Steve’s Year

By Dave Calder

For Clara and Edward

The Story begins on April 1^st 1997

This predates the internet and personal mobile phones,

although fixed car phones were becoming popular in businesses.

Throughout this story there are a number of ‘cues’. These are some of the tracks I was listening to while I was writing it. The track should open in a new window but may not auto-play depending on your browser settings

I hope you like it

2019 – 2021

Chapter 1

Ruth

revision 20

Contents

Ruth’s Reprieve.............................................................................................................. 4

Clues Tristan?............................................................................................................... 33

Bonuses Cheryl?............................................................................................................ 57

Not the First Time......................................................................................................... 61

Conventional?............................................................................................................... 62

Geneviève returns from Holiday................................................................................... 66

Fruitcake for a Boundary.............................................................................................. 68

Bosendorfer................................................................................................................... 73

First call from Lisa.......................................................................................................... 79

Will Three Rivers Cave In?........................................................................................... 88

Final Whistle................................................................................................................. 99

New Old Car............................................................................................................... 102

Penny.......................................................................................................................... 125

Lucy Returns............................................................................................................... 129

Who Gets Fired........................................................................................................... 135

Tasmin........................................................................................................................ 144

End of Steve’s Year Chapter 1....................................................................................... 148

Ruth’s Reprieve

1^st April

“What! Right now?” interrogated Ruth with increasing despondency. Was it only two minutes ago that she’d said her cheery ‘Good Morning’ to Colin in the gatehouse security hut before Cheryl caught up with her.

“Actually, he said immediately. Without fail”

“April fool?” she asked hopefully as a last ditch possibility for reprieve as Cheryl shook her head.

Oh my! Ruth’s heart sank. She knew from working in HR that she was pretty much next on the list if things got any worse for the company. She put her coat back on and invited her handbag to tag along for the ride.

“He’s on the first floor – opposite Jamie’s office…” offered Cheryl helpfully. “…not in Production”

“I know” said Ruth faintly, “But I’ve a feeling I might not be coming back”. 

Cheryl looked puzzled and Ruth explained

“HR redundancies are always done by senior management, not by HR themselves, and even though I’m doing stuff for you, I’m actually still in HR at the moment”

“Oh, Ruth. I’m so sorry. I didn’t think...”

She made her way slowly along the first floor of the Old Building like the appointment was with the grim reaper himself. She reflected on her short time at Three Rivers, the euphoria of getting the job and the wide eyed realisation of how different the individual departments were. She’d surprised herself at how she’d coped with the diversity of disciplines and personalities. Production, or ‘the factory’ as she’d called it much to the Shift Manager’s disapproval, was an eye opener. 5 rows of buzzing and humming machinery that seemed to operate like clockwork and despite being a repetitive sort of department the management seemed wonderfully open to suggestions and ideas. HR by contrast was procedural and secretive, Finance had been scary, but that was down to Richard the FD who was an imposing, aggressive and isolated figure. And suddenly she had arrived. She tapped quietly and pushed at the open door.

Steve was on the phone but he waved her to come in and sit down. With the phone now wedged between his shoulder and his ear he motioned that she should take her coat off and hang it on the stand by the door.

Cue The Other Side - Khymera

She waited patiently hoping she hadn’t misunderstood this mixture of gesticulation and semaphore. All she was expecting was to be given her envelope and a few words of commiseration about the inevitable.

The silence in the room was expectant rather than eerie until Steve eventually spoke 

“Thankyou Inspector McKinley. If I discover anything material I will update you immediately.”

He set the receiver back on its cradle and smiled gently as though he was relieved that the call had finally finished.

“Ah! Ruth. Thankyou so much for sparing me the time”

This was not the welcome she expected, Steve took a sip from his cup

 “Coffee? A splash of milk no sugar if I remember correctly?” he said not waiting for the reply.

This was different! Steve was Production Director. He was in charge of the ‘factory’ and he’d recently taken over the IT department because Richard, the Financial Director, claimed to have no interest in technology even though it would have been minimal work consisting entirely of Tristan and a bunch of computers. This was one of the most senior guys in the works and he had remembered how she took her coffee!

No sooner had he poured it out, than Jacqui bundled in unannounced. 

“Do you know where Simone is?” she asked urgently

“She’s not in today” said Steve flatly, hardly acknowledging her

“I saw her earlier” offered Ruth suddenly excited that she could contribute 

“I said” Steve repeated with an undertone of finality “She’s not in today” 

Ruth frowned questioningly, and kept quiet.

“That’s very strange. And Jamie’s not in either?”

“No” Steve said with a noticeable lack of emotion

“Is something going on? Yes, something must be going on. It is, isn’t it?”

“Yes Jacqui, something is going on” he replied without excitement “But I need to tell everyone at the same time. 10.00 Boardroom. Not before. Now, please, I really do need to talk to Ruth”

“Yes, of course you do”                                        

Jacqui turned to leave. “Ok. 10 o’clock. Boardroom”

“You’re not easily shocked are you Ruth?”

“I don’t think so. I consider myself quite broadminded. But I don’t watch horror films. I mean I don’t go out of my way to….”

But she was interrupted by Tristan’s head poking around the door unannounced.

“Ah Tristan. Thanks for popping up. Our meeting. Need to put it back, maybe midday? Maybe later”

“Sure”

“But in the meantime I need you to do something as soon as possible. Even sooner if you’ve invented the technology already”

“Sure”

“I need you to freeze all of Jamie’s sign-ons. Every one, without exception. Maybe change the passwords or something. And Simone’s as well”

“Jamie’s?” he questioned incredulously

“Yes. Please. asap. And Tristan. Confidential, Ok”

“Sure”

 “And. Meeting in the boardroom. 10 o’clock. Don’t miss it. It’s a P1 for the senior team, but I want you there too”

“And all will be revealed, yeah?”

“Yes”

“Steve. I’m not asking why, but I could get fired when Jamie finds out. As soon as he tries to sign in he’ll be on my case”

“If he asks, just remind him its April 1^st.” 

Ruth stifled her giggle. Surely you can’t freeze the MDs sign-in even for an April fool!

“Tristan, you’ll be fine. Trust me”

“Sure”

Steve turned back to Ruth and smiled

“Ruth, you know that the company has certain serious issues right now”

“Yes, I’ve been doing a bit of work with Cheryl in finance….”

“Quite so” he interrupted “Well, the situation just got significantly worse”
 “What just got worse?” as Gerry’s head appeared round the door

“Why is it that when I’m short of time the room suddenly becomes Paddington Station?”

“Sorry, Steve. Quick one. Is the plan still to complete the Clarkes order to QA? I don’t think we’ve actually got the order yet”

“Yes” Steve replied with something approaching enthusiasm “I want it ready to ship as soon as Keith gives the green light, but the pressure’s off just a little. Oh and Gerry, 10 o’clock, boardroom. Without fail”

“It’s the production update Steve”

“Gerry! Without fail”             

 Steve dropped his hands to his sides in a rare show of exasperation. 

“Maybe Terry can take the update. You could even tell him it was part of his management development”.

Steve got up from his chair and poured another cup of coffee. He passed it towards her and she nearly dropped it in surprise as he turned back to face her.

“I’m sorry, but I’ve still got mine” 

“Oh good. I’ll have this one, then.”

“Now,” he said “I think Cheryl had some work for you this morning. How important do you think that work is?”
 “That’s hard to say, I’m afraid. Cheryl said that Jasmine was struggling with something and could use a hand, but it hasn’t been fully explained yet”

“Let’s go to the Boardroom. If you don’t mind? There might be fewer interruptions.”

He shepherded her through to the empty boardroom. She’d never been in it before. It was hardly ever used and she looked around at the opulent chairs, the leather inset on the polished table, the matching sideboards…

“Take a seat” he invited “Sorry it’s a bit manic, but hopefully we can calm down a bit now - at least for a few minutes”

Ruth wasn’t convinced. Her mind was racing, and redundancy was her worst nightmare right now. Her mum was just managing to recover slightly but Ruth losing her job would surely set them both back. But if its that manic, why prolong her agony?

He pulled two chairs out and sat on his back to front. He paused for a few moments, maybe thinking, then looked up to face her “Do you think that this task with Jasmine is absolutely vital?”

“I think” she started slowly “that its something on payroll but Cheryl said to me first thing that its likely to be delayed. So, I guess not”
 “Ok. So what would be next on your list?” he began again as he moved both cups from the table surface onto coasters. Ruth was now on red alert. Something was going on, and this was not going the way she expected.

 “I would go back to HR to finish checking that the personnel files are up to date, which is next on my list” she said with as much hope as she could immediately muster.

She sensed he had ignored her answer

“How long have you been here now?” he asked with more interest that Ruth was expecting.

“Just less than 2 years”

“And do you like it here?”

“Its great!”

“Anything in particular you like?”

“I haven’t really stayed in one department very long, you know, to get to grips with things. I’ve tended to be dropped in to help sort something out and then move on to the next one. But the people are great, and the way everyone works together, even across departments, makes it a good company to work for. It makes you want to go to work when you get up in the morning”

“Really”

The pause caught Ruth off guard. Maybe she should have expanded on that. Or maybe she’d said too much. Or maybe he was just thinking

“Hmm. Would you say you could keep a secret?”

“I’d like to think so”.

 Steve stayed silent and Ruth felt the need to expand that

“I mean, I like chatting to my friends, but I guess there are things that shouldn’t be discussed…..” she felt her voice trail off “….like maybe financial stuff, or the personnel records I’ve been dealing with, with Jacqui”

“What about the things I asked Tristan to do?”

“What things?” she risked, trying to second guess the answer he wanted

She smiled weakly, but the smile was not returned. Steve looked distant, but his eyes returned to look at her rather too directly. It made her feel uncomfortable

“What would you say if I said that nothing about what happens in this room and this conversation should be discussed with anyone, not anyone at all?”

Ruth was suddenly nervous. This was not what she was expecting. This wasn’t left field, it was a different ball park.

“I guess that wouldn’t be a problem. If.. If it’s that important”

“You joined us as our Receptionist, didn’t you? But you’re clearly way over qualified for that with A levels in English and Chemistry. Why did you take that job?”

 Ruth felt her arms go slightly cold. Surely he didn’t know that level of detail about everyone in the company. This was not what she was expecting from a redundancy interview. 

“I.. I was set to go to Bristol university, but my mum took very ill, so I had to dip out to look after her instead. So I took a number of part time jobs – shop assistant mainly. I couldn’t see any future in that so as she got a bit better and this came up I thought it would have more potential for the future. Jobs were quite few and far between. Still are, I believe. But Three Rivers has a good reputation and I felt that once in the company I might find opportunities to progress” 

“You don’t think that by working as in Reception, that would set the company’s view of you and you’d be stuck there?”

She hesitated. Maybe Penny had left and her next assignment would be back where she started

“I..I think that’s a risk. But I think it also depends on how you behave and what impression you try to make”

But her mind was drifting elsewhere. This was completely unforeseen. What was Jacqui on about, and what about Simone. She knew Simone was in earlier, she’d seen her crossing the car park just before she stopped to talk to Colin in the gatehouse. And what of this 10 o’clock P1. There hadn’t been a P1 that she knew of since September… and then she realised she’d lost concentration, and that Steve was still watching her intently. Which brought her back to paying attention

“And you said you’re not easily shocked, so do you simply accept everything as it happens?”

She thought for a moment.

“I guess I accept a lot of stuff. I mean, people are all different, they do different stuff. So I guess I’m not that easily shocked by the way people act. Perplexed, sometimes. And disappointed sometimes, even though I don’t expect everyone to be the same as me. But I don’t like things like horror movies. Like, I don’t go out of my way to find things that scare me. And lots of things are still new to me so sometimes I don’t have a comparison situation. Maybe there’s a difference between like, hearing about something and actually seeing it or it happening to you”

She paused with Steve still focussed on her.

“What about being offended. Maybe if someone were to tell you you’ve got it all wrong?”

“Yes. But I think I’d be more disappointed than anything. It would mean I hadn’t asked the right questions, or maybe was just told all the wrong stuff. But I suppose I am quite sensitive. I mean. I’m quite easily hurt, you know, emotionally… I guess”.

Steve seemed to have accepted that personal twist and moved on

“So, what about your career? What area of business would you most like to work in?”

Ruth sat up, visibly. 

“I’ve always wanted to work in a small team where I can make a personal difference, rather than be part of a wider crowd. Like, I’d hate to work in a call centre, maybe I’d just prefer to be one of a kind like Tristan, and I’d get to know a few people better, rather than knowing a lot of people but not very well”

“Really? So relate that to this company for me?”

“So, something like logistics with Terry. He’s a fun guy, although he’s a bit scary being that big. But I liked the confidentiality of HR and I felt I could make a personal contribution to the company when I was on reception being the first point of contact for visitors. R&D would be great, but maybe you need more qualifications for that”

“At the moment you’re a kind of white knight. You charge in to sort out admin issues where ever they crop up. Do you see yourself staying in a secretarial role?”

“I guess so for the time being although I think I’d consider any direction if it looked interesting and it didn’t need a specialised degree! But I’m quite good at admin and organisation” 

This rather rehearsed answer seemed to go down well, but hardly prepared her for the next request.

“I’d like you to climb up onto the table and do a little dance please”

She frowned at him with increasing disbelief, but he just looked blankly back at her and raised his eyes towards the board-room table. Ruth hesitated for a second or two, then slipped off her shoes and slowly got up from her chair. Then with as much decorum as her hemline allowed, climbed onto her chair, and started to crawl up onto the table.

“That’s ok” said Steve “You can get down”

He caught hold of her arm to steady her as she looked at him questioningly with renewed puzzlement. She was bewildered, bordering on scared now and wasn’t hiding it too well.

“Ruth, I’m not always conventional. Sometimes I take a few short cuts which may not be expected. Don’t get me wrong, I’d love to watch you dance, I really would. But right now, we don’t have the time. We’ve only got about 15 minutes for this interview whereas I’d rather have an hour and a half. Especially…”  he smiled gently “...if you’re going to dance on the table. The important point is that you would if you were asked, and that you would without requiring a detailed explanation of why. And that’s fundamental to what I have in mind”

She relaxed a little as a warm smile crept across his face and she immediately went cold

“And … what is it you have in mind?” she asked hesitantly 

“Ok, first let me summarise this. I’m in a restricted access room where no-one is likely to interrupt. I’m with a very attractive young lady who has already agreed that nothing that happens here will be discussed outside. And she’s also agreed to dance on the table”

Ruth felt her mouth fall open, but all she could mutter was “But. But, I mean. I was only trying to be helpful, I mean, I think you may have got completely the wrong impression of me.”

Her voice tailed off and she watched a broader smile spread over Steve’s face.

“Are you aware of the nature of the company’s current problems?”

“Apart from thinking they’re financial, no, I’m not, I’m afraid. But I’ve been working in HR and I’m aware of the implications, and ….”

“Yes” he drew out a long breath, nodding “Ruth, you said Cheryl’s finance stuff had been delayed. Do you think the HR filing could wait as well?”

“I guess so. Its not that urgent, but it would save time in the future and quite likely save some unpleasant surprises” she balanced optimistically

“So, in your opinion, would you be doing anything of vital importance?”

“Probably not. And I also know there’s a likelihood of reducing the headcount. So. So, I guess not” she finished thinking only that he’d convinced her to sign her own death warrant.

“Would you like to work with me? I mean, in my office. It’s a secretarial type of position?”

Again, her jaw just fell open. 

“I thought I was going to be laid off” she blurted out without thinking and her mind spinning wildly. He smiled, shrugged and continued 

“So did Jacqui. But my perspective is that the wages would be a whole lot less than the redundancy costs, and in the current circumstances….” 

He stopped suddenly before he continued “Ruth. Some bad things have happened recently and I think I’m going to need some admin assistance. Probably a lot more time that Penny can spare. Maybe for only a few days, maybe weeks, maybe longer. Right now, who knows?” 

He paused and leaned forward “What I really need is a PA and I think you’d fit the bill?”

“Me? But I don’t have any experience as a PA”  

“Maybe not, but you need to start somewhere…. if you want to”

“Yes…yes..  Yes” she blurted out rather too loudly and quickly

“Ok ok, don’t get too excited. I don’t have a small box with a diamond ring hidden somewhere down here”

Ruth felt her mouth go dry again. This was no ordinary assignment. This guy was something else, and working with him would be a roller coaster for sure.

