Finding Her Way

by Jefferson, Riley

  After a few minutes, Ms. Donahue looked up. “Good morning, Ms. Kerrison. I’ll be with you in just a moment,” she said, as she reached over, retrieving the manila envelope.

  The contents of the envelope she deposited in one hand and tossed the empty packet lazily on the corner of the massive desk.

  Jerrica observed with curiosity as Ms. Donahue reviewed each document thoroughly.

  Once she scrutinized the last document, she laid it down, adjusting her glasses. Looking directly at her employee, she remarked, “Ms. Kerrison, may I call you Jerrica?” Not waiting for an answer, she continued. “You are probably wondering why I called you here today.”

  “I assure you that all my accounts are up to date and…” Jerrica stopped as Ms. Donahue held up her hand.

  “Your work performance is fine. Even though I would like to have you on site more, I have had no complaints thus far with our current working arrangement. The reason I brought you here today is that we have run into a little problem with one of our top clients.”

  Jerrica tensed, but Alexandra didn’t seem to notice.

  “Are you personally familiar with Daniel & Daniel’s Inc. company financials?”

  What is going on here, Jerrica thought. “Yes, I just sent the quarterlies. What seems to be the issue?”

  “You are aware that Morrill, Hartford, and Donahue have been courting Daniel & Daniel, Inc. to take on all of their accounting needs, domestic and abroad?”

  “Yes, I have heard.”

  “Well, it was almost a done deal. I received an emergency call this weekend, directly from the president of D & D. He informed me that his company is considering leaving MHD and are now entertaining offers from our competitors.”

  Jerrica was stunned. “The Daniel company is locked into a contract with us until end of this year. They can’t legally leave us.”

  “Oh, yes they can. They can buy out their contract.” Alexandra removed her glasses, placing them on her desk.

  Quickly crunching numbers in her head Jerrica replied, “That would be just more than half a million dollars. Is he aware of those figures?”

  “Yes, it would be and he is aware of the cost. Our job performance has been immaculate for his company. According to his file, we’ve gone beyond for them in some cases. Our feedback reports have always been top notch. This whole situation is baffling,” she said rubbing the bridge of her nose and replacing her glasses.

  Trying not to show emotion, the explanation to Alexandra’s quandary flashed into her mind. Devin! Jerrica raised her hand to her forehead, rubbing it lightly with her fingers, giving herself thinking time.

  “Jerrica,” Alexandra said it with such powerful certainty that Jerrica snapped her head up. “We haven’t lost them yet. We have an invitation to meet with them. Be warned, we are not the only firm that received this invitation. I have heard of at least four other firms that have been invited as well.”

  “An invitation to what?”

  “To a working weekend at their Nantucket estate,” she explained. “MHD is scheduled for an early morning meeting on Saturday. Ten, I believe.”

  Ms. Donahue shuffled papers around her desk, looking for the invitation.

  Jerrica was speechless. Just under the surface of this calm cool exterior, she was furious. She knew that something, no, someone, was trying to sabotage her career. Calming her inner rage, she tried to speak logically.

  “Ten a.m., that’s fine. I can have a proposal ready by Friday. My assistant and I will go down Saturday morning and re-sell MHD.”

  “That won’t do. To show Mr. Daniel that we are committed to our business future’s together, you will be going down on Friday. All the other representatives will be there on Friday, so will Morrill, Hartford, and Donahue. I have already arranged for you, and your personal assistant to spend the night at the Nantucket estate. I talked with the younger Ms. Daniel and she said she would make all the arrangements.”

  Of course she did. Jerrica replied a little harshly. “Those arrangements are not going to work for me. I think it’s unprofessional for us to have a professional meeting of this importance in a personal setting. They are trying to set us up for failure.”

  Sliding her Armani reading glasses down her nose to look over them, Alexandra spoke in a deep tone, with authority. “Ms. Kerrison, remember you still work for Morrill, Hartford and Donahue and this is part of your job. This is not a request. Trust me, if I could send someone else, I would have, but you are familiar with their account and they personally requested you to attend this meeting.”

