Chapter 202 Waiting for Her Here
The man barely glanced at the work order in Caroline's hand, treating it like worthless scrap paper.
He shook his head and said, "No entry. Whether you inspect or not isn't my problem. The boss told me to guard the gate. He's not here, so come back tomorrow."
Field inspections always came with uncooperative types. Caroline kept her tone professional. "And what's your name, sir?"
"Otto Smith."
"Mr. Smith, we're conducting routine maintenance inspections today. This is official documentation—completely legal and by the book. Give me your boss's number, and I'll call him directly."
Otto's said, "Don't know it. How would I have the boss's number? Come back tomorrow when he's here."
Ulysses had been silent until now, his tall frame looming behind them like a brick wall. He stepped forward, voice flat. "You don't know, or you don't want to tell us? You work here and don't have your boss's contact info? Who are you trying to fool? Keep this up, and we'll get the mayor involved. If that doesn't work, we'll bring in the sheriff's department. They'll track him down. Ring any bells now?"
Otto saw that the three of them weren't backing down, repeating his script. "Boss really isn't here. Doesn't matter who you call—he's not around."
Oliver tried a softer approach. "Just cooperate with us. This is a legal inspection. Tie up those dogs first so we can go inside and talk. It's scorching out here."
Otto made no move toward the dogs and didn't take the bait. His face twisted into an exaggerated look of helplessness. "Just come tomorrow, alright? I can't let you in. Boss didn't give the word, so nobody got through. What if those dogs bite you once you're inside? Who's responsible then? I can't risk letting anyone in—if my boss finds out, I'll lose my job."
They'd hit a wall with this one. He responded to everything but answered nothing.
Caroline's gaze drifted past Otto's shoulder. Four smokestacks had been billowing earlier—now only two were active. Something was definitely off.
Otto was stalling for time. Caroline caught Oliver's eye and tilted her head slightly. "I'm going to make a call."
The phone number the mayor's office had provided turned out to be disconnected, leaving them with no way to reach the brick factory owner directly.
Caroline walked a short distance away, stopping at the base of the hillside where wild grasses and flowers lined the roadside, pine and elm trees clustering along the slope. She dialed the mayor's office.
"Mayor, that number you gave me is out of service. Do you have another contact for Parker Stafford, the brick factory owner?"
The mayor's voice crackled through. "Hold on a sec. I should have his wife's number somewhere."
"Thank you. I appreciate it."
Rustling sounds filled the line before the mayor came back. "Ms. Tudor?"
"I'm here. Go ahead."
The mayor rattled off a string of digits. Caroline jotted them down. "Thanks again."
She hung up and immediately dialed the local sheriff's department. "Hi, this is Caroline from Seaside City Electric Company... You already know? The police chief filled you in?... Yeah, we've got a difficult situation at a factory. If you have time, could you send someone out?... Great... We're at the factory entrance right now... There are two large dogs inside, the gate's locked, and the gatekeeper says nobody gets in without the owner's say-so... No, he's not being aggressive—just following orders... I'm about to contact the owner's wife. If I can reach her, that might work... Okay, you'll be here in ten minutes? Perfect. Thank you."
Sweat beaded across Caroline's forehead, a damp patch spreading across the back of her white polo shirt. She swallowed hard before dialing the factory owner's wife.
This time, the call connected, but nobody picked up.
Caroline hung up and immediately redialed. The brick factory was getting inspected today—there was clearly something shady going on inside.
On the second attempt, someone answered. Caroline jumped in. "Are you home right now?"
The woman on the other end sounded caught off guard. "I'm home. Who's this?"
"I'm Caroline, manager at Seaside City Electric Company. We're here to inspect the electrical systems at the brick factory today. Mr. Stafford isn't available, and your gatekeeper won't let us in. Can you reach Mr. Stafford right now?"
"He's not there?" The woman started playing dumb too.
Caroline pressed on. "Mr. Smith at the gate says he's not. When I tried Mr. Stafford's cell, it was disconnected. Mrs. Stafford, what's his current number?"
The woman hesitated, clearly wanting to claim she didn't remember, but that would've been too obvious. "Ms. Tudor, can't you just come back tomorrow for the inspection?"
Caroline's tone turned steel. "Absolutely not. Give me Mr. Stafford's number. I'll contact him myself."
The woman stammered out a number. "Ms. Tudor, I just remembered—he's out of town. Come tomorrow instead?"
Caroline turned away, facing the pine-covered hillside, her shadow cutting a sharp line across the ground. "Mrs. Stafford, this inspection is happening today. I've reviewed the business registration—you're listed as the legal owner. Since you're home, we actually need you present to oversee the inspection anyway."
The woman choked on her words, clearly not expecting Caroline to circle back around to trap her.
"I... I have something to do in a bit. I can't make it." The woman scrambled for excuses. "How about this—tomorrow morning, first thing, you can do the inspection?"
Caroline spotted a white and blue patrol car rolling down the rural road. "This inspection is being conducted by the electric company with support from the sheriff's department. If you don't come voluntarily, we'll have to send that patrol car to pick you up."
Realizing she was cornered, the woman relented. "Fine. Wait for me. I'm heading to the factory now."
"Thank you, Mrs. Stafford. I'll be here." Caroline ended the call and let out a long breath.
She walked back to the gate and called out to Otto. "Your boss's wife is on her way."
Otto's eyes widened, blinking rapidly. He glanced back toward the factory—only one smokestack was still active now.
"She... she's not really the boss," he stammered. "It's gotta be the actual boss who says okay."
Otto stood there clutching a clipboard, his black tank top stained with dried sweat marks, his navy work pants so covered in brick dust they'd lost their original color, his canvas shoes with the backs trampled flat from being stepped on repeatedly.
Caroline's voice stayed calm but firm. "Your boss's wife is the registered legal owner of this brick factory. If her word doesn't count, whose does?"
Otto didn't answer. He fished a crumpled cigarette pack from his pocket, pulled out a slightly bent cigarette, stuck it between his lips, and lit it. He took a deep drag before speaking. "Let's just wait till she gets here."
Otto casually glanced back toward the factory again. Caroline noticed—that was the third or fourth time he'd looked. She'd bet money Parker Stafford was inside right now.
Caroline smiled. "Mr. Smith, go ahead and tie up those dogs. The sheriff's car is almost here."
Otto's head snapped up, eyes darting behind Caroline. "What?"
When he actually spotted the patrol car approaching, the cigarette dangling from his lips nearly fell as he lunged for the two massive dogs throwing themselves against the gate. Smoke made him squint, but the man had serious strength—he grabbed both dogs by their collars with one hand each and hauled them toward their kennel.
Caroline wiped the sweat from her forehead, relief washing through her. Finally. They were getting inside.