“Which is it? No or yes?”
“It’s not what it seems.” It just came out. I had no idea where to go with that. It was exactly what it seemed. A card with a small camera lens.
“It’s not what it seems? What is that supposed to mean? Look at this.” He was almost shouting now, as he leaned into the desk and rested his elbows on the surface.
I did. I stared at the smoke detector. It was preferable to staring at his face, which was covered with a deep scowl. His eyes were wide open, and I was glad the man was behind his desk and not in front of it. His hands were clenched tightly around the white detector.
“According to Mr. Wireman, your friend installed a-” he paused, looking into the section that housed the camera lens and card. I closed my eyes and held my hands at my side, fingernails digging into my palms. “Installed a piece of crap. A smoke detector that is barely functional, and you chose this one to install in my office. He tells me that it’s a very unorthodox piece of equipment. That no company should ever use something this bizarre and you chose this to install in my office?”
“Sir-”
“Moore, as I pointed out, we hired you for the quality and speed you could bring to this project. Right now I’d fire your ass. If you weren’t already into the project, I’d have you out on the street.” His eyes had narrowed and he was breathing heavily.
I should have been petrified, but all that was running through my head was the fact that he didn’t know it was a camera. Obviously he didn’t have a clue. Not the first hint that he held a camera and microphone in his hand. I wanted to jump up and down. I wanted to shake his hand and hug Andy Wireman. I kept my emotions under control.
“I’ve got a very important project that needs major security. I’ve got a timetable that is tighter than a rat’s ass. And I’m dealing with crap like this? It went off today, Moore. Screaming that intolerable shrill scream, and there wasn’t a fire. There was nothing. Do you hear me? Nothing.”
With that he threw the detector against the far wall. It hit with a thud and fell to the floor. Just like the coffee mug Sarah threw against the other wall.
“Mr. Moore, Mr. Wireman. Get this project under control. Get it done, and get the hell out of here. Do I make myself clear? Perfectly clear?”
“You do.” I shouted it. “I’ll see to it. Andy and I will get it done in record time, and there will be no more screw-ups.”
“Take that piece of crap with you.”
I looked up again. Not so much at the ceiling, but just up, thanking God. Silently thanking God, over and over and over. I picked up the two halves of the detector, nonetheless for the wear, and exited the room. I was dizzy with excitement and could feel the blood pounding in my head. He’d asked me to take it with me. The evidence. I was convinced I would be walking out in handcuffs. Instead, I had the evidence in my hand. I wasn’t sure things could get any better.
Wireman walked out and closed the door behind him. He gave me a sheepish look. “I’m sorry, Skip. When it went off, he blew up. I told him the truth, that it was an inferior piece of equipment, and he asked that we wire him a new one even though it was after hours. Of course, we did it. It was his idea to call you in tonight. I didn’t mean to get you in trouble. Honestly.”
“Andy, no problem.” I was elated. There were no problems in the world. “It was my mistake. Totally mine. I never, ever, should have put that detector in.”
“Just out of curiosity-”
“Yes?”
“Where did you get that? It’s got some things in it I have never seen. Some card, and a tiny glass-”
I interrupted. “The main thing is, Andy, I’m not going to install anything like that again without your approval. Got it?”
He looked at the detector in my hand. “The insides of that thing are strange, Skip. Do you mind if I take it home and study it?”
That didn’t sound like the plan I had in mind. “Andy, no more problems. Let’s just get this thing done, take our money, and go home. Is that okay with you?”
He smiled. “Got it.”
I walked through the building, out the door, into the parking lot, wanting to jump up high and kick my heels. Looking down at the smoke detector in my hand I saw the card, clipped tightly to the case. We could actually play it on the computer tonight and see and hear what happened today. We could listen to the recording from The Sound Max and analyze what Feng and Chen were talking about. I could get out the calculator and once again add up all the money that was mine once this project was completed. I could even dream about what I was going to spend that money on. I figured I’d better stop at Gas and Grocery and get a case of beer to celebrate.
It was going to be a glorious night. We were back in the spy business.
CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX
I called Em on the way home. I didn’t want to alarm her, but I thought she should know a little of what had transpired. After all, Carol Conroy seemed familiar with her and I was hoping to find out why.
“The smoke detector went off?”
“But no problem, Em. No one suspected a thing. It was amazing.”
“Skip, you could have been discovered. I mean, that’s a felony isn’t it?”
“I’m not a prosecutor, Em. Don’t know that much about the law. Anyway, it’s out of the office.”
“I’m glad you’re safe.”
I told her that James was passing along the transcript of the conversations Sandy Conroy had in his office. And I did mention that Carol Conroy asked if she was going to be at the apartment tonight.
“Carol Conroy knows about me?”
“Seemed to.”
“How?”
“It probably wouldn’t take much checking to see that you and I are seeing each other.”
“So, does she know that the Sarah relationship is a sham?”
“I don’t know. I was a little afraid to ask her.”
Em was quiet. I could hear her thinking. Really. When she thinks, you can hear those wheels spinning. “See what James has to say and call me back tonight. I want to get his take on it.”
“James?”
“That’s what I said.”
I about drove off the road. James and Em were starting to scare me. They both were seeking each other’s opinion. If I was a suspicious person, I’d almost wonder if they had something going on between them.
Pulling into the apartment complex, I parked next to James’s truck. The Chevy continued to cough and sputter even after I’d turned off the key and I wondered how much a tune-up would cost.
I opened the door and stepped inside. He was sitting on the sofa. “James. It’s all okay. Conroy had no idea that the smoke detector was a camera.” I laid the two halves of the malfunctioning smoke detector on the kitchen counter.
“Skip-”
“Hey, it went very well.” Turning to my roommate, I gave him thumbs up. “I mean, even Wireman had no idea. We skated on-” I heard the toilet flush in the bathroom and seconds later Carol Conroy walked out.
“You had a camera in his office?”
James looked at me and rolled his eyes.
“Hey, Mrs. Conroy. I didn’t realize you’d still be here.”
“Obviously.” She’d dressed down in jeans, jeweled sandals, and a frilly cotton top, but her attitude was still haughty and one of total control.
“So you got the transcript?”
“So you have pictures?” She shot back at me.
“Um, Mrs. Conroy asked if she could stick around till you got back. I didn’t see any problem, so I agreed.” James shrugged his shoulders.
“There was something you wanted to ask me?” I wanted to get off the camera conversation. My high had been brought back to earth in a hurry.
“A smoke detector that doubles as a camera? You’ve been holding out on me, Mr. Moore.” She looked right at me, standing there by the evidence.
“It… it malfunctioned. Doesn’t work properly. No film, just scratchy sound. That’s why I did the transcript.” The frown on her face told me she wasn’t buying it. Not 100 percent.