He snorted. “You have no idea, Rose. I’m every bit as bad as Val. Maybe worse.”
Rosamund laid a hand on his. “Did you know that anything communicated on corporate resources belongs to the company? Do you know who has access to monitor all exchanges of information?”
He waited for her to say what he already knew.
“Human Resources.”
“And?”
“I’ve personally gone through thousands of system emails. We’ve confiscated Val’s phone and laptop. Did you know she made recordings, too?”
He wasn’t surprised. “Great. I already resigned, so they can’t fire me. Should I expect a lawsuit anytime soon?”
She chuckled. “Oh, you were always so dramatic. But no. Nobody else has reviewed all the documents, and I made sure to share only what was relevant and necessary to the investigation into the accusations against Val.” She arched an eyebrow. “But I reviewed everything.”
“So what did you learn?”
“I learned that you did us all a great favor by exposing her. And I learned that you need to get as far away from her as you can.”
“Before she kills me?”
“Before she gets her hooks in you again.”
Dane laughed, but it hurt and turned into a cough. “Way ahead of you there.”
“Where will you go?”
“I’m going to look for someone I liked years ago.”
“Noelle?”
He frowned. “Myself.”
Rosamund squeezed his hand, then stood. “You have a good heart, Dane.” She ruffled his hair. “But you’ve made some terrible decisions. When you get yourself together and have a less cryptic address, please send me a postcard.”
Once she’d let herself out, Dane showered, shaved, and dressed in a pair of cargo shorts and a worn T-shirt with a graphic of a joystick on the front. Then he booked a one-way ticket to Key West and packed two suitcases. He’d let a service haul away everything he left behind.
He’d head south and detox from a decade of poison.
Alone.
Partial dump of emails recovered from the corporate hard drive.
Dane,
The board informed me that you resigned, or retired, however you want to name it. I am honestly contemplating the same. After reading the attachment included in the email Val forwarded to me, I understood what you were trying to do. But I’m shocked and disillusioned by the layers of deceit and rot woven into this company.
I don’t know if anything you said to me last week was true or if I was just a joke to you, but could we at least talk?
Noelle
Rosamund,
Could you look in on Dane? I’m still in New York, and I can’t reach him. I’m worried he might hurt himself.
Noelle
Miss Constance,
