CHAPTER EIGHT
Samantha's Surprise
Julia sat alone in Samantha's office. It had been almost twenty minutes since she had left to fetch another document they needed to finalize Julia's promotion. Impatience was settling in.
Oddly enough, Julia had never been in Samantha's office before, she never mentioned she even had one. Thinking on it, Julia realized that Samantha had always sought her out. She'd come to Julia's cube or invite her out to lunch somewhere. Sam had really put in the effort to be a good friend.
It was an interesting room as she looked around, not really what she expected. If a room was supposed to reflect the personality of its occupant, this one seemed to lack the vitality and flash of the Samantha she knew. The office was well organized, spartan, lacking the typical clutter of most offices or cubicles. What was really odd though was the lack of personal touches that one normally expected to see. There were no photos displayed, no plaques citing accomplishments, no doodads that reflected on the occupant or that offered the occasional distraction during the day. It was far easier to believe that it was some loaner office for visiting executives. There was one notable exception - a portrait that hung behind Samantha's desk.
Protected by a sleek, modern, metallic frame, it looked to be an oil painting of a warrior woman, or was it something else? Contrasting themes seemed to be at play blending warrior and woman together into something that was both familiar and yet surreal and distant. It was a fusion of a beautiful woman wearing a scratched and scarred medieval helmet which oddly came down over her eyes to rest at the bridge of her nose, blinding her. Below the cold iron helmet, her plump lips were colored a deep, rich red and, instead of armor, she wore a cream colored dress with floral embroidery. There was a haunting, somber quality to the painting which fused feminine beauty and the harsher realities of conflict and war into a single, evocative image. Beauty and conflict. Both were part of the Samantha she knew.
Getting restless for some attention, Julia peered through the glass partition into the monochrome hallways and common spaces outside the office looking for Samantha. There was a continual buzz of activity as people moved about the hallways or toiled away at their desks. It was good to see the company busy and productive and to know she was an important part of making it successful.
Still looking for Samantha, a man passed by in the hallway and offered her an awkward wave and stiff smile as he moved by. If she recalled, he had been in another sales division, competing with her for sales. He almost certainly worked for her now, likely a couple of levels below her on the organizational chart. Maybe she'd arrange a lunch sometime for her subordinates and invite him to see if he'd properly fall in line behind her so Samantha could add him to the tally in the "who's the boss" game. Power had its privileges after all.
In time, she finally spotted Samantha coming down the hallway with a portfolio in hand. Her skirt was swishing about her legs as she hurried forward on strappy, peep toe, stilettos, walking in them as easily as most women did in flats. She smiled warmly at Julia as she approached, mouthing the words "last one" as she got close.
"I am so sorry to keep you waiting," Samantha said as she entered the office. "Legal pushed out a last minute change to the corporate non-disclosure agreement you need to sign and I had a problem getting my hands on it."
"It's not a problem," Julia said. "You can make it up to me though," she added playfully with a grin.
Samantha sat down behind her desk with a bemused expression. "Okay," Samantha responded coyly, unsure of what to expect.
"The painting?" Julia asked, gesturing towards it with her eyes. "It's a striking image. Beautiful in a way but sad too. Any idea why the helmut is over her eyes?"
Samantha shrugged. "Well, I can't say what the artist was thinking for sure, never talked to her."
"A woman did paint it then?" Julia asked.
"Of course. I found that much out at the gallery," Samantha said admiring her painting, entranced by it. "I can tell you what I see," she said with a touch of reverence in her voice.
"Please do," Julia encouraged sincerily.
Samantha was genuinely moved by the painting as she regarded it. "When I look at it, and I mean really look at it, I see both a warrior and a womyn. They're one in the same. It reminds me of the never ending struggle womyn have had since the very beginning," she said ruefully. "Forever battling for equality and respect, for dignity. Even for love." Samantha shrugged.
"I think the helmet says she's been in wars. I guess it seems a little odd, maybe, being over her eyes - she's blinded by her own helmet. But, I think it defines her too. It's a part of her war. She's been blinded, forced to paint her lips and forced into some pretty little dress, things to make her more pleasing and less threatening to men, but she's still a warrior. She's still fighting, even if she didn't fully see it or realize it." Samantha took a deep breath and turned to face Julia. "Maybe that's a lot to see into it, into her, but you asked." Samantha touched the frame, almost lovingly, then locked eyes with Julia. "I find her very empowering at times. She reminds me to go for the things I want, to fight for them, even when something is trying to blind me or tell me what to do - men, polite society, whatever."
Julia smiled at her and nodded reassuringly. Had they been someplace, other than the office, she might have offered Samantha a hug.
Samantha returned the smile. "Just my take on it. Hope that helps."
"Yes. It does. That's beautiful in a way. Thank you."
"Anytime," Samantha said gracefully.
Both women locked smiles with each other, enjoying the moment together.
"Anyway, back to work," Samantha said. "I have the last document for you to sign." Samantha retrieved several pages from her portfolio and presented them to Julia.
Julia grabbed the document and stared to skim through it. "Any problems with it?" she asked. "Anything for me to be concerned about?"
"No," Samantha said. "They added a section on directing any questions you might get about staffing and workforce composition to human resources at corporate. Overall, standard corporate stuff, don't say anything to anybody that's not supposed to hear it. If you leave the company the same rules apply. You'll want to review it but it's nothing to be concerned about."
"I'll take your word for it," Julia said as she flipped to the last page and signed the document, "I trust you."
Samantha smiled and added the document to the stack Julia had signed earlier. "And, with the last document signed, that's it," she said cheerily. "Let me be the first one to formally congratulate you on your new position," she said extending her hand with glee.
Julia smiled in return as they shook hands to mark the occasion, only to have Samantha's grip tighten for the briefest moment as Julia tried to release afterwards, their eyes then locking for only an instant as her hand was finally surrendered.
"Thank you," Julia said as the slightly awkward moment passed.
