Chapter 18: Exposure

"I don't want to have to go to court. I don't want to testify," Dory said, her emotions beginning to run high.

"And I will do everything possible to prevent this from getting to court ... short of surrender," Paul said evenly. "I'm still hopeful we'll find something in Bentley's background that will help us make this go away."

"And if we don't?" she asked, on the verge of tears.

"We'll bluff. We'll call in the ownership group of the academy to reveal their background checks. I'm pretty sure they'll want to avoid that at all costs. If they haven't done a thorough background check, then they won't want to see it in court either. One way or another, we'll force Bentley out."

I was listening only as Paul and Dory spoke, sitting on our living room sofa. It was Monday evening and still nothing had turned up from Paul's sources about Bentley's past. I wasn't sure whether to be worried or not, but this was only day one of the search, so I told myself not to get too discouraged.

"Jonathan suggested that I bring Dory with me to the store. She can read, have coffee, or just hang out with me being nearby. Bentley and his lawyer have made it impossible for her to return to teaching. She's been suspended indefinitely."

"That's right," Paul agreed. "It was his only recourse, not that I wanted Dory to return to work with him there. As I understand it, reading your contract, you are suspended with pay until a hearing is held. That will be our first chance to take on Mr. Bentley face-to-face. In the meantime, I'm fine with Dory being with you at Carlton's."

"What if he doesn't call a hearing?" I asked.

"Then Dory will still be paid, but at some point we will have to force the issue. A summons to appear for a deposition might be one way."

"What does that mean?" Dory asked.

"It means he would be called in by the court to give his version of the events of Friday night in a sworn statement," Paul explained. "It could be used in court if necessary."

"Have you talked to Phyllis Yardley yet?" I asked Paul.

"No. She's missing school today as well and I can't get a straight answer from them where she is and when she'll be back. I have a gut feeling that she may know something that Bentley is trying to hide. We're trying to find her now. She'll turn up somewhere, I'm sure."

I leaned back in my chair and exhaled. Life was getting complicated once more and I was worried for Dory. I could see she was under stress, but there was little I could do for her except stay close and comfort her. We didn't have the option of escaping town until this blew over. It was going to be with us until it was resolved and we had to be prepared for that.

By Friday, Dory and I had worked out a routine for ourselves at the store. In fact, she was acting much like an unpaid employee. She restocked shelves, checked the computer with customers and generally made herself valuable. When I told her she didn't have to do that, she insisted, saying she needed to keep busy and not dwell on the unsolved problem ahead of us. I decided it was the better of any solution I had.

I was working Saturday, so Dory and I opened the store promptly at nine o'clock and got ready for our last day of the week. We had talked about going over to Ucluelet on Sunday for the day, but we decided to see what the weather was like first. It was almost noon before we started getting busy, and I was booking some special orders for a customer who was sending locally produced books to Europe for Christmas. I was in the middle of my work when I felt a tap on my shoulder. I turned to see Dory, and with her, to my surprise, was Phyllis Yardley.

"Can you come with us?" Dory asked in almost a whisper.

"Give me a minute to finish this order form and I'll be right with you. Please ask Sherry to take over for me."

Five minutes later we were huddled around the coffee room table in the back of the store. We were alone.

"I'm sorry I haven't been in touch with you, Dory," Phyllis began. "I've been keeping out of sight this week. I heard what happened but I didn't know who to talk to until Mr. Ildebrun contacted me. He told me what was going on and I told him what I knew. I'm so sorry this has happened, Dory. I feel guilty, but I'll wait until Mr. Ildebrun arrives before I tell you."

I walked out to the front of the store and waited for Paul. He arrived a couple of minutes later and had someone with him. Someone I didn't recognize.

"We're in the back with Phyllis Yardley, Paul."

Paul introduced the other man.

"This is Detective Sergeant Adam Lawson, RCMP Nanaimo detachment. Let's sit down with Dory and Phyllis and get what we know out on the table."

I led them to the back of the store where Dory and Phyllis were introduced to the detective.

"We've done a background check on Mr. Randolph Bentley and so far come up with very little," Lawson began.

I could hear the sigh of disappointment from Dory.

"However, the reason we haven't got much is because we can't find anything out about him from before 1990. It's like he didn't exist. It leads us to believe that he's changed identities. I've contacted Citizenship and Immigration to see what they can find out. I'm not sure how thorough their checks were, but with what we know now, that will at least spur them to look closer and probably to interview Mr. Bentley again. That should make him nervous if nothing does."

"This sounds like it's going to take a while," I said, equally disappointed.

"No government agency works at warp speed," Lawson chuckled. "However, I've got the pressure on to make sure they do their job since they don't need the publicity of questions in the House of Commons about lax immigration policy."

"I think you should hear what Ms. Yardley has to say as well," Paul suggested. "Go ahead Phyllis."

"I ... I left the pub on Friday night about six thirty. Dory and Rand were still there, but just talking. I knew something that I hadn't shared with anyone and as I was driving home, I thought it was a bad idea just to leave Dory on her own with him. You see, he made a pass at me when we were first getting the academy set up."

"What kind of a pass," the detective asked.

"He complimented me and said we made a nice couple. We were both single and going to be working as a team and we could be a team in other ways as well. He wasn't very subtle. I turned him down, but every once in a while he'd bring it up again. Finally, I gave him the idea that I was a lesbian. I'm not, but I wanted to turn him off."

"Did that stop him?" Lawson asked.

"No ... not right away. He said he could change my mind about my 'preferences' if I gave him a chance. He was quite persistent. In the end, I threatened to quit and report him to senior management, and that put a stop to it. Even then, he was constantly leering at me until the school opened and we had staff around. Then he turned his attentions to others."

"Did you report any of this to the academy's management?" Paul asked.

