“The point is,” I continued, “most of the people who work here have been here for almost a decade or more, and I’m asking you not to destroy their livelihoods.”
“You didn’t say anything when I fired people for being late their first week.”
“Those people wanted to be fired.”
He flexed his fingers. “I’m not a fan of mixing emotion with business, so as heartwarming as your proposal is?—”
“My dad was laid off without warning and it ruined my entire family,” I interrupted him. “I’m asking you to save other families the pain of that.”
Silence.
“We’d just moved into a new house,” I said, staring at him. “He told us about all the trips he planned to take us on.”
The memories flooded back—him hunched over the dining table, pacing in the dark, whispering to my mother.
“He ended his life six months later,” I said quietly. “Because he felt like a failure and he told us we’d be better off, but we really haven’t been.”
“So, forgive me if you think this is emotional, but I won’t be part of something that destroys another family.”
He said nothing for several moments.
“What happened to your mother?” he asked.
“She became a shell of herself and lost touch with reality,” I said. “She lives with my grandparents and works at a bookstore.”
“Okay,” he said at last. “No layoffs and a ninety-day notice.”
“Thank you.”
I skimmed the pages one by one, feeling my heart race at the sight of Chief Financial Officer next to my name.
The NDAs looked standard, the company policies were still terrible, but the salary was exactly as he said, as was the bonus.
I picked up the pen and signed my name on all the last pages. Then I handed the contract to him.
“You made the right choice,” he said, folding it.
“Your new position doesn’t become official until tomorrow, so…” He stood up from his chair and grabbed my hand. “There’s something you’re going to do before it goes into effect.”
He led me back to his office—to his desk.
Letting go of my hand, he sat down in his chair and flexed his hands.
“You can get started any moment now, so I can watch.”
“Watch me what?”
“Clean up the mess you made…”
TWENTY-SIX
HARRISON
Aaron
You made Andrea CFO without asking for my opinion?
I thought you’d be thrilled with it.
