Meg Berman, is with her now, and I'll make sure one of us stays with her at all times. But really, we don't have the extra time to work as monitors too."
" I completely understand. I'll make Mr. Collier aware of this as soon as possible and do what he suggests to remedy the situation. I know you have kids to pick up soon from school."
If she hadn 't known how efficient Timothy Oakes was, Kate would have been a little creeped out that he knew her schedule. But she did know and was grateful he was handling the situation and knew the time constraints. "Thanks so much, Timothy. I know Mr. Collier has to be as grateful for your loyalty as I am."
She heard a sound like a snort, then, "Yes, he says he'll sign whatever letter of recommendation I need before he leaves."
" You're leaving the company, too?"
" It's a standard corporate policy to let any supporting staff go when a chief executive leaves to take a position with a new company."
The Collier family had moved to Hazelton four years before when Blaine Collier left a Florida recreational company to head up Green Mountain Boards, an up-and-coming snowboarding business. He was a corporate wunderkind whose expertise made every business he touched a worldwide name. A month ago, Techno-Cal hired Collier to basically do the same to one of its subsidiaries, a company making small yachts and sail craft.
" For some reason I thought you were at Green Mountain Boards before Blaine Collier started working there."
" I was. Three years longer. Seven in all."
" And they're still letting you go?"
" It's company policy. I understood the risks when I accepted this position."
" Still…is Collier helping you find another position somewhere? Has he even asked if you want to go to the West Coast with him?"
" Mr. Collier is doing everything to meet his professional responsibilities in the matter."
In other words, Kate thought, he 's doing little more than saying "write a letter of recommendation for me to sign, and I'll sign it." She also recognized that Timothy's word choice was putting a halt to this conversation.
" I've had a few interviews scheduled," Timothy cut into her thoughts. "Don't worry—I'll land on my feet."
However, she wondered how many of the open positions were at the pay level he likely enjoyed as Collier 's assistant. She was willing to bet the young man would have to relocate out of the Hazelton area. She had no idea who might be able to overhear the conversation at his end and hoped their discussion and her questions hadn't compromised him in any way. "Well, I won't keep you, Timothy. Especially after I've given you something else to do. Thanks so much. And we'll work to maintain a close watch on our visitor. In the meantime, I would appreciate if you called in the cavalry some way, please."
The doorbell chimed again, and Kate ended her call. When she opened the door, a courier stood on the other side.
"This is for Sydney Collier." He held a large heavy duty envelope atop his delivery clipboard.
" She's not here right now."
" I only need a signature." He stuck the envelope under his arm and turned the notepad to face Kate. "Just sign here."
She grabbed the pen attached to the clipboard and signed her name in the space he pointed to, then accepted the envelope. As she closed the door, she noted the Boston address and realized it was probably paperwork for the summer Olympic-training program Sydney was looking forward to attending. Kate slipped it into the back of her project notebook to keep it safe until she could give it to the teen later in the afternoon.
Kate found the women in the media room, Meg standing guard duty at the door, arms crossed and eyes sharp. Erin paced the front of the room, counting the dark blue seats out loud, noting a wear spot in the carpet, and barking dimensions into her phone to the poor invisible Lee Ann.
" Anything suspicious?" Kate whispered, her head angled close to Meg's.
" Everything. Well, technically annoying instead of