“Miss Zigler just went up there with a client,” he says.
We glance at the elevators to see neither are on the ground level, which means waiting for them to come back down. I don’t want to miss them. I need to catch Tracy and whoever’s with her in the act.
Denise turns to me and shakes her head. “I’m not running up those stairs.”
I laugh and tell her to call the cops. I’ll meet her up there. For now, I take a few deep breaths just knowing that I’m going to regret every ounce of alcohol rummaging through my body.
Taking the stairs two at a time, I don’t know how long it takes for me to get to the top, but by the time I realize accounting and sales are on the floor beneath me, I’m ready to kick myself. My error works in my favor as I hear the elevator ding. I duck behind a cubicle, waiting to see who steps off.
I can hear Tracy talking to someone as she walks by. “That little bitch pulled every record. I have to make sure I delete all that off her computer.”
“How do you know she didn’t take it out of here? To Declan?” a man’s voice replies to her.
I pull out my phone making sure to keep it on silent but I start recording. The emergency lights keeping the floor low-lit overnight give me enough brightness to record without letting them know I’m here.
Their voices carry loud enough, but what carries even louder in the middle of the night is the sound of the elevator dinging as it stops on the floor.
“Who’s that?” Tracy whispers as I hear her typing through the computer at Denise’s desk.
“I don’t know!” the male answers.
Tracy hisses. “Go take care of them. If it’s that nosy ass guard from downstairs, send him away.”
However, the pit in my stomach tells me it’s not the guard. The sound of a gun cocking its hammer back makes me angry.
“Declan!” Denise’s whisper shouting, and I suddenly regret not letting her head home.
11
Denise
“Declan!” I whisper shout into the dark cubicle area when I see a shadowy figure moving toward me. I breathe a sigh of relief until they get closer, and I see it’s not Declan.
Shit.
“Who the fuck are you?” he asks, holding a gun and pointing it at me.
I stagger back, hand flying to my mouth in fear and shock.
“Ah!” I shriek. “I’m just an assistant. I thought that you were my boss, and I wanted to make sure you, um, had, uh, the files! You’re not um, Mr. Daniels, so I’m just going to leave you to whatever it is you’re doing.”
“Not so fast newbie,” Tracy snarls from behind the guy. “What did you find in those sales records?”
I wave my hands, and I’m sure my voice isn’t as convincing as it needs to be. Still, I try to stall them enough, backing up one step at a time and telling her, “I don’t know what you mean. Mr. Daniels took the day off, and I simply came to check on some files to make sure they’re available to him for tomorrow.”
“Enough of this Mr. Daniels shit.” Tracy stammers. “Kyle shoot her if she moves. Now, tell me where you put the sales records and what you think is going on.”
“I swear,” I tell her with my hands up, still taking steps backward. “I have no idea about the sales records.”
“Kyle! I said shoot her if she’s moving,” Tracy yells at the guy with the gun. I’m trying to see if Declan’s up here. I thought we missed Tracy when I saw the 7th floor empty. Maybe he collapsed on the staircase running up every flight. I can’t help but look over my shoulder at the staircase, wondering if he’s going to burst through the door at any minute.
“What are you looking at? Who are you waiting for?” Kyle shouts, shaking the gun in his hand. That doesn’t look good. He’s jittery, and I need to get out of his line of fire.
“Nothing,” I tell them. “No one.”
“Go check it out,” Tracy instructs him. “I’ll keep an eye on her. Don’t even think about moving.”
“I wouldn’t dream of it,” I whisper as Kyle moves past me to check the staircase.