Destination D Page 5

  “Good afternoon,” Carol Ann, the front receptionist, remarked.

  Carol Ann thrived on her position as guardian of the gate. Her stance was upright and stiff and her mannerisms reflected all business. The partners often joked that they couldn’t tell what she enjoyed more—her job or the “perks” that came with it.

  There was no reciprocal response.

  Carol Ann was used to Pam being rude. “May I get you some coffee?”

  “No, I’m fine, thank you.”

  “He called again,” Carol Ann said, handing her a message.

  “Not again.” Pam looked at the message and quickly crumbled it up in her hand. Carol Ann looked at her sympathetically. The man had been calling this woman non-stop for the past three weeks. He was always extremely polite, but there was something about his voice that sounded desperate. Carol Ann wondered why she was so hell-bent on avoiding all of his calls.

  “Hey, I know it’s none of my business, but…”

  Pam held up her hand in front of Carol Ann’s face signaling her to stop. “You’re right and let’s keep it that way.” It was obvious that Carol Ann was privy to everything going on at the firm and made it her business to know everyone else’s business.

  “I didn’t mean to pry…”

  “Listen, Carol Ann, I realize you have your sights set on higher plateaus, but stick with what you do best. I realize Hugh Richmond is a senior partner, and he may like you showing him your professional and personal skills, but I prefer you keep everything totally professional with me and stay out of my personal affairs. Is that understood?”

  “Yes, ma’am,” Carol Ann answered timidly, wishing she could crawl underneath her desk until she recovered from her stinging blow.

  “Now, have you seen Amanda?” Pam asked coolly.

  “Yes, as a matter of fact, I have,” she answered sheepishly, hoping this bit of news would help redeem her from the faux pas she had just made.

  Carol Ann leaned over the front of her desk to whisper something to Pam. Her bright ruffled crimson blouse revealed just enough cleavage for Hugh to enjoy and for the firm not to consider it inappropriate business attire.

  “Rumor has it that she’s been feverishly working to finish that Johnson vs. Tyfish Systems case so she can make it home early for her daughter’s graduation party, tonight. Poor thing.”

  “Thanks, Carol Ann,” she replied dryly.

  Pam headed back toward her office and found three stacks of papers sitting neatly on her desk. She eagerly massaged her hands together. “Well, well, well, what have we here?” she said under her breath. She closed her door partway and sat down. As she carefully sifted through each page, a slight grin came across on her face.

  Unbeknownst to her, Amanda was watching her every move through the cracked door. Just look at her salivating like a wolf that has been left with a flock of sheep! The nerve of that…

  “Amanda?” Pam called out. She felt someone’s eyes watching her and decided to investigate to see who was checking up on her.

  Amanda paused briefly to give herself a moment to regroup. “Yes, it’s me. I see you’ve had a chance to look over the files for Johnson vs. Tyfish.”

  “Yes, I’m still reviewing them. Come on in and have a seat. How long have you been standing there?”

  Amanda was getting more infuriated the longer she watched her. She thought: Long enough to see you decide how you’re going to go about taking all of the credit for all of my hard work.

  “Oh, I just walked by to check to see if you were back in your office yet,” Amanda said as nicely as she could. She had changed her mind about leaving out the last few pages of her documents. If she had done that, then it would have made her as evil as Pam, and the slightest thought of ever being like that woman only repulsed her.

  “Please close the door behind you and sit down.”

  “All right,” Amanda complied.

  “Let me start by saying that you did an excellent job in gathering the information that I requested.”

  “Thank you.”

  Pam pushed her chair away from her desk and carefully placed her forefinger on the side of her face while she contemplated her next sentence. Amanda began to feel uneasy and shifted her body around in her chair. She clutched her sweater tightly and casually looked down at her feet as the attorney stared at her.

  “Amanda, I don’t like playing games with people, so let me get right to the point. I’m not satisfied with the mediocre attitude you displayed today. I also think you’ve been slacking since you found out you would not be working with Bill McKesson on this case and would be working with me instead. I don’t appreciate, nor will I tolerate, inappropriate behavior from you or anyone who works for me.”

  Blocking out the sound of her voice had become an art form for Amanda. She knew that her boss would go on and on until she felt like she had pummeled Amanda’s self-esteem into the ground. Amanda had gotten to the point where she could read her lips without listening to her. Sometimes, she made a game of it by starting the second hand on her watch and checking to see how many seconds it would take her to finish her insults. So far, it had been only thirty seconds, but Pam was just getting started.

  “Amanda, you knew about this case several weeks ago, and today you had a hard time making a decision as to whether or not you would give me the information that I needed. In this business, things are always subject to change. We have to go with the flow whether we like it or not. Understand?”

  Amanda nodded like a child who had just been reprimanded as Pam continued her rant.

  “I think it’s only fair to tell you that I’m going to report your insubordination to Pete and let him make the decision on how to handle this. After all, since it appears that you’d rather work for the big boys anyway, perhaps he can find you a place with one of them. Of course, I doubt very seriously that they would put up with your antics as much as I have. As a matter of fact, I know they wouldn’t, and you do too, which is why I don’t understand why you are not more grateful and solicitous to me.”

