A Glimpse of Evil by Victoria Laurie Read Free Book Online Page B

in.”
    I squirmed in my seat. “I know it’s a little unconventional, sir.”
    Harrison chuckled again. “A little unconventional, Abby?”
    The moment he said my first name, I relaxed and smiled. “Listen, if you really want us to waste time with these paper audits and number crunching and percentages, then fine, I’ll cooperate and go along with that. But I gotta tell you, we’ll get a whole lot further doing it my way.”
    Harrison’s eyes moved back to the whiteboard and he shook his head ruefully. “Oh, of that I’m certain, Abby. It’s the end of day one for this squad and you’ve already managed to get us halfway to our goal for the entire month.”
    “So,” Dutch said, “should we carry on?”
    Harrison picked up a stack of blank audit forms and dumped them into the recycling bin next to his waste-basket. “By all means,” he said. “Beginning tomorrow, Abby, you will be the only person on audit duty, and you’ll weigh in on which of our investigators should take the cases that require follow-up. I want to make sure that we give them to the right agent. Can you come in early tomorrow to get a jump start on another box so that we have enough cases for the entire squad?”
    “I can.”
    “Excellent,” he said with a broad smile as he reached out to shake my hand. It still threw me when Harrison was happy. I’d seen only glimpses of his lighter side and I almost didn’t know how to react when he was anything but cool and reserved.
    Dutch and I stood to go then and I was almost out the door when Harrison added, “Oh, and one more thing.”
    I turned back to him. “Yes?”
    “I’d like you to start training the other agents to use their own intuitive abilities. Eventually I’d like them to audit these files using your techniques.”
    I opened my mouth to tell him there was no way I could turn his squad into a bunch of psychics like me, but I thought better of it. Why put limits when I wasn’t sure how naturally intuitive these guys were? Maybe one or two of them would prove to be every bit as good as me.
    Then again, maybe not.

Chapter Three
    I arrived at the office at six fifteen a.m. It would have been closer to six if I hadn’t gotten lost. Twice.
    And no sooner had I made it to my desk than my cell phone rang. “Where are you?” Candice asked.
    “At the office,” I told her, trying to unload my purse, keys, sweater, and coffee without spilling the last all over my desk.
    “It’s six fifteen.”
    “Thank you, Madam Time,” I said. “Are you going to give me the weather report next or are you all about the clock this morning?”
    Candice chuckled. “Didn’t we have a date at the gym in my building this morning?”
    I did a mental head slap. “Crap on a cracker!”
    That won me another chuckle. “Look’it who’s gotten creative now that she can’t use expletives.”
    “I’m really sorry, Candice. I forgot.”
    “It’s okay,” she assured me. “But what the heck are you doing at the office so early on your second day?”
    “Brice piled a ton of work on my shoulders last night and I needed to come in early and get a jump start.”
    Candice was quiet for a moment before she said, “That man has tunnel vision when it comes to work. Do you need me to talk to him?”
    I took a sip of my Starbucks, which was still delightfully hot. “No. Thanks, though. I don’t really mind. And if I start minding, I’ll come to you and you can beat him up for me, ’kay?”
    Candice laughed. “Wouldn’t be the first time I had to use a little muscle against him on your behalf.”
    I smiled as the memory of Candice forcefully pinning Brice against the side of a house to protect me floated to my mind. “Yeah, well, hopefully we can avoid revisiting those fun times.”
    Candice cleared her throat then and said, “I really did want to talk to you, Abs. Can I pull you away for lunch?”
    Her voice sounded serious and I wondered what was up. My radar was hinting that I’d better say yes,