by B. B. Hamel
“One hundred and twenty-two.”
“Sure, fine. I’ve spread some misinformation to try and help you out a bit, told a few people that you lost a bet and that’s why you washed those cars, but I doubt anyone believes it.”
“Thank you,” I say.
“Oh, don’t thank me. I doubt it’ll do much and it wasn’t hard. Just a few lies here or there, nothing I wouldn’t have done for your father.” She grins at me and laughs.
I hesitate a long moment. “Maeve, something’s been bothering me. I’ve been meaning to ask you this for a while, it just… never felt like the time.”
“What’s that?” she asks.
“Why did my father leave me Cork?”
She laughs. “I thought that was obvious.”
“I’m not so sure. Everyone was surprised when it happened, myself included. We all thought he’d leave it to the board to pick a new CEO. Nobody expected him to name his successor in his will, much less name his young son.”
“True, but you’ve been around the company your whole life. You know it as well as anyone else.”
“But I’ve still never held a CEO position, and this is a major company. The only reason the board went along with it was out of some strange loyalty to him, and because it was easier than interviewing prospective CEOs. They probably figured they could just fire me if I didn’t do my job, and at least they’d get a couple of cheap years out of me.”
“I wouldn’t sell yourself so short,” she says softly.
“But Dad knew the state of this company. He knew we wouldn’t last much longer, just like I know it. I can’t understand why he’d saddle me with this responsibility when the chance of me actually getting the job was so small.”
She frowns at me for along moment then shakes her head. “Josh, I sat in your father’s office just like this many, many times over the years and gave him advice. Sometimes I just listened while he hashed out his plans. But I’ll tell you, I never once thought I actually understood him.”
“That can’t be true.”
“But it is. Your father always talked business, but nothing beyond that. You knew him, you grew up with him. He was a difficult man, always kept things beneath the surface, never talked about certain topics.”
“Like what?”
“Like his family, like his friends. Like his interests outside of this company, which I’ve begun to doubt ever existed.”
I smile a little. “So what are you saying?”
“I’m saying I don’t think I can answer your question, as much as I wish I could. I knew him well, but I’ll never knew him well enough.”
I sigh. “Thanks anyway. I was hoping you’d have some insight at least.”
“I can tell you just that your father loved you very much. I remember when you first learned to walk, he wouldn’t shut up about it, like you were the first baby to ever take a step.” She laughs. “I have my own kids and never once mentioned them to him, you know.”
“He wouldn’t have cared.” I grin at her. “How are they though?”
She rolls her eyes. “Don’t you start pretending either.”
“All right, fine.” I hesitate. “It’s a shame that he had to die for me to start asking these kinds of questions. Maybe if I had been more interested in how he worked when he was alive, I’d be in a better spot now.”
She shakes her head and stands. “I doubt it, Josh. I really do. This company’s been on this trajectory for years and years. Your father knew it and he couldn’t do a thing to stop it. This merger you’re fighting for is Cork’s best bet.”
“Thanks. I hope so.” I glance out the window for a long second then shake my head.
“By the way,” she says as she heads to the door. “Seb McKenzie’s office called.”
I stare at her, on high alert. “What? He did?”
“Sure did.” She grins at me. “A few others did too, but he’s the only interesting one.”
“What did they want?”
“Apparently Seb wants a meeting with you. What about, I can’t say, but I can guess.”
I narrow my eyes. Seb is one of the most important members of the board, and the one man I wasn’t going to bother with. As far as I can tell, he hates Maggie’s father even more than my father did, and he’d never go for any sort of partnership with him.
And yet, maybe there’s a chance. Things change, people move on. Seb might be softening in his old age. Maybe nostalgia for the company itself might make him want to stick around. Or maybe he heard that I’m desperate and wants to get something out of me.
Either way, it’s worth hearing what he has to say. If I can convince Seb McKenzie, the deal is all but done. The other board members will fall into line, and I’ll get my merger.
