Chapter 119: 119 A Quick Trip Part Two

What I discovered about the fully stocked galley and Miss Carlyle saying that it was able to cater to any food need, she only meant for rich people food. It did not mean that I could get a hamburger, or popcorn, or even a bag of potato chips. She did have beer and peanuts, though. No, I didn't have any beer. It was that expensive imported stuff, on tap no less, and I didn't want to drink while high in the air. That was just asking for trouble.

About halfway through the flight, the Clarity pendant gave out and sleep tried to claim me. I quickly equipped another one to replace it and woke right up. I knew I was going to pay for it later; but, I couldn't afford to be asleep right now. At least I knew that it worked for as long as I had predicted.

We landed in D.C. at a smaller airport that was several miles away from the main international airport. To my surprise, a car was waiting there for me. I didn't question it and climbed in, and the driver took me right to my broker's office without me having to tell him where to go. He said he would wait for me and I thanked him and went inside.

What followed was an hour of the most intense business dealings that I had ever been a part of. It was a whirlwind of contracts, negotiations, alterations, addendums, conditions, and every other possible micro-change that can happen with deals. The little fees alone for straightening them out and getting them filed properly, ran into thousands of dollars, and they were just little pieces of paper.

I was quite thankful for the Clarity pendant, because it let me keep a clear head and I was actually engaged in everything. I had three accountants now instead of just one, my broker Derek had two assistants, and we had three lawyers on retainer, not counting the contract lawyer I had for the bank and the criminal lawyer I was using for Diane.

I was sure the three new lawyers were corporate lawyers, exclusively for managing the corporation and any problems we might come across. I also needed a business manager and Derek had arranged for me to meet someone that had a lot of experience doing this kind of thing. The only problem was that she wasn't well liked by her peers because she was too ruthless in her management style.

“Would that be good for my corporation, considering how pieced together it is?” I asked.

Derek shrugged and had her brought in. She was a tall and gorgeous blonde with short cropped hair and a no-nonsense attitude. She strode into the room like she owned the place. She immediately noticed me and came right over.

“Have you decided if you want your corporation to succeed or fail yet?” She asked and didn't offer to shake my hand.

“Well, I can see why you're not well liked.” I commented and she looked slightly surprised. “How do you run a corporation and not be a people person?”

“E-excuse me?” She asked.

“You came right over to confront me and didn't bother introducing yourself. You didn't even offer to shake my hand or asked me how I'm doing.”

She opened her mouth to respond, then she closed it and paused for a moment. “I blew it, didn't I?”

“Spectacularly.” I said. “I'm in this to make my corporation well known, both nationally and internationally. I can't have you here being overbearing and ruining every chance for good relations with people.”

“My skills can make your corporation a lot of money.” She countered.

“I already have a billion dollars in the bank. I'm not in this for the money.” I said and everyone in the room gave me wide eyes, except for Derek. He just sat there and smiled.

She sighed. “I'm sorry for wasting your time.”

“It wasn't a waste; but, I also can't offer you a job. Your approach to business precludes you working with a team, most of whom are right here and you completely ignored them.” I said. “If I was doing anything else, I would hire you in an instant.”

“You could put her in charge of the product department.” Derek offered, I assumed to try and salvage the situation.

“She wouldn't like that.” I said, because I had seen her eyes twitch when he said department and not business. “It's the top or bust for you, correct?”

She closed her eyes for a second and gave me a nod.

“Thank you for coming.” I said. “I'm sorry that you're not the person we were looking for.”

“So am I.” She said and turned to walk away.

“If you want some free advice, you really need to work on your interpersonal skills.” I said and she paused for a second, then she kept walking to the door. “You shouldn't be so dismissive of people after you realize that you can't get what you want from them.”

She sighed and opened the door.

“Have a good day.” I said and she gave me a sad look, then left.

“Boy, did you shut her down.” One of the accountants said. “That was amazing.”

“I thought she was going to railroad right through you and tell you that she was taking the job.” One of the lawyers said. “That was some nice dodging there.”

The other lawyers nodded.

“She scares the hell out of me.” One of Derek's female assistants said. “Shivers down my spine scary.”

The other assistant laughed as did one of the accountants.

“I'll keep looking for someone.” Derek said. “She did look good for the part on paper.”

I chuckled. “Facts and figures can be good to go by, most of the time. I'm just glad that you arranged a face to face meeting with me first before hiring her.”

“I know how important this is, so any position of power has to be vetted thoroughly.”

I nodded. “So, is this all?” I asked and looked at the stacks of papers on the meeting table. “Is this enough to keep the ball rolling?”

“And then some.” Derek said and looked at the others and they all nodded. “If we find any problems or hiccups, we'll let you know.”

“Great.” I said and stood. “I've got to get going.” I took out my cell phone and texted Miss Carlyle to tell her to get the plane ready for takeoff.

“Is what you said true?” One of the accountants asked.

“About what?” I asked and put my phone into my suit coat pocket.

“We're the team running the whole thing.” He asked. “It's just us?”

“Unless you need assistants.” I said. “Derek has two and I assume the lawyers have at least one, even if they didn't bring them to the meeting.”

“I do.” One of them said. “She's great.”

“I assume you've all been given an employment contract from Derek? I mean, supreme paycheck overlord Derek?”

That made them all laugh.

“Just have him pass the standard contracts to your assistants.” I said and they all looked surprised, even Derek.