"No. I didn't want to make waves this early on. I ... I really wanted this job. It's a great school in a great location and it was exactly what I hoped I could have for my future. I didn't want to spoil it even before I started. I regret that now. If I had, perhaps Dory would have been spared his attack."

Dory had been sitting beside Phyllis and took her hand and held it in a gesture of friendship.

"Would you be willing to sign a deposition to confirm your account of his actions, Ms. Yardley?" Detective Lawson asked.

She nodded. "Yes, I would."

"Very well then," Lawson said, "that's two sworn statements against Mr. Bentley. That's going to be a lot more difficult for him to dispute. But more to the point, I think it's time I had a conversation with the owners of Surgenor Academy. I don't think they'd appreciate being blind-sided with a court action, and they may be able to help us with our background checks."

"Thanks, Adam," Paul said. "I appreciate your help. We'll wait to hear from you."

"I'll contact the school today and see if I can get together with them no later than Monday. I'd like to have the signed statements of Ms. Yardley and Ms. Paulson with me."

"We'll look after that today," Paul promised.

"In the meantime, just keep doing what you're doing," Lawson suggested. "Keep a low profile."

"Any problem if we go out of town for the weekend?" I asked.

"No, as long as we can contact you. Do you have a cell phone?"

"Yes," I said, giving him my number.

When Detective Lawson left, we sat with Paul, reviewing what needed to be done. Phyllis and Dory would go with Paul to the RCMP station and give their statements, with requests for them to be forwarded to Detective Sergeant Lawson in Nanaimo the same day. Phyllis was staying with a friend and didn't plan to go home or to work until next week. She had booked off "sick" and had been brooding about what happened on Friday night until Paul contacted her. She was relieved to get it off her shoulders and out into the open.

I was beginning to wonder about how much of a bill I was running up with Paul Ildebrun, but if it put an end to this nightmare of Dory's, I could learn to live with it. It also reminded me that I hadn't talked to Arnold in some time.

"Hi, Arnold, it's Steve Black calling."

"Hello, Steve. Good to hear from you. How are things in paradise valley?" he chuckled.

"Well, not so good right now, but I'm hoping for improvement."

"What's wrong?" he asked, genuinely concerned.

"Dory was attacked by the headmaster at her school. She fended him off, but it has really upset her and he, of course, is denying everything. She's been suspended with pay, but pending a hearing. If we can't prove she was attacked by him, she could be fired."

"Oh, Steve, that's terrible. Are you getting some help with this?"

"Yes. You gave me the name of Paul Ildebrun and he's been great. If anyone can put a proper end to this, he can. I know Dory wants her job badly, but she can't work with this guy in charge. She couldn't trust him. I wouldn't ask her to do it anyway."

"No, of course not. What's happening now?"

"We've got the RCMP involved and the assistant headmistress has come forward to say that she was harassed by Mr. Bentley before the school opened. She's willing to go on the record with a sworn statement, so we've got some support at least. The RCMP is checking on his background and we're hoping they'll turn up some more information there."

"That can't be very pleasant for Dory. Please give her my best ... and Eddie's too."

"Of course. How are things with you?" I asked.

"We're making slow progress with Mr. McVeigh, but I think his bank and the auditors are putting together a pretty compelling story about what he's been doing with the store and his suppliers. I think his days as an owner are numbered. It's just a matter of time."

"Well," I sighed, "I'll have to wait and see how it all comes out then."

"How are you enjoying the book store?" he asked.

"Better than I expected, but ... it's still not Top Valu Foods. There's something about that business that draws me to it."

"So ... there's still a chance you would be interested in Valley Farm Market if we were able to acquire it?"

"Yes. I would be interested. But a lot is going to depend on how this mess with Surgenor and Dory works out. That's my first priority. After that, I can think about other things."

"I understand completely. Let's stay in touch, Steve. I wish you luck solving Dory's problem. You've got a very good man in Paul, so stick with him. I have a feeling it will all work out for the best," he said in that calm, reassuring voice I had become accustomed to.

"Thank you, Arnold. I always feel better talking to you, and thanks for putting me onto Paul."

I did feel better talking to Arnold. He was a voice of reason and confidence that I had come to respect and admire since we first met in Vernon. I hoped his optimism would turn out to be justified.

When I thought about what I had gone through between the time I had first asked Dory for help in high school and now, I realized I had been tested more than once. Our personal ups and downs, our separations, her discovery of her parents' swap club had all contributed to forming a stronger relationship than we might otherwise have had. Yes, we had been challenged, but this problem at Surgenor was just another obstacle that we would overcome, one way or another. I believed in us, and we would survive this, no matter how it turned out.

The weather in the Comox Valley was terrible that weekend. Rain and wind and cold, with nothing in the forecast promising relief. Just the same, I thought it was the right thing for us to get away, even if only for a day. We decided on Quadra Island. The forty minute drive to Campbell River and the fifteen minute ferry ride to the island was enough of an escape. Early Sunday morning we were at the Discovery Inn in Campbell River for brunch and spent the afternoon on the island exploring.

Remarkably, the weather eased. While it wasn't sunny, the wind abated and we enjoyed more of the scenery of southern Johnstone Strait. It was the release from our work and worries that we had been looking for. A late supper at the island lodge, a later ferry, and the drive back home completed a very nice, relaxing day. Jonathan would open the store tomorrow and we would sleep in, hopefully ready for whatever the new week would bring.

With Dory not working, we were together constantly and, with her willingness to help out at the store, there was no additional burden on Jonathan or the staff. In fact, Dory was proving to be a real help and was welcomed by our staff and my boss. But hovering over us all along was the uncertainty of what would happen with her job ... her career. I knew how much it meant to her, and both of us were praying that this problem would be resolved in her favour.