Leo Budge wasn’t your average Private Investigator. He was well below average at this stage of his career. He had gained his online Certificate 3 in Investigative Services at the Australian Security Academy last month and was eagerly looking forward to his first case. Leo had thought that experience in police work or security would have been mandatory, but no, anyone could do it. Leo at 45 years of age had embarked on a career change that filled him with anticipation. The previous job as Sales Manager at upmarket city men’s wear store, Antonios, became untenable when a much younger man was appointed as his boss. There was no career progression for him at the store so he made the bold decision to start his own detective business. The only issue that concerned him slightly was his one eye. Leo had lost his left eye to fungal infection as a boy. He now had, what was commonly known as a glass eye. It was actually an acrylic prosthetic eye that was practically undetectable to others. He had learned to manage his difficulty with distance and depth perception over the years. It wasn’t an impediment and he was confident he could be a successful detective. He chuckled at the thought that he could legitimately call himself a private eye. Leo was divorced, had no children and lived with his Burmese cat Andre in a two bedroom inner city apartment. Andre came with him as part of the distribution of assets when his marriage failed and had settled nicely into apartment living. The purring affection he got from the little chocolate brown feline always lifted his spirits. The office was set up in the second bedroom. The surveillance equipment had been purchased from China. He had advertised his services as best he could with a website and social media and he was ready to start work. His marketing slogan was - Leo H Budge Private Investigator – Keeping an eye out for you. Leo’s second name was Harley and he included the initial to make him appear more professional.
It surprised Leo when he got the phone call within two days of getting the marketing started. A major mining company city office sent him an online request and wanted a quote for a one-week commitment of consulting time to investigate a sexual harassment complaint. Leo knew that private detective work wasn’t all like Magnum P.I. but this was unexpected. He got to work on his submission emphasising that he was a trained, licensed Investigator with extensive people management skills. This was mostly true, though he had only managed one causal worker each Christmas for the last eight years at the menswear store. He reasoned that if you added all the eight casuals together they collectively could be regarded as people. He fired off the email quote and waited.
Leo took the lift up to the eighth floor and asked the first person he saw for directions to Ms Adele Finlay, the HR Manager. She was the contact given to discuss his submission for the job. He had dressed conservatively in dark blue chinos and purple skivvy and was feeling confident.
“Leo, have a seat,” Adele said as she looked him up and down with a strange look that Leo interpreted as admiration for his dress sense. She was a young woman with shoulder-length blond hair wearing a smart charcoal grey pants suit. It seemed to Leo that most of the people on this floor were of a similar description.
“Thanks for your quote Leo. I’ll give you some background on the issue we need to be investigated and you can ask any questions.” She paused and Leo nodded. “We have received an anonymous complaint by mail on a typed letter indicating that our Finance Manager, Danny O’Brien, has propositioned a staff member. The letter says that the advance was clearly of a sexual nature and as a young female, she is too scared to come forward. Here is a copy,” she said handing Leo an envelope. “I asked Danny, who has been with us for about two months, what he knew about the allegation and he denied it vehemently. He is aware we are hiring someone to investigate. We take Sexual Harassment very seriously here and would like you to get to the bottom of it for us. You would report to me by email daily with progress and any issues, plus a final written report and recommendation at the end of the week.
“Yes, of course,” Leo said. It was clear this lady wanted some action. “Is there any office space I can use for the week?” he asked.
“We have a spare office on this floor that you can use. You just need to complete the visitor sign in when you come,” she replied.
Leo nodded, “Okay.”
“Can you give me a brief rundown on how you plan to approach this investigation?” she asked.
Leo was hoping not to get this question. He didn’t have a clue about how to do this sort of investigation. His training had mainly been about how to get good pictures showing people cheating on their partners.
“Um, firstly I’ll do a preliminary reconnoitring assessment of the complete situation. This will enable me to make the appropriate decisions on the compatibility of the extensive array of surveillance equipment, and the response commitment” he replied.
Adele cocked her head to one side and gave a puzzled look. “Right, can you start on Monday?” she asked.
“You bet,” he replied.
Leo spent the weekend checking his equipment, making sure and listening devices received and recorded, and his cameras were in good order. The decision of what to wear on his tall gangly frame took the most effort. He settled on black tight pants, short enough to just see his white socks, black pointy shoes, a grey jacket with blue fine checked shirt buttoned at the neck. Leo eventually thought about devising a plan for the investigation. He then decided he’d just work it out when he arrived there in the morning.