“Are you kidding? You're kidding, right?” One of Derek's assistants asked.

“You'll still be working for him, since he is still your boss. Just the money will come from me instead.”

“My sister is going to be ecstatic.” One of the lawyers whispered. We all heard him, since everyone was quiet as they digested what I said. “She's been helping me with record keeping, unofficially of course.”

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“As long as they are actual assistants and not just in name only.” I said as a warning. “Like I told Derek, as long as you don't screw me over or overcharge me for your services, there's lots of money to go around.”

One of the accountants raised his hand. “Do you have a specific requirements to qualify for that?”

I chuckled. “I don't have any prejudice against you taking advantage of the situation, like having someone get you coffee, or the mail, or even reminding you to eat. As long as they are assisting you, I don't care what they do. I just won't pay people to sit on their ass and do nothing.”

“What's the limit?” One of the lawyers asked and eyed Derek's assistants.

“One for now. Derek already had two before I hired him, so he's grandfathered in.” I said and both of his assistants gave me big smiles. “If you can prove that you need another assistant in a month or so, after we get this all going, I'll have Derek issue another employee contract for you.”

“That's great. Thank you.” The lawyer said.

“That reminds me. This will be our first product.” I took out a modified Clarity pendant on a cheap chain.

“That's it?” Derek asked and looked a little disappointed.

“Yes, I know it looks plain right now. I've got an idea about what to do with it, I just have to work it out.” I said and handed it to him. “Put it on.”

Derek slipped it over his head and hung it on his neck. He took in a sharp breath and stared at me. “What the hell does it do?”

“It clears the mind of any fogginess. Are you tired? Slip it on. Are you weary from working too long? Slip it on. Are you frustrated by something and can't think straight? Slip it on.”

Derek touched the piece of gold metal. “It's wonderful.” He said and then frowned slightly. “The chain has to be changed.”

I chuckled and nodded. “I bought the cheapest chains and pendants I could find a while ago and added gold to the pendant. I used up the last of them yesterday, actually.”

“How many did you make?” Derek asked.

“About four hundred.”

Derek didn't say anything and looked down at the pendant. “How long does this feeling last?”

“Only for about ten hours every day.”

Derek took a deep breath and let it out. “You would need two to get through a long day.”

“It stops you from falling asleep, too.” I said and touched the one on my neck. “I haven't slept since yesterday morning.”

“How does it work?” One of the lawyers asked.

“It's a trade secret.” I said. “I'm sure once these pendants are out there, someone might figure it out. Even so, I sincerely doubt that they can duplicate the process.”

“Can we try it?” One of the accountants asked.

I reached into my pocket and pulled out enough for everyone. “These are just prototypes, so like I said, plain and cheap chains. They work, though.”

The women gasped when they put them on and the men sat up straighter and looked a lot more attentive.

“This is amazing!” One of Derek's assistants exclaimed.

“It's even better than that.” I said and she looked at me with surprise. “The president wears one.”

Everyone in the room took in sharp breaths.

“You lie.” The other assistant said.

I took out my cell phone and played the video clip of the news as I pointed to the gold thing around his neck. “One of the very first ones I ever made, I sent to him and his family.”

“His wife is wearing one, too!” She said and passed my phone around to show everyone.

“I only sent the pendants, since I assumed they could get the chains for themselves.” I said as my phone was handed back to me.

“The company's product is silently endorsed by the president.” One of the corporate lawyers said. “These things are going to fly off the shelves, even if you left them plain!”

“I think I might ditch the chain and only sell the pendant.” I said. “Then I could concentrate on...”

“No, that's a mistake.” Derek said. “You want to sell a full product. It builds trust in you to give them what they need. If you only had the pendant, then they would have to go and search for a chain to go with it, which is an extra expense and makes the pendant less appealing.”

“I guess that makes sense.” I said and picked up my copies of everything, as well as the contracts for my airplane crew. “I have to get going. I need a nap.”

“What about the prototypes?” One of the accountants asked.

“You can keep them.” I said.

“But... how much...”

“We'll need an advertising firm and maybe a few consultants to determine that.” Derek said. “I'll set up a blind test and see what they say to both a figurative description and a physical demonstration that they can experience for themselves.”

I took out another one and handed it to him. “Have fun and let me know what they think. I have no clue what to charge for something like this.”

Derek nodded and put it into a pocket. “I'll call as soon as I get any results.”

“Thanks.” I said, then said goodbye to everyone and left the building. I stored all the paperwork, except for the folder with the contracts for the plane crew. The car was still there waiting for me and drove me back to the small airport. I gave him a hundred dollar bill, to his surprise, and I went inside the small terminal. A quick run through the small security station later, I was outside and going up the plane's steps. It had already taxied into position and I climbed aboard.

“Welcome back, sir.” Miss Carlyle said in greeting.

“Thanks.” I said and handed her the folder. “Those are the new employee contracts. Give them a look and if you agree to the terms, sign them and give them back to me.” I said and went through the galley to the take-off seating area and strapped in.

The plane powered up and we were cleared for flight, then we were up in the air to head to my next destination. I went to the back to the reception area and laid down on one of the couches. I waited for Miss Carlyle to come and check on me before I took off the Clarity amulet.

“Put this on me... when we get there.” I said and handed it to her. I'm finally coming for you, Nat. I thought with a smile and closed my eyes to let sleep claim me.

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