by kj lewis
“We would roll it out in phases.” Charlie looks relieved to have Graham considering the options.
“Phase one would be strategically placed comments from Emme’s friends. We would have one of her roommates drop a comment. Jackson will also be an unnamed source in an article that a blogger is doing. Phase two would be to roll out to the friendlies. The ones we know will welcome her positively in an exchange to sell magazines. Most likely People. Phase three would be the industry magazines. We’ve had offers from Vanity Fair, Vogue, and W.”
“I wouldn’t have to do a photo shoot would I?” I ask Jackson.
“You will have to do a few, but it won’t be as a fashion model, it would be about you as a person. I envision the angle being your desire to keep things affordable. You always make sure your clients have items that the normal salaried person can aspire to. You are someone who knows how to stretch a dollar in every sense. We would use that as your relatability.” Jackson knows me well enough to know that last sentence didn’t sit well with me.
“I don’t want to exploit the reader by presenting myself in a saintly manner.”
“You won’t be, but you are, in fact, relatable. It’s a strength we should showcase. Not one we should run from.”
“Phase four would be a live interview on a morning news show. We’ve had inquires already from the major networks and cable to interview Emme about her mentor program and how she is effecting change in corporate America.”
“Is that what I’m doing?” I say sardonically. “And if so, how did I manage that?” I laugh.
“Emelia?” Graham asks for my thoughts. I can’t help but notice the flutter my heart does that he values my opinion.
“Well, phase one I’m okay with, Jackson being a source. I would prefer he be named, but I’ll leave the final decision to you two. I don’t want the dwarfs to be brought into this. Phase two is fine. For phase three, I want to make sure we are clear on the expectation of the piece and have sign-off on the photographs and the wardrobes. It won’t look right if I show relatability, but they will only allow high fashion in their magazine. Also, I would want to use some of Jules’ pieces. Phase four I would be okay with if Charlie preps me.”
Graham picks up the packet viewing the stats again.“Let’s proceed with phase one today. I want summaries and firm stats on what the other phases would entail. Whose request we would grant, who they would have do the article, a background on the interviewer, and a mock layout with the look and feel of the content based on previous articles they’ve done. I want it by noon. Emme and I will discuss it over lunch and give you an answer by two. That should give your team plenty of time to get the word out that phase two is coming, and should hold some of this at bay.”
“An hour. Thirty minutes longer than I expected,” Charlie says wryly. “One last thing. Emme, I need to sit down with you and go over your history so we can make sure there are no surprises.”
“No,” Graham says.
“I can’t…”
Graham cuts Charlie off. “Jackson, are you taking us on as a client?”
“If you wanted me to, I would.”
“Jackson can give you the history on Emme. He’s one of her best friends. He knows her. Any holes that need to be filled, you can ask me.”
“I can’t do my job if I don’t have access to Emme.” Charlie doesn’t hide his irritation.
“You will have access. I just don’t think it’s necessary that she’s the one to recant the facts of her history to you while she can be doing other things. I don’t want this to consume her time any more than it is.” Graham stands, effectively dismissing them.
“Also, I want to see if there is a spike in interest where she is concerned. I want this to put the fire out not fan the flames.”
“I don’t know how you do it, Ms. Emme,” Reggie says while we eat ice cream. I had lunch with Graham to go over the next steps in the media releases. It was not fun by any means, but at least it ended up with me being fucked against the window.
“What’s that?” I ask him.
“Handle all the change. I know it’s been a lot. I don’t like change. Growing up everything was so unstable, it always felt like I had to deal with change every day, but the reality is, nothing was changing. I was headed in the same direction as Terrance and every kid in my neighborhood. Man am I thankful you changed that.”
“I didn’t change anything. You and Terrance did. It didn’t matter what avenue was provided for change if you didn’t make it or want it. You’re the success story here, Reggie. Not me.”
“Why did you choose me to work for Mr. Taylor?” He stops eating, giving me his full attention.
“You matched well on the questionnaire I created. I wanted you to have the best. I trust Graham with my heart, so it was easy to know that I would trust him to look after you. But mostly because you are my family. My little brother. You and Terrance always have been and always will be.”
“It frustrates me that Terrance didn’t come to your wedding.”
“Don’t let it. Terrance has his own demons to live with. He didn’t feel like it was right with his background to be there. I respect his decision, even if I know it’s the wrong one. You and I both know no one can tell Terrance what to do. He has to find his way on his own.”
“Sometimes I worry it’s too late.” A sadness sweeps across Reggie’s face. “I wish Terrance would fight for himself like he does me.”
“He is. In his own way. It’s not as fast as we would like it and not in the direction we want it to be in, but I see Terrance. I’m not giving up on him. How’s Pearl?”
“She’s good. She loved the picture I showed her of the ceremony. She’s excited to see you again next week. She was able to go to church this weekend, so I think she’s feeling better. She says you still call her at least every other day?”
“I do. But I’ve missed getting to be with her the last couple of weeks. I can’t wait for her chocolate cake next week.” I finish the last of my ice cream. “I have to get back to the office. Richard Raines is coming in for a meeting.”
