Big City Little Rebel

His heart nearly stopped beating when he got to the last four papers. In front of him were the test results from the Parker project. The first page was the survey from A-1 Results and showed that the water tested in fifteen locations was clear of any toxic chemicals.

The next page showed another test from a different company, and the results were much different. The levels of a chemical known as dioxin were more than a thousand times higher than EPA safety standards.

The third page was yet another test from an independent testing lab in Colorado, and it showed the same results as page two.

On the last page was a handwritten note from Bobbie.

Beau,

I didn't know if you'd ever take the time to look through my findings, but if you're reading this, it means you had either a smidgen of faith in me or a sprinkling of doubt in Aspen Construction. Either way, I'm proud of you for doing your homework.

Love,

Bobbie

The tests were spread out over his desk. He pulled his project's test results from the filing cabinet and lined them up next to the others.

“Bastard.” His voice cut through the silence like a chainsaw through a forest.

“Bad morning?” Kyle stood in his doorway.

“Come in and shut the door.” He shoved everything aside and placed the letters next to hers. “Same company. Same signature. Big trouble.”

Kyle sat down and scanned the papers in front of him. His eyes grew wide. “No way. Do you think he paid A-1 to falsify records?”

“I don't know.” He pointed to the thick folder on his desk. “These results are from samples taken months after the initial findings. Bobbie paid for them herself.” He pointed to the box labeled client. “Then she had an independent lab come out and test again so no one could accuse her of falsifying the records. A newspaper clipping says the court couldn't say for certain if the tests were clear when Paradox began the project. The chemicals could have leached into the soil after construction began. Bobbie won her case because the project manager folded and took the blame.”

“How does this affect us?”

He reached across the desk and picked up the piece of industrial vinyl. “What does this look like to you?” He pressed it into Kyle's hand.

Kyle turned the piece over and over in his hand. “A terrible headache and ugly flooring.” He tossed the scrap back on the desk. “What should it look like to me?”

“You're an electrician and might not be familiar, but I've seen this material all over New York, and I'd bet my life it's an asbestos-containing tile.” He slammed his fists on the desk. “He set me up. He hired me because I was young and I lacked experience. He expected me to take his word, and I did. If it weren't for Bobbie, I would have put you all at risk.”

“All you have is a conspiracy theory. You don't have any proof of wrongdoing.”

“No, but I have enough information to form doubt, and I'm not risking anyone's health because Pete Schiff and Todd Hundley wanted to save money. I won't go to jail for them either.”

“What now?”

“It's time to give the crew a paid vacation. I'm not making the crew suffer a financial loss because we don't have our shit together.” He lifted from his chair and walked toward the door.

“Wait. If this is asbestos, how long will it take to remove?” Kyle followed him out the door.

“It's not the time I'm worried about. It's the cost. Asbestos abatement is expensive. I'm releasing the crew, and then I'm calling a local lab to come out and run some tests. Once the results are in, I'm calling Pete. I might be unemployed soon.”

“Well, shit, my hard head caused this mess.”

“Maybe, but if my suspicions are validated, Pete Schiff caused this, and he'll clean it up—or go to jail.”

* * *

The lab was happy to expedite the testing and sent someone to collect samples immediately. After they had left, Beau sat in the empty building and thought about his future. He was pretty positive he'd be fired, especially if the results returned negative. Pete wouldn't be happy to have shelled out an additional two grand for testing and to have paid the crew for several days off. If the test results came back positive, he hoped to use the findings as leverage to keep his job. As long as he had total control and things were being done correctly, the results didn't matter. He'd caught it, and he'd fix it. There would be no harm and no foul.