Prologue
My heart pounded with anticipation. Excitement, nervousness and pride built with every step as I walked through the gold-trimmed plate-glass doors of the West Coast offices of Jacoby, Anderson and Cartwright. I was now the newest employee of this corporate giant. It was the opportunity I had prepared for. It was the break I had dreamed of. I somehow knew that walking through these doors today would change my life, but I had no idea by how much and how quickly.
"46 please," I said confidently as I stepped into the crowded mirror-walled elevator with employees hurrying to get to their cubicles on time. Most were already busy at work, checking calendars and emails on their smart phones. After several stops, the doors opened with the sound of a chime marking the arrival of my floor and the first day of the rest of my life. I took a deep breath and stepped out.
I walked down the long plush hallway past several executive offices with lavish mahogany furniture and large windows overlooking spectacular views of the city. Secretaries in front of each office looked as if they had been chosen from New York modeling agencies, each already busy with their urgent morning routines. Most smiled back, some with winks as I offered polite "good mornings." I couldn't help thinking that I'm going to like it here.
The beauty of the serene lavish professional surroundings was interrupted by the sound of a man yelling as I moved closer to the office of my new boss, Sylvia Hernandez. I heard a door slam and the yelling stopped. I turned the corner at the end of the long hallway. I saw a short balding man stomp his way in the opposite direction, duck into an office two doors down and slam the door. I stopped at my boss' door and double-checked the nameplate: "Sylvia Hernandez." Ms. Hernandez was well known inside and outside the company for her innovative work. I took a deep breath and knocked on the door.
"Come in," came the voice on the other side.
I opened the door and stepped in.
"Hi Carl. Welcome aboard," she said. Her smile and welcome were genuine as she stood, stepped out from behind her desk to shake my hand. She was professional, but it was also apparent she was shaken and had been crying. Her veiled attempts to hide it were unsuccessful.
"Thank you Ms. Hernandez. Thank you for the opportunity. I look forward to getting started." After a brief pause, I dared to ask, "Is everything OK?"
"Close the door please," she asked as she returned to her chair behind her desk.
I closed the door, and pointing to the chair next to her desk asked, "may I?"
"Yes, of course," she said. "I'm sorry," she offered, "its been a bad morning, but I don't want that to take away from your first day."
"Not at all," I answered. "Anything I can do to help."
"Thank you for asking. It's nothing you can do," she said.
"I'd like to if I can," I said reassuringly. "When you hired me you said you needed a right hand person to help handle the growing enormity of this division. You wanted open communication and absolute trust as necessary to take this to the next level. This sounds like the perfect time to set that bar. You can trust me, Ms. Hernandez. I am here to make your life better."
"You're right," she said, with her confident voice uncharacteristically cracking with emotion. "Sometimes it's hard to trust. I do need someone I can trust completely here Carl. You so much as think about breaking confidence, you're gone. I hired you, because I believe great things can happen."
The brief pregnant pause turned magical as our eyes locked with a bond of trust. We both made decisions in that moment that whatever was ahead, we would face it as committed colleagues, if not more.
"You can trust me," I said breaking the silence with a confident tender tone.
She looked up and down at me, assessing the moment. She saw her new six two, 28-year-old blond, rugged athletic assistant staring back at her with honest translucent blue eyes. "You look older than 28," she said, changing the subject. "More like 35."
"I do a lot of outdoor extreme sports and have had some tough life experiences," I answered back. "You look younger than 32," I complimented back. The truth was Ms. Hernandez looked like she couldn't be more than 26. She had large brown eyes, flowing black hair that fell down past her shoulders, and beautiful olive Latin skin. She was a tall slender 5'8" dressed professionally in a red suit coat, starched white blouse and matching red skirt that fell to just above her knees. Her suit coat was open, with her button blouse exposed at the top, to show off her large round 36D distractions. Her long bare legs poured into bright fire engine red two-inch stilettos. It was clear Sylvia knew how to dress with the highest professionalism while at the same time, to command attention. Sylvia had my utmost professional respect, and whether right or wrong, had my admiration for her beauty. I came to a fleeting conclusion she probably knew how to command a boardroom and a bedroom. My imagination couldn't resist running into both.
"You know how to score points early," she said, allowing a small vulnerable smile to break through for the first time in the conversation. "OK, all cards on the table from this point on in our working relationship. Complete trust, no secrets, no blindsides."
"There is no other way I would rather have it. Hiring me is the best decision you will make for you and this company, Ms. Hernandez," I said confidently. "You can count on me."
"OK, then," she said with some relief. "This day is already turning around. Here is the deal Carl, JAC is a great company to work for. You will find people here to be hard working, committed, friendly, and cooperative like a strong team. The same is expected of you."
"That's one of the reasons I wanted to work here, and for you," I answered.
"One exception in my experience here is my boss, Clyde Claud. We were both hired into this division seven years ago and have been making our way through the company. Last year a job opened up that we both competed for. For whatever reason, and I have my suspicions, he was selected, and became my boss. He is an arrogant, selfish, chauvinist who tries to use his power to take advantage of others."
"You sound bitter."
"Not about the job. I'm all good with corporate competition where the best man or woman wins. What I can't stand is his constant inappropriate sexual advances. He has been hitting on me since day one. Relentless. He can't take no for an answer. His advances are completely inappropriate and degrading. For the last year he has ratcheted it up, harassing me, trying to use his power to force sexual favors. He's done it with others. Some have given in, only to see he has no intention to use his influence to help them, only to help himself to them. He brashly asks why he would promote people out of positions where he has sexual access to them. There are even rumors he has videos he uses to blackmail women to keep them serving him, and from blowing the whistle."
"That's awful," I said incensed.
"He routinely puts me in situations where if I do not oblige to his advances, he says he will give me poor reviews to his supervisors to make sure I am never promoted again. I have no doubt he would and does. I refuse to give in to him."
"What he's doing is so wrong on many different levels," I said sympathetically. "I have dealt with jerks like that. Is that what happened this morning?" I asked.
"Yes," she said. "More brashly than ever. I think he's threatened by my recent success in this division, spoiling his attempts to sabotage my advancement. I'm not worried, because I will never give into him, but his behavior is humiliating."
"Well, I've got your back now."
"Look Carl, this isn't your fight..."
"Yes it is, Ms. Hernandez. With all due respect, if it is your fight, it is mine. Plus, I have no patience for jerks like that. I'll find a way take care of it."
