Chapter 14 -- Reality Check
The rest of the weekend was weird.
Brooke did not come home on Saturday night and when she came home on Sunday, she was unusually quiet. I didn't want to press her for answers, but I was dying to know what happened. I knew that she was hurting inside by not telling me but I could not, in good conscience, put her directly in the center of the growing philosophical differences between Emma and I. I let it be and waited patiently for Monday to arrive.
I was out of the house early Monday morning and intentionally buzzed through my workday. I had several afternoon meetings, regarding our computer network at the office, which served as a great distraction from the very somber mood that hung like a fog over the ladies I worked with. I focused on the tasks at hand during those meetings, knowing that at some point the opportunity to push the existing issues out into the wide open would present itself.
As the day came to a close, most of the ladies left the office quietly. I waited until only Emma and I were left, seeing her office light on and the door open. I felt like this might be the best time to create that moment of opportunity. I got up and started to head for her office when my cellphone rang. I retrieved it from my hip and answered it quickly.
"Hello," I answered without looking at the caller id.
"Hey kid," Bill's voice rang back at me.
"Bill, how are you," I asked politely, shutting the door to my office.
"I am much better now," he bellowed. "I have some information."
"Good or bad," I asked as I sat back down at my desk.
"It depends on how we use it," he answered. "I now know the business details of Vivian's deal with Devilles."
"WOW," I exclaimed. "That is great. Tell me."
"Well, it appears that she is a new employee of Samson Holdings, LLC," Bill announced.
"Really, what the hell sense does that make," I wondered aloud.
"Actually, there is a lot to it," he continued. "She is an employee and therefore drawing a salary. In addition to that, she has four conditional employment agreements in place with the company. If she leaves the company voluntarily before 'working' there for two years, the she forfeits her car and her condominium to the company. She also has a one-year non-compete agreement that means if she quits or resigns of her own accord, she cannot work for another holding company for one year."
I thought about what Bill had just told me. It seemed like a lot but as I processed it, nothing scared me or seemed insurmountable. As I replayed Bill's words quickly in my head, something else occurred to me.
"Bill, you said she had four agreements with the company," I reminded him.
"Yes, I did," he agreed.
"What is the fourth," I asked gingerly, almost not wanting to hear any more.
"When Emma and Leslie started Adams and Cartwright, they formed an LLP," he explained. "To further limit the liability, they spread it out with 20% ownership to each of the five partners."
"WHAT," I shouted, absolutely floored by this information.
How could I not have known this? Even more concerning to me was what reason could either Emma or Leslie have had for keeping this information from me? I was dumbfounded.
"Adams and Cartwright has five partners," he repeated to break the silence.
"Do you know who the five partners are," I asked openly.
"I do," he admitted. "But it's not for me to tell you."
The light bulb went on in my head.
"Vivian is one of them, isn't she," I pressed.
"She is," he confirmed.
"So if she bails out on the Deville sister's game, they get her 20% of this firm," I surmised.
"That's correct," he cemented.
"She wanted to get our attention so badly that she fucked herself and the rest of us royally," I yelled.
"Kid, I don't know what she was thinking," he said. "I have copies of each agreement and they are signed and notarized."
"Fuck me," I exhaled, completely dejected.
"On a really funny side note, Bob Ruffe drew up and notarized all the agreements as 'legal consultant' to Samson Holdings, not an employee," Bill told me.
"That's just fucking fantastic for Bob," I growled. "What do we do now?"
"I'm not sure yet," Bill confessed. "But we will figure it out. How did the intervention go?"
"I don't have any feedback on it yet, but I am going to get some tonight," I informed him abrasively.
"Tread lightly," Bill advised.
"I will," I assured him. "I will update you when I have some info or an idea. I am sorry for my temper. Thank you again for all your help."
"Kid, I know this is tough," he stated. "But this is the time when your mind will serve as your best weapon. I will talk to you soon."
As we ended our conversation, I was in shock and very, very angry. What was Vivian thinking? I really didn't know. Had I hurt her so much that all she could do was lash back at me like this? This put every single one of us in jeopardy if we made a move towards Vivian or against the Devilles. I was very confused and extremely worried about where we might be headed.
I got up from my desk and opened my office door. I was pleased to see the light in Emma's office was still on. I slowly walked over to the open door and peaked my head inside. Emma was at her desk, head down, pen in hand. She looked adorable with her glasses on, slid halfway down her nose. I watched in silence for a moment before she got tired of my staring.
