Monday
Like he did every weekday morning, Roger Morso awoke
at 6:00 am. He put on his gym clothes and took the elevator down 25 flights to the first floor for his hour-long workout. From a Quaker family that traced its ancestry to the earliest English settlements in the Philadelphia area, Roger Morso was a wealthy and powerful man.
After graduating from an Ivy League university, he decided to make his mark in the rough and tumble world of commercial real estate development. His success was legendary. Using his enormous financial and political capital, he was the go-to developer for the biggest, most expensive projects in the region.
Since his well-publicized divorce, a year and a half ago, Roger, a distinguished, broad-shouldered man, age 70, with gray hair, had been living in a high-rise condo in Center City, on the Delaware River, near the historic Penn's Landing.
From his window, he had a panoramic view of both directions of the heavily traversed Delaware River and the stunning Ben Franklin Bridge that spanned the waterway to Camden, NJ, on the other side. Realizing that Center City was in his soul, he did not contest his ex-wife's desire to keep the suburban, Main Line mansion they shared for 30 years.
Roger conducted most of his business downtown. His office was in a 47-floor high-rise across the street from the Hotel Ranstead. He often joked that he closed more deals at the Ranstead than anywhere else. Roger was comfortable making deals in its private meeting rooms, or even better, in the dark oak paneled bar, which boasted a wide variety of the finest liquors from around the world. One could hold court with social equals at the bar or find nooks, or small booths, for more intimate one-on one's.
A room was always held in reserve for Roger at the elegant Hotel Ranstead. After bailing the hotel owner out of a gambling debt many years earlier, he became a minority partner. Overlooking famous Rittenhouse Square, the Hotel Ranstead catered to a high-powered, wealthy clientele. It was popular with old and new money alike, but out of reach, financially and socially, to the average Philadelphian.
Despite the abrupt change to his life that occurred when he walked in on his wife, fucking a luxury car salesman, Roger was a man who followed a routine. Up by 6:00 am, daily, he would begin his day in the fitness center, eating a fruit salad and plain yogurt for breakfast. After putting on his conservative, tailored suit, he would meet his driver downstairs who would take him to work in his black Cadillac, with tinted windows.
Almost invariably he would have lunch at the Ranstead, where the staff kept a quiet booth reserved for him in the back of the bar. Sometimes he sat by himself. More often, he would be joined by a business associate, or a lawyer, a judge, maybe a politician, each seeking his counsel, or his money.
On rare occasions, he would be joined by a woman, even prior to his divorce. A private man, there was always an air of mystery surrounding Roger. Though he was a generous tipper and gracious to those in the service industry, Roger did not interact much with individuals who were not part of his social class. He was content to be called Mr. Morso and he paid little mind to the day-to-day trials and tribulations of working-class people.
On this Monday, Roger got into his office by 8:15 am, a little later than he wanted, as these were busy days for The Morso Company. After a tough multi-year campaign to win development rights, from the River Commission, to build the largest project in the history of the Delaware waterfront, hard decisions had to be made.
Applying for permits, gaining local, state, and federal approvals would be time consuming. They had an ambitious construction schedule, resulting from difficult but ultimately successful negotiations with the building trades unions. Any delay would increase labor costs and jeopardize the huge profits envisioned by Roger Morso and his New York investors.
As the lunch hour approached, Roger prepared to walk over to the Ranstead to meet with the two young men from the investment firm, Jameer and Taylor. Roger liked Jameer and Taylor, who were still in their late twenties. They shared a bond over having attended the same local Ivy League business school, though Roger had attended almost 50 years before them.
The collegiality was only at the surface though, as the business relationship was strained. Roger thought the leaders at the investment firm were too conservative in their thinking. Their desire for expediency, in his mind, demonstrated a lack of understanding of just how lucrative this project could be for all of them.
For their part, Jameer, Taylor and their colleagues in Manhattan, thought Roger was opaque in his business practices, made too many inside deals and was too stubborn.
