———
“Piper, I believe you charmed them,” Kurt Norvath said with satisfaction. “I’ve been trying to convince them to use us as their primary reseller for over a year and they’ll probably consent to that tomorrow as well.”
“I’m glad it seems to be working out,” Piper said modestly playing with the food on her plate.
It had been a long day spent in the confines of a conference room sitting across from several uptight executives who all seemed to be looking for any excuse not to like her and go with a competing local company. The competition had representatives present and after that initial surprise, and an entire morning of smiles and platitudes, they had regrouped at lunch to formulate a battle plan. She had been dismayed to find Julio Martinez as a member of the sales team and had endured his covert dirty looks the entire day.
Over lunch, she had studied their proposal and with a few bright insights from Debra, had filled in some of the gaps and sweetened the overall appeal of the previous contract. After a heated argument with Kurt and Julio, who had ended up reluctantly agreeing with the majority of the changes, they had gone back in with a new approach.
The day had ended in their favor and she found herself at a group dinner that she had reluctantly acquiesced to, not wanting to spend any more time than was necessary in Julio’s company and almost overwhelmed with the desire to check in with Bailey. However, Kurt had been insistent and over the course of dinner had apologized for their argument over lunch and had complimented her several times.
She noted the easy smile the man beamed at her and grinned a little herself. Kurt was an accomplished pro in the arena of boardroom politics and a rather likeable man in his fifties with graying hair and an aging athletic build.
“It doesn’t seem to be working out, it has worked out. I’m willing to bet my paycheck they sign the whole enchilada by lunch tomorrow,” Kurt said jovially. “I have to admit there was a lot of talk about the Princess naming you John’s successor but you handled yourself in there today as well or better than John ever did.”
“Thanks, Kurt,” Piper said sincerely, the compliment meaning a lot to her.
“You’re quite welcome,” he said with a smile. “As you know, I was very much against dropping the hourly rate of what we charge for our contractors in exchange for a two year agreement instead of the usual one year deal, but I got to believe that was the game breaker.”
“Actually, that was Debra’s idea,” Piper admitted with a smile at her assistant.
“Well done, Mrs. Womack,” Kurt complimented.
“Thank you,” Debra said with a grin.
“That’s a pretty expensive hotrod you’re driving, Piper,” Julio spoke up. “You must have gotten a hell of a raise.”
“It was rather significant,” Piper said not overlooking the underlying malice in his tone.
“How much did it set you back?” Julio asked and Piper narrowed her eyes.
“It’s not mine, I’m just borrowing it,” she admitted.
“Really?” Julio asked momentarily stymied. “Who loans out a car that expensive?”
Piper debated with herself and opted for the truth. “It’s one of Miss Cameron’s, she loaned it to me when mine broke down yesterday morning.”
“You’re driving the Princess’s car?” Julio asked happily. “You must really be in her good graces.”
Piper shrugged. “Perhaps,” she said indifferently.
“The word around the water cooler is she showed herself twice in one day and visited you both times. I don’t think she visited Johnny twice in three years,” Julio stated with a small grin.
“I think you might be spending too much time around the water cooler,” she said casually.
“Just curious, no one seems to know much about her,” Julio stated. “What’s she like?”
“She’s Irish and she owns the company we work for,” Piper said dryly.
Julio snickered. “Tell us something we don’t know.”
“I’m afraid that if there’s something you want to know, you’ll have to ask her,” Piper said with a shrug of her shoulders.
“Like that’s going to happen,” Julio scoffed. “One of the security guys said that Tom sent him out to go buy roses for her and that she picked them up one evening last week on her way out. I wonder if she’s dating someone?” he speculated looking at Piper.
“Why would you care, Jules?” Kurt broke in. “You interested in her?”
“No way,” Julio said quickly. “There’s no denying she’s gorgeous but she’s too creepy for me. Probably use me as a sacrifice at some black mass.”
“She wouldn’t cross the street to piss in your mouth if your teeth were on fire,” Kurt laughed. “You’ve got a problem with anyone who doesn’t think you’re as fantastic as you do.”
Julio reddened and Piper shot a quick grateful look at Kurt. “It’s been a long day and I’m wiped,” she said signaling for the waiter.
“I’ll get that,” Kurt said swiping the tab off the table and handing it to the waiter with his credit card.
“So, what’s the plan for tomorrow, Kurt?” Piper asked.
“We’ll go back in around 9:00. There should be about an hour of posturing and another hour or two of fine lining, but like I said, I believe they’ll sign before lunch,” Kurt speculated. “After they sign, they’ll probably feed us or take us out to eat. After which, they’ll probably want to give you the tour since this is your first time here and I’m afraid you’ll have to run a gauntlet of introductions.”
Piper sighed. “What time do you think I can be on the road?”
“Three or four probably,” Kurt guessed.
“Ouch,” Piper said with a wince.
“You have plans for the holiday?” Kurt asked.
“Yeah, leaving Thursday morning.”