“I love you, Ms. Emme.” Reggie gives me a long hug, his thin frame standing above me. I’m not sure what’s going on with him today, but he seems to need some reassurance.
“I love you, Reggie.” We walk out of the eating area with his arm around my shoulders.
“You know you’re the only man I don’t want to pummel when I see his arm around my wife.” Reggie and I turn to find Graham standing with Charlie. For some reason Graham’s statement has Reggie wearing a silly grin of pride.
“It’s y-y-you that better watch out for me, Mr. Taylor,” Reggie teases. His stutter is prominent when he’s in a group.
“In that case, Emelia.” Graham holds his hand out to me.
“Let’s go, Reggie,” I wink at Graham as we walk away, Reggie tightening his hold on me, smiling at Graham’s laughter.
“Richard Raines is here to see you.” Cassie’s voice over the intercom pulls me out of my work trance.
“Richard.” I hug him when I come into the conference room.
“Mrs. Taylor,” he greets me in return.
“How was your trip?” I ask.
“It was good. Nice to be away. It was business and pleasure which is always nice when you can get both in.” He unbuttons his jacket before taking a seat. “How’s Holt?”
“Amazing. He’s here today. His school let him have the day off from classes. He’s working on a couple of grants for me. They’re strong. He’s a talented grant writer. He would make a great non-for-profit fundraiser. He has a vision for it.”
“Thanks to you,” Richard says.
“No. I can’t take credit for it. You don’t learn this kind of desire. You’re raised with it. Born with it. This is all you and Jean. You should be proud.”
“I am. Before his incident, I didn’t tell him enough. I just thought it was assumed. I think part of me wasn’t sure he would hear it. I promised myself I won’t make that mistak
e again.”
“You’re a good father.”
“No one’s ever accused me of that before,” he laughs.
“It’s not an accusation.”
“I want to acquire your mentor program,” he says, handing me a proposal and cutting to the chase.
Glancing through the paperwork, I look at him dubiously. “Why?”
“I want to give it to Holt. He has no desire to follow in my footsteps. He wants his own business and his own path. I wasn’t able to see that before, but now that I can, I want to give him every opportunity possible.”
“Does he know you’re here?”
“No. I didn’t want to broach it with him if you are totally against it. Since you haven’t shown me the door, I assume you would be open to the idea?”
“And you don’t think that’s too much pressure for him at this age?” I ask.
“No I don’t. What are you thinking?”
“Since this is an acquisition and not a conversation amongst friends, I think I’ll reserve my thoughts for later.”
“Smart girl,” he says proudly. “Although you’re always among friends when you’re with me. You can trust me, Emme.”
“I do, Richard. I’m just processing.”
“Well then, let me give you more to process. While giving Holt his own company, I would like to give you one.” He hands me another packet. This time a true look of confusion on my face.
“Jean and I have talked about it. We have been for some time now. We just weren’t sure who the right person was to lead it, then you came into our lives.”
“Richard.” I look to him. “I’m not equipped to handle this. It would be a disservice to you if I took this on. This is putting me in charge of ten billion dollars.” I lift my eyes from the paper to him.
“You are equipped. If I wanted someone in business, I would have done this two years ago when Jean and I first started looking into it. But the company needs someone with vision and heart. We can hire the right people to help run it.”
“So you’re giving half of your wealth to me to do charitable events?”
A knock at the door interrupts us, Ben and Graham enter.
“Ben. Graham.” Richard greets them. “Have a seat.”
“Are we late?” Ben asks, wondering why I’m in the room.
“No. I wanted to meet with Emme for the first thirty minutes. I thought it was only fair to present it to her first.”
Taking the seat next to me, Graham looks at me for some insight. Richard speaks before I can give him any.
“I’ve asked Emme for the rights to acquire her mentor program.” He hands them a packet. “Along with that, Jean and I have decided it’s time to give away the majority of our fortune. We can easily make it on the percentage we would keep, and there are too many ways we could influence the world for the better by giving back.”
“This only has the information about your job offer,” Graham says. “What about the acquisition papers?”
“I gave them to Emme. I didn’t want to presume to share them. It’s her company.” His simple statement validates me.
Graham understands his reasoning, but I know he is not going to allow this to happen without his reviewing the proposal. I hand my packet to him. He opens it and begins reading.
“Why are we here?” Ben asks. “Do you want our input or for us to offer guidance to Emme?”
“Emme doesn’t need your guidance,” Richard says. “She’s a strong business woman. I asked you both here because I want you to match my contribution.”
Ben and Graham’s heads look up from their packets.
“You want to put Emme in control of a thirty-billion dollar company?” Graham doesn’t reveal what he’s thinking.
“No. I want to put her in control of a lot more than that. I’ve got meetings with four others. I would like to think, combined, we can raise a hundred billion. Together our money will have a greater impact than separately.”
He hands a third packet to each of us.
“I’m open to ideas, but this is how I envision it. Emme would be the CEO.”
“So, kind of like a Warren and Bill deal,” Ben says.
