Jamie Brodie 01 - Cited to Death

into the atmosphere here; maybe we can tell if something seems off. And remember, you're supposed to be interested in investing, so you should do most of the talking."
    "Yes. I've got it." He shook his head and opened his door. "Let's get this over with."
    We rode the elevator up, following Dr. Oliver's directions, and turned right. Fertility Research had the southwest quadrant of the building. The first door on the left was the receptionist's office. I knocked and stuck my head in. "Hi. Dr. Brodie and Dr. Ferguson, here to see Dr. Oliver?"
    "Hello, Dr. Brodie. Come right in." The receptionist was a grandmotherly looking lady in a blouse and a jumper with a cat embroidered on it. Her name plate said Marjorie Ellison. She gave us a sunny smile. "Would you like some coffee? Tea?"
    We declined. Marjorie said, "Well, let me know if you change your minds." She lifted her phone and pushed a button. "Dr. Oliver, your visitors are here." She waited a minute, then said, "Yes, sir," and hung up. "He'll be right with you."
    Pete was looking at some brochures that were on a side table. "May I have one of these?"
    "Oh, yes, help yourself."
    Pete picked up a couple of brochures and started reading. I smiled at Marjorie. She smiled back. It was very smiley in here.
    Dr. Oliver appeared in just a couple of minutes. "Dr. Brodie! So good to see you again!" He shook my hand vigorously. I introduced Pete, and they shook hands also. Dr. Oliver regarded Pete with interest bordering on avarice. "Dr. Ferguson, it’s a pleasure. I understand from Dr. Brodie that you’re looking for a worthy cause in which to invest."
    "Yes. I've come into some money that I need to give to charity for tax purposes. I'm sure you understand." Pete was playing the part of rich guy flawlessly. "I have a personal interest in fertility research, and I'm looking at different organizations, looking for a place that I'm comfortable with giving to."
    "Of course. I understand completely. We'd love to be the beneficiary of your generosity. Allow me to make a good impression on you." Oliver chuckled; Pete chuckled with him. Wow, he was really good at this.
    "Come with me, and let me show you our lab. It's our pride and joy." We said goodbye to Marjorie and headed down the hallway.
    The lab took up the entire right side of the hallway. There was a door at the front of the room and one at the back. We walked in to a brightly lit, mostly white space. It was about what I expected: several rows of lab benches with whirring, blinking machines and a few people standing at them in white coats.
    One of the people looked up at our entry and walked toward us. Smiling, of course. Then she saw me, and her jaw dropped in recognition at exactly the same moment as mine. It was the flirting woman from the pool. She was wearing jeans and a turtleneck under her long, white lab coat. Her streaked blonde hair was pulled back in a ponytail. She recovered first. “ Hey . You’re the early morning swimmer.”
    I wasn’t recovering from my shock very quickly. “Yeah…um…” I held my hand out. “Jamie Brodie.”
    She took my hand and held it warmly. “Alana Wray. Isn’t this a coincidence!” She seemed delighted.
    No. Fucking. Way .
    Dr. Oliver looked intrigued; Pete looked confused. Oliver asked, “Have you met before?”
    Dr. Wray let go of my hand and put her hands on her hips, tilting her head the same way she had the other day. Still flirting? “We have, very briefly, at the UCLA pool Monday morning. Remember, Tristan, we had that lunch meeting with the board, and I had to swim in the morning? This lovely young man welcomed me to the morning swim.”
    Oliver rubbed his hands together. “Well! How serendipitous!”
    Not exactly the word I would have used. But I wasn’t sure what word I would use. Where was Clinton when you needed him?
    Pete and Dr. Wray introduced themselves and shook hands. Wray beamed at both of us. “Welcome, both of you! We don’t get many visitors.”
    "Thank you for letting us interrupt your day." Pete had recovered, but his expression was guarded.
    "Oh, no problem. You're not interrupting." She turned to Oliver. "Tristan, would you like me to show them around?"
    I was watching Oliver, mostly so I didn’t have to look at Wray or Pete. Oliver seemed a bit uncomfortable with the idea of Wray giving us the tour. "No, thank you, I'll take care of it." It was subtle, but his attitude hinted at being patronizing. Hmm.
    It didn't seem to bother Dr. Wray