“Well here we are. This is where it all begins.”
“Does it always smell so bad?” she asked, wrinkling up her nose.
“That’s a good question. It’s not usually so pungent. Let me find out what the problem is.”Kane walked over to one of the machinists, nodded his head a few times and returned to the entrance.
“It seems that their having a problem with the ventilation. The exhaust fans are designed to function regardless of wind flow, but lately, whenever the wind comes out of the east, the air backs up and the suction cuts down. They have tried several engineering changes, but so far nothing has worked. We can do this another time if you prefer.”
She thought about it for a few minutes. Plant workers as far as she could see didn’t seem to be bothered too much by the smell. “I guess if the employees working here can stand it, I can too. I’m sure that coming in from the outside probably makes it seem worse than it really is. Let’s give it a shot.”
Half an hour later they were back in the conference room. It was 4:30. Marsha offered, “That pretty much does it for today. Let’s meet back meet here tomorrow morning at 8 a.m. to document the production and maintenance records for all the plants and break those out by season. I’ll have the Hampton Sportswear files delivered here.”
They left the Communications Center and headed toward the parking lot. Marcia started to slow down. Kane hadn’t noticed that she was falling behind until he heard her gasp. He spun around just in time to see her start to swoon. He reached out to grab her shoulders just as she was starting to collapse.
“Whoa! That was close.” Kane half carried/dragged her to a bench and propped her up. She looked at him with a blank stare.
“What happened?” he asked.
“I’m not really sure. Suddenly I felt faint. It must have been the chemicals finally getting to me.”
“Or possibly it was all the caffeine you’ve been sluggin’ down all day. Too much of that stuff and not enough water will dehydrate you. Especially being on your feet for so many hours.”
“Perhaps you’re right. I did drink a lot of them.” she said softly.
“Will you be all right while I go back into the Center for some bottled water? I saw a machine in the lobby. A few bottles and you should feel a lot better. It happened to me once when I was jogging. I fell flat on my face and split my lip open.”
“Yes, I’ll be fine. Thank you.”
Kane returned a few minutes with five bottles of spring water. He sat down next to her as she drank the water. Ten minutes and three bottles of water later, Marcia was feeling well enough to get up and resume the walk to the parking lot. “I don’t know what I would have done if you weren’t here. Nothing like that has ever happened to me before.”
“Well, I’m glad I was here. I’d be careful about consuming so much caffeine. Those energy drinks are loaded with it. They can sneak up on you. Try regular water when you’re going to have an active day. You’ll be a lot better off.”
“I’m sure you’re right and those fumes probably contributed too.”
“That’s true. Are you going to be okay to drive?”
“Yes. I’m feeling a lot better now. I’m sure I’ll be fine.”
“Here, take these two extra bottles of water. I’ll follow you back to Old Brooking, just in case.”
“You can if you want to, but I’m okay now.”
“I’ll see you in the morning, then. Try to get some sleep. Your body has had a mild shock. It needs rest.”
“I will. Thanks again, Kane.”
“You’re very welcome, Marcia.”
The use of first names went unnoticed by both.
Kane followed her car until she turned off the highway. Satisfied that her driving was not impaired by her brief bout with dehydration, he headed back to his hotel.
When she arrived home, Marcia headed for the shower. Before she finished undressing, her phone rang. She could see that it was Adam calling. I hope he doesn’t want to see me again. I’m not ready to turn him down, yet. I hope he will lose interest after I say no a few times. She picked up the phone on the third ring.
“Marcia, how is it going with that loser, Masterson?”
“Very well, Adam. Elegant is quite a prize, especially the Neo-Weaves line. It’s incredible. I got to handle a few garments. I’ve never seen anything like it. Tomorrow we’ll be going over the operating figures for both companies.”
“Yes, Neo-Weaves is an incredible innovation. I can’t wait to see your projections for the combined companies. I knew I put the right person in charge. Look, I was wondering if you would like to get together for a drink later.”
“Not tonight, Adam. I had a spate of dehydration about an hour ago. Probably too much caffeine and being on my feet for over seven hours. I’m completely exhausted. I need to get some rest. I have to be back in New Haven at 8 a.m. tomorrow to start reviewing the operating data. There’s a lot of work ahead .”
Marcia was glad she had a legitimate excuse to turn him down. She hated to lie and didn’t want to hurt his feelings; he couldn’t help being what he was.
“Well maybe later in the week. I’m anxious to see you again.”
“We’ll see how the schedule goes. There’s a lot to this merger. I want to give it my best shot. I may be able to get back to the office at the end of the week to give you an update. I’ll see you then.”
That wasn’t the kind of response that Adam expected He had an uncomfortable feeling during their conversation. Maybe I’m assuming too much. After all, how much do I really know about her. Maybe she’s seeing someone. Just because she gave into my charms a couple of times, doesn’t mean that I’m the only one in her life. A woman with a body like that must have dozens of men after her. I better not make too many assumptions. I need to find out more about Marsha Bloom. He picked up the phone again, this time to call a private detective he used occasionally.
“Chuck, this is Adam Hampton. How have you been?”
Chuck Meredith operated a private detective agency in New Haven. Adam used his services to spy on Lauren when she filed for the divorce. Unfortunately, at the time, Chuck didn’t find out anything; the affair with Luke Martin was missed at the time.
“Great, Mister Hampton. It’s been a while. What can I do for you?”
“I have a surveillance job for you. It’s on one of my vice-presidents. Her name is Marcia Bloom. I want to know where she goes and who she sees. She works at Bretton Trading and lives at the Sedgwick Arms Suites in the Breighton subdivision.”
“If you want pictures, I’ll assign one of my top operatives.”
“Only if they’re relevant. Much of her time is spent in the office, but she has an assignment that will require field work out your way. I’m mostly interested in how and where she spends her time. She’ll be working with a man who’s staying at the Belmonte. His name is Kane Masterson.” Adam hesitated for a moment and then added, “This may last a few months. I have something important going down and I just don’t want to be blindsided.”
“I understand perfectly. We’ll be set up by 6 a.m. tomorrow. How do you want me to report? Usually we take a few days to get the logs printed and pictures developed. Then I contact my client and turn over copies of whatever we’ve uncovered.”
“This is a very private matter, Chuck. Call me at home or on my cell. Unless something unusual happens, every couple of days will do. I’ll leave that up to you.”
“What do you consider unusual, Mister Hampton?”
“If she sees anyone at her residence, find out who it is, pictures and all. Let me know immediately.”
“I understand perfectly Thanks for the assignment, Mister Hampton. I’ll be back to you.”