I gave him an ugly side-eye.
“Sorry.”
“Why would an international big shot like Ortiz want to get involved with a middling, family-owned delivery company like Houghton?” I signed into the LexisNexis database and followed another thread of articles about Libertad’s parent company, LXL. No lawsuits against the company popped up.
“Look, it just seems to me that Jonathan is awfully tight-lipped for a man whose colleague was murdered right down the hall from him. The guy is hiding something. I just thought you ought to know.”
“Of course. Thanks for bringing this to my attention.”
“Also, I checked into that phone number you gave me. It’s a cheap burner phone. We can’t trace it. When was the last time the creep called you?”
I rubbed the back of my head. The knot from Sam’s house was nearly gone. “You know what? Don’t worry about it.”
“You want me to put one of my guys on you. In case someone is following you or something?”
I shook my head. “No, that’s not necessary.”
“Listen, I know you’re a big girl and all, but just be careful up here. This stuff doesn’t look good. Dirty money, crank calls.”
“Thanks. I’d better get on that call now.”
“Oh, sure. Sure.”
Hardy left. I pulled up Houghton’s board minutes. No mention of the Libertad deal or any other deals. Just perfunctory notes about the company’s operations and financial status, which had been on an upswing for the last eighteen months.
Jonathan was definitely hiding something about this deal. Nate said this deal was Jonathan’s baby. But any acquisitions would have involved Michael, especially in the early stages of the deal. If Libertad was a huge boon for the company, where was the paper trail? And Michael would have needed outside legal help. Especially with a foreign company involved. He should have been consulting a mergers and acquisitions law firm.
I picked up the phone and called Richie Melcher at Kilgore Findley, the law firm Houghton used for all its mergers and acquisitions. He picked up on the first ring.
“Hi. This is Richie.”
“Richie, this is Ellice Littlejohn at Houghton.”
“Hello, Ellice. Did you get my email? I’m really sorry about Michael. Is there anything we can do for you folks over here at the firm?”
“Right now, I need some information. I need to know what’s going on with the Libertad deal.”
“Libertad? You mean the company down in Monterrey, Mexico?”
“Yes.”
“Well, nothing as far as I know. Michael called me a few weeks ago and told me that Houghton was considering doing something with the company like a joint venture. He told me he would send over some information for me to look at, but I never heard back from him. With his murder and all, I just assumed the deal was off or you all were postponing it.”
“Did he tell you what kind of information he was sending over?”
“No. He just said the company was based in Mexico and that he was working with your chief financial officer to sort out the details.”
“Nothing else?”
“No. Is something wrong?”
“No. Thanks.”
I hung up. Another dead end.
Chapter 20
The smoky aroma of grilled steak floated from the doorway of the executive dining room, a room on the twentieth floor flanked by floor-to-ceiling windows on three sides. White linen tablecloths, the soft tinkle of crystal glasses, and Wedgewood china gave the room a light airy atmosphere despite the cold wind and rain that battered the Atlanta skyline. The hostess, a thick, well-dressed woman with an accent that reminded me of steel drums and warm, white sand greeted me at the door.
“Good afternoon, pretty lady. May I help you?”
“Hi. I’m scheduled to have lunch with Mr. Ashe.”
“Ah yes . . . Mr. Ashe’s table is just this way. And congratulations on your promotion.” She gave me a wink. “Very nice to see someone who looks like me on this floor.”
My tribe. “Thank you.” I smiled and winked back.
I followed the woman as she meandered through a sea of tables. I recognized most of the managers sitting in this room. Several of them turned and watched me walk through the dining room with leering eyes. No smiles. The same vibe from Nate’s party. I ignored them.
I had asked Nate if we could have lunch. The information from Hardy, coupled with the fact that I couldn’t find a scrap of paper related to Libertad, gave me a lot of concern. The American Bar Association rules on attorney ethics required me to raise any concerns with the CEO. Maybe if I could talk to Nate alone, I could get to the bottom of this Libertad mess, maybe even launch an independent investigation.