A case in point was the labor negotiations. Just weeks ago, the firm demanded to see the contracts that Roger was working on with the various unions. While Jameer and Taylor were trying to track Roger down, they were alerted that there would be a press conference on the waterfront. They raced to the scene, only to discover Roger and a group of union leaders, congratulating each other on the agreement they just signed.
At lunch, Roger planned to smooth things over with the young men, who were smarting from the criticism they got from their senior executives over not knowing about Roger's labor press conference stunt.
The next morning the three of them would be choosing one of three options for the placement of the casino and pro basketball arena. Kyle, from the San Francisco based engineering firm that specialized in big Green projects, would be making a presentation about the pros and cons of each option.
Roger supported Option A, which would make them the most money, but would cut off public access to the waterfront. He figured some political wheeling and dealing would get the job done and they would all be richer for it.
The New York investors liked Option B, which would make less money but only cut off most of the public access to the waterfront. They believed that option would be more politically palatable, hence, moving the project along more quickly, with less financial risk.
No one liked Option C (other than the general public and the politicians), which would not cut public access to the waterfront at all but would cut too deeply into the profits.
It was a hot and humid mid-July day in Center City Philadelphia. Roger walked through the air-conditioned lobby of his office building, about to walk outside into the heat to cross the street to the Hotel Ranstead. His cellphone rang. It was Taylor calling.
"Taylor, my young man! Are you at the Ranstead already? With your first Martini?"
"Ha. No Mr. Morso, I'm afraid I'm not."
"It's Roger to you, Taylor. You're my fellow alumni from the old university! Are you and Jameer running late?"
"No, Roger. I apologize. Jameer and I have been in meetings all morning. Our risk mitigation team called and wanted to talk to us again about our meeting tomorrow. We won't get down to Philly until this evening."
"Oh, hell Taylor. You guys have too many damn meetings and not enough balls!" A quick to anger Roger, fumed, as he stopped in the lobby to talk, rather than continue through the revolving doors out into the stifling heat. "I wanted us to go over a game plan for tomorrow's presentation at lunch today!
"I don't like this California engineering firm you guys made me hire." Roger continued. "And that young surfer guy, Kyle, that they're sending to make the presentation! Don't get me started. I've seen his type. He's a preening pretty boy, more worried about wooing the ladies and getting his dick sucked, than doing his day job!"
"Look Roger." Taylor shot back. "The banks insisted we hire contractors with a track record for solid, on-time delivery on jobs. You know that. Kyle's new in his role, but Jameer and I have confidence in him."
A wound-up Roger Morso would not relent. He yelled into his phone in the busy lobby of his office building.
"He'd better deliver the goods tomorrow and help me understand why Option B is better than Option A like you guys think. Otherwise, I'll fire that firm and you and your investors can sell your shares. How do you like that!"
"Hey Roger. Cool down." Taylor calmly responded. "If, for some reason, Kyle does not meet the moment, we will discuss it, make the hard decisions and move on."
"Ok." Roger said, feeling bad about having unloaded on the young man he liked so much. "You know me, Taylor. Sometimes I overreact."
"I know, Roger. Let's meet in the hotel bar this evening and talk more over a drink."
"I wish I could." Roger responded. "I'm being honored for my philanthropy tonight in the building I live in. I think the organizers figured that was a good way of making sure I show up. Those SOB's!"
"Roger! Why didn't you tell us? Jameer and I would have bought tickets."
"Taylor," Roger responded, calmer now. "I like you and Jameer too much to force you to hang out with a bunch of old folks for a night. Besides, you should try your luck in the bar at the Ranstead tonight. Young, successful men like you will have no problem getting laid. The bar has a reputation for attracting married women, looking for an upgrade, at least temporarily, if you know what I mean!"
"Ha. We'll see if that works out Roger." Taylor said, about to hang up the phone.