“We’ll get you back in town by tomorrow night,” Kurt said pulling a pen from his jacket at the sight of the incoming waiter.
Piper stood up to put on her jacket and collect her purse as soon as the waiter left.
“Thanks for dinner, Kurt,” she said gratefully.
“My pleasure,” Kurt said. “Can I have a word with you a moment?” he added as they approached the exit.
“Sure,” Piper said and looked at Debra. “I’ll be out in a minute.”
Debra and Julio exited the restaurant, waiting just outside the glass doors and Piper turned a look at Kurt. “What’s up?”
“I wanted to let you know that this whole thing would’ve gone down the crapper if you hadn’t shown up and I intend to send a glowing e-mail to both the Board and the Princess in regards to your performance here today,” Kurt said sincerely. “There’s some people out there, of which Julio is one, that think the Princess fell off her rocker with the decision to put you in charge. I’m not one of them; in fact I learned early on that she doesn’t make many mistakes. I just wanted to let you know that and apologize for Julio’s behavior. He has an axe to grind and I’ll speak with him about it.”
“Thanks, Kurt,” Piper said with a bright smile. “That means a lot to me.”
“You earned it,” he said returning the smile. “The commission from this contract will feed my kids for the next two years.”
Piper laughed. “I’m glad I could contribute to their welfare.”
“Me too,” Kurt joined in. “Let’s not leave them in the cold any longer,” he said gesturing to Debra and Julio.
“Alright,” Piper said and Kurt opened the door for her.
“Goodnight, ladies,” Kurt said.
“Night, fellas,” Piper said as she and Debra made their way to the car.
Kurt hung back and lit a cigarette. “Jules, if you have a problem with the new boss, I suggest you get over it,” he said as the Corvette began to pull away.
“She burned me on a contract the other day,” Julio said. “The Princess showed up while we were discussing it and dismissed me like a houseboy.”
Kurt laughed. “The Princess
put her in charge, you better get used to it.”
“Yeah, but I don’t have to like it,” Julio said. “Plus, I get the feeling there’s something going on between them.”
“That may or may not be true,” Kurt conceded. “But it ain’t any of your business. You’ve got a good job, Jules. You stick your nose in and you’ll find yourself unemployed so fast you won’t know whether to shit or wind your watch.”
“Piper can’t fire me with out a review,” Julio defended.
“No, but the Princess can,” Kurt said. “She put Piper in charge and I think she made a good decision; you question that and I guarantee they’ll be scraping the name off your office door within an hour.”
“I’d sue,” Julio said and Kurt chuckled.
“Boy, you’d better get your head on straight. I was in the boardroom when the Princess negotiated the buy out of the company I came over with. She doesn’t bargain, she grabs you by the ball hairs and dictates terms. From a corporate point of view, I can’t think of a decision she’s made that didn’t turn out to be best for everyone involved, and there are a lot of people who would agree with me. You’d do well not to rock the boat.”
“Maybe.”
“There’s no maybe about it, whatever you have stuck in your crotch you’d better get rid of it,” Kurt said shaking his head.
“She scare you, Kurt?”
“Who, the Princess?”
“The Princess.”
“No,” Kurt said dismissively. “But I do respect her. She put this company together and made it work for everyone and she did it quickly from a distance. She didn’t waste time with anyone who wasn’t sure they wanted to be on board and she put the right people in charge and let them run the show. I’m making almost three times the salary I made two years ago. I think she’s great.”
“She’s looking into selling the company.”
“That’s her prerogative,” Kurt shrugged. “But like I said, I’ve seen her in action. If she doesn’t get exactly what she wants she won’t be selling. And if she does, I have no doubt that she’ll take care of everyone.”
“Do you really think she’d fire me?”
“In the blink of an eye, Jules,” Kurt said as he flipped away his cigarette and started walking to the car.
———
Bailey’s mood had grown steadily worse over the course of the day. She had done every little task she could possibly think of to occupy herself but her thoughts kept returning to Piper. She couldn’t seem to concentrate for more than a minute without the little redhead intruding and taking over. In addition, it was almost ten in the evening and she still hadn’t called.
She had been sitting at her desk in the library for over two hours. Her original intention upon entering was to listen to some of her new music but not wanting to miss Piper’s call, she had ended up brooding. Martin had walked in earlier but with one look at her expression, he had done an abrupt spin on his heel and left without a word. Her scowl got deeper with every glance at the clock and her insecurities began to gnaw at her. She had considered calling and had even rehearsed several conversations, but all of them sounded desperate and the truth of the matter she discovered, was that she depended on Piper for her cues because she really had no idea of what to say or do.
She placed the cell phone on the desk in front of her and leveled a hard stare it, willing it to ring and jumping in surprise when it did.
“Cameron,” she said answering it immediately.
“Hey there,” Piper said brightly.
“Where have you been? It’s after ten,” she asked accusingly.
“Kurt took us all out to dinner, I just got back to my room,” Piper said carefully sensing that Bailey was worked up about something.
“Oh,” Bailey said quietly, the wind leaving her sails.
