Chapter Five

Richard approached the desk with confidence. “Good morning.” The receptionist was a young girl who had trouble giving this handsome man her full attention. Half choking on her coffee she replied, “What can I do for you today?”

“I know this is not the correct protocol but I was in the area and thought that I might drop off my resume. The position for inventory controller is still available, isn’t it?”

“Actually you came just in time. Mr. Forth is in the office today. He is here to look over the applications and you might have a chance to see him. I’ll call him. It’s worth a try, right?”

“Thank you. And what is your name? You have been very kind.” Richard sensed that she was much more interested in looking into his eyes rather than performing her daily duties. He had that effect on women and hopefully this flirtation would continue. She did not have the slightest idea that he was only interested in men. As long as he got what he wanted he would play the part.

“Oh, you can call me Jess. My name is Jessica. I’ll ring Mr. Forth for you,” she said visibly turning a brighter shade of rose. But before she could press the number, Forth came into the reception area looking for coffee. As luck would have it his full attention was directed toward Richard. And as luck would have it, Gerald Forth was interested in men.

* * * *

The moment that I entered our apartment; I knew something was up. Richard was as anxious as a schoolboy wanting to show his parents a good report card. This was what I loved about him, his exuberance for life. He was a great person and at times, especially now, I felt I did not deserve him. The last few days having to deal with David was all consuming and it made me appreciate Richard that much more. I knew today; I would have to come clean. I could only hope for his forgiveness.

“Adam, you will never guess what happened!”

“No, but I am sure you will tell me!”

“They hired me; Invor hired me.”

“Shut up… are you serious? You have no experience in the field. You mean they actually hired you as an inventory controller?”

“Well sort of. They offered me assistant inventory controller. Still good though! I’m in. So Mr. Smart Ass, I have completed my first assignment… getting hired.”

I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. My first instinct was to pull out. I wanted to tell Richard not to take the job. I never thought that he would get it. Now it was real. We were playing for keeps.

“What’s wrong? I thought that you would be ecstatic about my news. You seem as if you have been hit by a truck. It’s what you wanted, isn’t it?”

“Of course it is. I am in shock that they would hire you. I guess they really want to train you from scratch. When do you start?”

“Monday.”

“But it’s Wednesday. That is less than a week away! We need to get organized. We can’t mess up here. Gritty’s future is at stake and so is my reputation. Richard, we have to really talk. I have a lot to tell you and I don’t know if you will understand.”

“Of course, anything you tell me, I will understand.”

“I’m not so sure.”

We moved into the den and I poured drinks. I was trying to remain cool and the act of preparing beverages was only delaying the matters at hand. Richard looked at me with concern as I finally sat down beside him.

“You do realize that before I met you, I had a life much different than I am presently living. I was not always proud of it but because I owed no one an explanation, it was very different from the way I am now.”

“Adam, I don’t care about your life before us. It doesn’t matter; let’s plan for Monday.”

“No before that, I must tell you. It might be relevant to the case.” With that said Richard changed his composure and listened attentively.

I explained it all. I came clean and Richard was free from expression. “Well, say something! Anything!”

He took a long time before answering. “Did you sleep with him while you were with me?”

“No. I left before that. I actually ran. I had such strong feelings for you that I wanted out of the relationship as soon as possible. I know it was not fair to David but I did it anyway.”

“Well the only thing we have to worry about is if he has copies of those contracts someplace.”

“What? You’re not mad and disgusted with me? I was a con artist. I hated myself for that!”

“It’s over with, right? Adam, you are my husband. That all took place before us. If you had cheated on me, well that would have been different; you did not cheat! I don’t understand why you never mentioned Lexus to me. She sounds amazing. Will I be able to meet her? What’s her last name?”

“Of course… it is inevitable with this pending case. I have to tell you that she is really something and I am sure she will love you. Her last name is Turner.”

I could not help but marvel in the way Richard handled the new set of events. I don’t know if I could have been that forgiving. There was a small part of me that knew Richard wanted to work on the case more than anything, therefore, perhaps the trade-off was more enticing than my slanderous past. I would not mention it again and hopefully it would not surface again.

