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They departed, and after a few minutes, I pulled out the very first communication I’d gotten from Carson Cartwright, by certified mail no less. It had seemed innocuous enough on the surface. He’d offered his services as aconsultantto help me maximize shareholder value and went on to list his many accomplishments.
It went back in the drawer, and I cursed myself for not taking steps earlier to fend him off. The letter was his first step in eventually making a case to the shareholders that he was their savior. In failing to avail myself of his advice, I was ignoring the shareholders’ interests, yada yada yada.
He’d followed it up with multiple public comments about us, and me in particular. He’d even managed to get quoted in more than one of Gumpert’s commentaries. The shtick was an old and well-worn one, and it sometimes played well if the stock suffered setbacks, as we had with the damned Sigurd articles.
He had to be tied into it somehow. There had to be a link.
I wasn’t going to leave this to Dad any longer. I strode to the door and opened it. “Cin, get Baird up here pronto.”
She lifted her phone and nodded.
A few minutes later Ed Baird, our head of security, was in my office, notepad in hand. “What do you need?”
“You know we’ve had leaks from the company that ended up in the paper.”
He nodded. “I’m still looking for any links to that Sigurd character or the paper.”
I raised a finger. “There’s been a new development.”
He leaned forward.
“I think this is all tied into the Cartwright group, Carson Cartwright in particular.”
“You think he wrote the articles? The hedge fund guy? You think he’s behind all this?”
I sucked in a breath. “It’s possible, but it’s more likely he got the info from someone here and paid somebody to write them. So I want you to change tacks and stop trying to find links to the paper. Instead look for anybody here with a connection to Carson Cartwright or his firm.”
He wrote on his pad. “You still think it’s somebody inside.”
“That’s what I want to find out.”
He rose. “We’ll get started right away.”
“And Ed, overtime’s no issue on this. Whatever resources you need.”
“You got it.” He closed the door behind him.
Fucking Carson Cartwright. The more I thought about it, the more sense Dad’s analysis made. Cartwright’s demands had started as a distraction, become an annoyance, then an irritant, and lately a threat. Last month, Jay had pointed out the possibility of a proxy fight materializing. His contacts in the financial community had mentioned rumors of just such potential. Still, a physical attack seemed out of bounds for corporate-raider types. The attack on Josh didn’t fit.
* * *
After lunch,I was in my doorway talking scheduling items with Cindy when Jennifer walked up.
“Do you have time to go over some things?” she asked.
“No,” I barked.
She blinked, and the drop in her countenance was immediate. “How about later?”
I gave her another firm answer. “No.”
Jennifer spun and slunk back toward her office.
I caught sight of Cindy’s questioning expression. “What?”
She pointed at her calendar. “You have time after three.”
I put a hand in my pocket. “I need that time to think.”
