The Staircase of Dragon Jerico
Chapter Twenty-Three
“ARE YOU HERE, JERRY?” Erin called when she stepped off the elevator Saturday.
“Kitchen!” he called back. She went to join him and found him rolling out pastry dough.
“That looks interesting,” she said. “Red wine or white?”
“Chicken pot pie,” he said. “Almost ready to assemble and put in the oven. White, I guess.”
Erin opened and poured the wine. She handed him a glass and they touched the rims.
“Salud!” he said.
“Are we still good for patio dining?” she asked. “It felt nice and warm on the way over.”
“Unless it’s suddenly gotten windy, we should be fine. It was beautiful when I went out a little bit ago.”
“I’ll set the table.”
Erin selected the dishes and silverware to take outside, then got a clean cloth and hot water to wash down the patio table and chairs. She couldn’t help but smile about how terribly domestic she felt. She hummed a little tune as she prepared the table. Back in the kitchen, Jerry was cleaning up, now that the pie was in the oven.
“It’s a small pie, so it should only take about forty minutes to bake. Shall we go relax on the patio?” he asked.
“It’s beautiful out. Perfect for the patio.”
“I love the space out here,” Jerry said as they settled in lounge chairs. “Sometimes I come out here with a couple of cubes and spend all afternoon. It’s harder when I reset my own puzzles. I end up trying to fool myself with blind twists. It never works.”
“I don’t trust my ability to scramble a cube randomly,” Erin said.
“But your cubes always seem to be scrambled better than mine.”
“I use the computer. There’s a program that will generate a random sequence. I carry around my tablet and just follow the instructions the computer gives me for each cube. I learned a long time ago it was difficult to reset your own cube and make it feel random,” Erin said.
“You are so devious! I can’t believe you’ve been using a computer program all this time.”
“Your mother taught me my first day on the job. I don’t think I’m particularly clever about it.”
“My mother is sometimes too smart for me. I wonder how long she’s used a program. I’d guess soon after she figured out that the cube had a calming effect on me. I was really quite a terrible teenager.”
“Really? Why do you think that?”
“I was constantly frustrated. And I couldn’t express myself. Words just got tied up in my mouth and that made me more frustrated.”
“You don’t seem to have any problem communicating with me. I’m glad.”
“When we met in the diner, I was trying a great experiment that Gene suggested and my therapist approved. I would hide behind the anonymity of my sweatshirt, mask, and shades. Since no one would know me, I was free to mess up. I didn’t need to go back. The first time, I was still afraid I’d make a fool of myself, but this very sweet waitress didn’t try to rush me or finish my sentences for me. She encouraged me to take my time. She asked questions I could give simple answers to. Over time, I was able to relax enough not to feel threatened by the situation.”
“I don’t recall that you had much difficulty when I came to work here. And you say you only figured out I was the same person when we were working on the presentation.”
“I tried not to say anything to you for the first two weeks,” Jerry laughed. “By then, you were so well established in the office you weren’t a threat or someone I needed to impress.”
“I’m glad of that.”
“The pot pie should be done. I’ll go get it.”
They had a good time as they ate the pot pie and talked more than Jerry had talked… ever!
“What else do you enjoy doing?” Maizie asked.
“I like sports. Gene and I played basketball in high school. He’s the total opposite of me. Talkative and outgoing. I used to depend on him to get us both dates and I’d just ride along. I guess the main thing I like is cooking. I try to cook something special every Saturday. It’s my time in the kitchen. Sometimes I experiment with new recipes and sometimes I cook an old favorite like this pot pie.”
“I enjoy the social aspects of cooking and eating,” Maizie said. “I’m afraid, left to my own devices, I eat a sandwich in front of the television rather than cook for just myself. Aside from that, I read quite a lot—mostly business and biography. Occasionally, I’ll relax with a good novel.”
“Rather sedate,” he laughed.
“Don’t believe that. Remember, I joined a bowling league!” she laughed. “I had a great time traipsing all over the Cloudhaven property in my boots and jeans. I really love it out there.”
“I’ll take you to our cabin sometime,” Jerry said enthusiastically. “I want to build a regular house out there, but that probably isn’t until phase three. It’s at the far opposite end of the project from where the lodge will be. I could take you out fishing and we… um… uh…”
“What is it, Jerry?”
“I realized I was just painting a picture of things I’ve always wanted to do with a… girlfriend. I didn’t mean to… you know… imply… er… Do you think I put too much tarragon in the pie?” he asked abruptly.
Erin responded to the question and analyzed the other herbs he’d used. All the time, she was examining her own feelings. How did she feel about that? When he was really just Jerry in the diner, becoming friends and flirting a little after her divorce seemed natural. She didn’t ever consider the possibility of dating when she came to work for Mr. Carver. Even over the past few minutes relaxing over dinner, she thought of him as Jerry, rather than the sort-of-rich recluse and master architect. Other couples managed to work out a professional and a personal relationship. She was sure Jerry wasn’t suggesting anything just now, anyway. They were just two friends having lunch on a Saturday afternoon.
