Chapter 4 - THE COMPLAINT HE FILED AGAINST HIS OWN WIFE
Patricia asked me to wait outside while she spoke with Kyle and Sophia separately.
I sat in the hallway, looking at a framed photograph of North Harbor's founding team.
Eleven people stood in front of a warehouse.
The company's founder, Margaret Voss, was in the center.
She had once told me that a good compliance employee was like a smoke detector.
Nobody appreciated one until something caught fire.
At the time, I thought she was joking.
Now I wasn't sure.
Twenty minutes later, Patricia invited me back.
Kyle and Sophia were gone.
“Mrs. Bennett,” she said, “we're going to review this matter independently.”
“Thank you.”
“You won't be disciplined based solely on this allegation.”
I nodded.
“I appreciate that.”
She hesitated.
“There is one thing I need to ask.”
“Go ahead.”
“Have you ever noticed irregularities in Mr. Bennett's expense reporting?”
I felt my heartbeat change.
Meredith's warning echoed in my mind.
Protect your professional integrity.
“I don't audit Kyle's expenses,” I said. “And I haven't accessed his employee records.”
Patricia nodded.
“That's appropriate.”
“Why do you ask?”
She exchanged a glance with the legal representative.
“We have a separate review underway.”
I didn't press.
But when I returned to my desk, I remembered the hotel charges on our personal credit card.
And the strange transfers from our joint account.
The marriage and the workplace were beginning to overlap in ways I didn't like.
At lunch, Clara met me outside.
She worked in North Harbor's procurement department and had known me since college.
We sat at a café across the street.
“How bad was it?” she asked.
“Kyle filed an HR complaint.”
Her eyes widened.
“Against you?”
I nodded.
“Sophia says I made her feel unsafe.”
Clara stared at me.
Then slowly put down her sandwich.
“That's unbelievable.”
“Apparently not.”
She leaned forward.
“Eleanor, there's something else.”
I looked at her.
“What?”
“The presentation Kyle got promoted for.”
“What about it?”
Clara lowered her voice.
“The campaign numbers were unusually high.”
“How high?”
“The projected return was almost double what the original analysis showed.”
I frowned.
“Forecasts change.”
“I know. But the vendor commitments didn't.”
She took a breath.
“Someone in procurement asked for backup documentation last week. Kyle told them the files were confidential.”
I looked at her carefully.
“Clara, don't send me anything you're not authorized to share.”
“I won't.”
She nodded.
“I just thought you should know.”
I stared through the café window.
Kyle had built his promotion on a presentation Sophia supposedly carried.
A presentation that had made him look indispensable.
A presentation whose numbers might not be real.
I thought about the cake.
The photograph.
The heart reaction.
Kyle hadn't simply wanted to celebrate his success with Sophia.
He had wanted the whole company to see them as the people responsible for it.
May you like
And suddenly, I wondered whether that was because they had built something together.
Or because they were both afraid of what would happen if someone looked too closely.
