Chapter 59
Berrien walked me through the building, which was already half-empty as the working day drew to its close.
“You’re sure he’ll still be here?” I asked.
“He never leaves before six. As far as appearances go, he’s a model employee. Also, I think he prefers the office to home. The scuttlebutt is that his wife hates him, which puts her in good company, even if the rest of us had the common sense not to marry him.”
I told Berrien I’d reconsidered, and she didn’t have to come with me if she’d prefer not to, in case it caused problems for her later.
“I’m happy to come,” she said. “I want to see his face when I tell him who you are and what you do. All set?”
I felt a little bad for her. She wanted me to ruin a man I’d never met on the basis of suspicion and personal antagonism, and I’d probably have to disappoint her. She knocked on a closed door and was already opening it before a voice inside had finished saying “Come in.”
“Sorry for disturbing you,” said Berrien, with what might have passed for sincerity if someone had never encountered actual sincerity. “Let me introduce you to someone. This is Mr Parker. He’s a private investigator. He’d like to talk to you about the Spero School.”
She turned to me and grinned.
“Mr Parker, this is Roger Teal.”