A Private Affair (2 page)

“Simus Labs is an extraordinary company and an excellent acquisition for Barra Industries. Because of your loyal customer base, excellent smart device products and impressive advertising campaign you forced us to take notice. But when your smoke and carbon monoxide detector came on the market we knew we had some thinking to do and hard decisions to make.”

He had a beautiful speaking voice—a mesmerizing voice that could convince you to grab a knife and slit your own throat for the sake of others. She knew what would come next. After flattery would be strategy.

“We had to ask ourselves, do we continue to compete and risk losing our company’s market share or do we find a way to work together?”

She had to admire his semantics. ‘Working together’ sounded so kind and welcoming. She’d expected him to use battle terms like ‘join forces,’ perhaps that would come later.

“So we came to the conclusion that it would be best for all those involved to begin negotiations. While Simus Labs is inarguably a successful company, it’s also spread too thin and its financial solvency is structured on one main product. Which is fine for now, but what about over the next five years? How about ten? In an environment filled with innovation, it is crucial to think with a forward mindset. Let me present you with our vision of how Barra Industries will propel Simus Labs to greatness.”

He spoke as if he expected applause. As if his words could camouflage the reality. Instead of looking at the presentation, Carissa looked around at the audience. She felt their worry, their pain, their shock. She, and they, knew that not all of them would have a chance to sit in this conference room next year. Maybe even next month. She flexed her hand and took a deep breath although she felt like exploding. How dare he talk about numbers and percentages as if that was all that mattered. Were they just commodities? Prisoners with number identification instead of names? Things to be shifted around for the benefit of the whole?

How easy and cowardly it was to focus on the numbers, leaving her to deal with the true cost—the lives. The people. The human element of their business, which men like Riverton chose to ignore. She’d be the one to deal with the tears and the anger while he lined his pockets with the wealth he’d gained and polish his plastic smile. Carissa returned her gaze to the presentation, holding back a yawn. Not because she was bored, but because she was stressed.

She blinked then switched her gaze to Riverton. He stared directly at her. Although he spoke to everyone, his gaze remained on her. She swallowed hard, but didn’t shift her gaze, challenging him. She knew she should be demure and glance away, especially since he’d caught her not paying attention. But she couldn’t back down. She had little respect for him, she didn’t care what he thought. She knew men like him feasted on the flesh of the weak and she would not let him take a bite out of her. A man like him had put a cousin of hers out of work five years ago, another, just like him, had closed down a factory where her Uncle had worked. Her uncle had worked hard to distinguish himself from a family of layabouts and losers, the first to own a home. But the loss of his job had led to the loss of his beloved house and the shame was too much. A bullet to the head ended his suffering, but still rang in her mind like an echo in a canyon. But she knew a man like Riverton wouldn’t understand something like that, so on her uncle’s behalf, she couldn’t or wouldn’t look away.

After a few moments, he shifted his gaze and Carissa started to breathe again, not realizing that she had stopped. He had affected her more than she wanted to admit, but she still felt a small victory, although she knew it would be short lived. The reality was Barra Industries and Riverton had already won.

Carissa tried her best not to yawn through the remainder of his talk of a ‘friendly takeover’ and his plan to meet with each and everyone of them in the coming week, before thanking them for their cooperation. He ended his talk with a smile then turned the floor back over to Rich who answered their questions with such vagueness that no one left the meeting feeling that their job was secure.

Carissa exited the conference room seething. “I hate him.”

Mia sent her a sharp look. “You don’t know him enough to hate him.”

“I know plenty. He laced that speech with just enough arsenic to hurt us without killing us.”

“He’s everything he’s supposed to be—sharp and strategic. He’s powerful. The true nature of his character will be revealed when we get to see how he uses that power.”

“We already saw it. He’s cold, calculated and heartless.”

“I’m sure he has a heart, he just doesn’t show it. He can’t afford to.”

Carissa sent her friend a look of pity. “Do you think defending him will help you keep your job?”