“You’d have to start right now. And.… And, you would be at the centre of everything?”

“Yes!”

Steve sighed deeply. “And if that wasn’t enough. Oh wow! I love girls that just keep saying ‘yes’. Sounds like a dream come true”

“OH my!” she gasped. “You are getting completely the wrong impression of me! I don’t know how this has happened?”

But then, she thought, maybe she was expecting a more formal interview. And then she saw his quiet chuckle 

“Oh dear!” she said again “note to self, when in deep hole, stop digging”.

She looked over to him forlornly.

“I’m not sure this is the start I would have wanted”

“Unfortunately Ruth, We don’t have time for formality, hence the shortcuts, and the vagueness of the task and the timescales. But I don’t think I’m getting the wrong impression. It’s just the sum total of small parts that you might not normally associate. I said I’m not always conventional, but not all situations require a conventional approach.” 

He paused again taking a deep breath “The current situation is .. .. unpleasant. The first few days may well continue to be unpleasant. However, adding this conversation to what I already knew about you, I am increasingly convinced now that this is the right solution. At least for me”

She sat back in her chair trying to take it all in

“One thing about working in my office”, Steve continued, “is that there is humour to be found in every situation. Often it's black humour if the situation is serious. It's a way of dealing with bad news. Like, last week when Jarid Forbes was fired because he was banned from driving, he simply said yeah. Just think of all the fuel I'll save not driving to work”

Steve paused and took a couple of paces across the room.

“You see”, he continued as he turned “I already told you that the situation just got a whole lot worse. There’s the bad news, and then there’s the … bad news. And after that, there’s the bad news. And that’s why I suddenly need some admin support. So! Do you want this assignment?”
 “Yes please”

“And is that yes please only because you think the alternative will be redundancy – which it wouldn’t, because I’d have to find someone else and you could fill in for them instead”

“No” she said taking a long breath “No, its because I see it as a move in the right direction. And I think I’d look forward to working with you”

“I really do want you to help me, but here’s one last chance to say no and escape”

Ruth broadened her smile “Where do I start?”

“Ok. We start by getting a meeting sorted for the senior team”. 

He hurried her back down the corridor to his office as he continued

“First thing is we need to get an invitation out to the Leadership. Boardroom at 10 this morning. The Agenda is 1 bad news. 2: More bad news, 3 : Even more bad news, if anyone’s still listening”

“Steve, are you joking?”

“Surely not! and 4. How to break the bad news to the rest of the staff, and our customers”

She looked questioningly again. This, she hoped would not become common. But something was going on, and now she’d be at the centre of it. And that for her was more than just exciting. Being at the centre of the action gave her the best chance to contribute as she’d always dreamed.

“Ok. Agenda. 1: Distressing news. 2: Actions due to point 1. 3 How to break point 1 to our staff and customers.”

So can you get an invite out. Gerry from Production, Jacqui from HR, include them even though they already know. Richard of course, and Greg from marketing and Tristan from tech. And any of Keith’s sales guys that are on site”
 “What about Matt?” she suggested

“Yes, Matt. He gets so bent out of shape if he gets missed out from everything. Should just teach him to get into the office a bit more. But yes, I’ll call him and put him on a speaker phone in the middle of the table as….” he lowered his tone to sound rather mystical “….the disembowelled voice of Field Service”
 “So”, Ruth questioned, “we're not giving away any hints?”

“No, not ahead of the meeting. Oh and get hold of Keith and see if he can get back in time. I know he’s at Clarkes first thing. Sally will know where he is. Can you just write that, print it and then walk it round to make sure there are no absentees. A priority one meeting is a rare beast so make sure you include everyone even though we know some of them already know. On this occasion we’ll follow the protocol. Just to keep the peace”
 “Wow. Deep end here I come!”

“Yes, Ruth. Deep end here we both come. But I’ll be able to tell you a lot more once this meeting is out the way. Oh, and, you need to be there as well to take note of any actions. I'm going to see if I can find Richard”  

And then less seriously he added “Don’t worry, Ruth. However all this pans out, I’ll make sure you’re all right, ok? Trust me, and when we get five minutes, we’ll sort out the detail”

This was busy. She tried to remember all the things Steve had asked for, write invitation, print, walk, call Keith, find Salesmen. No call Keith and salesmen first.

Finally she headed out round the site. Last call was Jacqui, the HR director. This was scary. Her boss until a few minutes ago, who, she now knew, was expecting her to have left the company already. 

But fired with the new found mystery and excitement in the situation, Ruth knocked once on the door and entered before being invited. Jacqui scowled disapprovingly over her glasses like her old headmistress. 
 “Sorry to interrupt, but this is the invitation to the P1 that Steve’s called for ten o'clock in the boardroom. I just wanted to make sure you'd got the invitation”
 “Humph. So you're working for Steve now, are you?”

Ruth nodded as Jacqui pushed her glasses back up on her nose. 

“Hmm. Sounds like an unauthorised increase in headcount if you ask me. But then, looks like he may be paying everyone's wages next week, so I guess he can do what he likes” 

She sat up in her chair “No” she said more positively raising a weak smile “It's good. Its good, Ruth. I hope you like it there. He’s not always conventional. Although this P1 bothers me. Steve’s never called a P1 before. It had better be good”
 “Thank you. I’ll certainly try”

“No hints on what this is about?”

“Afraid not”

“Hmm. And you wouldn’t say even if you knew, would you!”

Ruth smiled, and closed the door quietly behind her. So far, she thought, round one to me.
 
 It was quarter to ten when she got back and Steve was crouching down by his cupboard. 

“Ah Ruth. Biscuits.” 

He handed her a large packet of chocolate digestives. Followed quickly by a plate. “And… Come on”

He disappeared out through the door as she turned to follow.

“I'll show you how the coffee machine works. And get the kettle filled. Keith always likes to drink tea”

“Tea, Steve? Tea and biscuits? Is it appropriate? I mean it’s a P1. You’re calling everyone out from, I don’t know, whatever they’re meant to be doing and you’re going to drink tea, and biscuits. I mean, in the ..... circumstances?”
 Steve stopped and turned towards her. 

“You're right to think that way. You’re also right to say what you think. Your point of view is absolutely valid. But in the circumstances what we need is stability and continuity. The world always goes on around us despite tragedies. Any properly organised company should be able to operate for six months without someone at the daily helm. But that unfortunately, does not include us”

It took a minute to sink in

“What d’you mean without someone at the daily helm?” she asked suddenly becoming alarmed. 

“We’ll get to that. But before the meeting starts, I need to tell you what happened to Simone this morning. Because, you’re right. She was in”

Steve turned a chair and sat on it back to front as Ruth watched him intensely.
 “I was waiting for her in Jamie's office which surprised her to start with. I said she’d better sit down and then I said….”  

Steve got up slowly and she felt herself tense up as he moved over to whisper so very closely almost kissing her right ear. 

“I said, Simone, you’re the fattest, ugliest, dumbest secretary I’ve ever had to work with, and I can't understand why you're still here when there are so many gorgeous girls out there who are equally capable” 

Ruth jumped and swallowed hard. “You didn't really!”

“And so” Steve continued “she got up, picked up her bag, burst into tears and ran from the room saying, sorry I have to leave. I just can't work here any longer”

“You didn't really? You can’t have!” Ruth repeated aggressively

He backed away and sat on his desk “No, No you’re right. I didn’t. But she really did burst into tears and leave the room saying she wouldn't be coming back”

He paused looking at her “And actually, I told her something much worse than that”
 Ruth stayed glued to her chair. “So, that relates to me being easily shocked, doesn’t it? And this is the prequel”

“Pretty much!”

But the team started to arrive before Steve could expand. They shuffled in looking disgruntled and inquisitive.

“Are you authorised to call a P1?” opened Greg Millar aggressively as he passed Steve in the doorway.

“You showed up, didn’t you!”

Keith quietly held up the start as he poured his tea, and Steve waited patiently. This, after all, had the effect of defusing the nervousness until Steve stood up as Keith eventually sat down.

“Thanks for coming. And sorry for interrupting your morning”. 

The room quietened
 “We’re all very busy, so I’ll get straight to the point. You’ll already have seen from the agenda that I've got some distressing news for you. But the main issue is how we react”. 

Steve paused

“Is it financial?” interrupted Greg

“Not on this occasion”

“That’s ok then”

“That’s open to some conjecture” Steve retorted and then continued to the rest of the meeting 

“Last night, Hamish Jameson was killed. He was murdered. Shot at short range with a point 38 revolver. The police have arrested his wife”

Steve waited for the fact to register around the room.

Oh my goodness Ruth breathed, oh my. Poor Jamie. 

There were sharp gasps all round the table. Steve cast a short smile to Ruth who seemed to still be holding her breath and waited for the glazed looks to fade before he continued

“Unfortunately, but obviously, there’s nothing we can do about that. So, it’s important that we concentrate on things we can do something about. As the leadership team, it now falls to us to maintain stability in the company and to ensure continuity for our customers and our staff”

“So how come you know all this?” taunted Greg from left field.

Steve glared at him. What a pointless question, in the circumstances

“Because, as they had arrested Valerie, the police were short of additional identification and as external emergency contact for Production, they already had my number”

But this had given Keith a moment to ponder

“Oh my goodness” he breathed “This is bad indeed. Clearly, the news will be public fairly soon and we need a damage limitation response. I agree with Steve that we need continuity. And we need to show that the company won’t just be drifting, so I suggest that the party line is that in the interim, and effective immediately, the MD role is handled by a senior committee of 3 being Richard, Steve and myself. In practice, everyone will carry on doing whatever they were doing before” 

“So why Steve?” reacted Greg “Why not Jacqui?”

“Because” Keith said pointedly “sometimes I need senior support in the more difficult board level sales situations. Being part of that triumvirate would give him the necessary persona that I’d previously expect from Jamie. Jacqui has minimal customer facing product experience”

Richard looked particularly nervous as Keith looked his way for comment

“Yeah” he said without emotion, but with a steely unblinking stare that Steve found unnerving. But, he breathed a short sigh of relief, it was nice to see Keith fighting his battles for him, especially if he was going to win. And especially as Keith was generally regarded as the elder statesman of the company and respected by all.

“Jacqui, can you put together something for the staff noticeboards?”

“Of course”

“But…” Steve suggested “I think it would be good to tell our teams personally, rather than just let them read it over lunch on the board. What about a co-ordinated announcement, say 12 o’clock? Each of us to our departments. Can you get a statement ready by then Jacqui?”

“Yes. And then I’ll get it out to you. Maybe Ruth could walk it round?”

“Will do” responded Ruth to Steve’s prod in the leg, astounded to be included rather than just side-lined as the nobody taking the minutes, quite apart from the surprise at Steve touching her thigh that far up..

“But, does Simone know?” Jacqui asked, “I haven’t seen her today”

Steve nodded “yes, I broke the news to her first thing, as gently as I could but she still just burst into tears and fled the building. All she said was that she was unlikely to return”

“Ah, that’s why you collared Ruth”

“That’s right, Ruth has already proved her ability in organisation and general admin. She already knows her way round the company, and this morning I tested her on attitude and confidentiality. Also she’s available immediately. I think she’ll help take the pressure off, in the circumstances”

Nods in various places voiced approval, and Ruth managed a silent smile as a tingly ripple ran through her whole body at such an introduction to the assembled team.

Back in the office, Steve headed for the coffee jug and poured two.

He handed one to her and paused looking like he was thinking whether to say something or not. 

“Ruth, you seem to be taking this ok?”

“I didn’t really know him” she responded “I mean, I knew who he was, and I delivered some memos to Simone in his office, but he, you know, he wasn’t on my Christmas card list. It’s still a bit of a shock, I don’t know if it’s sunk in yet”

“Ok. But if you thought that the Finance Department was the frying pan, you're in the fire now. Are you sure you still want to take up my offer?”

Ruth nodded “After an introduction like that at the end of the meeting! More than ever! Although. It’s not what I was expecting when Cheryl told me to come and see you, but its, well … Different? Exciting?”

But Steve was scribbling furiously on a piece of paper and she wasn’t sure he’d heard what she’d said.

She continued to nod hesitantly. Now I get to figuring why he suddenly might need some help!

He folded the paper and rummaged unsuccessfully for an envelope. 

“Here, take this over to Jacqui. If she’s busy, just unfold it and put it on her desk in front of her so she can see it without being too interrupted. It’s a short draft that she might like to use as a base for the announcement.”

“Success?” he asked as she returned. She nodded. 

“Hmm” said Steve, pushing the biscuit tin towards her again. “You see, there’s something else”

He paused for her startled look to subside as she sat down.

“Thing is, significant amounts of money have been disappearing from the company over the last few months – hence you thinking we may have a financial issue. However, the last few days have been manic with huge amounts disappearing from the main accounts”

“How huge?”

“All of it! 12? 15 million, maybe a bit more. I’m not the accountant”. 

Ruth gasped 

“In fact, the company bank balance is pretty much wiped out. And I can't help thinking that this event must have something to do with it. Although some pieces don’t quite fit in. Like why Valerie should shoot him hardly fits in. Ok…. unless there's someone else”

“Yes” agreed Ruth “I expect she’d only ever do that if there was another woman involved”
 He paused again.

“That’s a point. But clearly, Ruth, not a word to anyone”

She nodded again and thought back to the offhand comment Jacqui had made. Of course. And that must be what Jacqui was talking about when she said about paying the wages!
 She looked at him expecting him to say something like what they do next, but Steve was pouring more coffee. 

“Where to start? I've no idea what Jamie spent his day doing. Didn't seem to be much to do with Production” 

“Maybe Richard knows” offered Ruth 

Steve picked up the phone

“Cheryl, I'm just being lazy but can you see if Richard is in his office” 

“Sorry Steve, he's not in. I saw him leaving the car park not long after the meeting finished. Didn't say anything, but then there's no change there”

“Ok. Look Cheryl, can you let me know if he's not back by ten to twelve” 

“I wonder”, Steve mused to Ruth “if Richard even knows there's a financial crisis” 

“Yes. But if he's not back, who’s going to make the announcement to his team?”

Steve paused a moment looking straight at her

“You are” 

Ruth's jaw fell open again. Steve touched her chin with one finger gently nudging it back up again. “Close now, or you'll look like a codfish” just as Jacqui turned up 

“Can I borrow Ruth for an hour to help get this announcement typed up and walked round? She’d be better than my staff because she already knows what its about and I’d have to brief somebody first”

She walked the papers round to each department keeping Richards one back. Ten to twelve came round and Steve’s phone rang 

“There no sign of Richard” Cheryl said “You wanted me to tell you” 

“Yes, thank you. There's supposed to be a co-ordinated announcement at twelve to all departments. It's reading a statement from Jacqui, so I'm going to get Ruth to come down to Finance, and if he doesn't show up, she can read it to you”

“Is it following that P1 this morning?”

“Yes, it's a short statement, but it's quite important, so don't let anyone take an early lunch” 

“I could read it to the team if you like” offered Cheryl as Ruth crept into the Finance office. 

“It's ok. It's rather a shock, but I was at the meeting this morning, so I'm kind of recovering” 

“That bad, oh dear. We’re not closing down of something?”

“No, it's not that bad - well, on a personal level anyway”. 

It was nearly five past when Ruth stood up to speak. She'd waited as long as she dared 

“Cheryl, Daisy, Jasmine, Lewis. This morning there was an emergency meeting of the senior management team. As a result of that, this statement has been issued by our HR director, Jacqui. I was at that meeting so I already know about this which is why I’ve been asked to read it in Richard’s absence.

Announcement to all staff from Jacqui Winchester, Director of HR

I regret to inform you that, at approximately 11.30 last night our managing director, Hamish Jamieson, known to you all as Jamie, was killed. He was shot at close range with a point 38 revolver. The police are holding his wife Valerie on suspicion of murder”. 

Ruth paused for the shock to subside but managed to retain her own composure as Jasmine collapsed onto a chair as Cheryl grabbed it for support.

“While our thoughts and sympathy are with Jamie's family, we also need to consider the impact on our company. It is imperative that we retain continuity in all departments to safeguard the sustainability of Three Rivers Engineering for the continuing benefit of our staff, our customers and all of those in the surrounding community who depend on us. So with immediate effect, the role of MD will be assumed by a triumvirate of Richard Harrison our Financial Director, Keith Wilson our Sales Director and Steve Bergstrom our Production Director to work together to ensure that immediate issues are resolved and imperative decisions are made in a timely fashion. 

