This is the fourth part in a series, so if you have not already done so, you might want to read Part I, Part II, and Part III before continuing.
Frank went straight to Charles’s office as soon as he’d finished his meeting with Matthew, which had taken much less time than he had anticipated. Matthew had been friendly, but clearly eager to get Frank out of there ASAP, and Frank hadn’t had an excuse to dawdle. Truth be told, aside from his assignment, he hadn’t wanted to dawdle. Matthew’s office had always given him the creeps, although he could never put his finger on what it was about Matthew or his office that made him so uncomfortable.
Charles looked up from some papers he was reading and said, “Anything?”
Frank placed a bottle of whiskey on Charles’s desk.
Charles looked at it for a moment, then said, “What’s that?”
“A gift to express his appreciation for my visit the other day.”
Charles looked from the bottle to Frank to the bottle and back to Frank. “What on earth is that supposed to mean?”
“Hell if I know,” Frank said with a shrug as he plopped onto a chair. “I found absolutely nothing useful in either office. Now what?”
“Well, I can still pay him a visit and see what I can see.”
“You think you’ll be able to find something I missed?”
“Maybe. Two pairs of eyes are better than one after all. Or maybe he’ll slip up and leave something sitting out when I come to visit that was hidden away when you were there. I have to try, because I really don’t know what to do after this.”
Frank opened the bottle of whiskey and started drinking straight from the neck.
“Really?” said Charles.
“It’s been that kind of a day. I don’t even care if a reporter sees me like this.”
“You say that now, but you would care if pictures got out of you drinking whiskey straight from the bottle.”
“What reporter could possibly take a picture of me like this here in your office?”
“In the early days I would have agreed with you. But in the days of social media and cell phone cameras, I just don’t think it’s worth the risk. If you do, go right ahead. It’s your career you’re flushing down the drain.”
Frank made a face, but he corked the bottle, picked it up and stood, saying, “I’m going to back to my office to drink this from a glass like a high-class alcoholic. The kind Americans approve of.”
“Good for you,” said Charles.
To be continued…