“Make it happen,” I say. “And get in touch with Maggie. Let her know when the meeting will be. I want her there with me.”
“I’ll make the calls.” She hesitates. “And Josh, I know it’s not my place to say it, but I think your father would be proud.”
“Thanks, Maeve. I hope so.”
She nods and leaves without another word. I sit there, frowning at the window again.
I know my father wanted this for me. He left it to me in his will, it can’t get any clearer than that. But why he wanted this is a mystery, and it always will be.
But maybe it can be enough just that he wanted it. He wanted me, his son, to have a piece of the place he gave his life to. Cork was everything to him, and building it up into what it is today was his life’s work. Maybe he just wanted to see his son continue on his legacy.
So I’m going to, no matter the cost.
11
Maggie
Josh parks out front of a row home just off Rittenhouse Square. The sign in front of the door says Seb McKenzie, PhD, Esq.
I groan. “That’s the most pretentious thing. Is this his house?”
“No,” Josh says, laughing. “But can you imagine? Putting your name and your degrees on your house?”
“It’s only slightly better to put it on your office.”
“He’s a lawyer,” Josh says. “This sort of thing is impressive to some people.” Josh pushes the door open and we head straight into a very small sitting room. A secretary sits behind a desk just ahead of us and smiles as we enter. She’s an older woman with dark dyed hair and light eyes. Her smile is crooked. The place smells like musty rug and the wallpaper looks like it’s peeling.
Clearly, Seb doesn’t care much about the decor.
“Hello, hello, you must be Josh and Maggie. Oh, congratulations on the wedding. I’m Agnes. I think Mr. McKenzie will see you in just a moment, I’ll tell him you’re here.”
“Hello, Agnes, thank you very much.” Josh sits down and I sit next to him. Agnes gets up, a tiny woman in a pants suit, and shuffles back to a door. She opens it and screams inside.
“SEB. JOSH AND MAGGIE ARE HERE.”
She closes the door and walks back to her desk, beaming the whole time. I look at Josh with alarm in my eyes and he just shrugs and shakes his head.
A minute later, an older man with white hair pushed back into a messy puff and dark, thick eyebrows opens the door and lingers there for a moment. He’s short, barely taller than Agnes, and his suit looks a little too baggy for him. The pinstripes are gaudy, and he glares out at us.
“Josh,” he croaks. “Thank you for coming to see me on such short notice.”
Josh gets up and shakes his hand. “Thanks for having me, Seb. This is my wife, Maggie.”
He looks at me like he’s staring down a particularly old piece of fish. “Hello.”
“Lovely to meet you, Mr. McKenzie,” I say.
He doesn’t soften one bit as he looks back to Josh. “Come on. Let’s talk.” He leads us back into his office.
The room is spacious but cluttered with books and files. There’s a small table to the right, a group of filing cabinets lining the walls, and a huge map of the United States hanging on the wall behind a large oak desk.
The map looks antique, and I squint to try to read it before Seb gives me a dirty look.
I sit down in an old green chair. It squeaks as I settle in and Josh frowns at me for a second before looking at Seb. We’re positioned lower than him, and I’d bet anything he put these chairs out just to make himself seem a little taller.
“I appreciate you seeing me,” Josh says, even though it was Seb that made the meeting. “I was hoping we’d get to talk at some point.”
“Yes, well, I hear you visited with Guava at his little… ah… office.” Seb sneers. “How was that?”
“Fine,” Josh says and shrugs. “Rupert’s an odd one, but at least you know what he wants.”
Seb snorts. “Right. Clean cars. Did he make you order breakfast?”
Josh just shakes his head. “Look, Seb. I appreciate you meeting with me.”
“Yes. You keep saying that.” Seb’s frown turns toward me. “And you, little Miss Maggie Fyall, daughter of the great Thomas Fyall. How did you end up married to Josh here? It’s something of a Romeo and Juliet love story, is it not?”
