“I know. Still… thank you.”
“I’ll let you know what I find,” Marise said. “We’ll get to the bottom of this, Kath. No matter how deep it goes.”
“I believe you,” Kathleen said. “I ring later…I miss you already.”
“Me too,” Marise said. She tapped off the phone and walked to her bedroom closet. It was time to bringLauren Manleyback out. Marise sat down at her desk and once she opened a blank report template, began to type. The header came first—official looking, with the crest of the fabricated Occupational Safety and Health Administration she had used before. Then she wrote out an audit report praising the high standard of their staff member, Mrs Lena Forde. She ticked off numerous work place sites and actions.
Then she wrote another form, inserted a fabricated case ID, and titled it:Preliminary Field Review: Laboratory Cleaning Contractors – Incident Notification (Confidential)
Beneath that, she began populating the fields in clipped bureaucratic language:
Following the reported theft of high-value research data from a restricted access laboratory in the Atlantic Research Institute, it has come to the attention of the department that the facility’s cleaning contractor may have been present during the period in question. No direct fault or negligence has been indicated. This field audit is intended to close off due diligence loops concerning privacy, access, and protocol integrity.
She added a fake appendix, a reference to ISO standards, and signed it off as “L. Manley–Occupational Safety and Health Officer.”
It was perfect. Dull, meticulous, and threatening enough to compel cooperation without legal resistance.
She uploaded it to a dummy tablet and printed out a physical copy for effect. After slipping it into a slim file folder, she packed her ID badge, applied minimal makeup, a plain blazer, and her glasses slightly smudged to add to the effect. She didn’t want to look clever. She wanted to look like she worked in fluorescent lighting and ate lunch out of vending machines.
By the time she stepped into the Com Co office building an hour later, she was every inch the overworked compliance officer with a clipboard and a polite face.
The receptionist—thankfully the same distracted young man—looked up with vague recognition.
“Lauren Manley, Occupational Safety and Health,” she said crisply, flashing the badge and the audit folder. “I wish to speak to Mrs Hill.”
He blinked and glanced around. “I thought the audit was last week?”
“I’m here to report my finding,” Marise said.
“Of course.” He buzzed the inner door and gestured. “She’s in her office.”
Ellen Hill looked up as Marise entered, her eyes narrowing slightly. “Ms Manley.”
“Ms Hill,” Marise said pleasantly, placing the folder on the desk between them. “I wanted to commend your team. The site audit from last week was excellent—no issues with your staff logs, no irregularities with shift entries.”
Ellen nodded, looking pleased. “That’s good to hear.”
“The follow-up does have a privacy issue. There’s been a formal allegation of potential data theft from one of the labs that you service. I have to ask a few questions.”
Ellen looked concerned. “Which client?”
“Dr Kathleen Knowles’ laboratory in the Atlantic Research Institute.”
“Oh, Lena Forde’s area.”
“Yes. I found her very conscious of security.”
“She’s a senior staff member. She’s been with us for years and never had a single violation mark against her.”
“Has Lena ever reported letting someone into the facility during a shift? A delivery person, lost staffer, someone from building maintenance?”
“No,” Ellen said, “and she’s been told never to. We drilled that into all our staff on lab contracts. She signs the security log each time she finishes. No incidents.”
“Would she report it if she had?”
“Yes. She’s conscientious.”
Marise nodded and jotted a note. “Would you be willing to contact her today and confirm she hasn’t deviated from procedure? Or if she’s had any unusual interactions at the Institute recently?”
