8.p.
Corporate Man
leapt to his feet and took up a defensive position, raising his fists and
flipping his necktie over his shoulder.
The seams of his power suit blazing bright. He lowered his voice and said, “Alright,
John. Make your move.”
John Q Public
sighed and shook his head.
“Again with the
violence?” he said. “This is high finance,
not a cage in an abandoned subway station.”
“Yeah, I’ve
been in that one,” said Franklin Buck.
“On one of the basement floors.”
“No, Corporate Man. I’ve invited a few guests to our little
gathering. They’ve been listening in and
I think you’ll find their opinions rather shocking.”
John Q Public
held up a small white remote control and pressed the single black button that
festered in its center. The controller
went red and an entire wall of the office began to rise.
“Recognize
anybody?”
Behind the
wall, in amphitheatre style seating, sat a group of people which, at first,
Corporate Man did not recognize. Slowly,
as he studied their faces, familiar features began to emerge.
“You… You’re….
Felix?” he said, a little unsure. “The
jeweler. And you three work at Jolene’s,
right?”
“Yes. That would be Margaret, Molly, and Tina,”
said John Q Public. “You may also
remember Sally and Matt from Waldo’s.
Jed and Roger from the hospital where you were in residence. Well, perhaps not. And many others.”
“Why are they
here?” asked Corporate Man.
“They are all
individuals you encountered on your journey.
Most of whom you helped along the way.
I thought it fitting if they acted as your executioners,” John Q Public
said. He nodded toward the group with an
eager, almost innocent smile. Then he
stood and walked over to the panel of guests and said, “How are you enjoying
the show?”
“You’re an
asshole,” said Molly, the young girl from Jolene’s.
“I know,” John
Q Public said enthusiastically. “Focus
groups show that people really like assholes.
You can’t have a successful reality television show these days without a
know-it-all prick. Preferable a British
one. But I make due.”
“John. What are they doing here?” Corporate Man
said, loud and stern.
“I though I covered
that already. But if you need me to prod
this along…” he paused briefly, “I thought it necessary that you bear witness
to all the good your labors have produced.”
Corporate Man
narrowed his eyes and then, after a long moment, he nodded his head slowly and
said, “Okay. I think I see where you’re
going with this now. Though I doubt
it’ll go the way you intend. These
people here have all been victims of callous, corporate greed. They won’t side with you.”
“Oh,” said John
Q Public. “Then I guess that’s
that. You were right and I was wrong. I’ll reform.
Maybe even start a non-profit charity or an organic farm to feed the
hungry.”
Corporate Man’s
face pinched into a sour, confused expression.
“What? Just like that?”
“Sure. Why not?” said John Q Public. “Although… perhaps you’re right. We should at least check with these fine
folks first. Since we brought them all
the way up here. Let’s start with
Mike. He was a security guard where you
were being held. You never encountered
him, but he had dialogue with a certain lady of business calling herself Ms.
Adams. He was forced away from his post
by a supervisor due to bureaucratic policy.
This allowed Business Woman access to your room. Mike was fired.”
John Q Public
strolled toward Mike and said, “So… Michael.”
“I prefer,
Mike.”
“Yes, Michael,
I’m sure you do. As I was saying, do you
feel slighted by the company that terminated your employment?”
“Yeah. They bent me over for something someone else
did.”
“Isn’t that
always the way,” said John Q Public.
“And I understand that you’re still unemployed at this time.”
“Yeah.”
“I’m going to
make you a proposition. You can have
your old job back. You’ll get a twenty
five cent increase but your vacation hours will start over as will your
retirement since that was cashed out when you left.” John Q Public held up his
hand before Mike could speak. “Before
you respond. I would like Corporate Man
to make a counter proposal. Let it be
reiterated that Michael, and all those seated with him, have been privy to the
entire meeting thus far. Corporate Man. ”
“Uh, um…”
Corporate Man stammered. “I wasn’t
expecting… but… Okay. Come be a part of a start up business venture
where employees are treated well and given a fair wage, excellent medical
coverage, and a secure retirement plan.
You’ll start at twenty five percent over what you were earning before
with three weeks of paid vacation. The
company will be employee owned so you’ll also receive stock benefits.”
“What’s the
job,” Mike asked.
“Security. The same position as the preceding offer, but
within six months you will be in charge of your own team.”
“My! That’s exciting,” said John Q Public. “What will he do? Well, Mike… What’s it going to be?”
“What’s this
company you’re starting?” Mike asked.
“Doesn’t matter,”
said Corporate Man.
“Mike?” asked
John Q Public. “Can we have your
decision, please?”
