“Two brothers … the Farradays. Real scumbags. They do business under the name Deklon Management. We’re claiming constructive eviction on our clients’ behalf, as well as wrongful termination.”
“Any possibility the threats you got are from the brothers? To upset the applecart before trial?” Adam asked.
David heaved a sigh. “Anything’s possible. As I told you, only Jack, Ira, and Suzanne received those disgusting letters.” He glanced at me. “As far as we know. But what if there are more to come? Part of me wants to believe it’s just the work of some nut case and the threats have absolutely nothing to do with Jack’s death.”
“Are you supervising this case?” Adam asked.
“No. Jack was, but Nora Layton was doing pretty much all of the work.”
While I’d never been the object of Jack Harding’s worst behavior, I had been a witness to his screaming fits and his threats. “David, he treated people terribly,” I said. “I know it’s none of my business, but I don’t know how you were able to stand having him as a partner.”
“I know. He was a son of a bitch. But he had an incredible memory for details. He was never a particularly winning personality in front of a jury, but we won a lot of cases based on his hard work.”
“Listen.” Adam stood. “I need to get busy and make sure my people are set up and apprised of everything. I’ll see you both later.”
Once Adam left the room, David turned to me. “Don’t get me wrong, Julia—I’m glad you’re here. I need someone around I can trust. I don’t want you to actually do anything except keep your eyes and ears open, as before. Let me, Adam, or the police know about anything suspicious or anything out of the ordinary. I need your insight and your intuition. That’s something that you’re good at, and …” David trailed off. “I guess … well, I’m just grateful to have someone here who’s a friend.”
“You’ve got it.”
“Oh Christ, I can hardly believe this.” He put his head in his hands and took a deep breath.
We heard a tap on the door. David looked up as a woman entered. Her hair was a frizzy mop pulled back with a rhinestone clip. She wore Birkenstocks and a long gypsy dress in a paisley print. She sauntered toward David’s desk. “We need to talk.”
“I know,” he replied. “Julia, this is Beth, our Marketing Director.”
“Hello,” I said.
Beth looked at me as if I had no business being seated in David’s office. She plopped into the wing chair that Adam had just vacated.
“Julia’s helping me out this week while Muriel’s away,” David offered.
Beth didn’t give me a moment of her attention. “My phone’s been ringing off the hook. The papers have gotten hold of this and we have to do some damage control. Somehow, someone accessed the police report and the press knows the murder happened here in the office. A few of the attorneys have gotten calls from Jack’s clients, who are extremely upset.”
David groaned. “Well, we knew this would happen. I want your response to be ‘no comment, pending the police investigation.’ And send an email—mark it urgent—saying that no one, and I mean no one, is to talk to anyone from the press. Take messages and don’t call anyone back. Is that clear?”
“Perfectly,” Beth replied. Her body language was in contrast to the urgency of the situation. “I’ll tell my assistant to take care of it.”
“No. You. Please don’t leave it to anyone else. I want everyone made aware. Anyone spills anything to any reporter and I’ll have their head on a plate.”
“Of course,” Beth replied lazily, moving out of her chair toward the door. “No worries, I’ll make sure everyone knows.”
David sighed when the door closed behind the woman. He turned to me. “I asked her to come in today to handle the press queries.” He shook his head. “I don’t know why we hired her. I try to like her but I just don’t. Her whole attitude is So what. I keep trying to give her the benefit of the doubt.”
“I’d really like to have a look at the personnel files, David. With your permission, of course.”
David’s brow furrowed. “Why do you need those?”
“I’m certain someone here is either involved or knows more than they’re saying. I want to gather everyone’s birth dates and run some charts.”
“Okay. Fine with me. Anything you can think of would be a help.”
I headed back to my desk. The first thing I needed was a parking card so I wouldn’t have to depend on city buses to come downtown. I dialed the Human Resources office on the 40th floor, hoping someone would be in.
“This is Manda. May I help you?” Manda had an ingratiating nasal voice.
“Hi, Manda. I’m Julia, working in David Meyers’ office this week. Mr. Meyers would like to have the personnel files for all the attorneys and staff in the litigation department sent up. Could you get them together and bring them up to his office?” I wasn’t sure, but I was willing to bet that any answers lay right here, in this department. Only rarely was there much interaction between different sections of the firm. It was the best place to start.
There was a long moment of silence on the phone. “It’ll take quite a while to gather those files and I can’t possibly do it. They told me I had to go home.” Manda sounded like something quite sour was caught inside her nose.
“Manda, David Meyers would like those files on his desk immediately.” I was enjoying my little moment of power. I thanked her in the sweetest of tones and hung up. Let’s see if Manda can get a move on, I thought.
Exactly fifteen minutes later, a rail-thin, overly made-up woman in her thirties entered from the hallway, pushing a small cart and heaving great sighs. Her face was narrow, with close-set eyes and thick hair teased into a flip. I was sure she was someone who had perfected the art of whining. She looked me up and down, unsure if I was a person who warranted subservience or hostility. I enjoyed watching the conflict on her face.
“Thank you so much for being prompt. You can leave them right here.”
“I thought Mr. Meyers wanted these?” she complained.
