Chapter 22
CHAPTER 22
A s Duncan concluded the meeting, he instructed everyone on how to respond if people in the office talked about Ryan. News hadn’t spread yet, but it would.
He wanted all upper-level management to keep a cool head and remind everyone that safety protocols were in place. Everyone at the company should be secure. He wanted leadership to remind employees that both Beau’s and Ryan’s deaths had been isolated incidents.
But were they?
Part of Olive didn’t feel comfortable telling people that. The truth was, they should all be on guard and keep their eyes open for any suspicious activity.
As soon as the meeting ended, Jason leaned toward Olive. “You and I need to talk.”
She nodded in agreement. Even though part of her didn’t want to trust Jason—especially not after seeing that video—another part of her couldn’t believe he’d killed Beau.
Still, she’d need to remain cautious in any interactions with him. It was only smart.
“Meet me in the copy room,” he whispered.
She spoke with Duncan for a moment.
As soon as she could, she slipped away to meet Jason.
As she stepped into the small copy room, the scent of toner, dust particles, and ozone hit her, along with a blast of warmth from the machines.
Then she saw Jason standing against the wall, his strong arms folded over his broad chest.
Her heart leapt into her throat.
She didn’t want to have this reaction to him.
But even after all these years, something about him made her come alive. She wanted nothing more than to lean closer. To soak in the scent of his cologne. To touch his cheek where the shadow of a beard had begun to appear.
His gaze locked on hers and warning etched his voice as he said, “You need to be careful.”
Olive crossed her arms, determined to put space between herself and Jason. “You don’t think Ryan committed suicide either, do you?”
“No, I don’t. I didn’t care for Ryan. I thought he was arrogant and cocky. But I also don’t see him as the type to panic like this. He was more the type who would try everything within his power to cover up something.”
“I agree.” Or are you saying this because you don’t want people to know you went down that corridor? That you were traveling overseas to meet with someone under the guise of vacationing with your brother?
Olive had so many thoughts.
She cleared her throat before asking, “Do you think someone here at the company did this?”
“If you’re asking if I think the real person who killed Beau also killed Ryan to take attention off themselves, then the answer is yes.”
Something about knowing she and Jason were on the same page brought her an unusual level of comfort. “I think we’ve already established that someone working for Conglomerate killed Beau. No one else had access to that area.”
“We have. Plus, as we already know, it would have to be someone who knew the ins and outs of our security system and how to alter that security footage in order to conceal their presence.”
“He—I’m assuming the killer is a man since most are—would need to be intimately aware of the people working here in order to target Ryan or suspect that he knew more than he should.”
“This killer would’ve also needed to know when the records clerk took breaks so he could get by him.” Jason paused and glanced at Olive. “Then again, I suppose you know that information already, and you haven’t even worked here that long.”
She shrugged off the accusation in his voice. “I just happened to wander into the area at the wrong time.”
He nodded, but something in his gaze made Olive wonder if he still suspected her.
It was impossible to say. But the thought bothered her.
Part of her wanted to confront Jason. To ask him the questions on her mind. To see how he explained that footage.
But then he’d only ask more questions about how she’d obtained the security video.
It wasn’t the right time yet.
Instead, she asked, “Do you have any suspects in mind?”
He pressed his lips together as if contemplating his answer before saying, “There’s something about Bennett that bugs me.”
“Me too. The man has shifty eyes.”
“And he’s been doing a lot of traveling out of the country lately. It’s made me wonder why. Best I can tell, he never took these international trips until a few months ago.”
“That is curious.” She stored that fact away.
Voices sounded outside in the hallway, and she and Jason froze. How would they explain their meeting if someone walked in on them?
She wasn’t sure.
She held her breath as her mind raced.
A moment later, the voices faded. Whoever had been coming was gone. They hadn’t stepped into the copy room.
She released the air from her lungs.
Her gaze wandered back to Jason. “So are you and your team going to look into Bennett?”
“Yes, we will be.” His answer came without any hesitation. Then he glanced at his watch. “I have to get downstairs and meet with the police in a minute. They want to ask me some questions about Ryan as well as other employees here.”
“Then I guess you need to go.”
“I do. But . . .” He rubbed the back of his neck.
That was one of his nervous gestures. Olive remembered it from all those years ago. It was the first time she’d seen him do that since reuniting.
He locked his gaze with hers. “Ollie, I need you to be careful. Promise me you will.”
The concern in his voice made her throat clog. It had been a long time since someone had worried about her. She didn’t think she’d be as touched as she was, but her heart stammered in her chest right now.
“I’ll be careful. But you be careful too.” She held out her pinky. “Promise?”
He stared at her crooked finger in front of him before a grin spread across his face.
She hadn’t meant to revert back to their earlier shtick, the one they’d engaged in when they’d known each other all those years ago.
Pinky promises had been life.
They’d even made a pinky promise that they’d always be together.
He finally looped his pinky through hers. “Promise.”
Memories flooded her—memories she’d rather forget.
Because they were memories of one of the few times in life she could actually say she was happy.
Olive slipped out of the copy room first.
She casually glanced around, making sure no one was watching.
They weren’t.
Then she headed back to her office.
She needed a moment alone. A moment for her cheeks to cool off. For her thoughts to stop racing.
As soon as she got back to her office, she closed the door and leaned against it.
Calm down, Olive. She practiced breathing in and out, trying to calm her racing heart and thoughts.
Her reaction wasn’t fear.
No, it was attraction.
She couldn’t let Jason have this effect on her. It was ridiculous. She prided herself on being able to keep her distance. Yet here she was after one accidental meeting, and suddenly she was reeling back in time.
Olive had to do better.
She barely had time to get control of her racing thoughts when Tevin called. Except when he came up on her phone, he was listed as Gary Shakur, her building manager.
“Hey,” she said quietly. “What’s going on?”
“Checking on you. Anything new?”
“Did you hear about Ryan?”
“Ryan Jones? No. What about him?”
She updated him on the situation, and Tevin let out a low whistle. “The plot thickens.”
She let out a clipped breath of air. “Yes, it does.”
“I’ll see if I can find out anything else about that for you.”
“That sounds good,” Olive said. “In the meantime, I’ll continue to keep my eye on Bennett. I need to find out where he was yesterday when Ryan died. We have a basic time when we think it may have happened. Do you think you could trace his cell phone?”
“I can definitely try. Can you send me the number?”
“I’ll do that as soon as we’re off the phone.”
“Got it,” Tevin said. “I’ll jump right on that then. In the meantime, be careful.”
People said that a lot lately, and Olive understood their reasoning.
This whole situation was off the charts.