No Cats Allowed

TWENTY-THREE

“I’d better see if Azalea would have time to take a few things to the cleaners for me.” I glanced down at the cat peering into the closet with me. “I haven’t worn some of these suits in several years.” I sighed. “I don’t look forward to wearing a suit to work every day.”

Diesel meowed.

“If I’m going to be rubbing shoulders with the presidents and vice presidents in charge of this, that, and the other, not to mention the odd dean or two—and a couple of them are really odd—I’ll have to dress the part.” The prospect did not appeal, but I had agreed to do the job, and therefore I had to look the part. “I hope some of them still fit.”

Diesel warbled as if to say he had doubts that they would.

“You’re right about that,” I said. “The jackets will be fine. I may need a girdle to get into the pants, though.”

Diesel meowed twice. I thought he might be getting tired of standing in front of the closet with me. I’d been at this for a good ten minutes now. I pulled out three suits and laid them on the bed. The cat promptly hopped on the bed to sniff at them, and when I came back from the bathroom moments later, he was stretched out atop them.

“Off, Diesel,” I said. He considered me for a moment, then slowly stood and stretched before he stepped off the suits. I gathered them up and told him to come with me. Time we were heading to the office.

Downstairs, after a brief conversation with Azalea about the suits, I loaded Diesel into the car and off we went. We were expecting thunderstorms on and off throughout the day, so there would be no pleasant stroll to and from work. I hoped the dark skies and increasing winds were not an omen for the task ahead.

By agreement, Melba waited in the parking lot behind the building until we arrived a few minutes before eight. I knew she was apprehensive about entering the building, and I couldn’t blame her. She hadn’t taken the news of the break-in well, even though I assured her we would have a campus police officer in the building with us all day. That was the fruit of another early morning phone conversation with Forrest Wyatt.

We entered through the back door, and when we walked into the front hallway, sure enough, there was a campus policeman sitting in a chair near the front door. We greeted him, and then Melba braced herself for her first sight of the chaos in her office. She stared at the mess for about half a minute while Diesel and I waited, then she shook her head and without a word walked over to her desk and set down her purse.

She turned to me, her expression hard. “Give me a few minutes to make some coffee and get my computer up and running. I’ll check your schedule to see whether you have any meetings, and then I’ll start on this mess.”

“Okay, whatever you think best,” I said. “I already know of one meeting. Forrest Wyatt and I are meeting with the library staff at nine thirty. Until then Diesel and I will be trying to sort out the mess in the other office.”

“In your office,” she said with a slight smile. “Better get used to that, because it’s going to be yours for a while.”

I responded with a rueful grin. “You’re right. We’ll be sorting out the mess in my office. Come on, boy.” I headed toward my door. Diesel, however, had other plans. He went to Melba and meowed.

“I’m okay, sweet boy,” she said. “Why don’t you come with me and help me make the coffee?” He meowed again.

“Okay, you two,” I said. “Looks like you have your own assistant.” I watched as the two of them walked out of the room. Having Diesel around would help cheer Melba up, I knew.

I stepped around the papers strewn over the floor as best I could and worked my way into my office. I set my briefcase down in a chair near the door, pulled off my jacket and hung it on the back of the chair, and surveyed the room, trying to decide where to start.

About forty-five minutes and one cup of coffee later, I had managed to get things tidied away. Books were back on the shelves, and papers stacked neatly on the desk. Melba and I would have to go through them later to get them properly sorted, but at least they were off the floor.

I made notes as questions occurred to me, and I called Forrest’s office and spoke with his assistant about gaining access to Reilly’s work e-mail. I knew our campus IT department wouldn’t make it happen without the proper authorization, and the sooner that happened, the better. I had to know what Reilly had been doing during his brief tenure as interim director.

Plus it might shed light on his murder.

That, too, I acknowledged to myself. I was sure the sheriff’s department would be seeking access to Reilly’s e-mails and work files also.

Kanesha Berry told me so when she showed up about twenty minutes before my meeting with Forrest and the library staff. She had with her another deputy and a person from campus IT, and they were going to copy all the files from Reilly’s computer, she informed me.

That was also when she dropped the bombshell about Reilly’s keys, found with his body. I was surprised by the news. “Then where did the intruder get the key to this building? There must be another key floating around that we don’t know about.”

“Yes,” Kanesha said. “Chief Ford is looking into that.” She glanced over at the desk, where the campus IT staffer was working on the computer. “This may take some time. Sorry to hold you up, but if there’s anything pertinent to the investigation on that computer, I have to have it.”

“It’s not a problem,” I said. “I have a meeting at nine thirty over in the main library building, and that may last an hour. Forrest Wyatt and I are talking to the library staff about the situation.” I checked my watch. “That’s in twelve minutes. I might as well head on over.” I picked up my jacket and briefcase. “I’ll leave you to it. If you need anything, let Melba know.”