“He does. However, he’d like you to leave them right here on my desk.” Another minute and I might just growl and snarl at her. Was this woman bringing out the worst in me or what? I had a vision of ripping the tiny pearl earrings out of her ears and watching blood drip down her pink sweater set.
“Well, these files are completely confidential, you know …” Thinking for a moment she might have the upper hand.
“I am well aware these are confidential, and Mr. Meyers is also well aware that these files are confidential. I would appreciate your putting them right here, right now, on my desk.” I took a deep breath. “Thank you.”
“Fine … all right!” With a frown, she lifted the files from her cart and dumped them on my desk. “We’ll need them back, you know.”
“Oh, and I’ll also need some sort of a temporary parking card. Could you take care of that today too?” I walked her to the door and held it open, watching her roll her cart to the end of the hallway. Then I closed the office door very firmly.
I returned to the desk, grateful the office was quiet. In keeping with David’s request, I had set my voicemail and email to an automatic response, putting off any incoming queries. I sorted through the file folders, starting with Jack Harding. There were the usual withholding forms, bar association receipts, emergency information about next of kin. His sister, Sarah Larkin, lived at 3104 Ulloa in the Sunset District. I made a note of the address and the phone number. Then I went through the rest of the files, noting each person’s birth date, birth place, former employment, and anything else that might be fruitful. Without the time of birth, I could only set up solar charts, but the signs and angles between the planets and major transits would still tell me a great deal about each person.
Jack’s next birthday would have been December 18th. Transiting Pluto, a planet that ushers
in major life changes, had passed over his Sun several years earlier. Possibly his divorce? I noted the birth dates and birth places of Ira Walstone, Roger Wilkinson, and Nora Layton, then moved on to Suzanne Simms, Dani Nichols, and Karen Jansen. The personnel files contained letters, resumes, and applications for employment, as well as beneficiary forms for life insurance, 401K information, and annual reviews. David had mentioned that Jack and Ira had made lateral moves to David’s firm at the same time and brought Suzanne with them. Ira’s wife was Rita Walstone, and they had two grown children. Nora had been with David’s firm for approximately three years and named a sister in Wisconsin as her next of kin.
The attorneys’ files included claims for prescriptions and other medical expenses. That surprised me. Medical information is strictly confidential, but Nora Layton’s file for the preceding year caught my eye. There was a long list of laboratory and prescription charges from the Bay Area Life Services Group. All had occurred within a four month period from June through October of the prior year. I had heard of this group. It was a private organization that catered to a lot of different medical issues: eating disorders, drug rehab, liposuction, cosmetic surgery, and psychotherapy. I dialed Manda’s extension. She didn’t sound very happy to hear from me again.
“Manda, I have a question for you. Some of these files contain information for medical claims.”
“Yes?”
“I thought those were confidential.”
“It is, but the attorneys have an additional insurance policy, kind of an executive care type of thing, that picks up charges that the regular insurance doesn’t cover. The staff isn’t covered by it, just the attorneys. So we submit whatever isn’t covered by the regular policy to another company.”
“I see. Thanks. I’ll get these back to you in a little while.” Unfortunately, nothing indicated what type of treatment Nora had received.
It was getting close to lunchtime and I thought it might be useful to coax Dani away from the office. Possibly she’d open up a bit outside the firm. I walked down the hall to her desk and found her busily organizing exhibits to various documents, debris and paper strewn over the top of her desk.
“How about a bite to eat, Dani? Are you free?”
“I’d love to. Just gotta double check these exhibits are in the right order.”
“I can wait. In fact, I’ll give you a hand.”
“You’d think just once these guys could get something ready before the last minute?” Dani grumbled. “I swear they think their words exit their mouths and land on the judge’s lap with no process in between.” She handed me a stack of copies to be served on opposing counsel. “These are just gonna be mailed. Can you stuff the envelopes?”
“Sure, no problem.” I slipped each set into pre-labeled large envelopes.
I sealed the last envelope and Dani said, “Okay, these are all perfect. I’ll scan and e-file after lunch. I’m absolutely starving. I only have an hour though. I’ve got to finish this and leave by six o’clock. I’ve got a rehearsal at six thirty.”
“A rehearsal?”
“Yeah. I didn’t mention it, but that’s my real career. I play bass. We’ve got a gig in North Beach. A place called Stoned on Thursday nights. Hey, why don’t you stop by?”
My ears had gone up. “Maybe I will. I’d love to.” There was no way Dani could know, but Stoned is a club owned by my good friend Googie from the neighborhood. We had known each other since elementary school. “I’ll just go grab my purse. Be right back.” I walked quickly down the hall toward David’s office and pushed the door open. Nora Layton stood next to my desk and the personnel files.
“Nora!”
“Oh, there you are. I was just looking for David. Has he gone to lunch?”
“Yes, he has.” I studiously avoided looking at the stack of files on my desk. “I’ll have him call you when he returns?”
“Thanks.” Nora nodded and brushed past me on her way to the door.
