But she couldn’t think of a graceful reply either. The fact that Stefania took pleasure in picking on her was maddening. Instead of answering, Hailey ignored her and retrieved the needed items from her own desk. After a brief stop in the break room for a desperately needed cup of coffee, she headed for the conference room.
About an hour later, Gleason poked his head inside. Seeing she was in between calls, he entered and closed the door. “How’s it going?” He slipped into the seat across from her and set a laptop and a heavy cardboard box on the table.
“I only have one client left to call. The others have been ... upset. But I think I managed to pacify them for now.” She took a sip of her cold coffee. A bigger accounting firm might have sent out letters informing their clients of the breach, but part of Pendleton Accounting’s draw was the personal attention given to each client. That included calling them directly with information of this sort. Hailey didn’t usually mind, but it made this particular situation much more stressful than it had to be. “What about you? Were you able to get through to Eukaria?”
He grimaced. “They’re less than pleased. The chief financial officer is demanding an in-person meeting with us both. He’s flying in from Maryland on Wednesday. I’ll give you more details when I have them.”
“Oh joy.” She couldn’t blame the CFO though. Eukaria was more than their biggest client. It was one of the most lucrative private investment firms on this side of the country. How they’d come to work with Pendleton Accounting instead of a more prestigious accounting firm in a major city still baffled her. Perhaps the CEO or one of the board members had connections in Kincaid. But that was none of her business.
“Yes,joyis the first word that popped into my mind too. And just so you have a heads-up, he was also none too pleased to discover Frank is gone and you’ve taken over Eukaria’s accounts.”
“He wasn’t informed?” She gaped at him.
“Hewasinformed. As soon as we determined what to do with their accounts, we tried to call him but were unable to get through, so we sent an official notification by mail. He apparently hadn’t bothered to read it yet. That’s on him, not us. But don’t worry, I have every confidence you’ll win him over. Your work is exceptional.”
“I appreciate that.” She glanced at the items he’d brought in. “What’s in the box?”
“Some of Frank’s files. His wife—well, ex-wife—dropped it offthis morning. Said she was in town to clean out his house and found it buried in a guest room closet.”
“Work files?” Hailey’s interest piqued.
“Yep. I haven’t had time to do more than glance inside, but they seem to be related to Eukaria’s accounts, so I’m passing them on to you.”
“Why did he have them at his house?” That seemed like a privacy breach ready to happen. Frank had been living alone since his wife left him though, so maybe it wasn’t quite as risky as it seemed.
Gleason shrugged, but his expression was grim. “You know Frank was a workaholic. It would have surprised me more to discover he hadn’t been taking work home with him. Why they were in a closet, I have no idea.”
It was curious for sure, but considering Frank’s dedication to work and his other eccentricities, Hailey probably shouldn’t waste too much time trying to figure out his reasoning. She was interested in going through those files though. Maybe they’d shed some light on the problems she was having with the investment firm’s accounts.
“I’m sure you’ll have fun with them,” Gleason said dryly. He pushed both items to her side of the table. “The laptop’s for you too. I know your most up-to-date files are on your desktop computer, but if there’s anything you can pull from your email or from the cloud, you can use this to get some work done—after you finish your calls, of course. Hopefully we can get your computer analyzed and back to you soon. Or at least copy your files from it so you have them.”
“I would appreciate that. Has anyone else reported any issues this morning?”
“No. From the details security gave me, the intruders weren’t inside long, and they hit several businesses during the time they had. It’s very possible that your computer was the only one compromised.”
“I don’t think I like being the chosen one.” She didn’t like it at all. “And why my computer? My cubicle is nowhere near the door, so it’s not like it was the most convenient option.”
He returned her frown. “I thought of that. There must have been a reason for them to single you out. But the only one I can think of is if they were looking for information on your specific clients, which would require them knowing which clients are yours.” He eyed her. “Is there anyone you’ve shared that information with?”
“No one outside of Pendleton Accounting. I take confidentiality seriously.” She tried not to take offense at the question. She knew he wasn’t accusing her. But his line of thought made sense. Could one of the other CPAs have let it slip to a friend or family member? Her thoughts immediately went to Stefania. It wouldn’t be a reach to assume she’d complained to someone about not getting the Eukaria accounts. But she couldn’t accuse the woman, not without any evidence to back her up.
As if he’d seen the way her mind was tracking, Gleason shook his head. “No guarantee the leak even came from us. It could be that one of your clients has a big mouth. It’s also entirely possible that my theory is wrong. The intruders could have done a quick search of the room and then randomly chosen your computer because it was at the last desk they searched.”
Hailey knew he was right. The fact was, they knew very little about the incident or the motive behind it. But with everything going on lately, she had a feeling this hadn’t been random at all. She couldn’t prove it, but after this weekend she could no longer pretend there wasn’t a target on her back. Someone was trying to get rid of her.
14
“That’s not necessary.”Peter paced his small kitchen, phone to his ear as he argued with his boss. “I’m perfectly fine.”
“Glad to hear it. You’re still taking the next two days off and working half days the rest of the week,” Andre said. “You can argue about it and waste both our time, or you can just accept my decision and enjoy your short vacation.”
“Holiday,” he muttered.
“I don’t care what you call it.” Andre sounded amused by his uncharacteristic correction. “What I do care about is that you don’t show up for work until Thursday evening. We’ve got things covered, so rest, enjoy yourself, and stop trying to pretend you don’t still have a headache.”
He almost disputed that last point, but Andre wasn’t wrong. “Fine. I’ll be in Thursday. If you need me before then, just call.”
“We won’t. Take care of yourself.” Andre ended the call.