A farther announcement is likely when and if additional information becomes available” 

She lowered the paper 

“End of announcement” as she bowed her head and silence prevailed.

Over in Production, Steve had finished his reading to a stunned silence, followed by an outbreak of chatter 

“Ok” Gerry bellowed above the hubbub “We're taking a 15 minute time-out to chin wag. Then we'll restart the production lines at twenty past when everyone will be able to concentrate better.” 

Steve pulled him aside 

“Gerry, I think I need to get a handle on what Jamie was doing. I can't see Keith making the time because he's going to be up to his neck out in the field keeping customers and prospects on board”

“And Richard?” 

“As far as I know, he's not even on site. Ok, he could be having talks at the bank or something, but I sent Ruth down to read the announcement to Finance. But he’ll have to get a handle on the financial crisis when he gets back” 

“Well, I can take the pressure off a bit, but you know, we don't always see eye to eye on how to address some of the issues”

“True, but there's more than one way to skin a cat”

“So long as all you're looking for is a stuffed cat” 

Cheryl had accompanied Ruth back to Steve’s office where they were waiting for him

“Ruth, can you go across to Jamie's office. We need to get a view on what he was working on. So if you try to pretend you're Simone, see if you can find out what you'd be helping him with today. So, Cherry, what can I do for you?” 

“I don't know, really. It's just that this is really horrible, and Richard’s disappeared. Again!. I had a meeting scheduled with Jamie to discuss this and… Oh Steve it all only gets worse!”
 She sat down following his encouraging look 

“Steve, the company money is disappearing. I don't have any detail, but I’ve just had some cheques returned from our suppliers. That's from our main account and it's empty. The sinking fund for production investment looks pretty empty too. That’s the other one I dip into sometimes when I need to. That had over eight million in it a couple of weeks ago. I can't even beg anyone to take this seriously and that’s an awful lot of money” 

“I thought Richard was on the case”

“He says he is, but nothing's happened. I’ve told him so often!” 

“And you're sounding worried “

“Yes! Because if there's no money in the accounts, the company will fold and we’ll all be out of a job. And that stresses me out. I don't know how I'd cope, and jobs are scarce around here. I mean, how can that much money just disappear?”

“I see, and that’s why you decided to take it up to Jamie instead?”

“Yes! I didn’t know what else to do. But now he’s … not here … I came to talk to you, to see if you’ll take it seriously”

“I’ve known for a while that the available funds in the main account were dropping. That’s not uncommon if the company was making more investments rather than keep the money in low interest bank accounts. I only started getting worried about it over the last few days which is when I joked to Jacqui that if any more disappears out of the Production account I’ll be paying the staff myself. Cherry, the way we work here is that we have certain people allocated to certain tasks and then we trust them to get on with it….”
 “Oh! You mean you think I’m interfering…”
 “..no, no Cherry. Where I was going was that I haven’t interfered in Richard’s Finance department because I’ve got enough to do in Production – we do have our own raft of problems. But then on Friday I discovered the extent of the damage and I too was looking for Jamie to discuss this because it becomes my problem if I can’t pay my staff from my budget account”

“Steve, Simone’s very efficient at tidying up. I can't find any papers at all. No in-trays, no papers on desks or anything”

“Probably locked away”

“Well there are a number of filing cabinets, so I guess everything is in there …. Somewhere “

“Keys?”

“Sorry” she shook her head and Steve picked up the phone 

“Terry? Can you spare me ten minutes of your valuable time. I need your specialised knowledge of filing systems”

Terry was six feet four, and nearly as wide. And very little of that was surplus fat. He did a number of evenings as a bouncer at the Cellar in town and, it's rumoured, trouble never lasted very long. 

“Steve, what does Terry know about filing systems?” asked Ruth 

“He’s an expert at accessing files that no-one else can get at”

They trooped into Jamie's office and the girls followed incredulously

“Unfortunately, Terry, it appears that the keys are unavailable” Steve said by way of explanation

“Surely Jamie had a set?” 

“Yes, but his house is in lock down right now and I'm too impatient” 

“Ok” said Terry, just checking. “You sure?” 

“Yes” 

He went over to the first cabinet. 

“It's full up” he announced 

“Well of course it's full up. We wouldn’t need to find out what’s inside if it was empty” 

Terry grunted. Then he bent his knees leaning down towards the offending cupboard, stretched around it grasping it front and back around the third drawer and with what seemed like one movement, turned it completely upside down letting it fall the two feet to the floor. The crash shook the whole building and the side of the cabinet nearest to him broke away. He gave it a healthy tug to complete the task and then pulled out all four drawers turning each of them over sideways to prevent the contents falling on the floor. 

Terry moved on to the second cabinet. It appeared to be a slightly different design and he was a bit more gentle with it until it was upside down, then studying it from the underside, he reached into it and wrenched out the locking lever complete with bent and broken attachments. Then he turned it back the right way up and demonstrated that the drawers would now open, although, he commented, “you won't get locked out of that again anytime soon.”

Ruth put an entire drawer on Simone’s desk. ‘Unconventional’ Steve had said! Oh my! And now that she was looking for any sort of sensible categorisation for the current papers in Jamie’s office, Steve returned to his own office with Cheryl. 

“I’ll have a think. When Richard gets back I’ll ask him straight what he’s doing about it. Its ok, I won’t mention your name”

He poured more coffee and sat in silence with his hands clasped in front of him. Anyone coming in through the door might have thought he was praying and maybe he was, but the concentration left him bewildered. Where was that money going? Who had access and who would know? Ok so Richard may be building a high interest investment account, and possibly off shore. But not to the extent that we can’t pay the wages. Clearly Cherry was worried about it because she had raised it. But that could be a smokescreen. Then again, if it was her, she’d have to disappear, and soon. Ok, what about Jasmine? Not on her own, she just doesn’t have the emotional resilience to operate a major fraud, and that stands even if she was under someone else’s control. And she’d never have the nouse to keep quiet about it. But both of them are women. And in the right place. And not unattractive. Hmm. Daisy? Maybe, but she’s 18, she has very little experience of anything. Could she cook this up on her own? No surely not. Lewis? No. He was as steady as they come, but also about as exciting as a Brussels sprout. If he’d transferred four pence ha’penny to his own account he’d be shouting from the rooftops. What about Tristan? Some technical computer wizardry to transfer money to his own account. Printing extra cheques? Or he’d have to burrow his way into the bank’s systems too. No, not a suspect until all others have been eliminated. It all tends to be done on the phone or with passwords. That left Richard and Jamie, and that was partly because if it wasn’t, then one or other or both of them would have started causing a fuss before now. And that was suspicious too. Why wasn’t this a board issue already? Ok lets go left field, what about Gerry or Jacqui. But, can’t be. They didn’t have access to the main account, no more than he did himself. They had their own department accounts with their budget in it, and that was that. So if it was Jamie, Richard would be franticly trying to get the money back, and maybe he was. But if it was Richard, then he’d be spending as little time as he could around everyone else, and that’s the behaviour that was evident, but whoever it was would be disappearing soon, because there was nothing left to thieve and that means it was time to go.

Funny, when he first found out about this his concern was for his department and sorting out how to pay the weeklies. He’d taken for granted that Richard was on the trail of the root cause and the main accounts. But maybe if he’d started to look at the bigger picture back then, maybe he’d have come up with the answer by now. But then, maybe that’s what Jamie did. And look what happened to him. Ok. Lets assume its Richard, purely on the basis of his recent suspicious behaviour. Would he do this on his own? That’s not the way he’s been seen to be operating. But then that would involve Daisy or Lewis. Unless Cherry’s up for an Oscar. Lewis is already on a final warning for shooting his mouth off accidentally – he has enough trouble keeping his mouth shut as it is without the level of secrecy this would involve. So he’s out. Daisy knows nothing about accounting systems. Surely new recruits into that area need to take exams? But maybe not yet. So maybe the plan is to trust Cherry, or at least pretend to and start going through whatever paperwork she comes up with. That on its own would be an indication. If it’s a whole shoal of red herrings then she’s guilty. If not, it must be Richard himself! Either that or it was him and Jamie. And then he killed him to grab that half as well. Of course, it may have been more subtle than that. Maybe Richard went over to Jamie’s house, persuaded Valerie that Jamie was on the fiddle and about to elope with Daisy, and that’s when Valerie shot him. But I’m really not that bothered who it was. Finding out exactly who killed Jamie is not my mission. But it would be so much simpler to assume that Richard was guilty until proved innocent and assuming it was him would be so much safer than giving him the benefit of any doubt.

It was getting well through the afternoon now and Cherry was back in his office with the intention of giving him a gentle nudge into thinking about it even though Richard hadn’t come back

“Have you got any paperwork? Anything at all to give us a clue?”

Cheryl shook her head. She sat down uninvited and pretended to help Steve think now that she thought he might actually be taking this seriously. Was she genuinely trying to think of something? Or was she just leading him astray? He looked over at her while her head was still gazing blankly into the middle distance. Maybe she was just a distraction. No not lead him astray in that way!

“So what does Daisy actually do in Finance” he asked as casually as he could, as though it was just a normal social question.

“Spends a lot of her time in her quiet corner on the phone” 

That sounded vague, but its likely that she didn’t know considering the fragmented way Richard ran his department, which itself simply added to the circumstantial evidence.

But Cheryl’s main contribution in helping him was worrying about it interspersed with left field comments of doom, gloom and despair

“Lucy's left the company” Ruth said slipping in unannounced and providing what light relief was available. 

“Lucy? Why?” 

“Jacqui's let her go, as they say” 

“Well! Well! You got out of HR just in time then” 

“So it would seem” she replied coldly “No, Steve, it's something to do with making too many expensive phone calls” 

“Like her auntie in Australia, or something? How would anyone know?” 

“Yes, boyfriend in the Philippines I think, and seems like Tristan gets some sort of exception report from the phone log and mentioned it to Jacqui.” 

“Phone log? - phone log!” Steve grabbed the phone and dialled Tristan. 

“Phone log Steve? Sure I can print it out. Its huge. How far back do you want to go? Any particular sequence? Specific extensions? Overnight ok?”

“Supposing I just wanted one extension?”
 “15 minutes” 

 “Cheryl, have you talked to Daisy about it?”
 “Not really. All she’s prepared to say is that Richard has insisted that everything she does is all completely confidential.”
 “Maybe she’d tell me?”

“Except she’s not in this afternoon. On her desk there’s a reminder that she’s supposed to go and see Jamie this afternoon. I know she was really worried about something, and I guess this might be it. But after this morning, she seemed so relieved she asked for the afternoon off to go shopping and in the circumstances….. I was sorely tempted to go with her”

Steve dismissed Cheryl as a suspect. She was too concerned about tracking the problem down, although this still could just be a distraction. If it was Cherry, she’d have run away by now knowing that he was actively taking this more seriously than sorting out the affairs of their ex-MD.

And now with Tristan’s listing, there it was. Or maybe it was just that Daisy had a lot of friends in Barbados and Bermuda. So Daisy was the culprit. But surely not on her own. And if it was this straightforward why had Richard not already solved it. Unless he was behind it in the first place. 

“Ruth! Ah Ruth. I was wondering if you would still be here. Seems like quite a few people have gone home early”

“No, Steve. I’m still here. But I’m afraid I’m not really concentrating on very much”

“Ok, can you do one more thing today. Can you go down to Richard’s desk and find the number on the lock. Then go over to Penny on reception. Hidden away somewhere over there she has a big box of keys. They’re all the second keys to anything that ever had a second key when it arrived that wasn’t immediately squirrelled away by someone else. Ask her to look for that number. It’ll be a lot less suspicious if you ask”

Ruth gave him an old fashioned look. Picked up her coat and headed out towards the gate house.

Penny found the key almost immediately and Ruth decided she should check it actually worked. To Ruth, this was a new and little known treasure trove of villainy. In her book it went a little farther than the purely unconventional. But the key worked and she pulled the top drawer to make sure and noticed the receipt.

She was about to delay herself even more by taking it up to Steve, just as Cheryl returned to her office to check that the situation was no worse and Jasmine was holding the multifarious enemies at bay.

“Cherry, can you give this to Steve for me” Cherry looked at it

“I didn’t know he was due to go on holiday” 

But Cheryl wasn’t stopping there. Now that the desk was open she had every intention of looking for clues. Nothing definitive, but there were some bank statements. Not recent, but within the last three months.

And she thought, Richard was seldom in the office after five o’clock anyway, so he’ll probably not be back now.

She dropped the pile of paper on Steve’s desk and he started to look through it hoping for inspiration. So often a value appeared twice or even more times. Steve put this down to buying the same commodity in the same volume, maybe as a repeat order. Like bearings. He knew there was a standard order through to Lloyds Consort. But if it was Daisy, and she was not working alone, the only suspect puppeteer was Richard. And the accounts were now empty, so it was time to disappear but Richard and Daisy never seemed that close in the office. Then again, Richard was pretty unfriendly, bordering on hostile to most everyone. Maybe this was another smoke screen. 

But wait, what's this? Lloyds-Consort doesn't have a hyphen! And look, Cambridge-Technologies. That shouldn't have a hyphen either. And it doesn't, on this line, but it does here, for the same amount, on the same day – to an offshore bank. But Daisy doesn't know anything about accounting systems, but she spends a lot of time on the phone to Barbados banks, and she's not that friendly with Richard. So if he's puppeteer, and it's time to disappear, then he's not going to want to leave her behind to blow the gaff. Jeez! And maybe Jamie found out. 

So it was Richard and Daisy. And Daisy’s taken time off and its time to disappear. 

“Oh!” Cherry interrupted “Ruth asked me to give you this. I think it was to prove she’d managed to break into Richard’s desk before she went home”

“Nice, someone’s flying out tonight. But on their own”
 “Well, Richard doesn’t have any holiday booked”

Cue Fin by Melanie Laurent

So if it is Richard and Daisy, and Richard is flying alone, is that just a diversion. Maybe Daisy’s booked her own ticket. But if he killed Jamie over this, is he the kind of guy that will want to haul around a young girl who knows everything about it when he could so easily find dozens of others who don’t know, now that he’s got that much money and that means only one thing

“Cherry, I think Daisy's in big trouble. Do you know where she lives?” 

“I know the road.....” 

“Come on then. Lets go” as he hustled her in a rush down the corridor and into the car. 

Down town, the streets were busy, and Steve was on alert choosing the quickest route through the traffic, first off the line at the lights and predicting the slower lanes. In between he flicked a couple of pages of his notebook. “Cherry, dial Inspector McKinley. Full number, not just the local one” 

But Cherry couldn't finish the call till they got to the bypass because she had to concentrate on looking for Daisy’s street.

“I think it’s the other end” she said as they pulled left into the terrace. But something far more sinister was blocking the road. It was Richards grey Jaguar, and he seemed to be bundling someone into it. 

“What’s he doing?”

“Don’t know Cherry, but I doubt if its pleasant”

The Jaguar was fast, but Steve’s rallying in Norway had left him with precision timing and inch perfect judgement. He weaved through the traffic on the bypass gaining on the Jaguar as Cherry finally connected with the inspector.

“Press speaker, bottom right button” Steve called above the wind and the tyres. “Inspector. Its Steve Bergstrom. We know who killed Jameson. We’re currently chasing him down the bypass. He’s driving an XJ6 reg number is P412 RJH. But he’s also abducted our accounts clerk, possibly with a weapon, could be a gun. He's responsible for the fraud that’s behind all this. I'm going to need some help here....” 

“We just passed a patrol car!” 

“.... If they pull you over, let me speak to them .....” 

“...... They won't, Inspector. They won't catch us. Whoa! We're coming off at Vixen Woods” 

The call cut off and Cherry was fixed against her seat by the tensioners as they swerved onto the slip road and took the exit sideways, but they could hear the sirens start to wail as they took a parallel trail to the Jaguar along the dust tracks through the parkland towards the forest.

“He won’t be taking her to the open country” Steve said by way of explanation of why he’d headed to the opposite side of the copse they were approaching. 

Through the trees they could just see them. Richard had looked around furtively but hadn’t looked specifically in their direction and was more preoccupied with bundling Daisy out of the car than spending time sightseeing.

