Chapter 24 - The Shadow from the Past
The foundation's opening month was a whirlwind of board meetings, grant allocations, and endless cups of lukewarm coffee in my new second-floor office overlooking the city square. James had taken a leave of absence from his accounting firm to manage the financial oversight of the endowment, setting up his desk right down the hall from mine so we could share lunch between grant reviews.
It was a rainy Tuesday afternoon when the front reception desk buzzed through the intercom.
"Clara," the receptionist, a sharp young woman named Maya, said through the speaker. "There's a visitor in the lobby for you. He doesn't have an appointment, but he insists he’s an old acquaintance of your husband's."
My fingers paused over the keyboard. "Did he give a name?"
"He says his name is Marcus Thorne. He claims he worked with James at the regional audit office nine years ago."
My blood ran cold. I knew every colleague James had worked with during his decade in finance. Marcus Thorne was not on the list. In fact, Marcus Thorne was the federal prosecutor who had briefly handled the preliminary financial subpoenas against Doctor Evans before being reassigned under mysterious circumstances during the internal corruption probe.
"Maya," I said, keeping my voice carefully modulated so the intercom wouldn't betray my rising panic. "Do not let him leave the lobby. Call security and patch James into this line immediately."
Before Maya could respond, the heavy wooden door of my office clicked open.
May you like
A tall man in a charcoal trench coat stepped across the threshold, his shoes damp from the spring rain, holding a worn leather briefcase under one arm. His hair was iron-gray, his eyes sharp and calculating behind wire-rimmed glasses.
"Good afternoon, Mrs. Miller," Marcus Thorne said, closing the door softly behind him with a quiet click. "I apologize for the unannounced visit, but the federal oversight committee forgot to close a very important loose end before they handed you the keys to this kingdom."