  Amanda paused. “I’d like to say something, if you’ve finished.”

  “Yes, as a matter of fact, I do believe I am,” she retorted arrogantly as she held her hands out and stared at her nails, debating whether or not she needed a manicure.

  Amanda took a deep breath before she spoke. She didn’t know exactly what she was going to say, but whatever it was, it was long overdue.

  “First of all, I find it very insulting that you can sit across that desk and talk to me like I’m a nine-year-old child. I realize I was a little hesitant at first, but I did stay. It seems to me like you have forgotten about all the other times I have spent nights with you until 9:00 and 10:00 assisting you with other cases. Have you ever taken a look around you and noticed that you are the only attorney who takes twelve cases at a time? I am the only paralegal who works sixty or more hours each week.”

  “I see.” Pam folded her arms deliberately across her chest and leaned back in her chair.

  “Most of the attorneys around here at your level are only assigned five or six caseloads, and their paralegals work only fifty hours or so—if that! Why do you always get overloaded? Please don’t misunderstand me. You are an excellent attorney, but you just take on more and more and they just keep giving it to you. You stay here all hours of the night while everyone else goes home. I’ve been here and listened to the other lawyers talk about you.”

  Pam raised her eyebrows at Amanda’s comment. “Really, now. And what are these other lawyers, saying?” She couldn’t have cared less if she were the talk of the entire Bar Association. The bottom line was this: She was there to win cases and get paid—period!

  “They say, ‘When they don’t want to do something, they just turn it over to the black girl. She’ll do anything. You know how they are. Always trying to prove something.’ I’ve heard them over and over again, laughing at the many hours you put in. Even though you make six figures, you are still underpaid in comparison to
them. They work fewer hours than you do, bill fewer hours, and still make more money. Even with all of the brains you have and the legal finesse you possess, it will never be enough for any of them to respect you.”

  Pam moved forward over her desk. It took everything in her to not reach across and grab Amanda by her throat. She held back her comments in reserve and kept what was really on her mind to herself.

  How stupid does she really think I am? And who in the hell does Amanda think she is, coming into my office telling me what these white boys think? I thought she was upset because she had to work late, not about the people who talk about me. Does she think I’m that naïve and don’t know what they are saying behind my back? Why is she saying this now? Oh! How I wish she would just shut up and stick with what she gets paid to do around here.

  “Amanda,” she said coolly.

  “Please, let me finish. I know I’m sticking my neck out here.”

  Pam stared at Amanda condescendingly. Amanda was right about one thing: she was stepping out of line. Way out of line.

  Hmmm…what is it with her today? Pam fumed. All of sudden, she’s gotten downright bold and saying things to me as if she doesn’t expect it to have any consequence. She’s confident to the point where she’s borderline insubordinate. Well, good for you, Amanda—you’re finally speaking up for yourself after all these years. But I’m not the one to practice your newfound identity with today or any other time. Please, go talk to someone who really gives a damn!

  Pam sucked in her cheeks and bit down hard on the inside of her jaw so she wouldn’t go postal on Amanda. She was no fool; she knew she needed Amanda’s assistance for this case. Despite her disdain for Amanda’s family issues, she was one of the best paralegals in the firm. Of course, she would never tell her that. But for now, she would hold her tongue until after her big trial was finished, and then after that, Amanda would be too!

  Amanda talked so much that Pam’s ears became numb. The pain spreading from her cheek was relentless and made her even angrier as Amanda’s utterings continued to ramble.

  “You have no idea how they feel about you. And then the people who try to support you, like me, working with you all of the long hours…The one time I need to leave early, and the one time I decide to put my family first and my job second because my only child is about to graduate from high school, you force me to work. For months you knew about this celebration. Now, because of this one instance, you decide I’m lazy. You berate me and try to make me feel guilty! No wonder people around here call you the evileyed tiger. You sure know how to chew ’em up and spit ’em out when you are through with them.

  “And one more thing,” Amanda’s voice became low and somber. “I know we made a pact that we would never discuss this.”

  “I told you earlier I did not want to go down that road with you! So let’s not break that pact!” Pam sneered.

  Amanda started to shake. “Oh, you broke it long ago,” she said, holding back her tears. “I just never did anything about it. But, I can’t and I won’t be silent anymore.”

  Pam abruptly stood up. Her papers flew across the desk and startled Amanda. “Damn you!” she whispered as she slowly managed to win back her composure and sat back down.

  Amanda’s voice quivered at first, but she managed to speak very deliberately and quietly. “Let’s drop the formalities for now, okay, PAM?” Those three letters hadn’t come out of her mouth in so long, she’d forgotten what it sounded like. What happened to the person who I knew in college, huh? Amanda thought, still fighting back her tears.

  “I’m Ms. Madison to you in this office! Which by the way, don’t think I haven’t noticed how you purposefully avoid calling me that! The Pam that you knew in college did what she said she would do and became an attorney!” Pam struck back in her most haughtiness tone. “But, you on the other hand…”

  “Yes, I got pregnant! I had an illegitimate child and couldn’t finish law school like you and Dee. I couldn’t hold up my end of the bargain for the three of us to become lawyers together, and you haven’t let me forget it, have you? I don’t know what has happened in your life that would make you become so bitter, cruel, and self righteous.”

