TT Spalding: The Conner Case

I started the CD player and went first to the office of Mr. Ryan Conner. I won't go into a lot of detail but what I told Maggie and TT was that Mr. Ryan Conner wasn't banging Cindy. Matter of fact, he wasn't banging anyone. He was doing exactly what he said he was doing: working on one humongous merger with another financial firm. It was big stuff as I found out from the conversations he had with several very important people. (As a matter of fact, I looked into the stocks and made a purchase. I wasn't adverse to making a buck or too off inside info). Cindy was in and out most of the day, taking dictation, answering questions, getting files, showing visitors in and just general secretary stuff. Seems she was rather efficient at what she did and those huge mammary assets were just a distraction. After two weeks, he had been with her several times alone and did or said absolutely nothing wrong.

TT was shaking his head, not sure whether to laugh or cry. I know TT was always rooting for the happy ending. He was a real sap that way. In this case, half of the twosome was innocent. But TT was also pragmatic. He never counted his eggs before the chicken was in the pot.

"OK, so it looks like Ryan Conner is innocent of all charges. Good for the Mrs. if she cares about him. But, now tell us about the Missus. Tell me what you found. I know that look. You found something didn't you?"

"Boss, I surely did. But not what you might think. It seems the Missus had reason to suspect Mr. Conner. She was tipped off you might say."

I fired up the CD player again and played a section showing the inside of the Conner's home. I had gone back at the end of the first week and installed pickups in the living, dining, and family rooms and one in the kitchen. Neat little jobs just about the size of a penny. Thought it was necessary when I spotted that guy coming and going too often to be normal. TT and Maggie just raised one little eyebrow when they saw that part but neither said a word. I thought I saw a smirk on TT's face but it was gone in a flash.

The CD showed the inside of the living room, with the view covering the front hall and the front door. As the picture began to change, the doorbell could be heard in the background. In a few seconds, Amanda Conner walked down the hall and to the door. She opened it, said a few words but than backed up to allow a man to enter. The man was dressed in a suit and was short and slightly balding. He walked past Amanda and went into the living room. Amanda followed, looking slightly aggravated. The man sat down on the couch and Amanda stood in front of him, looking down. Then the sound began.

"What the hell are you doing here? I thought I made it quite clear to you that I was never going to be with you or anything like that. I want you to leave. Now!"

The man smiled up at her and leaned against the back of the couch, looking quite smug. He watched her for a second and then spoke.

"Well, I don't know why you feel that way. Ryan is screwing Cindy, his secretary, as we speak. He's been doing her for over a month and from what I've seen, she really likes it. I could help you get even with him. Just a little roll in the hay, so to speak. I want you and I know you want to get back at him so why not?"

Amanda's face was red and she has hugging herself so tight I expected her ribs to crack. There were tears beginning in her eyes and she was holding herself together by the skin of her teeth.

"Get out of my house, you son of a bitch! Get out now!"

"OK, but when you decide to get even with him, give me a call. I'll keep my mouth shut and you can tell him whatever you want. Just think about it. He needs to know how it feels to be cheated on. And I'm the guy who can help you accomplish that."

With that, the scene faded. Following that were three more attempts by the man to talk to Amanda but on each occasion, she refused to release the safety chain and finally slammed the door in his face. After each visit, Amanda could be seen crying.

"Well boss. It seems pretty clear to me what's been going on. The guy's name is Randy Johnson and he's a clerk in the company Ryan works for. Seems he's been busted several times for sexual harassment and is still there only so long as he stays away from the women. One more complaint and he's out the door."

Maggie was furious but TT was smiling as he listened. This was his cup of tea. Now he had what he wanted and it was clear he was thinking of how to deal with this. I had my ideas but I wanted to hear his.

TT put his arm around a very angry Maggie and kissed her forehead to calm her down.

"Well now. I think we want to take care of Mr. Randy Johnson for all the trouble he's caused our client. He is just now a very nice man. So, the first thing to do is get Mr. Conner in here and let him know what his clerk has been doing. I believe Mr. Conner will take the appropriate action against our Randy. Then, we let Mrs. Conner know that her husband has been the perfect gentleman. That should be easy with what you have. Finally, we need to get the two of them in here together and let them know what they have and how easy it can be taken away.

"Maggie, you should talk to the Mrs. and let her know her husband is innocent, while I talk to the Mr. That should be fun when he finds out his wife was spying on him but I can calm him down with a good talking to. Then, we'll bring the two of them together and make both happy.

"Bruno my man, you do good work. This deserves a $100 bonus." At my attempt to refuse, he said, "That's all right. Don't thank me, just take it and enjoy."

Maggie rose and took me by the hand to lead me out of the office. As she walked me to the door she said, "You know you just made his day don't you? I told him that woman loved her husband but he just had this idea something was wrong. Now he knows."

Well, that took care of the Conner case and I was all of $900 richer. Of course, I probably lost another couple of thousand in business while I was on the case, but it was for TT so I chalked it up to paying back a debt. A debt as far as I was concerned would never be fully paid.

One last thing. I went back to Mr. Conner's office to see if the mouse problem was properly resolved to our Cindy's satisfaction. It was and she was quite pleased. After some conversation and a cup of coffee in the cafeteria, she agreed to see me socially. That was a couple of weeks ago. This weekend, we're driving up to a small cabin in the mountains that I own. She's bringing a small suitcase since we plan to be there for the weekend. A very small suitcase! Seems she thought I was very cute. I think she needs glasses but that's just me.

That was the Conner case and it turned out well for everyone but Randy Johnson. Just for your information, my weekend with Cindy went very well and we have plans to do it again. Finally, I want to extend my apologies to Mike Hammer. Sorry Mike, but I just think TT is better.