The next day for Victor and Meredith was a continuance of all the previous days for a few hours.
Carmine hadn't done well for the week, and it was past eleven thirty. Victor found her looking busy at the computer while she was secretly texting.
"Carmine?" Victor intentionally had snuck up on her and knew he had shocked her. "Meredith needs you in her office for a word about the numbers before lunch."
"Oh great. Well let's go office boy."
She led the way in her tight designer dress. Carmine was an extreme extrovert like most salespeople. She was of the mindset that the office was the place to be beautiful. She wore a dress that could get her past the V.I.P. rope in a club. It was white with a loose top and a very short skirt. She wore white matching stiletto heels. Several gold necklaces covered more of her cleavage then her open top. Some women wore that type of dress as a stylish shirt over jeans or leather pants.
They stepped into Meredith's dark office. Her windows were shaded and the lights were off. Most of the light in the room came from the glass wall. In the back of the dark room, only the computer's screensaver and the charging lights for her cell phone were casting any light.
Meredith sat waiting at the desk. She wore a black dress suit with only a hint of white blouse over her lapel. Her wavy black hair was down across her shoulders and made her seem so much bigger and darker.
"Hello Meredith, you should get some light it's unhealthy." Carmine said in greeting. Like most office workers, she was afraid being in the dark room. Unlike most, she faced her fear by crossing into the depths of the room to stand over Meredith at her desk.
Victor stood quietly by the windows.
"How are your numbers for this week?" Meredith asked coolly.
"I'll have them by the end of the day. I hope to finish a few things." Carmine avoided.
"How are your numbers so far for the week?" Meredith was like an army laying siege, Carmine could only look on as systematically, and methodically Meredith plugged along through excuses and twisted ambiguity.
"Five, including the new Tarsus model." She said trying to add a good ring to it.
"You did ten last week and those five were finalized extras that went through on Monday and Tuesday. Now, this week, you're behind the twelve you needed."
"Well I..." Carmine struggled.
Meredith ignored her and pushed on. "How do I punish you?" Carmine straightened. "Fifteen in two weeks is not good enough."
Carmine rightly feared being fired. It was a Friday at lunchtime, the perfect time to clean out the desk. It seemed these talks were fairly common, and no one likes their money played with.
"Well I..." Victor watched the gears start turning in the Latina's head.
"I have a way to help you."
Carmine nearly missed that as she thought about her excuse. "I... uh what?"
"Victor says it's a mental thing, making lots of sales one week and being sluggish the next. Something about not being hungry." Behind them, the office emptied for lunch together. "Are you hungry?" Meredith asked perhaps meaning literally.
"Ah no..ah yes." Carmine answered perhaps meaning figuratively.
Victor could guess by Carmine's face she had lost her appetite with the conversation.
"Well, after this you should be able to go eat wherever you want." Carmine stiffened further Victor could see waterworks getting ready. "Will you be hungry to sell next week?"
"Yes Meredith, next week will be great." She blurted.
"What do you do that puts you at ease? Can I relax you for you to do better? What do you do with your money? You don't have to answer."
Carmine felt she couldn't not answer. "I go out. I pay bills. This is a good job." She said and nodded to herself.
"Where do you go?" Meredith asked calmly. "Do you wait, or look for acceptable men at fun places at night, or do you have an... other with you?"
Victor was amused how she seemed to have asked Carmine if she was either a whore or a lesbian.
Carmine wasn't thinking too clearly about what was said, or its meaning. She was just blurting whatever she thought. "I go out and have fun with friends, yes." She said unable to hide her frantic confusion.
Meredith arched her fingers in front of her. Victor taught her to use it as a device to distract people from her chest when they were about to ask for the sale. In the darkened room it made her look absolutely sinister. "Are you satisfied?"
"Huh?" Carmine looked at Victor for understanding.