“What’s wrong, Bailey?” Piper asked gently.
“Nothing,” she said quickly.
“Tell me,” Piper prodded softly.
“It’s nothing,” she said. “How did things go today?”
“I think we did okay. Kurt seems to think it’s a done deal,” Piper said accepting the subject change.
“Great, our ride leaves at 11:00 should arrive around 3:00 at New Orleans Lakefront.”
“Alright, I’ll call my folks tonight and let them know,” Piper said. “So, tell me what’s bothering you.”
“It’s nothing, Piper,” Bailey said. “What time do you think you’ll be home tomorrow?”
“Please, don’t change the subject again,” Piper asked. “I want to know what’s bothering you because if you’re upset about something, it upsets me too.”
“I’m not upset,” Bailey said. “I just… never mind.”
“You just what?” Piper prodded.
“I just miss you and I thought that maybe…” she struggled and took a deep breath. “… I thought maybe you were having a good time and didn’t want to call me.”
“Oh, Bailey,” Piper sighed. “You didn’t leave my mind for more than a minute today. I couldn’t wait to get back here and call you, I just couldn’t break away.”
“Really?” Bailey asked uncertainly.
“Really,” Piper said. “You’re constantly on my mind, don’t you ever think otherwise.”
“I’m sorry,” Bailey said contritely. “It’s just that lately…I feel so…unsure of myself and I’m not used to it.”
“A new relationship can cause that, it’s okay,” Piper said comfortingly. “A lot of this is very new to you and I know I said it before, but it gets easier with time. Just don’t give up on me. I wouldn’t know what to do without you.”
Bailey closed her eyes tightly. “Piper, I never give up.”
“Good,” Piper said with satisfaction. “Now tell me what you did today.”
“I did laundry, I cleared your credit card with accounting, I made travel arrangements, I bought groceries, and I… I watched the movie again,” she admitted with a blush.
“Really?” Piper giggled. “How many times have you watched it?”
“Three times,” Bailey admitted. “It took some getting used to.”
“I can imagine,” Piper chuckled. “Those kind of movies usually get right to the point. Do you understand why I couldn’t explain it to you?”
“A picture is worth a thousand words I guess,” she said and Piper laughed.
“That’s certainly true in this case I think,” Piper said chuckling.
“How’s Debra working out?”
“Fantastic,” Piper said letting her change the subject again. “She came up with the idea that we think ended up winning them over today.”
“I knew you’d pick a winner.”
“I picked you didn’t I?”
“Why did you pick me?” she asked quietly.
“Well, there’s a short answer and a long answer to that,” Piper said. “How about I give you the short one now and the long one later?”
“Okay.”
“You were just too cute,” Piper said teasingly.
“You’re a dork,” Bailey said with a smile and Piper laughed.
“I’m your dork and you’d better believe that,” Piper said cheerily. “Look, I should call my folks before it gets too late and I should give Nanny a ring too and let her know where I am, okay?”
“Okay,” Bailey said agreeably.
“I’ll call you tomorrow when I get home.”
“Alright, what time do you think you’ll be in?”
“It looks like eight or nine, but I’m not real sure.”
“Okay.”
“Night, sweetie.”
“Goodnight,” Bailey said with a smile and hung up.
Feeling remarkably better, she put on her headphones and pointed the remote at the stereo. She let out a sigh and leaned back in her chair with the ghost of a grin gracing her features.
VIII
Please don’t bother tryin’ to find her,
She’s not there.
—R. Argent
“This place doesn’t look very accommodating,” Russell said looking at the two story brick and glass building as he retrieved his bag.
“Nope,” Zack agreed. “Better prepare yourself to sleep on a cot,” he added as he got his own bag and closed the trunk.
“They really gonna fit us all in there?” Russell asked as they ambled toward the entrance.
“It’s much bigger than it looks,” Zack replied.
“What times the briefing?”
“Ten minutes.”
Russell didn’t reply as they entered the building through two large glass doors and he looked around curiously. There was a large lobby and someone had set up several sofas and chairs around a big screen television in the center of the room. He noted Mr. Philips standing next to the elevators and Zack nudged him in the man’s direction.
“Briefing is down the hall,” Philips said as they approached and he made a gesture to point them in the right direction.
They walked down a surprisingly long hallway and Russell nodded to himself; the building was indeed much larger than it had originally appeared to be. As they traveled, he noticed that clear plastic covered all of the doors on the left-hand side of the hall; giving him a distorted view of the people he could see and hear milling about as they passed. Eventually they arrived at an intact set of double doors and upon entering, he found himself in a room with what he estimated was around seventy people. Zack pointed to a couple of unoccupied folding metal chairs and they both dropped their bags and seated themselves.
Russell surveyed his surroundings, noting that the plastic in the hall was covering the doors to what had been several large offices that the walls had been removed from to create a much larger, although narrow room, that could accommodate all of the people gathered. His eye caught the large black form of his supervisor Mike standing next to Dwight Robards at the front of the room.
Engravings of Wraith Page 29