Taking Stock (43 page)

“I know she’s innocent. I’ve brought her in to help me investigate.”

Herman’s hands clamped down on the table. “I don’t care what she’s told you. If you’ve let her touch those files, you’re both headed for the back seat of a police cruiser.”

He’d have
Eric
a in a cell next to Brad’s if he could.

Sarah raised her hands to calm him. “We didn’t touch anything. We came straight here, but trust me, the police won’t take her anywhere.”

“You were ready to call the police yesterday,” Marty said.

“That was before I talked to them–”

Marty went white.

Herman jumped from his seat and slammed his fist on the table, “What!” He was so angry he fumbled for words. “What the Hell were you thinking
?
” If not for the table between them, he would have grabbed Sarah by the throat. He hulked above his chair, fuming then shot a look at Marty.

Marty took a bit longer to consider the ramifications, but his tone was just as menacing. “If this is in the paper tomorrow, you’re through.”

Sarah held her breath.

Herman was unsure where to look.

“I think I can help,”
Eric
a offered.

“That’s the last fucking thing we need, thank you very much,” Herman yelled. He turned to Marty, huffing to regain composure. “I think we should reconsider that item in the safe. It might be time to turn it over to the authorities.”

Eric
a turned to Sarah who clearly knew what they were talking about, but didn’t explain. She offered only a shrug.

“Don’t play dumb,” Herman said, glaring at
Eric
a. “It’s too late. We found the gun in your desk. Not a very good hiding place for someone as smart as you.”

“I shot at Brad
?
That’s a laugh,”
Eric
a hissed.

“Don’t play with me.”

Herman’s snide sarcasm reminded her of Brad.

“Do you know where Brad is now
?
”
Eric
a asked.

Neither man made a sound.

“That’s what Sarah was trying to tell you. He tried to kill me. Twice! First in the parking garage and again yesterday outside my apartment.”

“We don’t have time for this bullshit,” Herman started.

“The police don’t think it’s bullshit. They have the whole thing on tape and they’ve locked him up. I don’t expect he’ll be leaving there anytime soon. You’re going to have to find me a new boss.”

“Why would he do that
?
” Marty asked almost to himself. “I know he blamed me for saddling him with you, but I can’t imagine he’d shoot at you.” Marty’s mumbling trailed off.

Being up on twenty-three, Marty was insulated from Brad’s dealings around the firm. He must have trusted his brother-in-law implicitly and no matter how carefully stated, the message was going to be hard to hear.

“This is going to be a shock,”
Eric
a began, “but Brad was stealing from the firm. I’m sure of it.”

Marty wheeled toward Herman for reassurance. Neither he nor Sarah offered a word of support, so
Eric
a continued herself. “He was switching around the surveillance tapes and erasing them to hide something he was doing in the computer room. Whatever it was, he was using my credentials.”

“What credentials
?
” Marty asked.

“My building access card for one. The security system shows me in the computer room at times I wasn’t there. That’s why he needed to erase the tapes. Otherwise you’d see him on camera not me.”

Marty cupped his mouth to hide his expression and nervously tapped the fingers of his free hand. He’d come here expecting an indictment of
Eric
a and this was turning into something else entirely. It wasn’t going to be an easy transition to make or to explain at home.

Herman watched Marty thump the table for nearly a minute. When he couldn’t wait any longer, he craned his neck so far around that
Eric
a could barely see his face. “I have a real problem with this. You know what we found yesterday. You heard Brad. And now she’s telling us Brad was framing her. This is all he said, she said. Just as likely she set him up and now she’s taking advantage while he’s not here. It comes down to a question of who we believe. I don’t like having her involved in this investigation one bit. Frankly, Sarah’s out of her mind for suggesting it.”

Marty turned to Sarah. “Why do you want to include
Eric
a
?
”

“She’s the first person I brought this problem to and she knows more about the work downstairs than anyone. If we want to get this closed quickly, she’s the one to do it.”

Marty nodded his agreement, but said nothing.

Herman scowled at Sarah. “You came to me because you thought she was the embezzler. Now you want to give her a chance to cover it up
?
”

Marty halted the discourse by holding up a single finger. “Herman, I tend to agree with Sarah.
Eric
a can help us determine what happened here. She never struck me as the outlaw type. Just look at her. If the police have Brad in custody, I think we should take any help she’s willing to give. What will it take to convince you
?
”

“Are you serious
?
”

“Damn right! We’ve searched her office. What harm can she do
?
”

“We found a gun for God’s sake. What more do you need
?
I can’t let a thief and a murderer loose in the building, not on my watch.”