* * * *

I knew the moment that they laid eyes on one another; it would be instant admiration. Lexus went into her flirtatious schoolgirl mode and Richard, his knight in shining armor. I gave them the time needed to get to know one another. Once they realized there was a third party in the room, they sheepishly included me. And if matters weren’t complex enough, in sauntered Gritty. We were a unique foursome but for some strange reason I could see us all getting along. Lexus believed that a great cup of tea solved all the problems in the world. So, befitting to her, she steeped some and served the best scones that I have ever tasted. And as if she read my thoughts, she placed a bowl of her homemade preservatives to tantalize and delight our palates.

“Gritty, I am going to get straight to the point. Richard is my husband. If you have any problems with that, we won’t be working on your case. I truly feel with the immediate people sitting around this table, we have a great chance to exonerate you.”

He jumped to attention. “What? You think that I am a gay hater! I don’t give a shit who you are with. Man, I live on the streets: I have seen everything. Don’t assume my position.”

Unfortunately, I did assume his position. I could tell the way that he looked at me. We were brothers in every sense of the word. He might as well come out of the closet.

“I am sorry. Richard will be starting work at Invor on Monday. It was a long shot but somehow he got in. There is no stopping us now. He can find out information and pass it along to us. I have yet to understand how he got hired but he did.”

“Shit, you what?” Gritty yelled. “That is the most ridiculous thing that I’ve heard of. These people have no scruples. They will eat you up and spit you out. We are not playing a game of monopoly here. They killed my wife. Lives are at stake and Richard’s could be next.”

Richard looked in his direction and said, “They must have thought that I could do the job or they would not have hired me.”

“Do you mind me asking who hired you?”

“Not at all; it was a Mr. Forth. He was eager to meet me and I was hired on the spot.”

It took a while for him to answer as if he were putting a lot of thought into it. “I’m not surprised.”

“Why?” I asked.

“I hate to burst your bubble, but Mr. Forth loves your type, if you know what I mean.”

“He’s gay!”

“Take it from me.”

“I have to ask. Did you and Mr. Forth have any relationships outside of the office?”

“Yes, he was my lover, only at the beginning though.”

“What happened when all this occurred? Did he come to your defence?”

“No. He threatened that if I told anyone about us; he would tell my wife. I loved my wife but lusted men. She would have been devastated if she knew the truth about me. I let him go with the threat of disclosure. Forth joined forces with the opposition and my life changed and the never-ending maze of corruption led me to my present situation. His job was at stake and I was the bargaining tool. We never talked after that. I was hurt beyond reason. I started to act irrationally and because Invor did not know the real reason for all of it, they thought that I was crazy. I was only playing out the jilted lover role.”

“You are telling me that you never had contact again?”

“Yes, that’s right. That’s what I am telling you.”

I knew that he was lying but I did not know why.

Richard and I said our goodbyes and agreed to meet up with Gritty when we had something more definite to discuss. Lexus was busying herself for the lunch crowd. We blew kisses and were on our way.

After we walked a couple of blocks, we looked at each other with scepticism.

“Adam, I am not a private investigator but I can rest assured that our Mr. Forth is behind a lot of this.”

“He was a lover and perhaps frightened that he would be found out. I hate to say this Richard but you will have to not only do some heavy detective work but also try to make this Gerald Forth fall for you. If you can do that and have no physical contact, the information that you might attain will be of dire value to this case.” I could see the concern in Richard’s eyes, not only concern but fear.

“And Adam, did you notice the way Lexus and Gritty interacted with one another? Are you sure they haven’t met before?”

“What are you saying? That they know each other!”

“It’s just that they seem extremely comfortable in one another’s company. That’s all! They were exchanging knowing looks back and forth.”

“I don’t see how they would know each other but on second thought, he did live around the corner from her. No, she would have told me; at least I think she would have.”

“We must always be on guard. Trust no one!”

“Richard, you are definitely sounding like a true detective. You might have something there but I would only hope that Lexus’ loyalties are to me. I don’t trust Gritty though. He is lying. I know a liar when I see one. The only question is, what is in it for him? All people have alternative motives for everything they do, whether good or bad. If I catch him in any sort of double crossing … I will drop him and his case immediately.”

“Time will tell.”