  Jerrica knew she had just lost the power struggle.

  The two women stared at one another, as the room grew eerily quiet. With her index finger, Alexandra pushed her glasses back up her nose, then turned her attention to her computer. “Stop at Evelyn’s, I mean, Ms. Burnham’s desk before you leave this floor. She has the new contracts for the Daniel & Daniel, Inc. to sign, should they decide to re-sign with us. If they decide to terminate their connection with us, they will have to come to our office to do so and this time it will be more costly for them.” Alexandra started clicking her keyboard, without another word being exchanged.

  Exiting the office, Jerrica had all she could do to hide her irritation. Smiling politely, she took the envelope from Ms. Burnham’s hand. Within seconds, Jerrica was standing at the elevator doors, pressing the button repeatedly. Once in the elevator, she tried to calm herself down, but the more her mind thought about what had just happened, the higher her temperature rose. She was at a full march the moment the doors opened. Approaching her office, she motioned quickly for Lauren to follow her, leaving the office door open.

  Jaime and Lauren looked at one another, then back to the open door.

  Lauren stood, grabbing her note tablet, rushed after her boss, closing the office door behind her.

  Across the room, Madison watched everything unfold. She knew something was wrong and felt powerless to help. She would have to wait for an opening to see Jerrica.

  Lauren entered the room expecting to see something broken on the floor. Instead, she found Jerrica leaning on the front of her desk, head down, and both hands grasping the edge of the desktop. She approached the desk cautiously. “Jerrica, what happened?”

  Lauren could tell, as she moved closer, that Jerrica was trembling, but she did not answer her. Standing at arm’s length from Jerrica she stopped and waited patiently. Time passed slowly. Lauren wasn’t sure how long they had been standing in Jerrica’s office before Jerrica sighed loudly.

  With eyes that held uneasiness in them, she focused on Lauren. “We have been requested to attend a business meeting this weekend.”

  Jerrica kept eye contact, speaking in a monotone. “Morrill, Hartford, and Donahue are about to lose one of their top clients. The client specifically requested me to attend this meeting to represent MHD. You will need to accompany me to Nantucket.” Jerrica moved her hand, grabbing the envelope, and handed it to Lauren.

  These meetings are not out of the ordinary. Lauren couldn’t understand what the big issue was. Grabbing the large envelope, Lauren proceeded to open it.

  Jerrica lowered her head, listening to Lauren read aloud. Jerrica closed her eyes as the room went silent.

  “You’ve got to be fucking kidding me,” Lauren barked as she glanced up from the documents.

  When Jerrica didn’t budge, Lauren continued her ranting. “You realize this is her doing, right? First, she screws with your personal life, now she wants to mess up your professional life, too. This woman is freaking crazy.” With each word, her tone became more elevated. “Jerrica say something!”

  In an alarmingly calm voice, Jerrica retorted. “What is it that you want me to say? She’s put me in a difficult situation. I’ve thought about all the angles. It won’t make a difference if I tell the company we were involved at one time, they would send me just the same. If I tell her father the truth, MHD would lose the account. I’ll lose my job and ruin my reputation.” Sighing, she li
fted her head to stare at the wall. “She has the control now.”

  “Bullshit!”

  “I don’t have a choice. I have to see it through.”

  “Does Madison know your connection with that evil bitch?”

  Jerrica turned her head in surprise. “She knows that my first female experience was a closeted lesbian, but that’s all. I never mentioned who she was or how I met her.”

  “Well don’t you think you should fill her in on that information, since you’re staying overnight at her home?”

  “I can’t, especially now. Our relationship is too new and if she knew about my personal connection to the Daniel corporation, to Devin, I might lose her. As soon as this blows past, and it will, I’ll tell her everything.”

  “You underestimate her. I think this is a mistake.”

  “Well, it’s my decision to make,” Jerrica locked eyes with Lauren. “And promise me you’ll say nothing.”