Steve spun the car round in case a quick exit was needed and left the doors open as a clue for the police and to avoid attracting attention by closing them. 

“You stay here, and if you see him coming back just get out of here. Just drive off as quickly as you can. He’s armed. He’s dangerous and he’s a murderer”

None of this helped to calm Cheryl’s nerves. She was already gasping like she might hyperventilate but being left on her own, even with the best of intentions, looked like a worse option than going with Steve. She ran to catch him and they slipped around the other side of the copse and continued into denser forest all the while keeping glimpses of Richard and Daisy in sight between the trees. They paused to get a better sight and saw that he seemed to have no regard as to how roughly he was half dragging her along. Cherry tensed up, but Steve held her hand firmly and urged her forward to keep pace. Now, two hundred yards from the cars they came to a small clearing. Richard threw her roughly to the ground and took four paces forward turning with a levelled revolver as she tried desperately to get up, falling back in her panic, quivering on the ground. Richard growled several times sounding like he was losing patience waving the gun in her direction as she raised herself to stand facing straight at the barrel.

“Do something!” hissed Cherry right against Steve’s left ear but almost silently

Steve looked on in horror but had no intention of witnessing a murder. Distractions! That’s what’s needed! 

He checked that he was well out of sight, then hurled a stone high in the air, landing in the far side bushes.

Richard was startled and turned, but seeing nothing returned to the job in hand.

Try again. Steve moved a few trees and shouted “PC Cormack, cover the south exit. Estefan cover West”.

Richard spun around looking for the police, but as he turned Steve launched himself from behind the trees and brought him down with a rugby tackle. The gun was knocked away towards the far edge, and the two men slithered along the ground towards it. Richard missed it and Steve batted it farther away into the dense brambles, out of reach.

Richard was back up on his feet first and taken several steps backwards turning towards Daisy

“She’s the only one who knows” he hissed reaching inside his jacket. 

“Not any more” said Steve stumbling away from him and trying hard to muffle his sudden panic as Richard drew another gun. Cheryl held her breath for ages as she heard the sirens close in. 

Now almost overcome by horror Cheryl let out an ear-piercing scream as Richard cocked the gun.

“The game’s up, Rich” shouted Steve diverting attention from Daisy still lying gasping on the ground. The secret’s out. We know you already killed Jamie, you framed Valerie. You’re destroying the company. You don’t need to kill Daisy as well. Jeez! Richard, killing Daisy isn’t going to help you. Killing me in front of witnesses is even more stupid. So many more people know now and the evidence is spread all over Jamie’s desk”. 

Cheryl was rooted to the spot, terrified, but she was there, trying to raise the courage to reach for Daisy as she watched hidden amongst the trees. It was happening to her and the options were nil. 

Steve broke the impasse speaking slowly and clearly to try to calm his own nerves

“But, whatever else, Rich, you can’t expect to add me to that list. You know the accuracy of a Derringer is that you just might hit a barn wall if you were inside the barn. And its only got two slugs. Who’s it gonna be. Daisy? Me and Daisy? The two coppers in the bushes on your right?” 

He’d continued to keep moving, but not far enough to spook Richard in to firing at him. Richard had glanced round at the mention of the police and it reinforced Steve’s view that his best chance was to keep him distracted or talking until help arrived 

“And” he continued “its unlikely to be fatal at more than twenty yards” he added, partly to convince himself the situation wasn’t irreversibly terminal.

And now finally maybe there was some respite.

“Rich! You know you should never take your eyes off the target. But if you glance right you’ll see the old bill finally got here”

Richard turned just a fraction, but it was too far for Steve to lunge. Then he flipped back, levelling the gun ready to shoot. Cheryl squealed but was unable to say anything. She wanted to shout or scream again or howl or anything but it just wasn’t happening. She pointed over to the other side of the clearing and Daisy moved her head far enough round to see two uniformed police officers creeping up towards the clearing. 

“Check it out” Steve shouted hoping to panic Richard into a move. “Check it out! Jamie’s murder, attempted murder. Abduction with intent to murder, Grand theft. Embezzlement. And two officers on your right to witness the finale. Don’t just stand there like a dummy! Shoot someone. That’s what you came here for, isn’t it!. Shooot someone! At least finish the job properly!” 

Its unclear how long the pause lasted as the next few minutes were a blur acted out in slow motion. Richard stood staring at the bushes to his right but to his extreme dismay, yes, there was movement there. The standoff was a lot shorter than it seemed but equally as violent as anticipated.

Another siren came to an abrupt stop replaced by the sound of a helicopter overhead. Richard gasped in indecision and moved his head to look again as the officers floored themselves. Then slowly, without a word, very slowly, he moved the gun round to point directly at his own head just above his left ear. Cheryl wanted to turn away but found herself frozen. Daisy was still holding her breath as they saw the spurt of blood, and heard two shots and saw him slump forward, gasping, hitting the ground with an unforgettable thud. The whole forest was silent. No-one moved. Then one of the officers broke cover but there was no response from the floor as he inched fearfully over to Richard and pronounced him dead.

Steve moved over to Daisy and helped her up. She was shaking uncontrollably. Cheryl joined him and they crossed the clearing to the other officer as re-enforcements arrived.

Steve wouldn’t blame her if she hated him for leading her into this but she agreed to go down to the police station the next day to complete her statement and waited for Steve to finish his conversation.

“Interesting bit of driving on the bypass, Sir!”

“Sorry, But ten seconds later she’d have been dead”

“Lucky to have got away with it”
 “Not luck, officer. Precision. Used to do some rallying and ice racing in Norway. It was all meant to be non-contact. We were all amateurs and our club decided that if you hit another car you’d have to sort out the damage. Being skint, it encouraged you to get it right, particularly when we were on regular tyres where even studs would have had a problem”

Bruce managed to raise a smile

“Maybe you can give me some tips when you pop in to complete your statement”

“Sure. I’ll take you out for a spin. Except we’ll need to make sure there’s no coppers about or we might get nicked”

“Don’t push your luck! See you tomorrow about 4”

Steve dropped Cheryl off at her house

“I’ll understand if you don’t make it in tomorrow”

Her lip trembled lightly, but she didn’t reply as she headed for her door. 

Steve turned to Daisy who was quivering in the back of the car. 

“Steve” she whispered very weakly

“Hey! You got you voice back!”
 “Steve, I’m .. I’m… “I’m…” she started but seemed to be having some trouble

“Scared?” Steve hazarded a guess. She nodded meekly

“Daisy, it can’t happen again. Its all over now. Barring the resurrection of course, but I’ve a feeling he’s not divine enough for that. Ok Daisy. Don’t read too much into this, but there’s a spare bed at my house if you don’t want to be alone”

He phoned Geneviève to throw a duvet onto the other single bed in her room and try to stretch dinner to three.

Blissfully unaware of the developments, Ruth made the Blue Boar with Annabelle that evening. She was thankful that most of the usual crew failed to materialise and talked quietly with her best friend. She apologised that she was now in a job where confidentiality was paramount, and she wouldn’t be able to give away too many details except that it seemed she managed to avoid redundancy for another week and this new assignment was already something of a roller coaster.

Annabelle was pleased for her, partly because Ruth now seemed happy again, but more important - she was able to buy her round.

It also meant that she was as much in the dark as everyone else as they all shuffled into the P1 meeting the next morning. She’d got in early, but Steve was already there and rattled through a similar list of actions as before almost before she had her coat off. 

But Cheryl didn’t make the office. It was all too much. The replays in her head had kept her awake till the small hours, and she slept till nearly lunchtime.

Everyone looked even more disgruntled at having their day disrupted from the start as they dutifully trooped into the boardroom for the second P1 in as many days. The previous day they had been excitedly interested, but now they were largely nervous about what could possibly have happened now. Everyone knew there was a financial issue, but only Cherry and Steve knew how bad it really was. Now they were expecting to find out. He managed the slightest smile towards Ruth

“Don’t be surprised if I hold your hand” 

Ruth glanced at him nervously. This must be bad! Chairs were shuffled and Keith took the time to get his cup of tea.

Steve got up from his chair “You may have heard on the media this morning…”

“Jesus wept”’ opened Greg “This had better be good. Maybe you hadn’t noticed but there’s a financial crisis going on, and you haul us in here to discuss local gossip”

“Yes, Greg. It had not escaped me, and perhaps you’d like to share what you are doing about it”

“That’s up to Richard” smirked Greg

“In which case, I for one won’t be holding my breath. Now can we get back to the trivia?”

“Where is Richard, anyway?” asked Keith

“He won’t be making it”

“And how would you know that” attacked Greg

Ruth knew he wanted to say ‘If you just sat down and shut up, I’d get on with telling you’, but Steve had decided to sit down to be less formal and her straight fingers to his upper thigh reminded him to keep his hair on.

“Because of what happened last night” he replied calmly 

The background buzz disappeared. An expectant silence fell like a ton weight. Greg was quiet.

Steve glanced around the room and decided to continue with what he had intended to say

“Ok. Back to the trivia – This morning, Starburst radio ran an emerging story about an abduction last night. There are already rumours around the works, and it is up to us as a leadership team to ensure all our staff have as correct and up to date picture as far as we can”

‘That’s what you said at the last meeting’ interrupted Greg

“Yes, and at the risk of becoming predictable, its still applicable. Look Greg, you don’t have to stay. If you’ve got more important things to do then the door is right behind you.” 

He paused, but only briefly “Unfortunately, I am informed by the police that only minimal discussion is permitted at this time while their investigations continue. However, I can confirm that a young lady was abducted, I can also confirm that it was at gunpoint, and I can farther confirm that.. .. ..the incident resulted in a fatality”.

Greg had reached the door now, but Steve continued “The young lady involved was our Daisy O’Roirden from the finance team” 

Greg stopped in his tracks suddenly stunned, with the door open but Steve carried on “and the perpetrator of this crime was Richard Harrison, also from our finance team” 

Greg’s stunned silence now shivered round the room, then a murmur of nothingness, Greg broke the silence

“And how is it you know all about this?”

Steve raised his head slowly “Because I was there”

All eyes focussed on Steve “I had intended to describe what happened, but at this time, I am informed that is not permitted”

He bowed his head not wanting to watch the expressions around the table then glanced at Ruth. Somewhere in between he’d taken hold of her hand, but now her eyes were misting up and she seemed to have stopped breathing as she watched him. Then suddenly everyone was talking at once, and Steve looked over towards Jasmine the accounts intermediary who had turned up simply because there was no-one else in her department.

“I don’t want to know” she spluttered,

“I can’t believe Daisy’s dead” Greg muttered as Jasmine pushed him aside to flee the room, leaving tears behind in the air. 

“I think its all a bit too much” said Jacqui quietly “I think we need to get our heads around it. Maybe we should meet tomorrow to discuss what we do next. First Jamie, now this”

“Ok” conceded Steve “same time same place. But the need for continuity is now even more acute”

Gerry stayed behind as the others left. He moved across the room and put his hand on Steve’s shoulder

“Wow” he muttered “Its all to do with the fraud?”

“Yes” said Steve “Cherry and I were going through the files and suddenly we found the clue”

He laughed 

“It was a misplaced hyphen. Anyway, there was no other conclusion than it was Richard who was behind it, and it pretty much indicated he’d killed Jamie. Maybe he found out what was going on. It also confirmed that the only other person that knew how it all worked was Daisy”

“Sure” said Gerry “so either Daisy was in on it, or she could be in danger as well” 

Gerry shook his shoulder “Look buddy, take a bit of time out if you like - spend a bit of time with Geneviève”

“Yeah? No – I’ve got to find a way to get that cash back. Finding out how it went isn’t really the objective. And Geneviève has gone shopping with a new friend – Retail therapy and all that”

Back in his office Ruth spent more time than necessary making more coffee. She sat down beside his desk uninvited, with tears running quietly down her face 

“So many terrible things have happened since I came to this office. I didn’t know I was that bad or what I’ve done that was so very wrong. Am I really such a bad person?”

Steve looked at her sitting there, dejected, confused and upset. Sure she was 24 but she was equally as vulnerable as Geneviève who was nearly 10 years younger

“Oh Ruth, I’m so sorry I got you into all this. You’re not bad. And you’ve been such a wonderful help to me and the team. You didn’t cause all this. You’re just an innocent bystander caught up in it, like the rest of us. I guess we’re just all in the wrong place at the wrong time. But this isn’t your problem”

“I think it is – Its your problem, so that means its mine as well – I thought that was part of coming to work in your office, wasn’t it?  – to do whatever I could to help you?”

“I knew Jamie had been killed when I issued your invitation. I was expecting some repercussions but I just didn’t know exactly what. I certainly didn’t expect everything to blow up quite this quickly. But it’s not all happened because you’re here. You’re here because I guessed something was about to happen and I knew I’d need someone on my side”

She pulled back the tears 

“Sorry Steve, not very business-like of me” 

“Ruth, its all a bit traumatic. This is not your common or garden day in the life of a PA. And I already told you unconventional was ok” 

He folded his arms round her in a gentle bear hug, but rather than pull away as she thought she ought to, she faded her cheek into his shoulder like she was making up after the mother of all rows with her boyfriend.      

“You can take some time out if you like?” he offered

“No! No, I … I joined your office to help you because it was all about to get busy. And now it is. I’ve only been here two days and I’m not going to bail out like Simone when the going gets rough. I’ll be ok, Steve” 

“And if you’re not, - I’ll give you another bear hug”

She managed a mildly provocative smile. “Is that a threat or a promise?”

But being ok was partly because this was the softest most comforting hug she’d ever had 

“That is definitely a threat. But you take the rest of the day off. I’ll manage - really – till tomorrow anyway”,

Steve sat down at Jamie’s desk for another think: That was a lot of activity for just two days. Maybe it’ll start to calm down a bit. I guess that depends on whether Richard was acting on his own or if there’s someone else. But maybe I should take a trawl through the short pile of papers that Ruth has been collecting. Jamie didn’t do anything in Production, I know that. Presumably he didn’t do much in Finance or he’d have known about the plot – or maybe he did and even was part of it. He didn’t seem to do much in HR. So what did he spend his time on? Keith didn’t call on him that often to support Sales. In fact Keith treated it as something of a failure if he had to invoke support.

Cave Brothers takeover? What! Maybe that’s where the funds were supposed to be going. A takeover fund? I suppose Jamie might have been considering business expansion. Or maybe not.

Time to go home and cook dinner for my little girl. Oh, and my other little girl too.

Despite everything, Steve was upbeat next morning, but Ruth was in before him. Geneviève was going to an extra piano lesson later which would give him a little more time and maybe Cherry would be in. He’d left Daisy at his house, but with the option of coming in to work if she was frightened of being on her own. Steve was quite sure that she was safe again. She just had to start believing it. Perhaps he’d underestimated how traumatic this all was because his own history had largely insulated himself from it and he had to admit that there may be some flashback memories. To him, the world had moved on and now it was time to figure out what was next.

But the issue was that the company was still nearly bankrupt. There was still a cartload of cash missing. He expected that some of it would be in the investment accounts, but if it was, Cheryl would surely have mentioned that as a source of funding.

Because Richard was such an insular character, Steve was fairly certain that the outward flow would now stop and that gave him the impetus to think about how to find not only where it had gone, but how. And then how to get it back.

Richard, clearly would be no help, but he may have left some clues. Cheryl didn’t know, or she would have mentioned it. Lewis dealt almost entirely with internal accounting and didn’t go anywhere near this sort of stuff. Daisy was in no fit state to say anything, and Jasmine? Steve was quite convinced Jasmine knew absolutely nothing. About anything. The best idea he’d come up with was to brainstorm it with Cheryl and Tristan. And without Cheryl?  Maybe Ruth? – or should he just get her to keep trawling through Jamie’s papers and see what she came up with. There was no doubt that anything important that he had been doing would soon tumble in like an avalanche and knowing about it would be an advantage. As always it was a balance of priorities.

But the world had indeed moved on overnight

“Steve” called Ruth as he dropped his jacket on a chair “emmm.”

“Emmm? Em what?”

“Emmm, Jacqui’s called a P1 meeting for 10 o’clock”

“Any clue what for? Or is she just saving me the trouble?”

