He Crossed the Line

Chapter 1 - Road Trip

("He Crossed the Line" is an excerpt from my newly published novel "Drawing a Line: A look inside the corporate response to sexual harassment"    Cover photo credit: Cottonbro from Pexels.  He Crossed the Line" first appeared in thewritelaunch.com in issue 27 in 2019.)

I packed up the Tacoma, figuring on a five-day round trip down to Georgia. I researched planned stops, and figured that rural Georgia was more likely to have gravel back roads with higher hills and deeper valleys than the flat country blacktop roads that were fairly common in the northern Midwest, my stomping grounds.

I threw a clothes duffle in the back, stuffing it with a couple of pairs of Wrangler jeans, pearl snapped western shirts, and a black leather sport coat, my customary work uniform. While I'm an ex-cop, now private detective working in Chicago, my roots hail from Texas. You know that old expression, "you can take the girl out of the country but you can't take the country out of the girl." Well, that's me, tight Wranglers, cowboy boots and all. I hung a dressy pant suit in a garment bag on a clothes hook, just in case, and then stashed a weapons duffle under the seat, placing the briefcase and laptop on the rider's side seat to my right. The concealed carry permit was with my PI badge creds as usual.

I was headed southbound on the Dan Ryan expressway by 6:30 in the morning, with rush hour traffic thinning somewhat after I got through the spaghetti bowl where all the Chicago expressways converge just west of the Chicago Loop. I figured a good ten hours on the road to cover the nearly 700+ mile trip to the Atlanta area, depending on weather and how closely the troopers were tracking speed violations today.

This trip was part of my investigation. I had been hired by the owner of a family business to look into the shooting incident involving a family member; someone had shot Sean, the family's number one son and rising star executive. The patriarch of the family business wanted me to look into aspects of the case that were beyond the scope of the local police department, such as this trip to Georgia.

The five-day trip allowed for a travel day down, three days in the area, and a travel day to return. After my interview with HR Manager Jennifer, I had reviewed the complaint files, finding a called-in anonymous threat. I had identified several individuals who might be possible suspects relating to the threat, and therefore possible suspects in the shooting. Three were male employees who were identified as possible sources of the "I'll fix ya good" threat, one was a female who had submitted a complaint about sexual harassment, identifying Sean as the offender.

I also wanted to talk with the former controller of the company that had been acquired by the O'Riellys. I had made preliminary telephone contacts requesting interview time and had connected with three of the employees, including former facilities manager Thomas McMillan, production supervisor Darleen Davis, and controller LaTonya Washington. I was unable to reach Don Duffy, the maintenance guy, and Billy Bob Wilder, the set-up man. They had not answered my telephone call nor responded to my request for a return call.

I made good time most of the way down, matching my speed with the truckers, who slowed through the Indianapolis area on I-65, and through the mountains of Tennessee on I-24. At a truck stop, I called ahead and scheduled a motel on the southern outskirts of Atlanta off I-75. After ten hours on the road, a hot shower and a room service dinner hit the spot; even the lumpy motel bed didn't interfere with a good night's sleep.

The next day, I drove into Atlanta, for a luncheon meeting with former Smith Electronics controller LaTonya Washington. We'd agreed to meet at Peachtree Vineyards, the classy restaurant where Sean O'Rielly had welcomed the former Smith Electronics management team to the O'Rielly Electronics organization after the acquisition. I wanted to see the environment of the restaurant where the sequence of events unfolded that resulted in the O'Rielly acquisition of the local firm. I thought that a meeting in the same location might further prompt recollections of former controller Washington, to help me gain insights on the acquisition, looking for any possible connection to Sean's shooting.

As a PI, I customarily run a check on people I meet, business or personal. From my background check of LaTonya, I had learned that she had done a brief stint in public accounting before moving to SEC. She had been with the electronics firm for about 4 years, beginning as an Assistant Controller and within two years receiving a promotion to Controller, heading up the accounting function at this privately-owned company. An Atlanta native, LaTonya had excellent credentials including a bachelor's in finance and an MBA from Howard University, a school with a premiere reputation located in Washington D.C., sometimes referred to as the "Black Harvard." I looked forward to gaining her insights on the acquisition, and interactions with Sean.