  “You are so ungrateful, Amanda! This is exactly why I didn’t want you assigned to me. I’m the one that got you this damn job, remember?”

  “And you have never let me forget that, either! How many times do I have to thank you? I’m not ungrateful, PAM! But, YOU certainly are!”

  “It’s MS. MADISON!”

  “Get over yourself, okay!” Amanda yelled as Pam rolled her eyes at her audacity. “I have worked long and hard for you, and I’m one of the best paralegals this firm has—if not THE best! But, have you ever once said, ‘Good job, Amanda!’ This was supposed to be a short-term assignment. I had no idea that I would end up working for you all of this time. Oh my God, if only I had known that this short-term assignment would turn into long-term hell. My God! We used to be best friends…” Amanda’s voice dropped as she regained her composure and rose from her chair. “I’m done with this,” she said calmly and waved her hands in the air. She got up to smooth the wrinkles in her dress.

  Pam finally released her bite and managed to smile awkwardly as the pain continued. She had let Amanda have her say, and decided it was now her turn. They hadn’t been friends since Amanda started working for her; and after today’s episode, there was no way they would ever have that relationship again. She sharply pushed her chair back from her desk and stood staring straight into Amanda eyes.

  Amanda interrupted her next move and spoke confidently. “You can’t intimidate me anymore, Pam! So save your courtroom drama for the courtroom. Effective today, I am resigning from Sterling, Mathis, and Silverman. Here is my notice,” she said as she quickly slid her resignation letter across the desk.

  “And for the record, I’m glad things turned out the way they did. I’m a wonderful mother with a beautiful daughter. I have a man in my life that loves me for me. I can truly say that the people around here will miss me when I’m gone. But, it’s sad you can’t say the same thing. Now, I can finally really enjoy my daughter’s celebration—guilt free! Best of luck to you, because you are certainly going to need it!”

  Layover

  Chris sat on the edge of the Jacuzzi tub wearing only silk gray boxer shorts while he watched Dee enjoy her warm bubble bath by candlelight. He thought of everything for a romantic evening and brought twenty lilac-scented candles and carefully showcased them throughout the suite, leaving a brilliant glow in each of the rooms.

  “Ummm…this is so divine,” Dee said as Chris poured her a second glass of champagne. She sipped from the fluted glass and closed her eyes, leaning into the soothing jets.

  “Well, it should be at over $400 a bottle,” Chris chuckled.

  Dee’s eyes opened wide. “What kind of champagne are we drinking with that kind of price tag?”

  He carefully lifted the bottle out of the champagne bucket and turned the label toward him. “Let’s see now, it’s Dom Pérignon Rosé Champagne,” he said, with the worst imitation of a French accent Dee had ever heard.

  “Really, I didn’t know you were such a champagne connoisseur,” Dee said, trying to control her laughter.

  “I’m not, but one of my buddies on the team is, and when I told him what my plans were this evening, he highly recommended it.” They both roared with laughter.

  “Well, here’s to good friends!” Dee chimed her glass against his.

  “And here’s to good friends with expensive taste!” He clinked her glass back and playfully wrapped his wrist around hers as they slowly sipped the other’s champagne.

  “So, what kind of case are you working on now?”

  “Huh? Ow!” Dee cried as she bumped her head on the back of the tub. She was so caught off guard by his question that her champagne went down the wrong way, causing her to cough uncontrollably.

  “Baby, you all right?” Chris asked as he firmly patted her on the back. Th
e patting was making her cough worse as she struggled to catch her breath. Miraculously, she somehow managed to mouth the word water between all of the heaving and coughing. He quickly grabbed her glass of champagne and poured the bubbly into the sink and filled the flute with water, rushing it back to her. She was still coughing explosively.

  “Drink this!”

  Dee quickly grabbed the glass and guzzled the water down as Chris pulled it gently to slow her pace down.

  “Wooo! Desiree, not so fast, you will make it worse!”

  She took his advice. Gradually, her throat passageway cleared. “What a relief !” Dee panted. “My goodness, that is a scary feeling,” she said, placing her hand over her throat.

  Chris wiped away small droplets of perspiration that had formed a necklace on his brow. “You’re telling me. I thought I was going to have to dive in there after you and call 911.”

  “Well, I hope you would have at least gotten a towel wrapped around me before some strange men came in here to whisk me away,” Dee said, trying to make light of the issue and not ruin the romantic vibe that they had earlier.

  “That would have been the least of your concerns, believe, me. Are you sure you’re okay?”

  “Yes, I’m fine.” She scooted down further into the luxurious bubble bath. “Your question just caught me a little off guard.”

  “Really?” His eyes pleaded with hers to not give him another scare like that anytime soon. She nodded and smiled reassuringly as he gently massaged the spot on her head where she’d hit it.

  “I really don’t want to talk about work just now.” She closed her eyes and enjoyed the soothing feel of his touch.

  He threw his hands up, surrendering. “You will get no argument from me on that subject tonight.”