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more,” said Cates. “And that’s why I’ve shifted background investigations from the personnel department back to your office. And from now on, nobody gets hired without a psychological evaluation. We’ve already put that service out for bid.
    â€œWhat else?”
    I started to wonder if this was a test. “Scheduling of line staff and supervisors probably should have been done differently.”
    â€œHow so?”
    â€œThe prison allowed, even encouraged, the same line staff and supervisors to work together for too long a period of time in the same area. It would have been better to rotate and mix line staff and managers more often. That would have prevented the formation of tight cliques of staff and supervisors, making it harder to organize and control illicit activities.”
    I don’t know whether he liked this idea but he was back scribbling notes in his planner. Maybe he was writing that I was a flaming nut-case and had begun the paper trail that would lead to my ultimate removal from the department. Or maybe I was just being paranoid.
    He looked up from his planner. “Here’s my plan and how the SIB has an integral role its success. It starts with my office. Employees have to know that illegal and unethical behavior won’t be tolerated. I have to set the tone for that right from the get-go with stronger written policies and procedures, improved training, increased emphasis on ethics, and, of course, vigorous enforcement. In part, that’s where your office comes in. Every allegation of employee misconduct must be investigated quickly and thoroughly, and appropriate corrective action taken immediately.
    I interrupted. “That’s all well and good. I assume we’ll get the resources to pay for it because, at the moment, I don’t have the budget or staff to carry out the mandate, or to conduct full-field background investigations on all applicants. I don’t have a problem with the SIB having the responsibility as long as we have the necessary resources.”
    â€œTell me what you think you need.”
    â€œRight now, the SIB functions with six investigators counting myself, and one overworked secretary. I need, as a minimum, one additional full-time investigator, two would be better, and an additional clerical support person.”
    Cates thought about it for a moment. “Here’s what I can do for you now. I’ll find the money in the current budget to get you another secretary. When the new fiscal year begins, I’ll get you another investigator. Until then, you’ll have to make do.”
    Our meeting ended. I’d been blunt. I wasn’t sure whether he appreciated my candor. His demeanor didn’t give much away. But I knew that I’d been set-up to fail if I couldn’t command sufficient resources to implement his plan for greater staff accountability. In the meantime, I had a murder investigation to work.

Chapter Six
    Robin Joiner slept until almost noon. She had spent nearly two hours drinking coffee and eating a late night dinner of eggs, hash browns, and toast at the IHOP, several miles south and west of the University of Utah campus. The attempted kidnapping had frightened her beyond anything she had ever experienced.
    After dinner, she walked several blocks on Main Street until she found a motel that looked clean enough to pass the smell test. Joiner debated about whether to use her remaining cash to register for the room using a false name but ultimately decided against it. It seemed prudent to hoard her cash for emergencies and use her debit card for the room, knowing that using the card would create a paper trail. After a restless hour in which she couldn’t get to sleep, she got up and walked a block to a twenty-four hour convenience store where she purchased some Tylenol PM. The sleep medication had done its job, but it had also left her with a major hangover.
    Joiner got up, showered, and wandered