough to program the accounting system to steal money, but I’m not ruling him out. He’s responsible for one of the systems where money is missing, so he’s had the opportunity.

He shrugs. “I don’t know. Six months, I guess. I can’t remember the exact date.” He scrunches his forehead. “Well, I take that back. The football team was in the playoffs, so it would have been December or January.”

Before Kinsley’s father’s death. “How long have you worked here?” I toss the pencil into his football helmet pen holder and fall into the chair in front of his desk.

“I’ve been here for five years. I was hired by Jack when Darrell retired. Darrell was the company’s first accountant. Before, they needed to hire multiple people to keep track of the growing business.” He crosses his arms over his chest. “That man did everything in ledgers. It was a mess bringing a computer system onboard. I spent every weekend here for a year trying to import everything into the new accounting software.”

“Were you paid overtime? That must have been good money.” I lay my ankle on the opposite leg’s knee. “I could use some of that.” I was wrong. Keith here has had his fingers all over the accounting system. He’s more ambitious than I thought.

“Nah.” He presses his lips together and shakes his head. “I didn’t report it. I was doing it to make my job easier. The entire office was a mess. It only took a day to figure out Jack kept Darrell on out of loyalty to his original staff. The man was in over his head.”

Interesting. I nod. “That sounds like a mess.”

I don’t want to put him back into the non-criminal category right after I moved him into it a few seconds ago, but the man donated hundreds of hours of his personal time. That type of dedication is hard to come by. The culprit is likely the type to look for quick and easy money.

I tilt my head and study the man. Unless he got angry because no one noticed what he was doing and decided to get back at the company by destroying Kinsley. “Do you enjoy working for the company?”

“I love working for Kinsley.” His face flushes. “I’m sorry. Ms. Monroe. She’s a great boss. The people who think she’s incapable of running the business are not giving her a fair enough shake. She only took over a few months ago.”

The pulse point at my temple thuds. Does she have a thing for the accounting pool? The man isn’t bad looking. He has a straight jawline, thick eyebrows, and rocks a killer pair of black-rimmed glasses. Damn. I look like him. And the age gap is in the right direction for her. She hates that I’m younger.

“How well do you know Ms. Monroe?” I say the words slower than I intended. They come out more accusatory than inquisitive.

His eyes widen as he shifts restlessly in his chair. “Not well. I’ve only spoken to her a few times, but she’s nice.”

My hands ball into fists.Stop.I flex them back and forth like I’m doing some ridiculous exercise routine. Since when did I turn into a jealous asshole?

“I heard she showed you around the building.” He straightens his shoulders and cocks his head to the side.

“Yes, she did.” I’ve not managed to keep the impartial gossipy new kid on the block routine down long enough not to draw attention to myself. “She was kind enough to give me a brief tour when Arlene had another appointment.”

Relax. Don’t look guilty.

Right. I probably look like a serial killer. She’s not ready to tell the company that she’s dating someone from her accounting department.

“Mr. Monroe was great. He was a shrewd businessman. He took great interest in the numbers and used them to skyrocket the business. It was a shock when he died unexpectedly.”

Thank you. I throw up a quick prayer of gratitude. We’re still shooting the shit. I’m holding it together better than I thought. “What happened?” I know every detail in the police report, but what’s it hurt to hear someone else’s thoughts about the accident?

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