  Lauren stood her ground, biting the edge of her lip in frustration. “Ok, I promise.”

  Lauren exited the office with a knot in her stomach. She knew this situation was just a train wreck waiting to happen. Sitting at her desk, she typed a very short interoffice e-mail.

  Madison’s anxiety cranked up a notch when she saw the look on Lauren’s face. She knew something was wrong. She wanted to rush to Jerrica. Staring blankly at her computer screen, Madison wanted to cry. Through her mist of pending tears, Madison noticed her e-mail icon. In desperate hope that it was Jerrica, she clicked to open it.

  Ms. Jeffery,

  Jaime and I will be taking an extended break at 10:15 a.m. I would appreciate it if you would cover our department while we are gone. Thank you for your assistance.

  Sincerely,

  Lauren Blanchet

  Assistant to Ms. Kerrison

  The corners of Madison’s mouth turned up. Clicking out of the e-mail, she waited patiently. Approximately five minutes passed and Madison watched Jerrica’s employees leave their workstations. Snatching a folder off her desk, she made her way to Jerrica’s office door, lightly knocking. Hearing a soft greeting from the other side of the door, she entered the privacy of Jerrica’s office. Feeling a rush of emotion as their eyes met, Madison dropped the folder in her hand and rushed to her, enveloping her in a secure embrace.

  Jerrica let herself be taken in by the warmth and protection Madison’s embrace promised. Molding her body into Madison’s, she returned the hug. Precious moments went by before Jerrica lowered her arms to her side.

  Madison felt the sudden chill and released the embrace. Stepping back her heart broke as she peered into emotionless eyes. “Honey—” Madison choked.

  “Madison, I’m fine.”

  Madison noticed the flat tone in the use of her first name.

  Jerrica retreated to her desk chair, putting distance between them. It was only a few feet, but it felt like the Grand Canyon to her.

  Madison seated herself, feeling confused. Something had happened while Jerrica was upstairs.

  While moving papers around on her desk Jerrica repeated the conversation, she had with Alexandra Donahue. When she had finished she looked into caring eyes, trying not to reveal what she was trying so desperately to hide.

  Madison tried to be encouraging. “Well, this happens all the time in this business. I’m sure you will persuade them to stay with the company. I have confidence in you! I don’t understand why you’re so worried.”

  “Who said I was worried?”

  “I can see it in your face and hear it in your voice.”

  “I guess I am a little worried. This is an extremely large client for this company. It will affect my position here if I can convince them to stay. I’m also not much for traveling and I hate rushing to put together a presentation.”

  “Well, you have a very competent staff that will help you. You will have Lauren to assist you and keep you company on the trip. Besides, it’s only one evening.”

  Jerrica looked down at her desk again. “I’m glad someone believes in me and my abilities,” she said in a low voice. “I don’t know…what the rest of this week is going to be like… so, I think you…should stay in the city, at least until…this weekend is over.”

  She regretted saying it the second it left her mouth. Jerrica’s eyes focused on her desktop. She didn’t see the flash of shock and hurt that passed across Madison’s face.

  Sliding to the edge of her seat, Madison glanced down at the floor as she replied. “If you think that will help you? I don’t want to do anything to distract you.”

  Jerrica could hear the disappointment in her voice, but didn’t or couldn’t answer back. Jerrica looked up just as Madison was standing to leave.

  When their eyes met, Madison whispered unevenly. “I love you.”

  “I love you, too.”

  Her eyes lowered to the floor as she made her way to the door. As Madison reached for the door, she heard Jerrica’s voice whisper. “Maybe I could stay in town a little longer today, and we could have supper together?”

  “If you can find time to fit me into your busy schedule that would be great. Call me later if you can,” Madison replied over her shoulder, closing the door behind her.

  Chapter Seventeen

  With music blaring in her ears and a heavy lead foot on the gas pedal, Jerrica hurried toward Lauren’s house. She had turned on what Lauren liked to call screaming music, to help drown out all the noise going on in her head, but it didn’t seem to be working today. It had been almost two and a half days since she had seen Madison. She had purposely-avoided contact with her. The last time she had physically seen her was when she left her office on Tuesday. Their dinner date that evening never materialized and Jerrica hadn’t returned to the office the rest of the week.