“Anyone could have put that gun in there including Brad. If the police say he tried to kill her, I’m inclined to believe them.”

“Over me
?
”

“Yes.”

Herman slumped, just perceptibly. The room was quiet while he considered his next move. “I want to check her financials,” he said inflating to full stature again. “If we did that, I’d be comfortable letting her see what we have.”

“Ok with you,
Eric
a
?
” Marty asked.

“I have nothing to hide.”

“It’s settled then. Herman will do the financial screen and Sarah will show you what we’ve gathered to date. Take the work home with you and stay out of the office until Herman’s research is done. I know that sounds harsh, but it’s safest for everyone.”

Staying away from the office would make her feel safer, too.

“Good. Anything else we need to discuss
?
” Marty asked.

Herman raised half out of his chair.

“One thing,”
Eric
a said firmly. “I don’t think Brad could do this alone. The evidence has been extremely well concealed for a very long time. I’m convinced he had help, maybe high up.”

“Are you saying Brad’s incompetent
?
”

“Let’s say he’s adequate and our thief is brilliant. I just don’t think Brad could have kept this hidden from me for this long.”

“Aren’t we full of ourselves
?
” Herman snipped.

Eric
a ignored the quip and addressed her thoughts to Marty. “This involves more than just programming. There were lots of complaints and other evidence that needed to be covered up. I’m sure Brad had help. I wouldn’t rule out anyone at this point.”
Eric
a rolled her head toward Herman as she said this and he nearly exploded.

He said nothing, but his face reddened and his eyes looked like they’d launch from their sockets.

Marty didn’t seem all that surprised.

“I suggest we search Brad’s office and his apartment, check his phone records and see who he was talking to. It might lead us to his partner. If we do it quickly, we might catch him before he runs.”

“We’re not the police,” Herman growled.

“That didn’t stop you from searching my office,” Erica said.

There was a big difference between searching company property and an employee’s apartment, but there was a lot at stake for Marty and his family. Solving this case quietly meant everything to Marty, but Herman was convinced
Eric
a was guilty and didn’t want to hear anything new. If
Eric
a was going to solve this, she’d have to go elsewhere for help. After that morning, she was comfortable with the police for the first time since she was four years old.

Sarah interrupted to Herman’s chagrin, “Stan has connections with the Boston Police. He can help us get Brad’s apartment searched, but that means we’ll have to let them know what we’re looking for.” 

Marty stiffened at her mention of the police. He might have had his own key to Brad’s apartment, but he didn’t offer it.

All he said was: “Do it.”

Brad paced around his cell with the lawyer’s words ringing in his ears. Assault with a deadly weapon with intent to murder, no priors except a drug offense, probably one-to-two unless they connected the attempt the day before. If the jury believed he’d tried twice, he’d get five-to-ten. The videotape was a killer. It showed a blurry, blue figure in the foreground and Brad leaning against a tree, shooting it twice, and running away.

The prosecutors would argue premeditation. The police had time to mount the camera, set out the dummy and wait. Brad wanted to argue entrapment, but the lawyer didn’t see how setting out a dummy invited him to shoot it. The trial would be short, a maximum sentence likely. Brad’s lawyer already wanted to make a deal for two years. If he knew about the embezzlement, he’d have offered the deal already.

The guy wasn’t worth two hundred an hour. The most important thing he’d done was call Herman, something Brad couldn’t do from his cell. The bail hearing followed in record time, but the bail was set at one hundred fifty thousand, another sign the lawyer was failing him. Brad would pay any amount to get out. He had the money. He just couldn’t get to it.

Time was everything now. Sarah and Stan saw his arrest in the park. By now they’d be ripping his life apart, searching his office, his apartment, his car. The notebook! Brad grabbed the bars as if he could pull them apart. His bag in the trunk held the audio tapes of him talking to Herman and the notebook. The tapes weren’t very specific, but they’d be enough for the cops to identify the players and the basics of the scam. Once they had that, the numbers in the notebook would start to make sense. Vincent’s telephone number,
Eric
a’s bank account number, and his Swiss account number were all listed inside. The notebook linked him to murder, embezzlement, and conspiracy. If they found the right Swiss bank, the money from his account would be confiscated while he sat helplessly in this musty cell.