Ruth shook her head “It’s the senior team again. Cherry’s coming for finance, and she’s invited me in case anything needs writing down”

“OK! That’s a move in the right direction. Acceptance from the senior team is not guaranteed, so well done you! You’ve obviously created the right impression. But I thought Cherry wasn’t going to be in till at least lunchtime – maybe tomorrow”

“Maybe Jacqui’s more persuasive than you!”

Jacqui was sitting at the head of the table, Keith, as always held up the meeting to get his cup of tea, and Cheryl wasn’t there. Maybe Jacqui wasn’t more persuasive after all.

‘I think we all know the situation” Jacqui opened “we are now without a financial director, as well as an MD and Chairman. – Keith”.

Keith slowly put down his cup and took over the story. 

“So far our customers are ok. They’ve not noticed any interruptions in service and so far are, on the whole, supportive. However, its still very early days but we need to be seen to be sorting ourselves out. I’m sorry if anyone thinks this is too early to consider filling these vacancies but there is nothing we can do about the history and we need to look to the future so that at least we have a plan. Jacqui…”

“Yes” she continued “So we need a collective decision on where to start and then how to proceed. My suggestion is that we start by considering the MD position first”

“I think so” said Keith “because the position of FD can wait and the new MD may have more of an opinion on that”
 “We gotta start somewhere” said Steve and she took the following general silence as passive consent

“To make progress, I think there are 4 options. 1, we do nothing and see how it all goes. In my book that’s a bit like anarchy. Its ok till something starts going wrong, and then there’ll be no-one in control and no-one taking responsibility for the future or necessary decisions. The default is that Keith and Steve continue as two thirds of a triumvirate. 2 we do an immediate external contract hire of an interim MD who would double as head of finance. This would be a short term appointment of perhaps 3 to 6 months. 3 We put out an external ad for replacements and 4 we appoint internally”

There was an awkward silence around the table, broken eventually by Gerry from Production.

“I’ll tell ‘e what I think. Option 1 Chaos. Every company needs a leader and as for finance. Its got issues. Right now it’s Cherry’s, so I hope she’s got some ideas, like where does the investment program stand and are the weeklys actually gonna get paid – tough decisions ahead. Option 2 I think its a non-starter. It would take someone 3 months to get up to speed, and then they’d be gone. Option 3, Likely take 6 months, and then the guy –sorry or gal – might be on six months or a year’s notice, a suitable director probably is and we’d need to do something in the meantime. Option 4 – at least someone internal would have a certain level of background, and that’s what we need for continuity and that’s what we should explore”

“I agree with most of that”, said Keith “This company runs damned well. Someone external would want to change things just to put his stamp on it.  And if we do go outside, we still need someone to head us up in the meantime. But may I also say that while our existing customers are supportive, our prospective customers are already voicing some nervousness. Our competition is already using this against us. Its too early to have actually lost any orders on this issue yet, but its only a matter of time unless we take decisive action. And what’s this about paying the staff?”

“Ok” said Jacqui, ignoring the subordinate question “so option 1 Do Nothing is out. So I think what I’m hearing is that we either appoint an internal candidate or we get on with a full scale external recruitment”

“I would suggest” said Tristan “that internal would be preferable. It would be someone who knew what was going on and was already known to the staff and that is the best way to maintain continuity. It could lead to some knock on promotions, and that’s good for morale. And in any case, we need an immediate, albeit interim solution if we’re going external” 

“That’s a bit human for you, isn’t it? I thought machines were your thing” put in Greg

“Sorry. You don’t need to accept my contribution”

“Ok. So who have we got?” pushed Jacqui avoiding the brewing conflict

“They’ve got to be in this room” said Matt. “Anyone not here would be an inversion of seniority”

“My hats in the ring, if we’re looking for candidates” said Greg.

“Thankyou Greg, any others?” asked Jacqui

“I suggest 3 others, said Gerry. I suggest yourself Jacqui, Keith as sales director it’s a natural progression, and Steve you should be in there too”

“I’m in” said Steve

“And… me” said Keith much more carefully.

“I’m out” said Jacqui rather terminally. And then feeling that an explanation was expected “I have an increasingly busy family life with my children. They’re mid teenagers now and I simply wouldn’t be able to devote the time that would be needed”.

“So, three candidates? Matt? Are you the fourth?”

Matt shook his head

“I’m an outdoors sort of guy – always have been – always will be”

“And the process?” continued Keith as Matt shook his head again in return to Keith’s look

“The only people who should have a valid input are already in this room. I think we should just get on with it. What other factors would you expect to include if we delayed for say a couple of weeks?”

“And what would happen in those couple of weeks?” asked Tristan. “I’m not up for any delays. If we’re going to do something, lets just do it”

Keith turned to Steve “You are unusually quiet!”

“So far” he said raising a sad smile.

“And?” continued Keith

Steve sighed “Ok. We are a small team running a small company. In order to do the job, whoever heads it up needs to be respected and supported throughout as much of the company as possible. It would be very easy to blow this whole thing apart. It’s a bit like electing the new captain of a rugby team. We don’t just need a manager, we need someone that the staff will trust as a leader through what will be a difficult time financially. Having said that, I don’t think we should be looking at purely a popularity contest” 

Jacqui picked up the progress “I think we need to discuss the candidates’ suitability. We are indeed a small team, so I don’t think we can let all the candidates leave the room at the same time, but I think each of them should leave while they are discussed by the rest of us.” 

Keith left first and walked slowly along the corridor and down the stairs wandering aimlessly into the Finance office where Jasmine was on her own.

“What’s your biggest issue today” he asked her teasingly.

“Apart from thinking that the world is ending, I wish we knew who our boss was” she said taking him more seriously than he would have liked.

“I thought Cheryl was running the show?”

“Yes, and that’s ok, but it’s not official or anything is it. And she’s not in. She’s not phoned, and she’s not booked leave. It’s just unsettling. Especially with Dai …..” 

She tailed off but Keith interrupted that train of thought. 

“I’ll take that up” he promised. 

Being at least twice her age he could easily have slipped a fatherly arm around her and offered some comfort, but… but he just wasn’t really that empathetic. Instead, he reflected on the way back, were there a lot of people who wanted that level of certainty? Maybe the circle he moved in: sales, salesmen, buyers, directors, negotiators. They all lived with, and even thrived on uncertainty, possibilities and politics but then maybe those who went into accounts were just different. Maybe less ambitious people, or maybe they were less capable or just less greedy? Maybe simply less confident and they avoided the adrenalin of the hunt and chase that he achieved from his position in Sales. And maybe Steve understood these people better than he did, and maybe Steve was in a better position to meet the expectations of the whole ‘team’ in Steve’s analogy. No matter, except that Greg would be a disaster. Self-centred, self-opinionated – reminds me a bit of me, mused Keith. But without the finesse!

After Steve and Greg’s turn, they were all back in the boardroom

“From the discussion” Jacqui was saying “there seems to be an appetite for doing this internally, and quickly. I agree that that will provide the most stable platform for the company. However, I think we should take tomorrow, and perhaps some subconscious thought over the weekend. On Monday, I propose that we meet again at 10 and come to a conclusion. As Steve pointed out, we are a small team, and as a team we must believe that the solution will work. The question is not just who is the most suitable candidate among us, but is there a suitable candidate”.

Steve held Jacqui back as they were all leaving.

“Good Luck!” she opened as Steve smiled gently at her 

“Thanks, But whatever the outcome, we need to look carefully at the exact financial position. If you hadn’t called this P1 on personnel, I’d have called one on finance. We need to know how to keep this company afloat. So whoever comes out on top on Monday will need to know the options. Who can we delay payment to, who owes us and can we bring something forward and where we can borrow if we need to. I don’t know what else…” he said running a hand through his hair “…but you get the idea. We’re in deep trouble and we’ve still got guys to pay tomorrow”

Jacqui agreed as Steve continued, “so I’m going to have a word with Cheryl and see if she can get on the case, if that’s ok with you?”

“That’s fine with me, Steve, someone has to. Keith and Matt are needed out there with the customers. Gerry needs to concentrate on the workforce - most of them are his – or yours! And me? I could, but you’d have to tell me the questions”

But Cheryl wasn’t in, so that would have to wait. Instead he phoned Tristan.

Now alone in the boardroom Steve took a few moments quiet thought. Yes, if I can get someone with more than half a brain to think carefully about this. Tristan can do that even though its purely speculative at this stage, while I get on with the real financial position which is a bit more stark. Or should I do that and gamble that we can get some funds back from somewhere in the next few days?

Back in the office, Ruth spoke first before he’d even sat down 

“Sorry, no, I can’t – really Steve, Jacqui explicitly reminded me I was a confidential secretary and what was said while you were out has to stay in that room”

“Whoa, babe – I didn’t even ask you!”

“You didn’t need to.”

Steve hardly stifled his exasperated chuckle “I think I’m looking at someone who’s beginning to settle in. Which is quite an achievement with something like a war going on and the ground continually moving like an earthquake around us. But I’ve asked Tristan to come over and start thinking about how we get some funds back from wherever they are. What I want you to do is continue looking through Jamie’s stuff and bounce anything of any interest on the finance side to me or Tristan. Its just that his brain works on a completely different way to most people. Then once he’s had a think. I want you to join the meeting this afternoon even if you may need to hop in and out. I doubt if Cherry will make it, so I’d like you to be there instead”.

“What are we doing?”

“We’re going to be creative. We’re going to think of how to get the money back – or reach the conclusion that we can’t”

“Following the recent events, writing off a couple of million will be a laugh a minute” retorted Ruth rather more vehemently than she had intended

“Oh I’m sorry Ruth!” and then more gently “I should have had an introduction on this. Its just that I want people there that will approach the issue from different angles so that we get ideas bouncing around. And I don’t want anyone to just spend the meeting blaming Daisy rather than making progress”.

But the best laid plans.… Most of the effort in the meeting was to keep Ruth and Steve up to date in between answering the phone and being interrupted by other distractions. The last straw for Steve was the call from Clarkes. Ruth had picked up the phone and he left them to take it in the pokey little cupboard that Jamie had shared with Simone as an office.

“Steve? Yes. Its Neville Clarke here from Clarkes Meat Products. Condolences on your recent loss, and I understand from Keith that you have effectively taken control” 

“I wouldn’t say that, but I am co-ordinating things until we sort out a more permanent solution”

“Yes, of course. Listen, I just wanted to touch base with you. Clearly, changes are inevitable and I wanted to get an up to date position from you. As you know, we have a provisional order in to you for our new production line. It’s a major investment for us and we’re feeling a bit exposed right now”

“Yesss, in your position a bit of nervousness is understandable, but what we’ve been doing here is maintaining as much normality as we can within the works, and it seems to be working. Our priority is to maintain business as usual, although I’m sure you understand that’s not always easy”

“Keith was re-assuring me that there’s no real danger to the company”

“Oh absolutely, we’re at this minute exploring the options and then it will be up to the executive to choose the best course of action. But no, we’re not actually in any terminal danger. It may sound callous, but Sales will carry on regardless, as will Production….”

The conversation continued, and eventually Neville seemed satisfied. Steve put the phone down. This was draining. It was hard enough keeping up appearances in the office, without having to console the customers as well. But that was why Keith had supported him in the first place at the first meeting.

‘How far have we got’ he asked with a single questioning look.

“We’ve got some progress” Ruth said trying to sound upbeat “The transfers were all done on the phone but to numerous accounts. But they all have a secret code issued by the banks in places like Barbados.”

“Any clues?”

“Not really” replied Tristan “It looks like they changed every time Mr Harrison ordered a big transfer”

 “What I think” said Steve “ is that we ought to just lay all of Richard’s stuff out in Jamie’s old office. Transfer everything of Richards up there, and on Monday go through everything in fine detail. There’s a lock on that office as well”

“You mean, in case Harrison was working with an accomplice?”

Steve tried to reconsider this threat that he’d previously dismissed as Ruth continued

“What are we looking for?” 

“Anything that looks like a clue. Ruth, please”

A needle in a haystack? thought Ruth. Ok, Steve. Oh, it might not be a needle, it could be almost anything. Still, haystacks aren’t usually full of assorted objects are they? So ok lets just start looking and see if there’s anything there at all!

But…  Supposing Richard was working with someone….someone else. Steve considered it for a moment. Maybe he was.  Just because they’d found the receipt for a single ticket doesn’t mean there wasn’t someone else. Someone who would now be looking to pick up where he left off, and soon, if not already. But would Richard really work with an accomplice? Surely not! Not Richard. He was too aggressive, too anti-social, too easy to dislike. Except for someone whose days were numbered before they even started. Maybe it was Jamie, but that wouldn’t count any more. Why would he work with someone else and share the results? No, Steve concluded. He was too much of a loner.

But the sooner this was solved the better. Everything else could wait.

“Ok, I’ll come over to the finance office with you and let Jasmine in on the plan.”

Down on the ground floor, Jasmine was looking harassed. She had no problem with the plan, and offered a certain encouragement in that it separated that exercise out from the day job.

“But” she said as Ruth started emptying the remains of Richards desk into a cardboard box she’d found “Steve, we’ve got a problem, and I don’t know how to say this”

“That sounds like the setup for a really big problem”

“Yeah well, Steve…. We don’t have enough cash in the bank to pay the weeklies”

“Overdraught?”

“No can do. They need 4 days notice, and in any case the two signatories on the account are…”

“Don’t tell me, Richard and Jamie”

“And we can’t change it to like you and Cheryl, because we won’t have any official confirmation of job titles.”

Steve nodded, trying to think of any other way out. This was the scenario he was afraid of landing up in.

“There’s a good chance of some significant developments on Monday but even if it was sorted out tomorrow, it still won’t be in time”

“ ‘Fraid not”

“Lets go talk to Jacqui”.

Jacqui listened attentively, and then they sat in silence, each trying to think of a solution, or alternatively, the consequences of not paying the manual production workers.

“Ok Jacqui. I’m not hearing any other solutions round the table” 

Jacqui looked up, at a loss 

“So it looks like the only option is what we discussed before as a last resort. Jasmine, can you produce the pay packets as usual, and then bring them all up to me. And I’ll write the cheques from my personal account and we’ll take a trip to my bank for those still on cash”

“Steve! Its likely to be just under 5 grand. Have you got that much in a current account?”

“Yes unfortunately, should have. I was trying to sort out some investments and there’s all sorts of cash lying around where it shouldn’t be!”

“Then, maybe you can get on the banks case. Sounds like we’ll need to raise a loan just for working capital. But can you talk to Cherry, I’m getting the idea that I’m interfering too much”

“Not from me, you’re not” defended Jasmine

“I don’t think so Steve”, said Jacqui quietly. “Everyone is a bit on edge. And in any case, someone has to!”

“Come on. Lets get this done”

“It’s a big risk for you” reminded Jacqui “You more than anyone know the state the company is in. Steve, its like an unsecured personal loan to the company. There’s no guarantee and its completely unprecedented. And….” she added turning towards him to gauge his reaction “….there must be some sort of protocol we need to follow over things like this”
 “Jacqui, I can’t implement rules I don’t know about. And right now I don’t have either the time or inclination to find out. And everyone’s out of any other suggestions. The only other option is that we don’t pay the staff. And that’s almost the same as closing down. So far, this solution is very simple and I don’t need it to be complicated by guidelines or codes of best practice” 

Steve went through the timing with Jasmine on the way back across the yard. 

“We won’t know till tomorrow” she’d said “because I won’t have today’s overtime and tomorrow’s clock in times before mid-morning”

“Ok. But we know what we’re going to do”

“That at least is some level of certainty”

Back at his house that evening, Daisy had calmed down a bit and was a whole lot less jumpy. Now she seemed to be coming to terms with the trauma and Steve suggested maybe going back to work and maybe regain some independence back at her house. That hardly went down well. Geneviève started playing some gentle music as her piano practice and Steve sat down quietly with Daisy, pouring her a drink.

He explained that maybe too much money had been transferred and that some needed to come back for day to day operations. At first, she was adamant that she wasn’t allowed to say anything, but a combination of alcohol and Steve’s subtle description of the new situation persuaded her to open up a bit. She had made a note of all the transactions, but they were all controlled by passwords and she didn’t know what they were because every day Richard changed them after she’d completed her work. As far as she knew they were all held in a black notebook so that he didn’t forget them. But at that point, she began to suspect that Steve was thinking that what she’d been doing was wrong and he spent till bedtime trying to calm her down again.

