Chapter 15 -- Back In Charge
The rest of that week was weird around the office. Every time I saw Emma, she looked at me very shyly, which I was not used to. She seemed to be getting tougher on everyone else in the office as well. It was a totally odd disparity. I was spending a lot of time trying to come up with a way to get leverage on the Devilles and free Vivian from their grasp, though I wasn't having any success.
As I was leaving the office on Friday afternoon, Emma was standing at Nikki's desk. They both smiled at me as I approached. Nikki giggled as Emma turned and went back to her office. I started towards the front door when Nikki's voice stopped me.
"We are all going to spend some time together tomorrow with a brunch at Leslie's," she advised me. "It would really be nice if you were there."
I turned to face her and smiled. I didn't say anything but I was sure that my very pleased expression and incessant nodding gave me away. I turned back and continued to the parking lot, feeling confident that all of us being together was a good idea. Not together in the office, but someplace common and welcoming. I continued to smile to myself as I pulled away from the office parking lot.
Because of my lack of ideas about how to help Vivian, I had not called Bill back and I felt bad about that. As I got home on Friday night, I found the house empty. I was relaxing and watching the Padres game when I decided that it was time to stop being lazy. I picked up my cell phone and dialed quickly before I could lose my nerve.
"Hey kid," Bill answered. "How are you?"
"I'm lost, Bill," I acknowledged honestly. "I haven't come up with anything. The ladies intervention yielded nothing of importance and I have gotten nowhere."
"Well, you sound like a man who is giving up," Bill surmised.
"Not at all," I countered. "I am just frustrated that I haven't found a way yet. I am not done trying. I just keep looking at all the angles and can't see the one to play yet."
"Kid, I like that approach," he complimented. "But you still sound down."
"I'm sorry, this is just becoming a lot to handle," I admitted.
"That's the responsibility of playing the game," he advised me. "But to your credit, you are handling it. That says a lot."
"It is my responsibility," I said in agreement. My next question surprised me. "Why didn't you tell me that Bonnie was a partner in the firm?"
"It wasn't my place to tell," Bill postured. "Plus, you needed to open lines of communication with Emma. It has helped her. When we spoke she sounded better than she had in a while. You don't realize how much she leans on you because she doesn't tell you. But she does."
"I am glad you think so," I told him. "Where do we go from here?"
"Lay it all out for me," Bill requested.
"Ok, here it is," I began. "If Vivian quits, the Devilles get her condo, her car and her 20% of the firm. That would be bad. Besides which, Vivian would never quit. She joined them to prove something and she would never quit. That would be an admission that she was wrong and she is too stubborn to admit that. Our only option is to come up with something equivalent that we can trade or use to leverage the Devilles for Vivian's release. Kylie is so angry that she would not do it unless we had her by the short hairs."
"So that's where we are at," he asked. "A trade or leverage."
"It is," I confirmed.
"Let me keep doing some research," Bill said. "I think I might have an idea."
"Ok, we'll talk soon," I said as we completed our call.
I sat there, with my head in my hands. I was tired, frustrated and angry. This situation was hanging over my head and I was putting all the weight on myself. I wanted this to all be resolved and over but it seemed like it never would be. I saw headlights pull into the driveway and then heard the front door open. I waited for Brooke to make her way up the steps. I just sat there, not moving, head pounding, waiting. As I heard the footsteps reach the top of the stairs, the waiting came to an end.
"Honey, I'm home," she said.