“Except Bill and Melinda already had a foundation they were running effectively. Warren gave and was done. He has no oversight responsibilities. I want some control over how we would spend it. I want to build something from the ground up. Bill and Melinda have done amazing things in education. I want to leave that expertise to them, while we tackle other avenues.”
“The seven of us would sit on the board of directors. Each having one vote per family on the three major avenues we choose to tackle.”
“No offense, sweetheart,” Ben says to me before turning to Richard, “and you think putting a 25-year-old with no CEO experience in charge is the right direction?”
“I’d like to say I was offended by that statement, but it’s true. There are so many people who could do this for you,” I add.
“I don’t want a CEO. There will already be seven of them on the board. We have plenty of business resources. What we don’t have is someone with the vision of how to change the world, one person at a time. I’m tired of giving to charities where large-scale improvements are made, but it doesn’t change anything for the average person. What Emme has said all along in her mentor program is what I want. Change the person and the change around them follows. The goal isn’t just for Reggie to be different. The goal is for him to go back and influence changes for someone else and so on.”
“I’d like to talk with Graham before you pitch the idea to anyone else please,” I tell Richard as I stand.
“Of course. I’ll follow up with you next week. Thanks for thinking about it,” Richard says shaking hands before hugging me on his way out.
“Mom and I will hold our decision until you all decide what direction you want to go in,” Ben tells Graham.
“Shoot. I have to meet Matt in twenty minutes. I’ll let you two discuss it. You and I can talk later.” I kiss Graham before heading to my office.
“Cassie. I’m running late. Can you tell Teague I’m ready and let Matt know I’m on my way please?”
“Yes, ma’am. Also a package was delivered for you.”
Setting my papers on my desk, I grab my purse and the package. It’s a brown paper box, with string around it. My name printed on the front. What did Graham do now?
“Matt’s meeting you here.” Cassie interrupts my thought over the intercom. I decide to open it now since I have a few extra minutes and rip through the paper. It’s a flowered shoebox. The kind you keep photos in. Beautiful, I think running my hand over it before pulling the top off. Folding back the tissue paper, my flight instinct kicks in when the movement of what looks like dozens of cockroaches start making their way out of the box.
“What the…” Teague says as I hit him chest first in a full force run, before he has a chance to say anything else, I’ve climbed up him, resting on his back, thankful I am wearing pants today.
“You’re choking me.” Teague tries to loosen my grip around his neck.
“Emelia?” Graham says, walking up with Matt. I’m too frozen to say anything.
“I got it,” Matt says walking into my office.
I want to tell him he doesn’t have it, but I’m afraid I’ll throw up if I attempt to speak.
“What the hell?” Matt yells, and Teague pries my fingers loose and hands me off to Graham who I stand behind before Teague goes into my office. Where we promptly hear, “What the fuck?”
“Cassie, out.” Graham motions with his head, not knowing what is going on, clearing her away before picking me up and carrying me to Adam’s office.
“Watch her,” Graham tells Adam, pointing to me before he leaves.
“Emme. What is it?” Adam asks and I try to tell him, but just the thought of it has me running to his bathroom, throwing up my lunch. Adam holds my hair, rubbing my back in soothing circles. “I think you’re done.” He pulls me up with him, hands me a toot
hbrush, and leaves me to finish.
When I enter the room, I have an audience of several confused men and Cassie. Graham comes to me.
“What time was the package delivered?” Smith asks.
“About an hour ago maybe?” Cassie says, worried. “Mrs. Taylor was in her meeting with Mr. Raines for about ten minutes when the courier dropped it off. I’m sorry, Emme.” She is visibly upset.
“This has nothing to do with you, Cassie. You have nothing to worry about.” I send her back to her desk.
“She’s fired,” Graham says once the door is closed.
“No, she is not.” My anger is lit like a fuse.
“She didn’t follow protocol. That box should have never been on your desk unopened. All packages are to be scanned before they come into the building.”
“Scanned for bombs not bugs. And she doesn’t work for you. She works for me. You don’t have the authority to fire her.”
“Emelia!” Graham bellows
“Graham. I like her. She stays,” I say quietly but with no less force.
“The courier company said it was paid for with cash. No name was given,” Smith says. “We’ll have security footage from the area pulled and we’ll see if we can identify who had them sent.”
“Emme already knows,” Matt says watching me. “I knew there was a story.” He directs his comments to the others. “She’s had this response to bugs since I’ve known her.”
“Emelia? Who sent them?” Graham demands.
“Tony,” I say after releasing a deep breath.
“Who’s Tony?” Matt asks.
“My step-father.”
“George. Have Harry Forrester meet me at the apartment in one hour,” Graham says. “Tell them it’s Emme if his office won’t interrupt him.”
“He got off on my fear. Guess he still does. He covered me in roaches when I was sleeping, because he knew I was terrified of them. One night I woke up with them all over me. He made me lay there without moving.”
“How old were you?” Ben asks shocked.
“Nine,” I whisper. “Don’t,” I tell them responding to their expletives. “Don’t give it power by giving me pity. There are kids who had it much worse than I did. I’m okay. I just don’t like bugs.” I shiver at the thought of them. “I don’t think I’ll be able to go back into that office though.”