“Not really,” I say.
He snorts. “Your fathers hated each other.” He looks at Josh. “Your father would be so disappointed.”
Josh flinches like Seb just struck him and my anger rises. “That’s not true,” I snap. “That might’ve disliked each other, but he wouldn’t have been disappointed, not if Josh was happy.”
Seb laughs. “You didn’t know his father.”
“And I suspect you didn’t either.” I glare at the nasty old man. “What do you want?”
He laughs again, clearly delighted by my anger. “I want what Guava wanted,” he says.
“We’re not in the car washing business.” Josh tilts his head. “And I doubt you could afford us, even if we were.”
Seb turns a vicious grin back to Josh. “I wonder. What did you get out of Guava? I know what he got from you. I just can’t imagine what the price was.”
“Doesn’t matter. If that’s all we’re here for, this meeting can be over right now.”
He holds up a hand. “Wait.”
Josh cocks his head. “I’m waiting.”
“I see this meeting didn’t get off to a good start. Listen, Josh. I understand you want something from the board, but I can’t figure out what that something is just yet, and things at Cork are rather… fluid right now.”
“Meaning, Cork isn’t doing as well as you hoped,” I say with a little malice.
Josh glances at me with a frown, but doesn’t speak up.
Seb nods once. “That’s right. I can’t deny it, not even to the daughter of my enemy.”
“My father isn’t your enemy,” I say with a sigh. “It’s just business.”
“Yes, what a wonderful excuse.” Seb looks back to Josh. “What are you searching for? I’ll be straight with you and say that I’m in the market for favors right now. We might be able to make a deal, of sorts.”
Josh hesitates. I can tell he’s wrestling with this. We talked a little about it on the car ride over. If we tell Seb about getting board approval for the merger, then Seb will be able to move against us, making our lives that much harder.
But if he really does want something… he could make the whole thing happen.
Everything hinges on this moment. Either way, it’s a gamble.
“We want to merge Cork Electric with Bushings Telecom,” Josh says, making his wager.
The room falls silent as Seb stares at him. Nobody moves and I can feel my breath coming in heavy and fast. My fingers dig into the cheap fake leather armrests of my chair and I feel like I want to get up and run out of there. But finally, Seb starts to smile. “I shouldn’t be surprised,” he says.
“Why’s that?” Josh asks.
“Because you married her.”
“Or because it’s a good business decision.” Josh tilts his head and glares back at Seb. “You know as well as anyone that Cork can’t last forever in this climate. The big guys will swallow us up sooner or later, and if we don’t do anything about it now, we’ll disappear.”
“Might not be so bad,” he mused. “You know, we’d all likely make a lot of money on that sale.”
“Maybe. But the company would be gone, and any future we might’ve had would be gone with it.”
Seb leans back in his chair and gestures with both hands at the office around him. “Josh, I’m old. My future isn’t as long or as bright as yours is. You want to save this company for yourself, but for most of the board, we’re tired. Businesses don’t last forever.”
“They can.” Josh stares him down. “You know this is a good idea.”
Seb sighs and looks at me. “What do you think?” he asks. “You seem like you’re a big part of this yourself.”
“I know my father wants it,” I say. “And I know he thinks it’s vital to both companies. It never would’ve happened with Josh’s father, but now that Josh is in charge, it has a real chance.”
Seb grunts. “True. His father never would’ve given up power to merge with… the enemy.”
I roll my eyes. “We’re not enemies,” I say. “We’re competitors. And sometimes, competitors become allies when there’s bigger fish in the pond.”
Seb smiles and nods slowly. “Yes, that’s true.”
“What can we do for you, Seb?” Josh asks. “You didn’t invite us here without wanting something.”
“I’ll admit,” Seb says, “I was curious when I heard about you and Guava. I figured you wanted him to sell shares or something of that nature.”
“Didn’t expect this?” Josh arches an eyebrow. “I thought you knew everything.”