I breathed a sigh of relief as soon as she was gone. I scribbled a note to David and stuck it on his phone. Then I picked up the notes I had made from the files, tucked them into my purse, and locked the outside door to David’s reception area. I wondered how much Nora had seen.
eleven
Billy, in his leathers, was waiting at the end of the corridor, his flaming red and yellow helmet clutched to his chest. Karen stood next to him. Heads together, they seemed to be conferring quietly. When they heard the door close behind me, they straightened up and turned to stare. Then Karen moved toward the elevator bank and Billy looked down at the floor as I passed him, avoiding my eyes.
In the central room, Dani was busy bundling her court documents together with rubber bands. She was the last one left in the section. She gestured to Billy and he stepped into the room. “Here you go, Billy. All set for the judge.”
Billy’s expression was sullen, but he nodded.
Dani sighed and turned to me. “Electronic filing’s supposed to be so easy, but it doubles the work with these old judges who insist on having paper copies delivered. There were nineteen exhibits and every page had to be consecutively numbered. What a damn pain.” Her desk was littered with envelopes and exhibit tabs. “I’ll clean up later. Let’s go. I’m starving.” She grabbed her purse and we took the elevator down to the lobby. She suggested a fast-food Middle Eastern restaurant on Kearny. I knew the place. A little heavy on olive oil but the food was great. Once seated at the restaurant, our plates arrived quickly. Dani had ordered a giant falafel and I got the hummus plate with stuffed grape leaves.
“So, tell me about your gig.”
Dani made an effort to speak but only managed a mumble. After a few moments, she swallowed her bite. “We’re so excited we’re playing at Stoned. Do you know the place?” She wiped drips from her mouth.
“Sure. That’s a great place to play.”
“Oh, yeah, this is big exposure for us. We’re all really jazzed about it. We’ll be there the next four Thursday nights. Of course, there’s not a lot of money in it, not when we split it four ways, but it’s still a great place to be heard. I hope you can come.”
“I’d love to. I have a dinner to go to that night, but I’ll definitely try to stop in and have a drink. Break a leg, huh?”
“Thanks. So Julia, is all this stuff creeping you out or what?”
“That’s a good way to put it.”
“You probably didn’t have to come in if you didn’t want to. I’m sure they’d understand if you didn’t want to stay.”
“It’s okay. Really. I said I would, and I’d like to keep on good terms with the firm for future temp jobs, you know?” Hopefully not. “What about you? Are you worried?”
“Me? No way.” Dani continued to munch on her sizeable lunch and then said, “Well, yes, I guess it is kind of scary, although I don’t really think anybody’s after me. I mean, why should they be?”
I scooped a glob of hummus with a tiny piece of bread and popped it into my mouth. “Tell me, what’s with Karen? She seemed really distant initially, and then, today, she’s overly friendly.”
“She’s weird, Julia. Don’t pay any attention to her.” I kept my mouth shut, hoping Dani would be motivated to gossip more. “She can’t possibly have a life. I mean, she’s the first one here in the morning. Even if I get here as early as eight, she’s already at her desk when I get in.” Dani took another huge bite of her falafel, liquid dripping onto her plate. “And did you see that bilious green sweater she has on today? No taste either. I swear, she wears that thing days on end. Maybe she never changes her clothes, but if she doesn’t wear something different soon, I’m gonna burn it.”
“I thought she was married … or married in the past?” I hoped I wasn’t giving away my perusal of the personnel files.
Dani shrugged. “She’s either divorced or her husband died, I can’t remember which, but she’s defini
tely an odd one. Never ever talks about anything personal and when you ask her a direct question, she smiles and her eyes kind of glaze over.”
“Maybe she’s just really private.”
Dani didn’t need much encouragement to warm to her subject. “I mean, she’s so weird, working for Jack didn’t even bother her. And he was a real bastard around the office.”
“She never complained about him to you?”
“No. And that is really weird, ’cause nobody could stand working for him. That’s why they hired her from outside. But, hey, if she doesn’t want to get personal with anyone, that’s fine with me. I don’t really care. I was just asking to be polite, you know? Probably goes home and talks to her cat for all I know.”
I wondered what Dani would have to say about my conversations with Wizard, if she only knew. Maybe I’d be relegated to the same category as Karen. “I have yet to meet Suzanne. Do you know where she is?”
“Home, I guess. In all the confusion yesterday, I forgot about her. She called in after we spoke this morning, said she was still sick. Plans on coming in tomorrow.”
“Does she live in the city?”
“Yeah, out in the Laurel Heights area, I think. She has a flat she shares with a roommate.”
“Did you tell her about Jack and what happened?”
“I started to, but she already knew. Somebody told her.”
“I wonder who?”
“Could’ve been anybody. She might have called Ira or Nora directly. She was doing some work for both of them.”
“I heard Jack had an ex-wife the police want to talk to.”
“I’m sure they do, and a girlfriend too.” Dani smirked through a mouthful of food.
“Oh? Really? So who’s the girlfriend?”
“Suzanne.”
I was stunned. “Whaaat? How do you know?”
“Had to be. She was always following him around, working on special projects over the weekend. Can you believe it? Now, man, I think that’s truly weird. The guy’s a putz. I cannot imagine any woman being attracted to him.”
Tail of the Dragon Page 7
