Page 54 of Statler

“William Flazer is…in charge of everything, not just the factory, but most of the town,” she told him. “The majority of his employees, myself included, either tell him what he wants to hear to keep the peace, or are terrified of him and try to stay off his radar.” She didn’t have to think hard to come up with those who were the exception. “The small group that doesn’t seem intimidated by him are the people he trusts with his special jobs.”

“Special jobs?” Statler asked, packing up their tackle box after they’d walked back to the truck, while Eliza secured their rods in the bed.

“Yeah. He has a select few men he trusts, probably around a dozen. They’re in charge of the government projects we do that require a higher clearance than normal.”

“Oh,” Statler replied, looking at her curiously. “I thought the factory turned out military avionics. I didn’t know anything was top secret,” he mused.

Eliza shrugged. She knew quite a bit more than what she’d just told Statler, but she wasn’t about to do a tell-all. In the months before he died, Holden had been made a part of that “special projects” team, and even though it had set off every alarm bell in Eliza’s head, she’d kept her mouth shut.

Still, she tried to be as forthcoming as possible.

“Apparently whatever they do, it’s pretty important to our government. But I’m not approved to know what that special division does, so I can’t tell you much more.”

“Where do they operate? This additional work force?” he asked.

That, at least, Eliza could pass on.

“You may not have noticed, but there’s a windowless wall at the far end of the factory floor. Behind it, there’s a concrete room that was erected several years ago. I only know that because I saw it going in. It’s super secure, reinforced with steel and soundproofing from what I could see. It also has its own door, and you need a code to get in. But only Mr. Flazer and those select few men I mentioned, have access.”

“Wow. That’s pretty cool,” Statler marveled. “Top secret government stuff going on right here. Like out of a spy movie.”

Eliza laughed uncomfortably. “Nothing quite that exciting, I’m sure. But it does seem to account for a lot of revenue.”

That last bit was one of the things that had fomented Eliza’s quiet investigation. The amount of money she saw coming in—generated by that high clearance area of the building—wasn’t just a lot of revenue, it was an exorbitant sum each month.

It had never seemed quite right to Eliza.

She’d always had a lot of questions around the paperwork she handled, but when she’d spoken her concerns to Holden, he’d told her to keep her nose out of things that didn’t concern her if she didn’t want it to come back and bite her in the face. He’d almost ordered her to butt out and just stick to her job.

As always, she’d succumbed to his wishes at least on the surface. But she’d begun, quietly looking into things a little more deeply.

Then, after Holden’s death, she’d upped her involvement, and was now privy to a lot that would undoubtedly give her father a stroke if he knew.

Eliza wondered now, however, how it would feel sharing a bit of her troubling findings with Statler. How would he take it?

She gave it a shot.

“I’m actually in charge of compiling all the bills and receipts from both operations before they’re handed over to the accountant, and I can tell you, that small room makes more money than all the other areas that are assembling our avionics, put together.”

Statler looked thoughtful. “Huh. No wonder Flazer wants a new factory. It sounds like he might be outgrowing this one.”

He didn’t seem overly curious about Eliza’s revelations, so she dropped it.

“Uh, huh. He’s been complaining for a while that he’s run out of space.”

Nodding, Statler picked up the large bucket Eliza had brought along, filled it with water, and dropped the fish in, changing the subject.

“You never told me what time you start in the morning.” He cleared his throat. “Let me put it this way,” he grinned. “Will you have a chance to clean and dress the fish tonight or tomorrow before you head into the office, or should I take them back to my place and do it?”

Eliza hadn’t thought beyond the catching.

She wasn’t averse to cleaning the fish, of course, having done it hundreds of times, but…

Then what? She didn’t have anyone with whom she could share the bounty, even if she did gut them.

“I start at seven,” she revealed. “But it’s not a big deal for me to clean them tonight and put them in my fridge. I just don’t want them to go to waste.” She brightened. “I could drop them off at your cottage before I start work, then you and your crew can enjoy them on the grill tomorrow night.”

Statler grinned as they loaded everything onto the truck. “I tell you what. I’ll take and clean them, then when you’re finished with work, come over and join us for supper,” he offered.