The following day, wanting to get plenty of work done early to clear away a backlog, Miriam left home before seven and got to work early. As she went through the empty office she was pleased that she had the office to herself only to find a message from Gabrielle already on her desk.
Miriam,
Bob wants to see you as soon as possible -
Gabrielle
She dropped her bag on her desk and immediately went to the Managing Director's suite.
"What's the excitement about this morning?" she asked Gabrielle when she arrived at her desk.
"VIP's," Gabrielle replied succinctly. She waved her arm toward the door dramatically. "Better go see for yourself. He wants you in there."
Miriam knocked on the door and went in without awaiting an answer. As she entered Seagram's office the four male occupants stood respectfully.
"Ah, Miriam," Seagram began. "Thanks for coming in." He introduced the men. Richard was tall, dark and good looking in a plain sort of way. Paul was fair, shorter and stocky but obviously a fit man who looked after himself. The last man, Matt, was a big negro, tall and broad, and wonderfully handsome.
Seagram indicated a chair. Miriam perched silently on its edge wondering why she was involved in this meeting at all. None of the conversation involved her in any way. The project, she knew, had been handled by Ian Peacocke. Why wasn't he here? Her thoughts were returned to the present by Seagram's voice...
" ... so while they are here I want you to liaise directly with them. You are to be my interface. If there is anything that they need or desire, I expect that you will provide it for them. Anything at all! I have explained your skills and abilities to them and, believe me, I am fully confident in your ability to satisfy them. Okay?"
The shock hit her in the face like a punch from a heavyweight boxer. The hide of the man! "
...anything they need or desire... ...provide it for them... ...anything at all... ...explained your skills and abilities... ...satisfy them...
" What did Bob think she was - his private whore? Calm down, she told herself. You may be reading more into this than there really is. This is probably some innocent business get together.
"Fine by me, Bob," she replied with a well disguised smile. "When do we start?"
"Tonight," he replied simply. "However, it will be intensive time because these gentlemen will be on a flight out at six tomorrow morning. You're to pick them up at the Regent at six thirty tonight. There's a table booked at The Outrigger. You know where it is?" Miriam nodded. "Take the Rockdale file off my desk. I suggest you cancel the rest of your day, take it home and be very familiar with it by tonight. This contract is in your hands, Miriam, and any decisions you make will be binding. You'll be acting with my full authority and confidence on this one. Clear enough?"
Perfectly clear, Bob." Miriam smiled, then stood and took the appropriate file from his desk. She spun around to face them holding out her hand. "Gentlemen... until tonight then."
They stood, took her hand in turns and watched her as she left. As she closed the door behind herself, she smiled at Gabrielle. Thank goodness I was wrong she told herself. An indignant outburst in there would have blown the whole thing for Bob and, as a consequence, for her.
"Good luck!" Gabrielle wished her cheerfully as she walked out the door.
Miriam got her secretary to cancel all of her appointments for the day and went home with the file. As she drove home she thought about the job in front of her but slowly her mind drifted. The weather was beautiful, warm but not too hot and there wasn't a cloud in the sky. Too nice a day to be working. She chastened herself for the thought and put the weather behind her. There were important things to think about. She was going to barricade herself into the study and work. But all of that changed appreciably when she arrived home. There were no lights working. She went to the refrigerator. It had power. Oh, well, at least there was power to the house and, whatever the problem, it wasn't serious enough to have turned off the fridge and freezer. She went around to the side of the house and checked the power box. The circuit breakers were all up and in place. Not knowing what to do next she rang Roger.
"I can't come home now," he told her. "I've got meetings on starting in about twenty minutes and going for the rest of the day. You'll have to call Phil Ferguson and get him over. By the way, how come you're at home? I thought you went to work early to get things done?"
Miriam explained what had happened. "Don't rush home. I'll arrange for David to stay over at Richard's house tonight. And don't wait up for me," she added. "Bob seems to think it will be a long night of negotiations."
"He's obviously got a lot of confidence in you. Sounds like a great opportunity. Good luck and have fun. I'll see you in the morning if not before."
Having no lights in the house was a real bummer, she thought. She rang the electrician next. Phil was a friend and she knew he would come over as soon as he could but he still couldn't make it before three. Damn! she thought looking at her watch. It was nine twenty.