After the visitor induction, he grabbed a coffee from the ground floor cafe and went to his office. It was a stretch calling it an office. Leo likened it more to a cupboard with a glass front. It was positioned against a solid wall and opened to the rest of the open plan office which had many desks and busy people. His office did, however, accommodate a small desk and had the necessary power, telephone and internet connections. He pulled out the complaint letter Adele had given him from his briefcase and opened it on the desk. The message in it was short and specific. It detailed how the writer had been beckoned into Danny O’Brien’s office as she walked past. He had then asked her if she would like to come to his place after work for some fun. She said “no” and left. “I suppose it depends on the way you say it and the look in your eye’” Leo thought. “So, I just need to find out if he did it, and who he did it to.” He put his elbows on the desk with hands clasped and stared at the door handle. Then, looking up he said out loud. “I’ll ask him.” Leo picked up the internal handphone on the desk and made an appointment for that afternoon to meet with Danny O’Brien in his office.
“Leo pleased to meet you,” Danny said as he stood and presented his hand to Leo for shaking. He looked Leo up and down with a strange look on his face. Danny was a small man in his thirties with fine features and thick brown hair. He wore the ubiquitous men’s business attire that Leo despised, dark trousers, white shirt and tie.
“Hi,” Leo said as he shook his hand. Danny’s grip was anything but firm and Leo quickly let go fearing he might hurt him. Danny gestured towards the chair in front of his desk and Leo sat down, surreptitiously removing the small listening device from his pants pocket and placing it under the edge of the desk where it stuck fast. “You know I’m here about the complaint against you?” Leo asked with a casual air.
“Are you recording this conversation?” Danny asked.
Leo was stunned by the question and sat with eyes wide open unable to think what to say.
“You put a bug under my desk. I saw you do it in the reflection of the glass behind you,” Danny said.
Leo turned in his chair and looked at himself. He turned back to Danny. “Yes, um I thought I should keep a record if that’s okay with you?” Leo said sheepishly.
“Sure, make sure you take the bug when you go,” Danny replied with a tone of aggravation.
Leo had made an initial impression with Danny and the meeting was short and terse. Danny had no explanation for the complaint and would not even provide a guess as to who may have made it. “Well, that went well,” Leo thought as he left his office. Before leaving he decided to have a chat with Danny’s Personnel Assistant Tina before returning to his own office. She knew about the investigation and hadn’t seen or heard anything that would support the complaint. No witnesses – no complainant – this investigation was going nowhere.
That night at home in his apartment, Leo discussed with Andre what the next steps should be. Andre was a good listener and Leo appreciated that he could talk and think without interruption. Following three glasses of red wine, the way ahead became obvious. He would check with Danny’s previous employer. There may have been similar complaints. There is often a history with deviant sexual behaviour Leo had read somewhere.
Adele provided the details of Danny’s previous employer and using the authority of the HR Manager, Leo sent them a few questions regarding Danny’s employment. The response came back the same afternoon and Leo scanned the emailed document. He went straight to the main issues. Were any complaints made - no. What was the reason for leaving – health. Leo was thinking there was nothing unusual in the information. Then he looked at the personal details at top of the page. The name read – Danielle (Danny) Annette O’Brien.
Leo had invited Danny to meet at the ground floor coffee shop explaining it was urgent that they talk. Leo was sitting at the back booth admiring the crema on his long black when Danny slid in opposite him.
“What is it Leo? I thought we’d already discussed this.”
“Not everything – Danielle,” Leo said with slow deliberation.
Danny gazed at the ceiling and sighed deeply. He looked back at Leo. “What do you know?” he asked.
“I know that before you came to work here, you were Danielle – a woman. I know you have not had any previous complaints of any kind. Would you like to add anything?” Leo asked.
“I left my last employment to have a transgender operation. There is nothing wrong with that and I am not obliged to make it common knowledge.” Danny replied.
“Yes, I agree,” Leo said. “But someone has accused you of sexual harassment and it is obvious to me who it is?”
“I suppose you want to know why I did it?” Danny said with a look of resignation.
Leo resisted the choking sensation and tried to appear like he knew what was going on. “Yes Danny, why did you do it?” he said, feeling sure Danny would notice the shocked puzzled look in his good right eye.
Danny clasped his hands on the table and looked at Leo’s bulging eye. “I wrote the complaint myself because I wanted to feel like a normal heterosexual man. Many in the office believe I’m a gay bloke. I thought this would help change their minds. I didn’t imagine they would hire a detective.”
Leo sat there speechless. He was about to say that it was most likely Tina who had sent the complaint. “Okay Danny, I can understand the issues you must be having. But I don’t think you’re on the money thinking that normal heterosexual blokes proposition girls at the office,” he said without conviction. “I’m going to wrap this investigation up and say in my report that you have an unblemished record. No person has come forward to support the complaint and it should be dismissed.”
“Thanks Leo, buy you another coffee?” Danny gave a cheeky girlish smile.
Leo arrived home early that evening. He was flushed with the success of his first investigative assignment and rushed to the cupboard. He pulled out a bottle of red and a tin of pilchards in aspic. “Andre” he called. “It’s celebrations tonight.”