  They had talked briefly on the phone the next day, but the conversation seemed labored. Jerrica was frustrated with herself for not telling Madison the whole truth to begin with, possibly avoiding all this trouble. Lauren was right. As soon as all this was over, she would invite Madison for a nice dinner, maybe even a massage. She smiled. She would have to admit to Lauren that she was right about telling Madison the truth. She would never hear the end of this one. With a big sigh, she tapped her GPS, taking the exit ramp toward Lauren’s house.

  †

  “Are we in a race?” Lauren yelled above the music.

  Jerrica didn’t hear Lauren speak as she swerved in and out of the traffic lanes.

  Tapping the radio off, Lauren yelled again. “I said, are we in a race?”

  “You don’t have to yell, I’m sitting right here,” Jerrica said, quickly glancing in her direction.

  “Well, you didn’t hear me the first time. Besides you still haven’t answered my question.”

  “No, we are not in a race. Why?”

  “Have you looked at your speedometer lately?” Lauren asked pointing to the instrument panel.

  “Are you telling me how to drive?”

  “Do I need to?”

  “No.” Jerrica lifted her foot from the accelerator a little.

  Clicking the radio back on, adjusting the volume to a respectable level, Lauren reclined in her seat, letting the warm sun grace her features for the long journey ahead. Fifteen minutes into the trip, Lauren was comfortably snoring.

  I’m not the only one who falls asleep on trips, Jerrica thought as her smile broadened. She reached her hand forward, turning up the music. On the almost hour ride to the Cape, Jerrica tried hard not to think about the upcoming weekend. The ambiguity of the true reason for this trip continued to resurface in her psyche. To everyone else, this was all about a competitive business move. Jerrica knew this was more than business, it was personal.

  †

  Lauren was jarred out of her slumber as the car was slowly loaded onto the Nantucket Ferry. Stretching her arms up to the roof and her legs as far out on the floorboard as possible, Lauren tried blinking the sleep out of her eyes. Glancing at the multiple cars around them, Lauren real
ized where they were.

  “Hey, my sleepy travel companion,” Jerrica said.

  “I am real sorry about that. I didn’t expect to fall asleep.”

  “That’s ok. Do you want to go top side?”

  Looking at her surroundings again, Lauren replied. “Why not, it’s a beautiful day. Go ahead up. I want to get a sweatshirt out of my bag first.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “Go, Jerrica, I don’t need a babysitter,” she said, lightly tapping her arm.

  A child-like smile crossed Jerrica’s face as she exited the vehicle.

  Lauren watched as Jerrica disappeared between the seas of parked cars. Lauren sighed heavily as she flipped open her cell phone to call her husband. Lauren listened to the ring from the phone. Jerrica wasn’t the only one keeping secrets.

  The top deck of the bow on the boat was Jerrica’s favorite place to be. Her fingers were lightly wrapped around the banister, her eyes closed, head tilted toward the sun.

  When Lauren finally located Jerrica, she stood only a few feet away, observing her friend in silence. There was a small breeze traveling across the deck and it brushed Jerrica’s hair away from her face. A light mist of water touched her cheeks as the large vessel cut through the waves. Her stylish sunglasses were hiding the dark circles caused by the absence of sleep. The once barely noticeable worry line on her forehead had become more visible in the past few months.

  Lauren could also see the difference in her shape now that she had removed her blazer. As her eyes traveled the length of Jerrica’s form, Lauren acknowledged to herself with sadness that her closest friend was becoming dangerously thin. Her sky blue blouse seemed to just drape off her shoulders, then gather loosely at her waist where the material was tucked in. Her slacks, ones that used to show off her curves, now just hung on her hips, almost voiding her shape. A new belt was the only item keeping her pants in place. Lauren stepped closer, announcing her presence.