Clues Tristan?

Next morning, Ruth saw Steve’s car pulling into the car park and was pouring out coffee as he got to his desk.

“Do you know anything about rebranding” she asked

“Rebranding? I know what it is, and I know a few reasons why you’d do it. But nothing beyond that”

“No, our rebranding. Three Rivers Engineering”

Steve shook his head. “What makes you ask?”

“Just a letter I found in Jamie’s stuff. He quickly glanced through the paper she’d handed him and felt his temperature rise

“But this commits us to 50 grand, up front payable when”

“Next week”

Steve slumped onto his desk “Oh for crying out loud”, 

Ruth moved closer to him.

“We’ll get through it” she comforted wrapping her arms gently round his neck. Right now, he needed her support in the same way as she had needed his cuddle, just as Tristan burst in

“Oh sorry, didn’t mean to be interrupting you both. Oh”

“No” said Ruth untwining herself and turning back towards the mounds of paperwork on the desk. Tristan had just sat down in her seat, but she took the chair opposite without complaining and started turning each sheet of paper individually foraging for clues, giggling briefly at the irony, as she started to pour through the contents of Richard’s desk taking a break from Jamie’s.

“He seemed to like crosswords” she said “there’s quite a few in his desk”.

“What else?” asked Tristan.

“Usual pens, pencils and stuff, a financial summary sheet and a half a dozen car magazines”

“Yes, he quite liked his cars. He was a regular encyclopaedia on motor racing. Say! What’s the date on that financial summary? That might give us something about the timing….”

Tristan bailed out to check that all his systems were still running smoothly and Steve’s day job caught up with him as well. This investigation would have to wait.

Ruth started early on Monday, looking through a pile of paper which was all rather meaningless. She started transferring Jamie’s papers back into the filing cabinet to make more space to lay out Richards in some semblance of order – or neat piles at least.

But time was up. It was time for Jacqui’s next meeting and Tristan was beginning to wonder when he’d ever get any of his own work done

“Now its time to make you MD” whispered Ruth

“You think so? I’m not convinced I want it”

“But you have to. I want to be the MDs PA. Its my ambition”

“Thanks for the confidence Ruth, but you can’t reach the pinnacle of your career at the age of 24 unless you’re a footballer.” 

Ruth was deflated, and then caught off guard as the group assembled for the discussion. 

“Think of the alternative” she whispered under cover of the general hubbub “It might be Greg and then he’d delegate everything to you anyway”

He twitched round to face her “That’s well scary – on both counts”

“Both?”

“Yes. One - That whole idea is scary. And the other thing that’s scary is that you thought of it”

They all waited impatiently while Keith moved to get his tea, broken as Greg slouched into the room

“What are you doing here?” Steve barked in an unusually threatening voice. He had raised his finger and was pointing menacingly at Greg, catching him off guard

“I always come to these meetings”

“Look, this is a leadership team meeting. You are neither leadership nor team. The company can’t raise the cash to pay the weeklies and you’re signing up to 50 grand of completely worthless expenditure …”

Ruth prodded him in the leg as hard as she could and the rest of the rant about being offended to be in the same room as him, fortunately, all went unsaid

“Let’s take that offline”, rescued Keith in a rather cheery tone. “This meeting is for an entirely different purpose, and I don’t want to get side-tracked”

“Calm down boss. You’re not doing me any good!”

“You? Oh yes, of course” 

Ruth had repositioned him back into his chair as Greg seemed visibly rattled. 

“It’s in my budget, Jamie signed it off, and I don’t need your interference”

“Greg! The company doesn’t have 50 grand. Right now it doesn’t even have 5”

“Team” opened Jacqui “we’re all under pressure. Let’s just concentrate on the task in hand. Yes, there are other issues, but we’ll make more progress taking them one at a time”

She paused for everyone to settle down. Surely, thought Ruth, they can’t appoint Greg. The whole idea is to maintain stability. That would destabilise the company if anything would… Keith perhaps? Or maybe Matt would throw his hat in the ring as a late entry?  

“Now.” Jacqui continued “Many good points were made last Thursday and I hope everyone has found a few moments to think about it and the consequences of any decisions we take in the next hour. We could conduct a secret discussion but by eliminating the candidates, we lose nearly half of our team, and that doesn’t sound right, it may even be un-quorate if inquorate is a word”

“I also think its important to keep in mind any consequences of not making decisions” Steve added “I suggest we all stay. It maintains the quorum, starting as we are two men down already and will certainly improve the discussion but it also means that the candidates get a better idea of where they stand. The down side is it might put someone off raising a point which could be important, but I think that’s a risk we can take considering the calibre of the personnel in the room”

“I’m with Steve on that” said Keith. “Greg?”

“Whatever”

“One of the points raised on Thursday” Jacqui said to start the discussion “was that the new MD would be like a team captain, so my question - and I’m going round the table three times - is ‘would you be prepared to play in his team’. Because if you are, each of you, then that indicates that the candidate is suitable. Then we’ll decide who’s the best. And then we’ll have a discussion on whether we feel it’s the right decision and should ratify it. So I’m starting with you, Keith”

“Me?” 

“No. your team”

“Oh, yes I’ll play in my team, for sure” 

Jacqui smiled briefly. If Keith can maintain this relatively light-hearted level then the discussion would be more open and maybe, just maybe, wouldn’t degenerate into personality assassination.

“Tristan?”

“Keith’s team? Yeah. He’s got the experience, knows the customer base, knows finance. Been around a long time”

“Gerry?”

“Yes But I’m nervous about being completely sales focussed. We need someone who has a broad experience across different fields, particularly man management. Sales is a bit more individual. Like you against the customer and the opposition. Production is more getting everyone together and working as a team. No offence, Keith – great job in sales, but my preference would be Steve”

“Well of course it would be!” put in Greg, “you would get promoted to head of production”

“Maybe, but the point about man management across departments stands”

“Greg?”

“Pretty much do already”

“Ruth?”

“Me?”                                       

“Yes. You’re here aren’t you? And you know all these people. And you must have your opinion. Its not as if it’s an executive vote”

“Keith’s team. Yes, but I think there’s a danger that Keith likes his job and being out there so much that he might just carry on with that as well”

“Fair point”

“Matt”

“Yes, but there’s a danger to the customer base at this time and as Ruth said it would be worse without Keith out there holding it together. There’s ways round that, like using the field service teams more, but it’s the knock on effects that would ripple outwards”

“And me,? I agree with Gerry, and as HR, I would have to agree with Gerry’s concern. Round the table again with Greg as candidate”

“Tristan?”

“Yes, but not my preference. That’s it”

“Matt?”

“I’m out of the office 4 days a week. Make that 6”

“Gerry?”

“Not my choice. I think we need someone with more man management or customer experience”

“Ruth?”

She hesitated. And glanced at Steve trying to guess the right answer “Jobs are hard to find …  but despite that… .. No. I don’t think he’d have enough support across the company”

“Steve?”

“No”

“Oh, and I didn’t ask you on Keith’s round”

“No, to that as well. The job needs someone with a wider breadth, and at the risk of contradicting Ruth’s point, there are plenty of jobs for the best people, its just they’re not in this town”

“Keith?”

“No. It would be a reversal of seniority and that’s not on for me”

 “And now Steve as the candidate”

“Tristan”

“Yes. Good all rounder, and far as I can see he’s already doing the job, so its good for continuity”

 “Matt?”

 “Yes. I’m with Tristan, for once! If we take the improvements he’s made to product quality over his last year in Production and apply that across the whole company, we’re on to a winner. And I think he’d keep himself in the office and stay out of the way”

Steve looked quizzically in his direction but the older man simply winked back at him.

“Gerry?”

“No problem. Best candidate in my opinion”

 “Greg?”

“No, no way”

“Good” whispered Steve to Ruth just ahead of the sharp pain of Ruth’s fingernails stabbing his thigh

“Ruth”

“Yes, no problem, my preference in fact”

“Keith?”

“No problem. Good support back here at head office when its needed, and knows all the departments. Well balanced guy and respected by the customer base. Of the three of us, He’s by far the most suitable”

“Steve?”

“I’m not sure – I don’t know how Ruth puts up with me”

At last. thought Jacqui, some light humour

“So it looks like we have two suitable candidates. That was the first hurdle. So who’s the better candidate? Are we agreed, or do we need to go to a vote?” asked Jacqui”

“Steve” completed Keith

“….. and are we agreed to make this appointment here and now. Do we feel that this is the right decision? Or are there pressing reasons to delay”

“There are pressing financial reasons for acting immediately” confirmed Tristan

“I object” started Greg

That’s because you’re objectionable, muttered Steve, but another prod in the leg stopped him from actually saying anything before he had started

“What do you suggest instead?” asked Jacqui

“We should take more time, consider external candidates”

“And who would do the job in the meantime?” rounded Tristan

“We agreed as a team to appoint internally if possible. We went through the reasons for that before” reminded Jacqui

“But we didn’t know then what the result would be”

“Oh, I think we did”, said Keith, “I told old Neville over at Clarkes that it was a foregone conclusion two days ago”

 “You did it!” declared Ruth as they got back to his office not realising that Keith was still right behind them “Oops, sorry”

“I just hope the rest of the staff are as enthusiastic” said Steve

“I, for one, am absolutely certain that they will be” assured Keith

“Thanks for your support” he continued turning towards him “I thought you’d be up for it”

“Not me, old boy. I’m an outdoor kind of chap. Like Matt. I need to be out there, in the field. closing down new business and seeing what a tangible difference I personally make. Its like Ruth said, I’d probably carry on trying to do this as well, and then not succeed at either of them. And Matt, what he said about the impact on the customer base, that is probably true as well”

“But there’s just one thing. I don’t want to be an MD”

“Steve, yes you do! You need to! Who else can do it!?”

Keith was more reserved. Steve had not said that in any finalistic way. More that there was some minor issue

“So what’s the problem with it?”

“Its M and D. Managing Director. Someone who is managing to be a director. Grief! Anyone can be a director. Just register a company at Companies House, and bang! you’re a director whether you wanted to be or not. And someone who is only managing to be a director is definitely struggling and sounds to me like they’re knee high to a worm”

Keith chuckled as Ruth sat down to recover from her mild heart attack

“CEOs are in vogue?” he suggested

“I was hoping you’d say that”

But Ruth hadn’t finished with him yet. She waited for Keith to leave then sat down on the edge of his desk, leaning over slightly towards him.

“I suppose I could change my ambition to being PA to the CEO”

 Tristan had noticed Keith leave and pushed the door open

“Oh. Oh my. Sorry. I’ll be coming back in a minute. I’m not meaning to be interrupting”

“Oops”

He re-entered the room a few seconds later. 

“Sorry, Tristan” apologised Ruth “I don’t know what you think was about to happen. I was just congratulating Steve on his promotion”

“Oh I agree. Congratulations too! But excuse me for being a little more reserved”

But it was time for some other work. Priorities had crept up on them and Tristan needed to set up some changes to the overnight runs. Steve wanted to check with Jasmine about paying the weeklies and if she’s sorted anything out with the bank. And then with assorted interruptions it was late in the afternoon when Tristan was finally back in Steve’s office. He looked up expectantly as Ruth waved a scrap of paper at him

“In these crosswords books there’s quite a lot of scribbling in the margins and notes put in various pages. But this is a loose piece of paper tucked in the back cover. Do you know anything about crosswords? These cryptic clues are completely beyond me”

“I’ve done a few….”

He read the note 
 “From the annual summary there’s a no risk souvenir”

He took the book and the clue and went into his deep think mode.

“The annual summary – might that be the report we send to Companies House?….”

“Maybe…” she replied  “...but that’s an annual report, to be pedantic. Might this be simpler than that. Like your annual tax summary which is a P60?”

“And that could be a page number!”

“Look” he said eventually “Look, do you see?”

Ruth looked blank as he continued 

“There’s one word in each of these pages that is in black. The rest are all blue ink. Sorry, should have explained. That clue you found, the no risk souvenir. No risk is safe. Ok? and a souvenir is a reminder of somewhere or something. So what you found was the reminder to the code for the safe. And it starts on page 60 like you said”

“Hmmm. And if there’s anything of real value like account passwords, then they’ll be in a safe. If you happen to have a safe lying around”

“So, this takes us to the reminder – which itself looks like a crossword clue”

He read the words as he turned each page.

“The black ink isn’t always used for complete words, like it would if he’d changed pens when he came back to it after a break. But if we take just the black ink bits it reads ‘My cat is chased by the fastest dog in the world’.”

They looked at each other, perplexed . “It sounds like another crossword clue”

It was late the following afternoon that she was back with Steve in his office

“Did you figure out that clue” he asked Ruth as they finally found a spare moment.

“No, and Tristan hasn’t either even though he’s quite good at crosswords. These riddles are all a mystery to me”

“We need to know what format it is” he said sitting down with a bump. “You haven’t seen the manual for the safe have you? No? Ok, maybe we need to go down to Finance and look at it,”
 “Steve, staring at it isn’t going to help. Unless you’re going to cast some kind of spell on it!”

“No” he laughed, appreciating the fact that Ruth was still able to retain her sense of humour 

“But it will tell us what format the code should be in. Like is it five numbers or all letters or what.”

She wandered slowly down to the Finance department wondering just how long a shot this was. But Steve seemed to be taking it one step at a time, and some progress had been made

 “It looks like it should be two letters for the big dial followed by 4 numbers on the small dial.” 

Steve stood up again meandering around the room as Ruth perched on the end of his desk. “If it was a crossword...” Steve thought out loud, “...chased would just be a word separating the first and second part of the clue”

 She shook her head and looked exhausted.

“Its been a big day”

“Oh Ruth, Of course it has. Whoa! is that the time already?” but continued anyway

 “Why My cat” he emphasised. “Why not the cat or just a cat…. Because, he continued very slowly… because, he drove a Jaguar and that’s a cat”, 

“Oh Steve! Maybe tomorrow. I’m whacked for today. I’m going to adjourn to the Blue Boar!”

But Steve continued unrelenting 

“Jaguar, in 2 letters and 4 numbers? But no. There’s the second half of the clue as well. This is just the first part”

“Like JA?” she offered, pointedly fastening the last button on her coat

“A bit like that. Like, like XJ. It was an XJ6 which is two letters and the then the 6 might be the first of the four numbers. Lets drop into Finance on the way out and put XJ into the first dial”.

Ruth gazed at it in disbelief as yet another delay “It works he grinned. The green tab’s up on the big dial.” 

“That’s brilliant” said Ruth perking up, “but I might have to start being worried about the way your mind works”.

“Ok, what you need to worry about is trying each of the next 998 combinations. Shouldn’t take more than a couple of days”

“So fastest dog in the world. Have a think, Ruth. See you in the morning”

That evening Steve slouched on the settee in the living room. He’d been thinking about the fastest dog and had left his prep for the next day’s meetings till late. 

Daisy had been curled up in a chair with her eyes half closed listening to some of Steve’s CDs.

 “Steve” she said uncurling herself, “its really kind of you and Geneviève to let me stay here with you and I really appreciate it”

“That’s ok Daisy. But I think you need a plan to work towards. That might help you get your head around getting back to normal”

“Maybe we could aim for the weekend if that’s ok with you, and then Monday I’m going back into work. I just need that time to get my head around it” 

Steve wasn’t unhappy with that. If she’d been involved knowingly, she’d have run away by now. So she had just been doing what she’d been told, like a good little girl which is what she’d said all along.

“You don’t know the code to the safe do you?” he asked rather accusingly but she shook her head and looked disappointed 

“I’ve still got a note of some of the passwords, but they’ve probably changed since I used them”

Steve smiled at her affectionately as she borrowed his headphones and curled up again to listen to an audio book. 

He flicked through Gerry’s paper on the failure rate of motors received from Cave Brothers, occasionally looking across at Geneviève also curled up in a chair at the other side of the fire but with her uninspiring English Lit project.

“Fastest dog” he’d repeated out loud but largely to himself “greyhound? Afghan hound? But how do you spell Borzoi in three numbers? But the cat was on a car theme. Maybe the dog is as well. But there aren’t any cars named after dogs. Ford Alsatian? Vauxhall Poodle? Reliant Rottweiler? There used to be a Hillman Husky”
 “A what?” questioned Geneviève suddenly joining in

“Hillman Husky. It was the estate version of the Minx – Terrier maybe, or is that a van? Ok what about the other end. What’s the fastest car, Ferrari, Maserati? Porsche? Maybe it’s a racing car. Formula 1 maybe. Can’t think of a dog called March – or McLaren for that matter”

“Fastest car?” asked Geneviève picking up the theme

“Yes”

“In the whole world?”

