The next day, I take the car to work. We’re in the southwest this time, dealing with a flooded house. Now that I know how Kevin operates, I wonder if he’s the one behind the flooding. When Kevin’s finished dividing up the tasks, the rest of the crew goes to their jobs, but I hang back.
“I want to talk to you,” I tell him.
His mouth lifts into a half smile. “Unless it’s to tell me you’re on board, I have work to do.”
“I want to meet with you and Mary.” My hands are sweating, and I hear the tremor in my voice.
This gets me a smirk from him. “Why?”
“I want to make sure my butt’s covered in all of this.”
“I told you—”
“Yeah, and I’m telling you, I want the meeting.”
He steps in. The smile’s still on his face, but his eyes are hard.
The sun’s bright and behind him, and I have to squint to maintain eye contact.
“Remember who you’re talking to, boy. I can get you reported.”
“Maybe.” I swallow. “But I’m the one who can raise a stink. And sure, it’s your word against mine. And yeah, maybe you and Mary have been smart about hiding the evidence, but whispers can destroy a company. When no one wants to hire you ’cause they’re not sure if you’re a good guy or a bad guy, what’s that going to do to your bottom line?”
The smile vanishes. “Fine. In a couple days—”
“Today. After work. I want this over and done with.”
He stares me down for what feels like forever. “After work.” He bites out the words.
I hold my breath as he turns away, and I don’t let it go until he’s out of sight.
At the end of the day, Kevin comes up. “Let’s go.”
“I’ve got my car.”
He shrugs. “Suit yourself.”
I follow him to Mary’s office and park as far as I can from him while still keeping him in view. Kevin gets out, crosses the lot and starts for the main doors. I give him a few seconds to get ahead of me, then follow. The sidewalk’s mostly quiet. A few walkers, some skateboarders.
As he gets closer, one of the skateboarders starts doing tricks. His buddy pulls out a camera and starts filming, and the first part of Sammy’s plan goes into effect.