Innocent in Death (In Death #24)(70)

“You confronted Mr. Williams on this matter.”

“I did.” And here was the pride and authority in the lift of her chin, the chilly hauteur in her eyes. “When he was arrested and charged, I contacted our board of directors to inform them of same. It was agreed that Reed be immediately suspended, that his resignation be called for. If he refused to tender it, I was to begin termination proceedings.”

“Those are complicated and often difficult. And given the circumstances would generate considerable undesirable publicity for the school.”

“Yes. But under the circumstances, there was no choice. The students are our first priority, in every matter.”

Understanding the rhythm, Peabody poured a cup of water and offered it to Mosebly. “Some parents had already pulled a couple of your students,” Peabody commented. “You’ve probably had to reassure plenty of others. It’s happened under your watch. You must have gotten some heat from the board, too.”

“The board’s concerned, of course. But has been very supportive.”

“It would’ve murked it up even more, though, if Williams made a stink. You know how it is, Lieutenant, somebody gets out of line, then tries to take the whole ship down with him.”

“People like that,” Eve agreed, “they don’t want to go down alone, and don’t care what they break on the way. You stated earlier that you’d seen and spoken to Williams this morning, in the pool area.”

“Yes. I was leaving as he came in, and I reminded him—firmly—of his suspension, again asked for his resignation, and explained the consequences should he refuse.”

“How did he respond?”

“That he was confident his lawyer and his union rep would block any termination.” She shook her head in obvious disgust. “I left him there to contact the chairman of our board, and had decided to have Mr. Williams removed by security.”

“You just left him there to paddle around in the pool?” Eve said. “After he’d defied your authority?”

“I could hardly remove him bodily myself.”

“Guess not.” Frowning, Eve flipped through her file. “You don’t mention a shouting match with him.”

“I may have raised my voice, but I’d hardly call our conversation a shouting match.”

“Really? I like to get good and loud when I argue. Especially when I’m being threatened. You didn’t mention that either. That he’d threatened you.”

There was a quick flicker as Mosebly’s gaze slid away from Eve’s. “I don’t recall that he did.”

“You were overheard. He threatened you all right, Arnette. Threatened to make it known that you and he had used that pool for more than swimming laps, had used your office for more than lesson planning. How do you figure the BOD would take that information? How long would you stand as principal when Williams told them you’d had sex with him?”

“This is absurd.” Her throat worked on a swallow, and her neatly folded hands unlinked to press palms against the table. “This is insulting.”

“You know, I had to ask myself how it was that a woman so staunch—so proud of her reputation and the school she served—would allow a scumbag like Williams to stay on staff. I wondered about that. You had to know he’d been dipping.”

“There was never a complaint filed—”

“Oh, let’s can that, Arnette. You knew damn well he was engaging in extracurricular activities. Your watch.” Eve pointed at Mosebly across the table. “Your ship. But you let it go. How could you bring the hammer down on him for it, when he’d already nailed you?”

“Rock and a hard place,” Peabody agreed. “Go to the board on it, and you leave yourself wide open. Say nothing and have to tolerate his behavior. Still, the second option preserves reputations.”

“Yours,” Eve continued, and shifted to sit on the side of the table, crowding Mosebly a little. “The school’s. Did Foster come to you, off record, unofficially, to tell you Williams was harassing Laina Sanchez? Did he ask your advice on how to handle it?”

“I think…I think I should have an attorney present before I answer any more questions.”

“Sure, you can pull that chain. Of course, once you do, things are going to get stickier. How do you think that vaunted BOD is going to react, Peabody, when they find out Principal Mosebly needs a lawyer?”

“Not good.” Peabody pursed her lips, shook her head. “They probably wouldn’t react well.”

“There’s no reason for this.” Mosebly held up a hand. “We’ll straighten this out here and now. There’s no reason to involve a lawyer or the board.”

“No lawyer, Arnette?”

“No. Let’s just…I’ll tell you what I know. Yes, Craig came to me last year. He was upset and concerned. He said Reed had been pressuring Laina for sex, had been making her uncomfortable, and had touched her inappropriately. He said he’d spoken to Reed himself, and warned him, but as he knew Reed had made other inappropriate remarks and approached other staff members, he wanted me to make the warning official.”

“Did you?”

“I called Reed in. Yes. He was unrepentant, but he did stay away from Laina. He was annoyed with Craig. And amused by me as shortly after I came on as principal, he…we had a sexual encounter. It was a terrible mistake, a moment of weakness. It should never have happened, and I swore it wouldn’t happen again.”