“Guess not.” Seb looks at him, a little smile on his lips. “I’ll say this. I’m not entirely against this plan.”
Josh glances at me. “Okay,” he says. “That’s a start. But it leaves me with the same question. What do you want?”
“There’s only one thing I want,” Seb says. “I’m an old man and I’m thinking about my future. If I’m going to live fat and happy, I’m going to need money.”
Josh frowns. “You want… money?”
“Half a million would do it,” Seb says. “That’ll buy my vote, no problem. I’ll even lobby for you to the others, if you’d like. Not too hard or overt, since we don’t want them wondering about my little turn of heart.”
Josh stares at him. For a long moment, I’m afraid he won’t speak at all. I feel dizzy and confused, and I’m not sure how this is going to play out.
Half a million is a lot of money. I doubt Josh has that kind of cash lying around. I know I definitely don’t, and my father probably can’t help, either.
And I don’t even know if Josh would pay Seb. Washing cars is one thing, but straight up bribery is another. I lean forward, curious about Josh’s reaction, trying to gauge him as a man.
“You want my honest response, Seb?” he says finally, his voice quiet.
“Of course,” Seb says, smiling wickedly. “Go ahead, young Josh. Speak freely.”
“I think I’ll do a lot of things for this company. A lot of unethical, shady, questionable things. But I’m not going to pay your bribe. I’m not going to pay any bribes.”
Seb laughs. “You already paid Guava.”
“I washed his cars.”
“How’s it different?” He laughs again, shaking his head. “It’s not different and you know it.”
“It’s different,” Josh says, and my heart swells. He glances at me and lets out a breath. “I bet you think this is stupid.”
“I don’t,” I say.
“Really?”
“I think it’s brave and smart.” I smile at him. “If you don’t believe in doing it, then don’t do it.”
“Okay, enough,” Seb snaps. “I hate to break up your little lovefest, but I’m getting annoyed. You’re really not going to pay me?”
“I’m really not.” Josh shrugs. “Sorry, I’m just not paying. If there’s something else I can help you with, I’m
happy to make a friend. But I’m not bribing you.”
Seb leans back in his chair and laughs. He shakes his head, like he’s totally mystified. “You’re a fool,” he says. “You think your father was above throwing out bribe money? He wasn’t. I saw it more than once myself. Your father would’ve done anything for Cork.”
“And I’m not my father. I’ll do anything, to a point. I draw the line at straight bribery.”
“If my price is too high—”
“I won’t pay you a dollar,” Josh says.
Seb stops laughing. “You’re making a mistake.”
“I know you think that.”
“No, I’m sure of it. Do you really want me as an enemy?”
“Far as I can tell, you’ve been an enemy since I took the job.” Josh shrugs and stands. “At least now I know it for sure.”
“I won’t let this go,” Seb says. “I’m going to fight you if you walk out that door. I’m not going to let you turn your back on me.”
“Sorry,” Josh says. “Too late.”
He turns and leaves the office. I get up and hurry to follow him out. The last thing I see is Seb sitting behind his desk, a look of pure wonder and bewilderment on his face.
He clearly didn’t think that was going to happen. He must’ve figured he’d throw out that huge number, negotiate a little, and end up with his cash.
Instead, Josh showed me something about him.
We leave the office and end up outside. I grab his hand and tug on it, pulling him toward me. He turns and I can see the anger in his eyes.
“Hey,” I say. “You did good in there.”
“No, I fucked up.” He clenches his jaw. “I should’ve known Seb would never come to my side.”
“He was going to, but the price was too high.”
“Do you think I’m an idiot?” he asks, sounding sincere. “I mean, he’s right, washing cars isn’t so far off from paying out straight cash.”
“I think you have your morals,” I say, my voice soft. I smile up to him and the afternoon sunlight halos his face. He shakes his head and I can see the confusion in his eyes. “I think you’re a man of principle.”