Mia stopped and pinned Carissa with a look that made her feel small. “No, but I think you were too busy looking around the room to really listen to what he was saying. A lot of what he said made sense. Simus Labs would be vulnerable in a few years. Barra Industries can help us expand. He shared ideas I’d wanted to see implemented for years, but Rich wouldn’t budge.”

Carissa sighed, she didn’t want to face it, but Mia was right. However, her opinion of Riverton remained steadfast, but she kept that information to herself. She gathered her staff in one of the smaller conference rooms near HR and shared the logistics of the takeover, giving them the letter Rich and Riverton—or rather their assistants—had drafted, telling them about upcoming changes and trying to answer questions she couldn’t really answer.

After dismissing her staff, Carissa returned to her office thinking of all the possible scenarios and decisions she’d have to make. She was jotting down a note to visit Ed when someone knocked on her office door.

“Come in,” she said forcing a smile to greet whoever entered.

The henchman did.

Her smile fell, but her heartbeat rose. He looked large, cool and polished in a suit that had probably never travelled this far south before.

“May I speak to you for a moment?” he asked with a polite sincerity that surprised her. She’d expected a subtle demand.

She gestured to a seat. “Of course, Mr. Riverton.”

He sat. “Call me Kenric.”

Seriously? With a straight face? Not happening.
“How may I help you?”

“At the meeting I could see that my speech didn’t go down well with you.”

And you care, because?
She clasped her hands together on her desk and nodded as if giving his statement due consideration. “Hmm.”

“My job is to allay any worries and concerns and I don’t feel I succeeded conveying that to you. You seem very worried.” He paused. “More than the rest.”

“I apologize. I’ll take care to guard my emotions more carefully next time.”
If there is one.

He leaned back. “That’s not why I’m here. I don’t want you to hide how you feel. I want to know why.”

“Why I’m worried?” she asked just to clarify.

He nodded.

“You already know the answer to that.”

“I’d prefer to hear it from you.”

“What you want to hear from me is how worried I am about the fate of the company, the market and all that you discussed, but that doesn’t faze me because,” she quickly added, anticipating his question, “unlike you, I don’t deal with numbers, I deal with people. The human factor. The fuzzy science of emotion. You have the luxury of cutting this or cutting that without seeing the impact, but telling someone who’s worked at Simus Labs for years that they no longer have a job will be painful for me.”

She took a deep breath and clasped her hands tighter. “I am excellent at my job, but I can’t do the hard part of letting people go with a smile or insincerity. I am worried about the lives that will be changed by this takeover, the health and wellbeing both mentally and physically of the people affected by your so called ‘friendly’ takeover, because there’s nothing friendly about losing a job.”

He blinked with all the interest of a man listening to a weather report. She could be fired right now and although she was afraid—she had an apartment she loved and bills due—she knew a part of her would be relieved. She didn’t think she could stomach working under such a man.

Riverton crossed his legs and glanced around her office. “I knew I wouldn’t be popular,” he said with an unmistakable tone of amusement. “I didn’t take this job for that and I know acquisitions come with feelings of distrust.” His gaze met hers. “But you can’t stand me, can you? Not just what I do or what I represent, but me.” He rested a hand on his chest, but although the motion was casual it really was a challenge as was his granite hard gaze.

Carissa wanted to agree with him, but she knew she couldn’t admit her true feelings and keep her job. Besides, her personal feelings didn’t matter, there were others she had to consider. “I’m afraid there’s been a misunderstanding.”

He narrowed his eyes, but she could tell nothing from his expression. She could only hope he would swallow her lie or at least let it pass. He seemed like the kind of man who could ignore what he didn’t want to hear. After a long moment, he nodded. “Yes, my apologies. So I can depend on you,” he said more as a statement than a question.