“I guess so”

“Hmmm. Surely that’ll be the land speed record thing. You know, the one they’re testing down in South Africa somewhere. That’s got to be the fastest car in the world, by definition! And…” she added, “…its called Bloodhound. That’s a dog”

Steve stopped thinking about everything else “Fantastic. Yes. Well done that girl, yes. Wow! now all I need to do is figure out how to translate that into three numbers”

“What for?”

“Its the code to the safe, no one can get in, and the clue we found is cryptic, but mentions the fastest car”.

“764” said Geneviève 

“764. Babe? What sort of random guess is that?”

“Its not random, daddy!” she retorted “Its 764. That’s its full name. Its called the Bloodhound 764 because that’s its target, one mile an hour more than the existing land speed record of 763 miles an hour. The Bloodhound 764. Doesn’t help me with the Hounds of the Baskervilles though”.

“That all makes perfect sense, at last. I think after this week I’ll take you to the Castle on Saturday!”

Meanwhile in the Blue Boar, Ruth managed to be elated and exhausted at the same time. The first vodka helped to increase both of these as Annabelle listened patiently. Ok so this new assignment of Ruth's seemed to be as much of a rollercoaster as they predicted fluctuating between tragedy, disaster and buzzing cloud nine. 

She even opened up a bit after the second round 

“I was at this meeting today. It was called by our HR director for the whole leadership team. She specifically asked me to go as well to take the notes, although I didn't think any would be necessary. Anyway she's going round the table asking for everyone's opinion, and Annabelle, she asked me too. She said since I was there what did I think. How good is that?” 

“I think it's good enough for you to get another round in” 

Steve was still mulling through the excitement of Bloodhound being the answer when he arrived at the works. Leaving later, he’d hit more traffic than usual and Ruth had already prepared the board room for the 9 o’clock meeting but the Bloodhound, as Geneviève had pointed out must be the faster dog in the world, so it ought to work.

“Thankyou both. But did you have any thoughts on the code to the safe?”

“Sorry Steve – I’ve drawn a blank so far. There’s a development Porsche that’s rumoured to be the fastest production car. I think it’s the 946, but its nothing to do with dogs”

“Ok, lets pick it up after my meeting with Jacqui and Jasmine. There’s guys in Production that would like to be paid again this week. But while I’m there, could you take a punt at putting in the code XJ6764”

 “Ok” said Ruth “Just another nine thousand nine hundred and ninety seven to go! How random is that?”

But Steve wasn’t back immediately. He decided to go over to see Jacqui about the CEO announcement and he phoned Matt from her office, just to be polite, get off on the right foot and make sure he didn’t have any issues with the title change

“Yeah” said Matt “Sounds good. A bit more tech. And that’s where we’re trying to position ourselves. One other thing Steve. It marks a significant difference to Jamie. I’m expecting you to maintain that. I’ve got a few ideas if you’re interested”

And this, thought Steve, is one thing Jamie did not have – pro-active support from Field Service.

Back at his office the mood was nothing less than euphoric. Ruth and Tristan were sitting at Jamie’s old desk with a sheaf of notes on one side, a small black notebook in front of them and an emerging list on the other side

“It Worked!” beamed Ruth. But it was clear that she was still trying to figure out how you would ever come up with that number.

They’d put together a plan for Ruth to use to transfer the funds back and had tried it out for a small sum and the list they were completing would act as the progress tracking sheet. 

Steve caught up with her just as it was time to go home. She almost bounced into his office to report that she had already recovered over 100,000 pounds.

“Some good news at last. Nothing like ending the week on a high” 

But on the down side, he thought, if Richard had been working with someone, they’ll be hopping if they checked the accounts. But, again, if there was someone else with accounts access, why haven’t they moved some of the funds already. The writing would have been on the wall since Richard showed his true colours in shooting Jamie. Unless maybe he’s already killed his partner in crime before that. Either way, it was beginning to feel a little safer

In the meantime Ruth had migrated to a corner table in the Blue Boar. 

“You’re looking pretty pleased with yourself” Annabelle had opened

“Yep. Bella. I actually made a personal contribution today which will put about 5 thousand pounds back into my boss’s own bank account, and avert a financial disaster on Friday. How good is that! Not just still employed, but I’ve got like a promotion as well! Its all to do with the reshuffle. I told you the old MD left suddenly. Oh Bella, I wish I could tell you all about it. But I can’t. Partly its all so horrible, and partly its all locked down until after the inquest”

“Inquest? You said he’d left suddenly. You didn’t tell me he’s dead!”

“Sorry, I’m really not supposed to say anything”

“Don’t worry about it. But is this not the same Ruth as was in here not much more than two weeks ago, pleading poverty on every one of her rounds because she was facing redundancy the next day”

“Could be!” she beamed back

“So it also could be your turn tonight. I’m assuming you got a pay rise with this new job and a promotion”

“I don’t know about that. We’ve been too busy to discuss that”

“You what! Now that’s what I call busy”

With Steve and Geneviève’s continuing efforts over the weekend, Daisy was unanimously declared fit for work on Monday. Dinner on Saturday seemed to clinch it because, while two of them went out for something rather refined quite frequently, Daisy’s idea of going out to dinner was Pizza Hut and the Michelin starred Castle completely blew her mind.

He left her case in his car with the intention of re-installing her in her own house after work and took her straight up to Jamie’s old office so that Ruth could explain the process they’d developed to recover the money. Her spirits improved no end when she realised how far they’d already got, especially because it was without her having to betray any confidences that she’d promised to keep secret.

Steve was as convinced as he ever would be that she was not party to the fraud and was quite happy to let her squirrel herself away transferring the money back into the company bank accounts using the notes she had made and the passwords that Ruth had copied from the little black book. Daisy herself was happy about this. Steve had convinced her that he needed the money back where it used to be and she could now help with this task without betraying her promise of secrecy. 

It was an up-beat Daisy headed out of his office although he was relieved that Ruth had decided not to relinquish the book itself. He took a deep breath and turned to gaze out of the window finally thinking maybe that things were looking up.

Until the scream. 

It was more like a tortured shriek and Steve fled along the corridor and down the stairs towards the Finance office. Ruth was not far behind and two Salesmen who were in a customer meeting in the small conference room were on their way as well. Standing quite still just inside the doorway was a very bewildered looking Daisy. Steve went over to her and slipped his arm round her not knowing exactly who it was that was making the noise. 

Across the room cowered a terrified Jasmine who had shoe-horned herself into a corner and was now wedged half hidden behind a filing cabinet. Lewis was sitting stalk still with a wide eyed stare not daring to interrupt. Ruth took over looking after Daisy as Steve walked slowly across to the far wall.

“I think we’re all under control” Ruth said to the salesmen as Steve approached the nervous wreck

“Jasmine. Jasmine. Its ok. its just me, Steve. Ruth is with Daisy and they’re staying by the door”

He managed to touch her hand without any adverse reaction and slipped his fingers round to holding it 

“But she’s dead!” whispered Jasmine forcing herself back against the wall “At the meeting. Greg told me she was dead”

Steve gently urged her out of her corner and led her across the office. She backed as far away as she could from Daisy as they edged round and found the door.

“I’m taking Jasmine for a short break. Now Daisy, Ruth will stay with you and make sure you’re ok with the process”

Ruth nodded and went to sit next to Daisy’s desk.

She wasn’t quite sure what to say. Clearly this whole thing had been a bit of an ordeal for Daisy but Ruth had no way of knowing just how much, or how badly she’d been affected.

“After it all happened” she said trying to gauge what Daisy’s reaction was going to be “there was a meeting. But Steve wasn’t allowed to say much by the police and the meeting broke up in disarray. There’s a lot of confusion around”
 “Oh dear” replied Daisy “I feel I’m causing even more trouble now” 

“No you're not. And I’ll come to lunch with you”

“Is that so’s they don’t all stampede out of the café?” although inside she didn’t feel too upset as she found this reaction to be strangely inverted as she still considered herself to be the victim

“Ok. Lets just take a walk around the site and bump into as many people as we can just to show everyone you're still here”

But the first people they met outside were Steve and Jasmine 

“This isn’t your fault” he said “Its those coppers. All bound up in red tape in order to confine the truth”

Ruth and Daisy’s walk took till lunchtime as they stopped to talk to everyone they met. Daisy didn’t mention the event at all, and Ruth managed to steer the conversations away from it. She herself didn’t know what happened, but had been too busy with everything else to think much about it. And in any case, she had been actively trying to forget those early two days.

By mid-afternoon, Daisy was well established at her desk, beavering away at her new task of reversing the previous months’ work. Some of the codes she remembered as being familiar, which added to her confidence. And when she took account of the transfers that Ruth had made, the numbers seemed to add up. Steve had reintroduced Jasmine and apologies were exchanged all round.

Once again, it was beginning to go reasonably well and it started to feel as though the pressure might ease at last.

Now with the immediate panic under control Ruth brought Jasmine into the picture and helped Daisy to show her how the transfers were done. Some of them would take a few days to activate, but she now had growing confidence that a substantial sum could be recovered. 

This was leaving Ruth a bit clearer to set up Steve’s new regime. The company was already successful, so he didn’t want to degrade that, but there were areas where he wanted a few tweaks and changes. She sat down with him to devise his own series of meetings with the senior team, and thankfully there didn't seem to be too much distrust amongst the staff. 

Jasmine continued to retrieve the money and Daisy started on closing down the rogue accounts with enough confidence for Steve to drop her off at her house on his way home.

It was time for a huge sigh of relief and a few minutes thought for all the help someone had been who was having a special day tomorrow.

Birthdays are always an excuse to re-assess which random spot your unplanned life has got you to now. And Ruth felt very much that wherever it was that she was now, was not where she would ever have expected to be. She reflected on being a year older as she got dressed, swapping out one dress for another looking for something that was suitable for the office, but suitably special for the Blue Boar in the evening. Annabelle was sure to have planned something embarrassing, but that was all part of the scene they were in and having Annabelle as a best friend. Anyone who categorised all accountants as boring had clearly never met Annabelle.

And her own job with her CEO. Who could have predicted that? And the dreadful events that they were still recovering from. She’d said to Steve that she wanted to be at the centre of it all – whatever it was - and now she was. It was sensitive, exciting, secret, nerve-wracking, tragic, painful, invigorating and fun. She wanted to go to work, she wanted to work with Steve, she was looking forward to whatever today would throw at her and she felt secure that whatever happened, and even if she got it all wrong, Steve would look after her, and that made her smile.

All this procrastination made her later in to work. She wasn’t late, because she was still in before her contracted start time, like she was every day. Just that she wasn’t as early as most days. She hurried the last few steps up from the entrance hall and along to her office, in through her door and stopped dead. 

“Oh my goodness!” she gasped. She didn’t really have a best friend at work. She knew everyone, and some she’d count as friends rather than just colleagues, but she couldn’t immediately think who would have got in early enough to put up a happy birthday banner and put a large bouquet on her desk replacing the funds transfers papers and notes that she’d left there. There was also a birthday bottle-bag sparkling at the far end of her desk. That might give her a clue, but before she managed to get that far Steve crept up behind her with a cheery “happy birthday” followed quickly by an unexpected hug that spun her round and “What’s your current plan for lunch?”

What a delightful welcome! But, current plan? As if that might imply a change was imminent

“No plan, Steve. I haven’t planned anything”
 “Good. So lunch will be at 12 o’clock”

The morning flew by. There was still so much going on and quite apart from everything Steve wanted her to do, there were questions from Daisy and Jasmine and Tristan and Keith and Sally and……and random people popping in to say happy birthday.

It was early afternoon that Keith ambled mildly into Steve’s office.

“And to what do I owe this unexpected pleasure?” asked Steve

“Oh, just a number of random issues. How’s the Clarkes order?”

“Ready to roll, the kit’s all sitting in QA. When we get the order, we’ll release it and ship it.”

“Oh, very good. So I can tell them a delivery timescale of … a week?”

“Yes, And if they want it in a shorter time, that’s ok but tell them it’s a shorter timeframe for paying the bill”

“Point. So, tell me Steve, what’s this rebranding all about”

“Ahhh – I’m glad you asked that, because its absolutely nothing to do with me”

“But surely you have to sign it off?”

“Apparently not, Jamie signed it off and its in Greg’s budget. And I can only assume that you asked for it?”

“I should think not” retorted Keith indignantly

“So why are we doing it”

“Ahh Steve. That’s what I came to ask you” 

Keith sat down “Ruth, darling, any chance of a cup of tea for this ageing salesman?”

Tea, and coffee for Steve promptly arrived “Thanks, Ruth. Do you know any background to this rebranding? You’ve been through most of Jamie’s papers?”

“There’s almost nothing there. All I know about is the order confirmation that I showed you that I then postponed because we were still in the shadow of the Event and as far as I was aware we didn’t have any money”

“So that’s what’s rattled Greg’s cage over the last two weeks”

“You absolute star, Ruth!”

“I just hope he doesn’t find out it was me. He’s blaming you so far Steve”

“Well lets not disillusion him then, ok?” said Keith, continuing “because I think its bonkers. Why would we want to rebrand? All it will do is confuse our customers and maybe make our prospects suspicious”

“And” Steve added “waste 60 or 70 grand”

“The order was only for 50” corrected Ruth

“Yes, but its bound to go up from there. That’s far too round a number to be final”

“Well, let’s cancel it”

“If it was left to me. Keith, I’d can the whole lot of them”

“What? Marketing?”

“Yes. Its not as if we’re a retail operation. You already know where the prospects are”

“But we need some market presence”

“Yes, but its handled mainly by your guys anyway. No, I’d have someone dealing with external requests, such as, oh I don’t know, maybe a request from a school for a tour of the works to show sixth formers what manufacturing looks like, and produce a news-sheet for the employees, and buy us space at a trade show or two”

“Well Steve. Now you’re getting on my wavelength”

“There’s a couple of changes I want to make anyway. Maybe you and me and Jacqui can get together and agree these”

“I like the sound of that – It’ll help prevent anything too hasty”

“Not just that Keith, its got to be a team game” said Steve

“Yes, you said – like rugby maybe”

“Team game?...” cut in Ruth “…So far it seems more like an individual sport – like javelin maybe”

“Oh Ruth!” Steve gasped in surprise at the interjection and putting an arm around her shoulders “Sometimes you need to weed out the weaker players for the benefit of the rest of the team”

Steve was acutely aware that he had to avoid destabilising the company, and was equally aware that there was company money being wasted in all sorts of places. But now it was up to him to do something about it

“No Jacqui” he explained “its not that we need to cut costs. The finances are in good shape now that we’re getting the funds transferred back. Its simply that we shouldn’t be wasting money employing people who don’t add any value. That team has contributed absolutely zero to the bottom line over the last 18 months” 

“Keith?”

“We need some communications. And we should consider a couple of trade shows. But that hardly takes three people full time. I want to keep my guys as the primary information channel to the customer base. Its their excuse to keep their ear to the ground”

“Ok. I’ll get that process started. There is a protocol we should follow”

“And we don’t need Daisy in Finance” continued Steve “because she has no idea what she’s doing, and she has no interest in taking the accounting qualification exams”
 “But you can’t just let her go. Not after all she’s been through”

“One angle on it is that she caused the problem in the first place. She was the one who actually transferred the funds. And then she refused to tell us anything about it because she had promised confidentiality!”

“Oh, Steve that’s a bit harsh”

“Ok. Yes, it is. Actually, I think she would do quite well in Logistics. Terry is under serious pressure because of the increase in the number of suppliers. And he’s a risk. If he’s out for more than a day or two, we start to suffer in production. So, I want to put Cheryl in charge of Finance, with Jasmine and Lewis, but she’ll also need someone else – except not Daisy”

“And perhaps Jacqui, you could take that interview? I’m too close to her. She’d do anything I asked her to – following the Event”

“Really?” interjected Keith “Anything?”

“Oh yes Keith. Absolutely anything – even - move to Logistics” 

“And what of Marketing”

“Can it”

“All of it?”

“Its just that you want to get rid of Greg!”