“Perhaps you’d consider showing your friend Cloudhaven from your perspective sometime,” she ventured. “I think that would be okay.”
He smiled at her and nodded. After lunch, she convinced him to listen to her presentation prepared for the chamber. He was very helpful and pointed out a few things she might not have known before.
“Thank you for inviting me to speak this evening,” Erin said Tuesday evening. “As Mr. Duval indicated in my introduction, this is my first official appearance since joining JeriCorp.”
It wasn’t a big group, but Erin had been surprised to find that Duval was host of the Chamber of Commerce meeting. He’d given her a decent introduction as their speaker and she stood to deliver the fifteen-minute talk. She gathered there were several people who interacted regularly with JeriCorp as suppliers, contractors, clients, and business partners.
“We are facing a new era in our relationships with our customers and our business partners. We all had a wake-up call when the pandemic hit, and many struggled to adjust to new ways of doing business. But we learned. Let me describe a few of the ways we are moving forward in this post-pandemic work environment.”
She had spent most of Monday and Tuesday working on the presentation. She’d even talked to Dolores about it on Sunday. She decided talking about the effect of the pandemic on business relationships would transition nicely to an announcement of their new project and plan to attract digital natives for remote work in a resort environment.
“Why, after all, should a job be defined by four walls, or a cubicle? Many employees who work in cubicles have no real reason to be held captive in order to do their jobs. The equipment they need is not restricted to a single location. If we can provide an experience that improves work-life balance, so much the better.
“Think about how attractive our companies would be if our employees learned their jobs are compatible with a great lifestyle. I foresee us making the same changes in the larger community. Consistent wireless communications from anywhere in our town. Anywhere in our state or broader area. Comfortable places to work that are within community enclaves where childcare and activities are as convenient as another cup of coffee. Environments employees can customize with their own art, music, and services.
“We have built wonderful technology for humanity. It is time to make it serve our employees and each other. Thank you.”
There was polite applause. Erin didn’t expect anything more. She was proposing something that was still controversial. Many employers believed workers wouldn’t work if they weren’t in an environment controlled by the employer. They would find out, eventually.
“Thank you, Ms. Scott,” Duval said as he stood to conclude the meeting. “I’ve been at JeriCorp for over fifteen years, and I’m amazed that someone so new to our industry—and so cute—can be so articulate about it. Thank you for enlightening us regarding the future. You’re all welcome to stick around for another cup of coffee and to chat with our new JeriCorp CEO. The Tuesday meeting is now adjourned.”
Several people did stop to chat with Erin, but her mind had gone elsewhere with Duval’s remarks. She was furious. She smiled and shook hands, meeting executives and managers she knew she would be meeting again, and all smiling at her because she was cute.
“If you ever undermine me in public again, it will be your last day at JeriCorp,” she stated levelly at Duval when she walked into his office the next morning.
“Whoa! I was trying to give you a platform where you could meet a lot of important people and get started on the right foot. I wasn’t undermining you!” Duval sputtered.
“Comments about how amazing it is that I’m articulate for a newcomer and that I’m cute are totally inappropriate. In a sentence, you revealed your true colors. I was promoting the official position of our company, about to embark on a new project. A position you are tasked with promoting and supporting to our partners and employees. Instead, you treated it like it wasn’t serious. I know you announced at the last meeting there would be a new CEO to present at this meeting. That was before I was hired, so you expected to give this presentation. From now on, I expect you to be supportive and to do your job. Do not ever undercut me again.”
“I should have stuck with my opinion that you were a ball-buster,” he snapped.
“You have no idea how thoroughly I’ll bust them if you ever cross me again,” Erin spat. “You’ve been warned.” Duval stared at her.
“Now. How soon are we ready with the partnership and initial contracts for Cloudhaven?”
Her abrupt change of subject threw Duval.
“The partnership is signed. We’ll have an official ground-breaking next week. I have a call in to the governor’s office to request his presence. PR has a release ready to distribute today. We might not be able to get television cameras out there, but we should have good print media representation. We’ll break ground on Thursday,” Duval said.
“Good work, Mr. Duval. Mr. Carver and Mr. Jerico should be there with you, of course. There is an organization called Digital Nomads. You might see if someone from their group could cover the event on social media. I’ll have Miss Anders send you the contact info,” Erin said.
“You’ll want to speak again?”
“No. This is your environment. Make it look like you invented the entire concept, but don’t shortchange either Mr. Carver or Mr. Jerico.”
“Of course.”
“Carry on, Mr. Duval.”
Erin turned and left his office as quickly as she’d arrived.
“She came charging in and lambasted me for the way I introduced her and concluded her presentation, then switched gears and got me to tell her about the groundbreaking and the contracts. She told me it was a good job. Doesn’t even plan to attend the groundbreaking. Said it was my event!”
