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“To poach me. Of course, I refused, but they’ll probably try to poach every key employee at King Productions. And you’re next on the list, Alma.” She holds my gaze, but doesn’t say another word.

“Do you doubt my loyalty, Kate?”

“First rule of business: never trust anyone blindly. Even your most loyal coworkers will eventually stab you in the back. Our competitor is going to offer to double your salary, give you endless perks, and, in short, make you a thousand and one promises…”

“I may be fickle and frivolous in your eyes, but I have no intention of betraying this company. Especially not to sign a pact with the devil.”

“Excellent news,” she replies, fetching a stack of documents.

She hands it to me, and I look at her questioningly.

“Here are the employees at risk. Those who might jump ship. Warn them. And watch them very closely.”

I quickly leaf through the pages.

“Clarence Miller?”

“Yes. I’m particularly suspicious of him. He is competent but… unpredictable.”

“Kate, aren’t you being a bit extreme? Clarence manages his team brilliantly, and he loves his job. He would never turn against us!”

“You’re on friendly terms with him, so you’re not objective. Remember: keep your eyes wide open, not just where he’s concerned, but with the others too. And encourage employees to come to you. We need to stay in control. Every piece of information counts!”

I think I’ve read speeches like this in history books before. And things always turned out badly afterwards.

“We cannot spy on nor harass our coworkers, Kate.”

“Of course we can. I’m pretty sure Skylight will also target Bertrand Leroy,” she continues. “Stealing our communications director would be a stroke of genius on their part.”

“When is all this going to stop?” I blurt out, feeling myself getting annoyed. “How far are they willing to go to sink us?”

“King France is eclipsing them. Far more than they ever imagined. They’ll go all the way, and then I have no doubt they’ll go after the other subsidiaries and the parent company.”

“Kate, can you be completely frank with me?”

“I don’t know how to be anything else, Alma. It’s both a blessing and a curse.”

“Why stay? With everything you’ve done in your career…”

“Because I like a challenge. I want to triumph, to prove that it can be done. Because it’s too easy to go after someone smaller than you. Because like David, I want to take down Goliath.”

“I didn’t know you were so… committed.”

“I know what you think of me, Alma. You only see my authoritarian, no-nonsense, insensitive side. You overlook all the other sides of me. I can’t blame you; I tend to do the same. But I care about King Productions, and I have a habit of protecting what matters to me. I don’t have a problem getting my claws out if I need to.”

“I’m not very well equipped in that area,” I joke, looking at my short, lilac-painted nails. “But I do have very good teeth!”

“Every time I think I’ve got you figured out, you manage to surprise me, Alma.”

“I’m glad to hear it.”

“But that doesn’t make us friends. I have work to do now. And so do you.”

She gestures toward the door.

***

“Happy birthday!” A chorus of familiar voices greets me.