Part 17 (2/2)
”Why did she ask me to impersonate her? I'm a temp.” She spread her hands. ”Look at me. Who's the slowest, fattest target?” She slumped. ”And now she's going to can my sorry b.u.t.t.”
”Go through it from the beginning.”
”I was at my desk when Riva's secretary came running down the hall. I mean running. She put me through to Riva, who said I had to do this thing.”
”What did she want you to do? Particularly?”
”Placate you. Keep it vague, make you think there was nothing to find out. Get you to go away.”
Jo felt a th.o.r.n.y anger poking at her. She felt insulted. And irate. And, possibly, willing to restrain herself from throwing an entire bur rito supreme at Ruth Fischer, depending on what the woman told her now.
”Why the ruse?” Jo said.
”Riva said she couldn't meet with you in person. She said it was impossible. But you needed to think you were talking to her.”
”Didn't that sound weak to you?”
”It sounded off the wall.”
”What does she look like?” Jo said.
”Skinny. Young, of course. Pretty, I guess, in a sharp way. Tense.”
”Chicana, Asian, African-American?”
”No, white as meringue. Dresses like Vogue. The Corporate Harpies issue.”
”What did you tell her?”
”I got fl.u.s.tered. It was just so weird. I didn't know if I could pull it off. She said if I didn't want to do it, she'd find somebody else. Somebody who wanted to keep their job.”
”Did Riva give you instructions?”
”Play along. Don't mention my name, or hers. Said you'd presume I was her. I didn't have to lie. And that's what happened. I never confirmed for you who I was. You just a.s.sumed.”
Still a lie. ”What were you supposed to tell me?”
”That we couldn't release Kanan's confidential employment history. That we didn't know where he was. That there was nothing we could help you with.”
”And what's the truth?”
Fischer gripped her Pepsi cup as though she wanted to throttle it. ”Ian Kanan is a scary guy. A ghost who slips in and out of the office. Doesn't talk to people. Doesn't do meetings or the company picnic.”
”And what does he do?”
”At Chira-Sayf there's computer security, and there's building security-rent-a-cops, same as the rest of the business park. And then there's Ian Kanan. He's off the charts. He is not a guy I want to run up against.”
”Why did he go to South Africa last week?” Jo said.
”I don't know. But he wasn't going in to prep for a bigwigs' summit this time.”
”Chira-Sayf has a lab in South Africa, doesn't it?”
Fischer shook her head. ”Did. They shut it down.”
Jo took out a notebook and pen. ”What did the lab do?”
Fischer pushed her cup away. ”Experimental. It was offsh.o.r.e to avoid U.S. law.”
”What were they working on?” Jo said.
”It was over my head. Research. Government contracts, good works. You know, helping African business. But...” She looked around the restaurant and back at Jo. ”They shut it down real suddenly.”
”Why?”
”No idea. But folks were upset. Around the office, people's auras got real spiky.”
Jo's pen was poised above the notebook. She set it down. ”Sure.”
Fischer fanned herself with her hands. ”I'm probably throwing off sparks. If you could see my aura, you'd get a fire extinguisher.” She attempted a smile. ”Yours is light purple.”
”Okay.”
Fischer took her napkin and blew her nose. ”People with lighter shades of purple are refining their spiritual nature. Are you actively working on that?”
”Ms. Fischer-”
”Ruth. Please.”
”Ruth, what happened when Chira-Sayf shut down the South African lab?”
”Chaotic auras from some of the people. The engineers were ticked off. The execs got dark. You know, tense.”
”Riva?”
”Red flares.” Her narrow eyes briefly widened. ”She's a soul sucker.”
”How do you mean?”
”Her essence is askew. She disrespects people. She always thinks people are out to get her. Typical Silicon Valley. She's a queen bee, but she's jealous and empty. She wants to suck the spirit out of other people because she's empty herself.” Fischer leaned across the table. ”I'll tell you something else. She's way too interested in Ian Kanan.”
”How so?”
”He's got a yellow aura, by the way. It flares above him.”
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