CHAPTER 17
Amelia
The doorbell rings and I drag myself from the couch.
I open it and can’t believe who’s standing there.
“Don’t you have any shame?”
“Excuse me?”
“You’re coming here now?”
“But ma’am, if you don’t act now you could miss out on this incredible, limited time offer of a breathtaking time share in Mexico.”
“Leave,” I say shutting the door in the salesman’s face. How are they allowed to knock so late?
The doorbell rings again right away.
“What?” I say opening it.
“Your Szechuan chicken ma’am.”
“Oh sorry,” I say digging into my purse and paying the delivery guy.
He goes to leave but I’m still staring at him waiting for him to realize what’s missing.
“Have a nice night.”
“No fortune cookie?”
“We stopped doing those last year. We got sued when someone misinterpreted one as a negative omen.”
“A negative omen?”
“Beats me. Sorry, have to run.”
I shut the door and head back to the couch.
I get a proper fork from the kitchen and plop down ready to gorge on Chinese food followed by a night of movies.
I lift the food to my mouth, finally feeling like the day is about to end and I can finally think clearly and put the puzzle pieces together.
Ring.
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” I say.
I set my bowl down and huff and puff to the door.
“Yessss…”
I open the door, but the third time is definitely not the charm.
“Your fortune cookie says things are looking up.”
“Really, that’s funny, because they sure seem to be washing down the drain like everything else today.”
“That’s one thing I’ve learned from years of experience. Things are often not what they seem.”
“Ummm, yeah! You can say that again. I though I met a great guy, but boy was I ever wrong,” I say.
“Can I come in?”
“I don’t think that’s such a good idea.”
“They wanted me to fire the whole department, Amelia. I refused.”
“Didn’t look like you refused by the time I got fired. Let’s see. It was a ghost town by then, and you were the one brought in to restructure the entire place. You’re the numbers guy. Tell me how your story adds up.”
“I was looking through the books all week. I figured it out this morning right before I walked into the meeting. They’d ask me to fire everyone, and then they’d fire me. They’d report the quarterly close numbers with an incredibly reduced headcount. That would convince the investors they wanted to sell to that the company was profitable.”
“What?”
“They fired you last right? Probably just after you finished your report? They were waiting on you to finish that report, or at least get it close enough where they could put on the final touches. They were going to take that report, remove all the staff salaries and expenses, and then present it to the board of the company that made them the offer.”
“Why would they do that?”
“Because they’re looking for a quick sale. A fire sale if you will. The other company would agree and then arrive to find they bought a company with no finance and accounting employees.”
“Is that legal?”
“Depends on the wording of the contract. More like immoral, unless the other company had their own staff they were going to merge into the new.”
“What can we do?”
“Nothing. I made some calls and found out the deal’s already complete.”
“So everyone loses their jobs.”
“Everyone lost their jobs, yes.”
“That’s what I said.”
“But you haven’t heard what I have to say.”
“I’m listening.”
He pauses, looking deep in my eyes as a smile overtakes his previously somber face.
“I’ve been watching you. Watching how you work with people. Watching how you manage them. They respond to you. You showed me it’s not always all about coming in like a bull in a china shop and causing destruction and chaos. The shock and awe technique is the way of the past. The future of business is in understanding emotional intelligence. Workers are a lot more productive when they’re entrusted with responsibility and the freedom to make decisions on their own. If you allow them room to fail, they actually perform better. They don’t feel like they’re walking on pins and needles and can be more creative which leads to better long term profits, benefiting everyone.”
“That’s great that you’re experiencing a spiritual enlightenment moment in regards to business, but that doesn’t help me and everyone else who just got fired today.”
“Actually it does.”
“You could have fooled me.”
“The only fool is your old company.”
“How so?”
“They’re fools for letting you go, and treating you the way they did.”
I exhale, waiting for him to get to the point or get off my front steps.
“You probably tried to call me today after you got the bad news. Am I right?”
I don’t say anything at first, but he waits me out. “Maybe,” I say, trying to maintain what little dignity I have left after today.
“They took my phone. It was a company phone and I had to give it back immediately. I realized I never gave you my other number and your number was stored in that phone. It was synced to my old computer, which they also took. I had no way to get in touch with you other than coming here.”
“You sure took your time.”
“It did take some time, yes. I’m sorry about that, but I think I have a fairly decent reason why.”
“I’d like to hear it.”
“You know it takes a long time to form a company in California. All the paperwork that’s required. All the attorneys have to get involved. It’s really a mess.”
“So.”
“I made a bunch of calls. Got an entirely new company established in one day. It’s complete and ready to go tomorrow.”
“Congratulations. You’re off on your next project while I’m here on the couch hunting for a new job.”
“No you’re not. You’re going to join me. You’re going to be my partner, and we’re going to bring in your old team. Financial services are all the rage in all the BRIC countries.”
“BRIC countries?”
“Brazil, Russia, India, and China. We’ll start lining up the deals tomorrow and fly out to meet our new partners.”
“What?”
“We’ll provide financial services for large multinationals in those emerging markets. We’re going global.”
“So you’re telling me that you knew they were going to fire everyone, so you refused and then spent your day running around setting up a new company which will rehire everyone tomorrow morning?”
“We can start tonight if you want.”
“I think I’ve had enough excitement for one day.”
“We’ll travel the world together, make money together, and continue to grow as a team…in business and in life.”
“I figured you were half way to St. Tropez by now.”
“Not without you. Never without you.”
“What about my old boss?”
“You don’t have to bring her if you don’t want. You’re in charge of the people. You’re better at that than me. I’ll watch you and learn to improve in that area, and I can show you some higher-level business stuff that you may not have had exposure to. You’ll certainly meet an entirely different group of people and learn how to negotiate and structure deals in the process.”
“But I’m not good at that kind of stuff.”
“That’s why you’ll be at my side, watching and learning, just like I’ll be doing right by your side. Just like the old Chinese philosophy of yin and yang.”
“How appropriate,” I say looking at my bowl of food on the table. I can’t help it anymore, as a smile overtakes my face.
“Like I said, your fortune cookie says things are looking up.”
“You’re my good fortune.”
“And you’re my cookie.”
“You and me. Whaddaya say?”