“Yes.” She wanted to say no.
No, you cannot depend on me to make this transition smooth. No, you can’t depend on me to quiet the herd so that you can swing your ax.
But if she wasn’t here there was no one else to look after the employees—people like her uncle. So she kept her composure and said what was expected. “Of course.”

He nodded then opened his briefcase and took out a piece of paper. He scanned it for a second then handed it to her. “I need the personnel files on these people. Bring them to my office tomorrow—ten o’clock sharp. I’m on the top floor, third office on your right.” He stood. “I look forward to our first meeting.” He held out his hand.

Carissa reluctantly shook it, oddly disturbed by how soft his hand felt. For some reason she’d expected calluses. “Yes.”

Once he’d gone, Carissa looked at the paper and saw a list of names. Eight names with their positions in the company listed next to them. Her heart fell when she saw the sixth name: Mia Wexler.

“Does this spinach taste fresh to you?”

“Did you even hear a word I said?” Carissa asked her boyfriend, Morris Howell, hoping not to sound as shrill and angry as she felt. She sighed. She’d just spent the last several minutes sharing how terrible her day had been and her fears of upcoming layoffs and how much she wanted to weep. She’d shared the awful feeling she felt that she might lose her job and how that didn’t bother her as much as the thought of telling her mentor that she’d soon be out of work. She’s laid her heart bare and all he could think about was his salad. She’d thought a dinner date at a nice restaurant would have lightened her mood, but so far he was proving her wrong.

“Yea, sure,” he said frowning down at the spinach leaf on his fork. “I’m just trying to figure out where this puts us.”

“Excuse me?”

He glanced up at her. “Why? Did you pass gas or something?”

“No,” Carissa said through clenched teeth. “I don’t understand what you’re talking about.”

He returned his gaze to his spinach, shrugged, clearly making the decision that the spinach was edible, then put it in his mouth and chewed. “Maybe it’s the dressing.”

She knew he could be particular about his food. He was particular about a lot of things like how his clothes were pressed, the thread his tailor used, the temperature in his house, but she wasn’t in the mood. “Do you want to be left alone?” she asked.

He set his fork down. “No, sorry.” He reached across the table and squeezed her hand with a half smile of apology.

She felt her annoyance fade. “That’s okay.”

“It’s just that if you lose your job, that’s going to affect our five year plan.” He picked up his fork again and stabbed at his spinach salad. “The lack of income would put more pressure on me, but you’re resourceful so I don’t see you unemployed for too long. Maybe a month.”

“Morris,” she said with a low warning.

“Okay three.”

“Morris,” she said again, feeling her annoyance return.

“You’re right,” he said wiping the corner of his mouth with a napkin. “You might not lose your job at all and there’s nothing to worry about. In another year we can confidently buy a house then get married.”

Carissa stared at the attractive man in front of her, reminding herself that she loved him. Most of the times. But at times like this, she wasn’t even sure she liked him very much. She knew he was a good choice. Great marriage material. After two failed ones, she should know. He was gainfully employed and liked to think ahead. Neither of her exes had and she felt privileged that he’d looked past her lack of a college degree. Most men she’d been interested in couldn’t see past that supposed flaw. He also saw past her blue collar background. She knew on paper they looked like an odd match. He was a PhD candidate from an upper middle class family. She’d come from a blue collar background, was twice divorced without a degree.

The men she was interested in usually only saw her high school diploma, blue collar background and two divorces. She’d married early, right out of high school because she’d wanted to get out of her father’s house. That marriage fell apart when her husband’s side business, as a drug dealer, got him put away. Her second marriage was to a man who was twenty years her senior and lasted five years, until she started having her own opinions. Like her father, he didn’t like that. He liked his women quiet and subservient, but by twenty-six she was ready to speak. She left him and started as an administrative assistant at Simus Labs working her way up to her current position. At thirty-four, she was one of the youngest department heads in the firm, but she had proven herself. She liked the freedom of having her own money and living her own life. But at times, she felt caught in two worlds. One world where she aspired to be and the other one in which she lived.