Machinations!
Morty didn’t bring any guys with him, either; but that wasn’t his style. Instead, he brought paperwork with him, which Bad Jack had started to notice wasn’t exactly the nicer option. You had to be careful about writing shit down. Just ask Yapper.
The Yapper business turned out to be something Morty wanted to bring up, too. “If you don’t mind, Director Steelman,” he said. “It’s a minor thing, for the moment, but I’d like to address it before it becomes a major one.”
“Sure,” said Bad Jack. “We can do that before my business.” Since my business is mostly gonna be me saying ‘Remember who runs this place, Ombudsman.’ Only, you know, all polite-like.
“Excellent.” Morty pulled out a few pieces of paper. “Mr. Joeson was very eager to avoid a noose after his conviction. He confessed to quite a few things, and made rather more accusations. Quite far-reaching ones, too.”
Morty looked up, catching and keeping Bad Jack’s eyes. “This is not a prelude to an accusation, an invitation for a bribe…” — Bad Jack surprised himself, and possibly even Morty, with his snort of suppressed laughter — “…yes, quite. And it is not even a veiled warning. Most of what Mr. Joeson told the Consortium is suspect.
“But some of it is not, so I have new orders from the Consortium to either confirm or disprove it. Despite Mr. Joeson’s best efforts, neither you nor your two immediate subordinates are under investigation; but there are members of your original staff who may — excuse me for saying this; who most likely are — guilty of serious violations of Consortium policy. I tell you this so that you are not surprised by the results of my inquiry.”
Bad Jack thought about screaming his response. Ten years ago, he might have. Ten years ago, I was a dumbass with more balls than brains. “All right,” he said evenly.