She sped home running every stoplight, barely able to see the road through the blur of her tears. Once in the safety of her home the adrenaline vanished and shock took over. She headed straight to the shower, her shaking hands struggling to turn on the faucet. The warm jets of water helped her somewhat, but the shock lingered on.
Minutes later, curled up on her sofa, clasping an ice-cold glass of Martini Vermouth, she struggled to slow her heart rate and stop her tears. Flickering memories started to play with her weary brain.
"I don't need your money."
"Before I finish you off."
"A lesson for not minding your own business."
Her tears stopped falling. This had not been a random attack. "You bastards," she said out loud, breaking the midnight silence of her quiet home. "I don't know when and how, but I will get you for this!"
…74
"Recent developments have placed NanoLance, the San Diego-based corporation and well-known defense contractor, into the media spotlight. A series of incidents, resulting in significant loss of lives here and abroad in combat zones, incidents involving NanoLance manufactured drones, have led the markets to shy away from the company's stock and the public to ask some pointed questions regarding the operational safety of these drones.
"Until recently, the quality of NanoLance's products, for military use and for the consumer market, was enjoying an undisputed reputation for best in class, endless reliability, and unparalleled operational safety. Well, not anymore. Through the voices of a heartbroken public, still mourning the twenty lives lost in Florida last month, concern is being expressed toward the company's ability to regain control over the safety of its products.
"Some voices say that Dr. Barnaby, founder and majority shareholder of NanoLance, is now too old to be able to exercise the needed control over his company. NanoLance needs to take immediate and decisive action to prevent further losses of lives at the mercy of dangerous products.
"Unspecified sources have leaked news of a potential transfer of control, scheduled to take place at the end of this year, when, sources say, Dr. Barnaby will sell the majority of his shares and retire. The same unidentified sources are talking about a potential congressional hearing, scheduled to investigate the defense contractor status of NanoLance and any wrongdoing related to the Florida drone incident.
"However, the US Air Force has not yet released its full report about the Kandahar incident in April, and the Florida incident in June. While a spokesperson with the military was quick to confirm the fact that NanoLance had manufactured both drones, no other findings were released to the public in these two cases. In a third case, the Afghanistan incident last week, no confirmation has been issued about the allegation that a UAV was behind the thirty-six dead and six injured. Therefore, we have no confirmation of a link to NanoLance in this case. Yet.
"NanoLance stock, traded on NASDAQ since 1998 under the symbol NNLC, closed yesterday at $73.28 per share, a 50 percent drop since it started its decline in April of this year.
"Here, from our news studio, we are monitoring the situation and will come back with details as they unfold. You are watching News of the Hour with Stephanie Wainwright."
…75
Tom's hand was squeezing the TV remote, holding his breath, waiting for the massacre to be over.
"You are watching News of the Hour with Stephanie Wainwright."
Finally, her irritating face disappeared from the TV screen. Nothing else was left to say to further harm NanoLance. For the first time since he had taken this case, Tom was having doubts that he and his team were going to be able to bring the case to a successful conclusion and restore this company's reputation.
The phone's loud ringing brought him back to reality. The LCD display read "Barnaby cell." He picked it up without delay.
"Dr. Barnaby," he said, sounding surer of himself than he felt.
"Have you seen it?" Dr. Barnaby's voice was trembling, breaking up.
"Yes, I have. It is a worrisome—"
"Isn't it enough? How much more time do you need to find out who's doing this to me?"
"We have some information, but not all we need. We're only asking for twenty-four hours more, that's it," Tom pleaded, holding his head down. He wished he could have something more encouraging to say to his client, something to help him regain the confidence he had lost. There was nothing more to say. Results were needed badly, plus a miracle.
"Twenty-four hours could be all that this company has left. What do you think the markets are going to do today? We need to issue a statement today, not tomorrow. A statement naming names, not just dancing around the facts, like we have done lately."
"Dr. Barnaby, I promise you'll have significant findings by this time tomorrow. Please come by my office in the morning, so we can discuss the next steps and containment actions."
"You are my last hope on this Earth; you know that, don't you?" Barnaby said, in a quiet, defeated voice. "Please don't let me down."
"I won't. We won't, I promise," Tom said, grasping at straws of hope that he would be able to keep his word.
…76
The first email Alex saw when she opened her work laptop was from Angela Prescott, addressing the entire staff. She had to read it twice.
From: Angela Prescott (VP HR)
To: All Staff (HQ, MFG)
Subject: Announcement
Sent: Thursday, July 15, 7:42AM
We are deeply saddened to announce the untimely death of Janet Templeton, director of manufacturing quality at our Alpine plant. As she was driving home late last night, Janet was killed instantly when her car smashed into a guardrail. Early findings indicate that she might have been intoxicated, contributing to her inability to steer and maintain the car on the road while approaching a tight curve.
Janet leaves behind an aging, ill mother. We will deeply miss Janet, who was a valued contributor to the organization, and a good friend to many of us. Please keep Janet's family in your thoughts.
Visitation and funeral details will follow.
The leadership team has opened an account to help raise funds, to assist her family deal with this tragedy. Please contact HR for details about making a donation.
Thank you
Angela Prescott,
Vice President, Human Resources
NanoLance Inc.
At first, Alex could not comprehend the fact that Janet was gone. Then, she struggled processing the poor taste of a companywide death announcement naming the victim a drunk driver. Afterward, she felt a wave of sadness come over her. Janet was young and full of life — wanted a beautiful Rottweiler puppy — was afraid — was afraid to be seen talking with Alex. Why?
Alex tried focusing on other emails, but a rebel thought, a faint memory, stuck somewhere at the edge of her brain, kept bugging her. After a while, the fog lifted and she remembered.