Harry was astonished at what Jack was telling him about the previous day's meeting with Director Undercash at the Parker-Lincoln building in Raleigh. As Jack recounted the meeting Harry's face grew increasingly distraught. It was lunch time on Tuesday and they were meeting for coffee at the Barnes & Noble near Cross Creek Mall, a fifteen minute drive from Jack's office in the Systel building on Green Street in downtown Fayetteville.
Harry frowned as he carefully read the memo that Director Undercash had given to Jack and Lori the previous day. The typed memo gave the couple only one day to decide who would leave Fayetteville. However, a handwritten sentence at the very bottom of the letter, initialed by Director Undercash, indicated the couple would have five days to make the decision. In Jack's view, the additional days were likely urged by Human Resources. It seemed to Jack that Human Resources, despite facing an uphill battle, was doing all they could to try and help.
"Something is very wrong. It reeks of state government misconduct. You should schedule a meeting with William Morris and make sure he is aware of what is happening," Harry said. William Morris, a prominent attorney, had been appointed several years ago by Governor Beasley to head up North Carolina's environmental agency.
Jack was perplexed. He started speaking slowly while staring intently down at the table as if he was talking to himself.
"It's all very strange. Director Undercash threatens me with insubordination for simply doing my job, while at the same time he appears to be openly trying to undermine William Morris, the person Governor Beasly appointed as head of the agency," Jack said as he shook his head in dismay.
"Things do not add up at all," Harry said with a tone of frustration.
"If you want to go over and order coffee, I'll try to find more information about Undercash." Harry quickly turned to his open laptop sitting on the table.
Jack walked over and took his place at the end of the busy drink line. Women with very young children were ahead of him in line and also sitting at most of the tables. Jack asked the woman in front of him the names and ages of her two young children. Clearly, she delighted in talking about her children.
Fayetteville is the home of Fort Bragg and Pope Air Force Base. Many of the soldiers living in Fayetteville and the surrounding area were overseas fighting in either the War in Iraq or the War in Afghanistan. The bookstore's cafe area and drink line were usually crowded with Moms and their young children.
Occasionally, Jack would see a young, adult male in the bookstore in a wheelchair with missing legs. It was always a jarring experience.
Jack returned to the table with two coffees.
Harry had just finished a voter search in the Board of Elections website for North Carolina. "Undercash is registered in Cabarrus County, as a Republican. I wonder if he is trying to undermine the Democratic governor and his agency management team?"
"If that were the case, why would he be so brazen about it?" Jack responded. "Why would he openly say in a meeting that agency employees do not actually work for the agency? Why would he say the division of air quality is not part of DENR? He is not trying to hide his defiant attitude."
"That's a good point," Harry responded with a puzzled look. "Why so brazen? And why does he have so much unchallenged power in state government?"
"Since Governor Beasley won re-election in November of last year there have been news stories suggesting him as a future presidential or vice-presidential pick. The governor seems to be getting a lot of national attention. He might feel he needs to be very careful." Jack paused for a few seconds.
"Maybe Director Overcash has photos of Governor Beasley cheating on his wife," Jack said with a sudden grin.
Harry kept staring at Director Undercash's memo and did not not appear to pay any attention to Jack's odd attempt at humor.
Jack described to Harry how Director Undercash had spoken angrily in the meeting about the agency Honor Code, recently implemented by William Morris and his deputy Denny Bunson. Jack and Harry discussed how Director Undercash, a long-time public employee, seemed to view himself as running his own private company rather than directing the air quality division of a North Carolina public agency. Perhaps he had developed that attitude during his years as the supervisor of the Mooresville field office north of Charlotte.
Of course, some members of the General Assembly argued for the public agency to be 'run like a business.' Was this simply another example of an entrenched, middle-aged agency boss who was more than happy to run a public agency office like it was his own private business?
Harry stared out the bookstore window deep in thought.
"So many Red flags!" he said in a soft and puzzled tone. But he kept staring out the window for several minutes as if something in the Barnes & Noble parking lot would somehow help unlock the mystery. It was just a crowded parking lot in Fayetteville, Cumberland County, North Carolina, with lots of women and young children, mostly military families, walking to and from their vehicles.
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cast of characters