Kanesha nodded, still intent on the activity at the computer.

I spoke briefly with Melba and her feline assistant before I departed for the meeting. I knew Diesel would be happy with Melba. I might take him with me to future staff meetings, but for this first one I thought it inappropriate. I didn’t think Forrest would appreciate being upstaged by a cat, and I also knew that tension would be running high in the meeting. Diesel would find that distressing.

The campus police presence at the main library was obvious, and I hoped the library staff, faculty, and students found that reassuring. The sooner things got back to normal here, the better.

On my way to the meeting room at the rear of the first floor, I stopped along the way to say hello to the few staff on duty. Not everyone could attend the meeting, because there had to be personnel on duty. The library was open, and the students were there in force, studying and making use of the computers.

When I walked into the meeting room, the buzz of chatter suddenly stilled, and I felt for a moment like an intruder. Expectant faces examined me, and I summoned up a confident and, I hoped, reassuring smile as I strode to the front of the room. Forrest hadn’t arrived yet, so it was up to me to take charge of the meeting.

“Good morning, everyone.” I set my briefcase on the floor behind me. “You’re all probably as surprised as I am to find me standing here. I know President Wyatt e-mailed all of you to explain that I will be serving as interim director, and I hope you all had a chance to read that message thoroughly.”

I paused for a moment and scanned the crowd. I didn’t sense any hostility in the room, only curiosity and a little apprehension.

“President Wyatt will talk to you about the tragic event that occurred here, and I know he will address your concerns about safety and security. I’m sure you’ve noticed the increased presence of campus police, and that will continue until the investigation into the murder is closed. Chief Ford and his department will be working hard to make sure the library is a safe place for all of us, staff, students, and faculty.”

I glanced over at the door to see Forrest entering the room. “I’ll yield the floor now to President Wyatt.”

Forrest strode confidently to the front of the room and shared a grave smile with the assembled staff. I stepped to one side and leaned against the wall. Forrest was a masterful speaker with an authoritative manner. I had often thought that, had he chosen another path, he would have made an outstanding preacher.

He reiterated what I had said and gave the staff an update on the investigation. He took pains to reassure them that he and Chief Ford were determined to keep the campus safe and told them to talk to me or to the campus police about anything that concerned them.

He fielded a few questions, but for the most part the staff seemed comfortable with what he told them. The one exception was Cassandra Brownley, who, predictably, scowled the whole time and looked skeptical at every statement.

“Chief Ford is working closely with the Athena County Sheriff’s Department and the officer in charge of the investigation,” Forrest said. “I trust that you will all cooperate fully with Chief Deputy Berry and her officers. They have an important task to perform, and your cooperation will ensure that it is done efficiently and swiftly. Are there any last questions?”

Delbert Winston raised a hand, and after a nod from Forrest, he stood. “Is anything going to be done about lighting in the basement? We’ve been asking for more lighting down there for years, and surely now that would be a priority.”

Forrest nodded. “Excellent point. Yes, I’m happy to tell you that our physical facilities department will be taking care of that. Their work will cause some disruptions, but I know you will all be patient until the work is complete. I don’t have a completion date yet, but as soon as I do, I will communicate with your interim director.” He nodded toward me.

“Let me say how pleased I am that Charlie has agreed to serve as interim director until we find a permanent director. I’m sure you all are aware of his years of experience as a manager, and of the fine job he has done recently with our rare books and archives. I hope you will give him your full support to ensure the smooth running of one of Athena College’s great assets.”

With that, he thanked them for their attention and departed.

I stepped forward again. “I won’t keep you much longer. I know we all have busy schedules. I just want to say how proud I am to be working with you all, and that I will do my best for you and the library. If at any time you’re concerned about anything, I hope you will come talk to me.”

Lisa Krause stood. “We’re with you, Charlie.” She glanced around the room. “I think I speak for all of us when I say we’re happy to have someone who actually knows how to run a library in charge.”

That brought a round of enthusiastic applause, and I did my best not to blush. This kind of attention always made me squirm.

“Thank you all,” I said. “I appreciate your support. I’d like to ask the department heads to remain with me for a few minutes, but everyone else is free to go.”

They began to file out quickly, until only Lisa Krause, Delbert Winston, and Cassandra Brownley remained with me. I pulled out a chair and turned it to face them. Normally there would have been a fourth department head, for serials and electronic resources, but that position was vacant. These three people constituted my management team, and I hoped we could work well together. Only Cassandra really concerned me, because she was always difficult about everything.

I had been aware of her baleful gaze the entire time I spoke to the staff, and I braced myself for whatever it was she was practically bursting to say to me.

“Cassandra, do you have any concerns you’d like to share?” I asked.

She stood, pushing back her chair so hard it knocked over another one. “Public librarian.” She managed to load both venom and contempt into those two words. “What do you know about running an academic library?” She stalked out of the room without waiting for a response.