Royce Duval frankly didn’t understand Erin Scott at all. He was pacing around the dinner table while Shannon tried to get him settled down. When Erin had stormed into his office, he expected her to harangue him for an hour. That’s how women worked. They never let a subject go. Erin had criticized him, threatened him, and then dropped the entire matter. What was wrong with her?
“Maybe she’s actually a good executive,” Shannon ventured, trying not to trouble the waters further. “Masters is sending me to St. Louis with a revived Mackenzie team to put together a plan for reopening that project.”
“I can’t stand it! She’s a usurper. I should have had that position. But damn it, she’s good.”
“I kind of regret screwing up her marriage,” Shannon said.
“What?”
“I assumed you knew. That guy you managed to fire as part of the cutbacks in January was Erin Scott Silvers’ husband. I’ve always felt a little bad about getting him fired,” Shannon said.
“His project was cancelled. Probably could have used him on the new one, but I won’t have a guy sneering at me because he slept with my wife,” Duval said. “If it wasn’t for you sleeping with him, Erin Scott would never have come to work for JeriCorp.”
He walked around the table to Shannon’s chair and pulled her to her feet so he could kiss her thoroughly.
“I don’t want any guy sleeping with my wife.”
“Oh my, big guy. Where did this sudden possessiveness come from?”
“I don’t know. I just know… I’m forty-seven years old and I’m tired of the games,” Royce said.
“What if I told you the same thing? I don’t want any other slut sleeping with my husband,” Shannon shot, not letting go of him.
“We could… We could try that,” he said. “God! A reformed Royce and Shannon Duval? It could work.”
“You could be all I want. All I need,” Shannon said.
“I’d like to be all you need. I don’t want anything but you anymore.”
“Dinner will get cold.”
“I’m not hungry.”
“Then take me to bed.”
“Two men, more than any others, made this innovative project possible. It started with a boy’s dream when his grandfather took him fishing on this very lake. For twenty years, they have quietly planned and prepared for today. I am talking, of course, about the Chairman Emeritus of JeriCorp Architecture and Development, Lawrence Jerico, and his grandson, the current Chairman of the Board and Chief Architect of JeriCorp, Preston Carver,” Duval said at the groundbreaking.
He’d managed to get much wider coverage of the event than expected. The governor was next to him on one side, with Jerico and Carver on the other side. A television crew from Jerico City was on hand, and so was the network crew from the state’s capital. Behind Duval stood executives of a cellular company committed to covering Cloudhaven with high-speed access, and the president of a luxury grocery chain announcing plans to build a store and service station nearby. The senior partner of the consortium Royce and Shannon had joined was there with an announcement regarding the proposed golf course, and the various contractors hired to excavate the streets and infrastructure were also present.
“It’s all about vision,” Duval continued. “And vision is not always the same as economic forecasting or political prognosis. Four hundred years ago, vision looked across the ocean to a vast untamed land and saw the rising of a great nation. The vision of twelve men looked at a confluence of two rivers and saw Jerico City take shape two hundred years ago. Vision led that great nation to plant its flag on the moon sixty years ago. And vision brings us to the shore of this lake to create a refuge where office workers in many different industries can perform their duties free from the shackles of a steel and glass tower in the city. This—this new community of Cloudhaven—is the future of the white-collar work force. It is the culmination of the technological dream. This is where we turn a shovelful of dirt to commence Phase One of the Cloudhaven digital native resort.”
There was a lot of applause, even though there weren’t that many people present in the remote location. The governor spoke about new frontiers still being available in their old state. The businesses represented made their announcements. The principals gathered with shovels to join together in turning the first bit of dirt where the lodge would soon rise.
Under a tent nearby, the model of Cloudhaven had been unveiled and the television crews were as intent on it as on the actual land.
Erin watched the feed in the company auditorium—a room that would hold about a hundred people comfortably. Far more were packed into it. It had been tricky getting set up, but the cell company brought a portable tower to Cloudhaven for the event so people would be able to report on it. One of the marketing people had agreed to set up the laptop and camera to get a reasonable feed that was played at the office.
She smiled at Duval’s message. Something had clicked with him. Previously, he could have been expected to talk about how the idea had come to him in a dream and he employed the best people he could find to realize it. In this groundbreaking ceremony, one might almost have considered him humble. She watched the response of the employees in the room and saw it had done nothing to reduce his image. As they returned to their desks after the stream, she heard comments about how wonderful Royce was and how he would lead them to prosperity through this development. She would still need to monitor him carefully. She didn’t entirely trust his change of spots.
That suited her fine. This was where Duval truly shined. He could position the message in such a way that people—especially employees—were enthused and in awe. Dirksen and Masters stood with her in the back of the room, so employees lumped them all together as ‘the execs.’
Erin returned to her office with Miss Anders.
“Mr. Carver suggested you use his car for your trip to St. Louis,” she said. “I’ve had it serviced and filled with gas. Your bag is already in the car. Mrs. Duval will join you there as soon as I tell her you are on your way.”
“That’s great, Miss Anders. I think it’s time to go, so let my traveling companion know. This should be an interesting trip.”
She headed to the elevator.
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