Page 41 of The Smart Killer (High Peaks Murder, Mystery and Crime Thrillers #4)

M ichael Taylor’s office doors opened, and Noah, accompanied by Porter, entered the spacious room. Danica Wells, Taylor’s secretary, trailed behind them, appearing at her wits’ end. “Mr. Taylor, I’m sorry. I tried to stop them, but…” she began, her voice tense with apprehension.

Michael raised a hand, cutting her off. “That’s fine, Ms. Wells.” He turned his attention to them. “Detectives.”

Noah approached Taylor’s desk and tossed down a photo. Michael picked it up; his expression was unwavering. “Landon Emmett. Why didn’t you tell us about him? We asked for a list of employees, present and former. He wasn’t on that list you gave us,” Noah said, his gaze fixed on Taylor.

The CEO of Lakeridge Homes Inc. stared at the photo for a fleeting moment before setting it down.

He interlocked his fingers and rocked back in his leather chair.

“Because it was a long time ago. There’s nothing to be said.

He was a quack. He worked for us in the early days.

He had some dangerous ideas that I didn’t think were well thought out, so he stepped down. ”

“Stepped down. Interesting choice of words.” He nodded, a chuckle escaping his lips. “What was his role?”

“Design.”

Noah smiled. He walked behind Michael, over to where a library of books lined the shelves. “You like to read, Mr. Taylor?”

“When I get the time,” Michael replied, his eyes following Noah’s movements.

Running his fingers across the leatherbound volumes, most focused on marketing and home design, Noah continued his probing. “Your background is in marketing, is it not?”

“It is. That’s where I got my feet wet in the business world before I ventured into home design,” Michael explained calmly.

“Smart homes is quite a venture. I’d imagine it would take a brilliant mind to develop the technology involved, especially since yours is all created in-house. Which I must ask. Why didn’t you outsource it to China like so many companies do? I hear it’s far more affordable.”

Michael remained collected. “We have a good team. From the early days, we opted to keep it in-house to have more control over the manufacturing process and avoid the trap that so many other companies fall into.”

“Which is?”

“Generic versions flooding the market. Detective, China is great for creating discount products, but they tend to take those patents and make them available under generic names. Our homes are more marketable and appealing to consumers because our technology is U.S. made, U.S. supported, and only available when you buy one of our homes.”

“That’s very smart. No pun intended.”

“Yes. I thought so,” Michael said before cocking his head. “It’s expensive but worth every cent.”

“There aren’t many companies providing products made in the USA anymore.”

“Exactly.”

“So, you like to keep your line out of the hands of others.”

“It’s the only way to stay competitive, detective.”

Michael’s demeanor remained composed as Noah raised his eyebrows, revealing an interesting connection. “My father uses a smart system in his home. Funny enough, it’s actually your technology.”

“It is?”

Noah nodded. “Courtesy of Luther Ashford. One of your investors, I believe,” Noah stated, his gaze fixed on Michael. He never reacted. “Except my father’s home isn’t in your neighborhood.”

Michael smiled. “Well, that’s because it’s a new venture of ours.

As the Ashfords have been strong investors, we have considered expanding our product line and making the smart devices and tech available in his real estate.

They are luxury homes, after all, so it’s not like we are lowering the bar and placing it in low-end apartments or some big box store.

I like to think it’s in good hands, allowing us to reach a new level of buyer. ”

“Like the way Lexus is Toyota’s higher-end product.”

“Exactly. Some are willing to pay a premium for a system not limited to a home design. A custom build, you might say.”

“And your company, of course, would still offer support.”

“Of course. It’s our product. We stand behind it one hundred percent.”

“Because it would be your reputation on the line.”

“Exactly. And as you would know, detective, reputation is everything when you are in the public eye.”

“Yes. Yes, it is,” he said, glancing at Porter, who lowered his head ever so slightly. “Say the wrong thing… do the wrong, and it could bring a company like yours to its knees. Wouldn’t you agree, Mr. Taylor?”

“Yes.”

Noah strode over to the desk, scooped up the photo, and stared at it. “Do you know much about Nikola Tesla and Thomas Edison?”

Michael breathed in deeply, looking contemplative. “A little.”

“Then I imagine you would have heard of the AC and DC wars.”

“Well…”

“Let me give you a brief overview,” Noah said, cutting him off.

“Edison developed direct current, which was the standard in the U.S. for many years. However, DC ran into a problem with it not being easy to convert to higher or lower voltages. That’s where AC and Tesla came into the picture.

You see, he developed an alternating current as somewhat of a solution to that problem.

I don’t want to bore you with details of how that worked, but the short story is that when Edison realized he was about to lose royalties from his DC patents, he created a sort of smear campaign to discredit Tesla and alternating current.

He did that to spread misinformation to the public and say that AC was more dangerous. In essence, Tesla was more dangerous.”

Michael offered nothing but a blank expression better than any professional card player.

“But here’s what’s really brilliant about it all.

Edison saw how smart Tesla was and hired him to create an improved direct current design.

Tesla worked for almost a year before seeing that his boss didn’t live up to his promises.

It’s claimed that Edison refused to pay, and so Tesla resigned.

I think you used the term stepped down rather than resigned, right?

” Before Michael could reply, Noah continued.

“It really became quite a sordid tale. Even today, people still argue whether Thomas Edison, the marketing genius behind DC, stole many of Nikola Tesla’s patents and sold them as his own.

Crazy really. I mean, what can happen in business?

The two smartest minds of their time, one an excellent businessman, the other a genius, just couldn’t see eye to eye.

The sad part about it all is that Tesla died alone and almost penniless in an apartment in New York.

” He paused again. “Makes you wonder if Tesla ever thought about sabotaging Edison?”

Michael went from a deadpan expression to a smile. “Quite a story. The part people tend to forget is the period that Tesla worked for him. Any inventions he made in that time would have rightly belonged to Edison.”

“Only if he paid him, correct?” Noah smiled.

There was a short pause.

“I’m sure Edison didn’t leave empty-handed. I mean, anyone working for a year without some form of payment would be an idiot.”

“I guess they would be, or extremely pissed. I’ve always wondered if those patents were Tesla’s or Edison’s.”

“A lawyer probably could tell you. I’m not much of a historian, detective. I prefer the present, the future, even more so.” He glanced at his watch. “Which reminds me, I have an appointment. Is there anything else I can help you with, detectives?”

Noah turned to Porter. “Do you have anything to add?”

Porter shook his head. “No, I think that’s all.”

Noah looked back at Michael. “I hope the fortune you’ve gained has been worth the losses.” With that, they exited his office and passed by one of several patrol cruisers. The officers inside would closely monitor Taylor’s movements.

“Now that Emmett knows we know; you think he will come for him?”

“We’ll see.”