Witcher Upper - Amy Boyles Page 0,23

Sadie have paid? Liam and his crew weren’t scheduled for paychecks until…well, until today.

I took a deep breath and calmed the panic working its way up my chest. I was sure it was no big deal. Sadie probably went ahead and gave Liam a check so that he could pay his workers. After all, we partnered with Liam. He always got a percentage of the total job once it was finished, but we also wrote him a check so that he could pay his guys. Sadie and I agreed on that because we needed his men, too.

Surely that’s what had happened. Sadie had simply written Liam a check ahead of time, which meant that I didn’t have to worry about it today. She should have told me, but clearly that was the last thing on my mind right now.

My finger hovered over the touch pad. For some reason I was afraid to look at the digital check that would pop up when I clicked the pad. But I had to make sure that Sadie had written it to Liam.

I swallowed a gargantuan egg in the back of my throat and pressed my finger to the pad, all the while chewing on the index finger of my opposite hand.

“This is stupid, Clem, just tap it.”

Yep, that was how I gave myself pep talks.

Finally I clicked the digital image and my worst fears shot to life. Sadie had penned an eight-thousand-dollar check to herself.

My hands fell to my sides. My face heated with dread. That couldn’t be right. Sadie wouldn’t have done that.

Breathe. Just breathe.

Maybe one of the other two checks had been written to Liam.

But a quick investigation of those revealed what I already knew. All three of the last checks written, the ones that had drained our business bank account, had been written to Sadie, who was now dead.

Y’all, I was flat broke. There had always been enough money, always. I’d never had a problem with the credit card before. But while I stared at the numerous withdrawals that Sadie had made, I wondered not only why she needed the money, but how she’d managed to keep me so unaware.

I thought back to the last money that Sadie had distributed to me. It had come in the form of cash. Cash. I’d questioned it at the time, but Sadie promised that it was okay—she’d discussed it with the accountant.

But as I studied this paper trail and saw how many checks that Sadie had written herself, I wondered exactly where all this money had been going.

Forget Tuney and Rufus—first thing in the morning, I needed to visit the bank.

“I’m sorry, but there’s nothing I can do,” the bank manager said. “The checks were written and authorized by Miss March.”

I sat across from his big mahogany desk, drumming my fingers on the glossy top. “Can you tell me if the checks were deposited into her personal account or cashed?”

His lips pursed. He didn’t want to do it, and I didn’t blame him. I’m sure there was a company policy against releasing confidential information, but this was my business, too. I also wrote the checks.

Well, I did now, I supposed.

“Please,” I pleaded. “She passed away last night. I need to know what happened.”

He flexed his fingers over the keyboard and sighed. “I really shouldn’t be doing this.”

Of course you should.

“I know that it might not be right, but looking into her account may help me better understand how to straighten out this financial mess.”

The manager’s fingers relaxed before flying over the keys. He stared at the screen a moment. I held my breath, unsure of exactly what he would discover. “It looks like she cashed the checks. Miss March’s personal account is fairly low.”

“How low?”

He grimaced. “This is confidential information.”

I made a cross sign over my heart. “I won’t tell anyone.” Probably I wouldn’t. Heck, I couldn’t completely promise not to say anything. It might be important.

“Fifty dollars low.”

Wow. Sadie had less money than I did. So where had it all gone?

I thanked the manager and left the bank. A quick glance at my watch revealed that it was getting on in the morning. I still needed to check in with Tuney and Rufus.

Oh gosh, Rufus. Could someone please jab a fork in my eye right now? He was the last person I needed to deal with. But still, I couldn’t leave him unchaperoned and running around town.

Frustrated, I raked my fingers down my face. As much as I wanted to visit Tuney,