sponsors continuing education. They were taught to look for red-flag situations, and they brought them to my attention.”
“They did?”
“Yes, they did.”
“Are they…?”
My job had taken such a strange turn. “I don’t believe they were at all coerced, and from what I understand of the situation, they all had relationships with Miss Meltrew prior to being hired.”
“And prior relationships don’t violate our company handbook, as long as they don’t interfere with their ability to work,” the woman muttered. “All right. This is a shock to all of us, Miss Kensingvale, which is why we asked for advice from your firm. You were recommended as someone who is practical, skilled at managing complicated and strenuous tasks, and otherwise flexible.”
I wasn’t as flexible as any of the men waiting for me in Miss Meltrew’s office, that much was for certain. “Does wedding planning count as complicated and strenuous?”
“I would rather do an audit of the entire employee base of the company on a deadline,” she replied.
“Well, if your company is in need of skilled secretaries and assistants, the gentlemen Miss Meltrew had hired will deliver. They’re organized, they’re observant, and if I were in your shoes, I’d be asking about sending them to night school to be groomed for higher positions.”
“You’ve figured that out from that short of a time with them?”
“I helped them organize their resumés and talked to them. After I’m done here, I will get copies of the digital records and photocopies of any odd invoices they’re currently gathering for me so I can focus on those first. Who should be my primary contact about the auditing results within your company?”
“Mr. Sactrin. He’s in charge of the marketing department.”
“Is there another individual I can discuss matters with, who isn’t directly involved with the questionable accounting?”
The woman blinked. “Oh, yes. Of course. I’m certain the CEO would speak to you about such matters. That’s Mr. Waltsen.” While her expression remained puzzled, she dug through her desk, found a scrap of paper, and wrote down their names, phone numbers, and email addresses. “I do hope there aren’t serious problems.”
Oh, there were going to be problems. I already had a sex toy problem, and the last thing I wanted to do was inform a company one of their employees had been making odd purchases. How the invoices had gotten through accounting in the first place flummoxed me.
The good firms required approvals before invoices were paid, and there was no way in hell someone could have missed an order for sex toys.
“My job is to find any and all issues so they can be corrected,” I replied, offering a smile. “That your company is handling this before it has reached the IRS is good for you, as it’ll make certain you can file any corrections needed in a timely fashion. You’ll also have everything organized to streamline the process, as it’s my job to make sure you’re ready for the possibility of a real audit.”
“Which is looking pretty probable at this point.” The woman heaved a sigh. “Thank you for your help, Miss Kensingvale. Please don’t hesitate to reach out to me if there are any problems or if any of the staff don’t cooperate with your auditing efforts.”
“I’ll contact you if there are any issues,” I promised.
After exchanging pleasantries with the woman for a few minutes, I returned to Miss Meltrew’s office to get all of the information I needed to make sense of the situation. With a little luck, I’d identify how much trouble the company would be in if the IRS came knocking at their door in the morning—or if the company had a bigger sex scandal on their hands than a bunch of male prostitutes livening up an accountant’s work life.
Laughing over the absurdity of it all, I texted Rick with a clue he might even be able to follow should the scandal reach the news: Developing Story: New York Woman Sleeps with Entire Accounting Department.
A few moments later, my phone rang, but as I had a situation to contain, prostitutes to reassure, and numbers to wrangle, I silenced my cell, put it in my purse, and went to work.
Nine
An army of prostitutes gave me a copy.
Armed with a box of invoice copies, a complete digital record of the marketing department’s accounting, and in possession of most of my sanity, I returned to my new place of employment. Garret intercepted me in the lobby, and his takeout bag implied he’d just raided the fast food joint next door for lunch.