Page 90 - Labelle Gramercy, On the Case

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People like Kates nevertheless occasionally complained about the air,
and the company was careful to stay within government standards,
even bringing in consultants to test for known pollutants. The
simplest thing would be to force out the stale air twenty-four hours a
day and heat or cool a constant stream of replacement air from the
outside. Simple: but way beyond the budget of any corporation
handing out generous bonuses to its executives.
Maybe someone highly sensitive to chemicals could be sent over
the edge by a strong dose of carbon tetrachloride. But the odor was
not even noticeable until you entered the closet, and Kates could not
have done that, even had he so desired, without a key. And even then
he would have been able to run away from it—unless the air
conditioning system and the elevators had both stopped working,
leaving him trapped in an atmosphere he could not tolerate. I had to
admit the coincidences were multiplying too fast to be rabbits kept in
separate cages. That admission, however, had to be private. I was
there to protect the company’s interests, not promote Labelle
Gramercy’s career. She had found what might, in a court of law, by a
flamboyant prosecutor, be termed a smoking gun. I was not even a
juror in that hypothetical case; if I had any role at all, it would be as
an adviser to the defense, brought to the witness stand to tone down
hints of scandal destroying the value of my employer’s stock. I simply
looked at Labelle and shrugged. Her move.
Instead of leaving immediately, she took advantage of our
temporary isolation to hold a little impromptu conference à deux. It
now seemed like a very small broom closet.
“This changes the nature of my investigation, as you can see for
yourself, Mr. Taper. You may refuse to participate further without
presence of counsel, or you may continue. Which will it be?”
I knew this could be, in retrospect, a disastrous career move; but it
was time to be decisive. “I’m as determined as you are to wrap this
up,” I said, unclenching my teeth. “I don’t see how anyone could
have caused Kates to die from his own illness, but you have to follow
procedures. So I will accompany you as agreed.” And concentrate on
saving my skin, I added subvocally.
“Fine. Let’s go.”

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