“No, its not just that”

“That’s ok”
 “No, I want to get rid of Roxette as well”

“Steve! But we need something, don’t we?”

“Yes” said Keith “But Steve has a good handle on what we need

“But we can’t make the whole of Marketing redundant, and then have a new department spring up in its place. Its not quite within the rules”

“Well, we’ll just have find some different rules that are a bit more flexible”

Meanwhile, Ruth had finally made it as far as the Blue Boar only to find a repeat performance. There across the whole bar was a giant ‘Happy Birthday Ruth’ banner stretching all the way from one side of the bar right across the dancefloor to the soft seating at the far wall. There were balloons and ribbons and a reserved table with a few presents on it. 

No sooner had she sat down than an ice bucket with champagne arrived. The usual crew would be turning up soon, but Annabelle was already there and Ruth was able to relate the day’s events to her as more of a private conversation.

“Oh my!” she enthused “Steve had put up this huge banner, and a huge bouquet on my desk. Then he’d even got me a special present” she produced the specialist bottle of Finnish vodka from her handbag and Annabelle examined it 

“Never heard of it”
 “Nor me, but Steve is originally Norwegian, so I guess he knows about this stuff. Oh and Annabelle, we all went to lunch. Not just me and Steve, but the sales director and HR director as well. And Annabelle, nobody talked about work for the entire time. It was just three directors and me. And they’re all really nice people, although Steve is the nicest – by a long way”

“I’m sure you’re right. He’s put this champagne on the table too”

And while no-one had had too much to drink at lunch time, Ruth was able to rectify that fairly early that evening.

Jacqui’s interview with Daisy went rather well

“I’m not really cut out to be an accountant” Daisy said 

“I think we’re agreed on that” replied Jacqui “But you’re very organised, and good at keeping accurate records. And you can be confidential when you need to be. How do you feel about working with Terry in Logistics. I think that might play to your strengths”

“I’ve never thought about it. I’ll happily give it a go, Jacqui, but what does Steve want me to do”
 “Steve wants you to do something you think you’ll like and be good at”

That was easy, thought Steve as Jacqui reported her success, but there were so many more loose ends just floating around. He needed to get tasks associated with people so that he didn’t have to micro manage every little thing. Some managers liked it that way. That way they felt in control, but not Steve. His type of control involved telling people where they were expecting to get to and then meeting them there. How they got there was their business.

Late morning, Steve caught Heather’s arm as she was about to walk straight past him on her way back from the café. 

“I could talk to Greg about this” he opened “but I expect if anyone was to do this it would be you, so I thought I’d just cut out the middle man”

She stopped abruptly. She’d had very little to do with him and she knew Greg took a dim view of any of his staff being over-familiar or even just ordinary familiar with Steve. This meeting on the path would likely cause some friction if Greg became aware of it

“I wondered” he continued not acknowledging her startled rabbit expression “if anyone in Marketing was in any danger of producing a staff briefing on the recent events. Not so much a factual report, more an up-beat recovery announcement” 

“Its not on my agenda” 

“Maybe you could think about putting it on your agenda”

“I’d love to, but I’d need to get Greg to allocate the time”

“Ok, think about it. Maybe you could suggest it to him?”

It riled him, but it wasn’t her fault. She had her schedule and maybe he should talk to Greg. Not that he’d get any sense out of him. He was far too involved in trying to find unnecessary tasks for the consultancies he’d hired.

But Ruth could feel the tension in the air. Clearly it couldn’t last and with Steve now in control there were bound to be changes. The next call did nothing to calm her down and it was with a nervous voice that she transferred it to Steve

“A Sergeant Baker needs word with you…” she offered hesitantly.

“Ok. Bruce! Is this just an update call or have I been nicked for something?”

“Hi Steve. Just an update. The statements were sufficient for the inquest in addition to the police evidence, mainly me and PC Redmond, so that clears the moratorium on information. The press were there as well, so there’ll be headlines in the Gazette tomorrow, no doubt”
 “I’ll hide in a cave maybe!”

“Shouldn’t be that bad. The council have just released a plan to plough the bypass on through the Dell. That’ll attract all sorts of outrage and could reduce the heat on this”

“Hope so.”

“Are you and your team all right at your end. It was all pretty traumatic”

“Mainly. I think it will take some time for Daisy to recover, but she’s back at work. And Cheryl – she’s still a bit shaken. But that could just be me driving down he bypass”
 “Yeah, I said at the time its unlikely that any action would be taken on that. To be honest, its not worth the police time in trying to prosecute, given the circumstances”
 “Thanks Bruce. But I was passing the old airfield the other day. Looks like some guys have set up a sort of driving school there. Completely off road. I had a chat with them and they’re up for any ideas in addition to taking raw novices off the public highway. I gave them a few ideas for having things like dogs and children jump out from behind parked cars and how to make them reusable rather than smash them to bits. Anyhow, I said how about they just mark out a few traffic cones and run time trials for a sort of obstacle course. I said if they do that I wouldn’t mind having a go, so I’m going over on Saturday – if you want to join me. Its just a bit of fun and get to know your limits”

“There’s a thought. Might be useful to check it out for some of the force who’ve not been pursuit trained yet”

“I’m taking my daughter as well – if you wanted to bring someone along. She’s only 15, but I’ve every intension of letting her loose. She’s had a little experience off road in Australia”

“Count me in Steve. I’ll see if Beth wants to tag along”
 “Make it 10.30 and we’ll grab an early bite afterwards”

Bruce was obviously taking this seriously. He’d got there early with Beth and had already checked out the road layout for very-first-lesson-beginners from a professional point of view. But he also checked it from an urban layout perspective for officers before they go on their pursuit training which was always with other forces and therefore very competitive.

That was not the only thing that was competitive. Bruce had commandeered a Scorpio Cosworth just for the day to rival Steve’s BMW and Beth was buzzing just to be allowed to drive it. That was, nearly as buzzing as Genevieve

“Daddy, you’re not really going to let me loose on my own! What happens if I crash?”

“Crash, baby? Into what?” he waved his arm around “You’ve got half a mile in every direction before you hit something solid” 

She breathed a sigh of relief that maybe she was just being silly

“Unless” Bruce added “You manage to roll it”

The adrenalin was still pumping in the pub afterwards. There were no winners, and hence no losers, but three of them nominated Genevieve for trying hardest”

“Trying hardest?” she questioned

“Yes” confirmed Bruce “trying hardest to roll it”

First thing Monday morning, Bruce was back on the phone, but this time sounding serious

“Its not your Inspector asking how come you need 4 new tyres already?”

“No, Steve. I’m hoping you’ll help me. A couple of villains were arrested on Saturday morning. Trouble is they put me down as having assaulted them when they got to the station. They said I was on my way out at the time and gave them the boot in passing. I was hoping you might confirm my story to Inspector McKinley”

“Ok Bruce. No problem. What d’you want? A statement or do I need to talk to McKinley?”

“He’s got a lot of time for you Steve – keeping calm no matter what. Disarming the gunman and taking Daisy’s place, so just a chat will probably do. The arresting officers have already denied I was there but they can’t be a hundred percent sure because there was a load of guys leaving while they were coming in”
 “I’ve got another angle for you Bruce. You checked out the urban layout, yes?”
 “Yeah, before you got there”
 “Ok. They’ve got that circuit covered with CCTV so they can replay all the mistakes everyone makes when they get back. If you rock on down I’m sure they’ll let you have the tape. I’ll come along if you want some support”

It was all extra work for Steve, but it was something of a diversion and that refreshed his mind to concentrate better on his new job.

Ruth reflected on Steve’s proposed changes. Was it perhaps the start of something bigger? Was there more needed to set things up his way? He didn’t want to fundamentally change the company. It worked. It was successful. Steve was an engineer so ‘if it aint broke don’t fix it’. But he also needed to stamp his mark on it. Matt had already suggested some changes in Field Service and Steve was happy to go with them partly because he wanted to retain Matt’s support, partly because they sounded sensible and also partly because Keith liked them.

But he wanted to gain an immediate reputation for getting things done. Like Tristan, he saw no value in waiting once a decision had been made. 

Ruth looked nervous as she sat down opposite him 

“Reorganise?” she opened

“I don't think it's that serious, but there's a few things we need to sort out” 

“Reorganisations make me nervous. From the little I've seen of them there's always less people there than when you started” 

“Absolutely. But your only personal concern should be that you don't get out that easily” 

“Oh! That's all right then” 

“Actually, that's unfair. Ruth, you've been invaluable during the Event. You're really the only thing that’s kept me going through this. But it's only fair to ask you what you want to do now. I'm expecting that the company will settle down a bit now and get into a sort of steady state rather than this manic state of flux. So this is a good time to think about where you want to work. There's no lock on the door if you want to try something else instead? I could understand if you've had enough” 

“Steve, I don't know how to take all that. That’s the sort of approach you’d take if you wanted me to move on”

“That’s a bit harsh. I’m trying to give you every opportunity to tell me what you’d prefer”

“I though you knew that I'd rather stay here working with you…. if that's still an option. It's my ambition to be PA to the CEO.” 

“That's that settled then” he responded far too quickly 

“So what's next - so long as it's not more people leaving at short notice?” 

“We need a few weeks or preferably months of stability without too much excitement. But we've also got our bank balance back. So I think it's time to make some visible changes.” 

“You mean something that says 'Steve is now CEO'?” 

“Yes. Let's go for a walk” 

“Do I need a notebook?” 

“Yes, so long as it only takes one hand” 

“One hand, Steve?” 

“Yes, I want hold the other one” 

She shook her head as he led her back past the top of the stairs instead of going down to the ground floor and straight on into the old Finance meeting room. 

“Look out from here...” 

She stood beside him at the window not knowing what she was supposed to be looking for 

“.... From here you can see the gatehouse, the Production building, the HR building, the warehouse, the cafe, the river, the car park and if you try hard and bend your neck you can just see the maintenance building behind us. 

This room is never used. And without a finance director, its unlikely to be used. And we’ve also got an underused board room just along the corridor. It's central to the site and that is symbolic as central to the company. I think Jamie’s style was to appoint people to get on with everything that needed to be done, and then hide in a cupboard. The best I can say for that office of his is that it must have been quite cosy for him and Simone….”

She nodded in agreement, as he turned back towards her “….which could have its attractions”

But Ruth was still looking round. It was certainly larger and lighter than the one he had at the moment.
 But Jacqui had spotted them as she reached the top of the staircase

“Steve. You were looking for me earlier. I decided I could do with the walk”

“What do you think of this as the new CEO’s office?”

“Personally? Well I think it shouts CEO a whole lot more than that stingey cramped office of Jamie’s”

“I’m so pleased you said that! But what I was looking for you for, is that I happened to notice the stack of applications on Juliette’s desk. We know that there’s not many jobs around, so as soon as something gets advertised we get swamped. I was going to suggest that we reserve a space on the noticeboard in the café entrance for posting any vacancies we’ve got. We’d look for any internal candidate first – like - someone who was interested in moving from wherever they are in the company. It would expand internal career opportunities. Maybe a maintenance engineer who fancies moving to the field. If no-one’s interested, then we adapt it to ask for nominations. That is personal recommendations from existing staff. What that means is that someone who works here is putting their own neck on the line. And only if that fails, then we advertise in the Gazette. It would be cheaper for sure, but the main issue is that it would avoid all that effort in writing all those ‘no thankyou’ letters”

Jacqui noticed Ruth nodding approval and went into contemplation mode “I quite like that. It would save so much time. That’s actually one reason I needed a walk. There’s a huge backlog of those ‘no thankyou’ letters that we need to get out there”

“Oh that’s such a shame” said Ruth not quite sure if she was invited to this conversation “All of these people will have raised some hope and some will be hanging on to that – until their letter comes”

“Have a think about it Jacqui. Its your shout. But Luke over in maintenance will make any physical changes to the board if you need any”

“Thanks Steve. I’ll suggest it to Juliette and see what she says”
 “Yes, if she hates it, tell her it was my idea” said Steve as Jacqui turned to go

Ruth looked quizzical and not for the first time that day

“Is that so that she changes her mind, or so that Jacqui retains her credibility?”

“Both. Now, this would be your office, but there would be a connecting door here, and another door at the top of the stairs. So if you can get hold of the guys that did the partitioning in the maintenance building last year and get them to do that. Then we'll need some new furniture, desks, coffee table. And I think I need a fridge as well. Just for cool drinks to calm the temperature of my PA when she gets over teased. I'll draw a plan, then maybe you can get it all moving?” 

“I don't get over stressed!” she remonstrated 

“Not stressed, teased! Maybe not yet” 

“But you said it's all going to quieten down” 

“Yes, if should. But it might not be as much fun” 

She shook her head again. This was interesting. No finance director? Or just not yet until he'd commandeered his meeting room. 

“Come on” he said taking her by the hand again and heading downstairs and into the sunshine outside. 

“Morale in the company is ok. But I think it would improve if the site looked less like an HGV park. We should define the car parks and the walkways and the roadway more clearly. And put grass and curbs down to separate them” 

“What about putting some flower bushes in against the buildings. It would add a bit of colour and look nice” 

“Yes, maybe some trellises and climbing plants like roses or wisteria?”

“That kind of thing….”

“Yes, and get those stinging nettles out from the cafe area so that we can get down to the river more easily. Maybe have a grassy bank by the water that you can actually sit on if the sun comes out. And we need to get the whole site resurfaced. Road, car park, assembly apron. Get rid of all of those potholes that fill with muddy rain that then gets splashed everywhere when the next truck rolls in.” 

They walked on over to the maintenance building and past the workbenches 

“What are we looking for?” 

“Just looking at the space. There’s about half a plan to develop some new products. Apparently that’s one thing that Jamie was supposed to be doing. But we’d need the space and if we have to put up a new building it’s a different ball game with planning permission and a whole different scale of cost”.

Back in the office Steve poured more coffee.

“About the re-org” said Ruth “Jacqui was asking me if you were thinking of anything major. I think it was really just to prepare herself if you were”
 “No, Ruth. It works. There’s a bit of tweaking round the edges. I want to keep Tristan reporting to me, and you of course rather than through HR. What I don’t know is who Penny should report to. It was, and still is I guess, Finance - and that means Cherry, but that’s not right. I suspect Production would be a better bet simply because she’s in their building. Need to talk to Heather sometime soon. I want to know if she’s had any more thoughts about a staff communication about recovering the funds. But also, all this maintenance type work needed on buildings, especially over in the workshops. It's all the sort of thing that if it was at home, you'd just get on and do it. Do you think there's an appetite amongst the staff, maybe in Production, for doing that kind of thing for a little extra pay?” 

“I would expect so. You mean, cleaning and painting and stuff like that” 

“Yes, to get the maintenance building back into a habitable state.” 

“And moving offices as well? Can you try to put a few words together that would go up on the notice board and then can you have a word with Jacqui. See if she’s got any rules covering this sort of thing. You’ve got more patience with her regulations than I have”

But Steve had only just started with his plans. There ought to be predefined flows throughout the company. Like the one from Sales through Production to delivery and Field Service that he set up last year. And the same principle should apply when something important happens. Someone should be responsible for making sure the whole staff knows about it rather than him getting Ruth to turn his draft into something usable.

Ruth found herself in his office almost before she got her coat off as she fumbled it onto a peg.

“If its nice weather again tomorrow, maybe you could leave your coat at home. It would mean you could start work sooner after you get here”

She spun round in astonishment, but only to see a Cheshire cat grin

“You could make the coffee before I got in. That would save time too!” she retorted. 

He got up from his desk and poured her a cup, splash of milk no sugar and silently presented it to her

“Ok. This is what I want to do in the organisation. We didn’t get around to that yesterday. I need to go through this with Jacqui in case she’s got some rule or regulation about this that I don’t know about. But this is what I want to do. No recruitment for a financial director. I don't think we need someone on that level to count beans. No marketing, that’s Keith's job. But can you ask him and Sally if they've got the admin capacity to handle it. Not that I want you to volunteer to help out. I just want to add that in to the plan if its needed.”

“Ok Steve, So apart from building a new office, canning Marketing, halving Finance, thinking about a new product range, refurbishing the maintenance building and giving the entire site a cosmetic facelift there’s no real changes to the organisation?”

“Exactly”

Thursday’s task involved Marketing and Greg was first. Steve never found it easy to let people go, but in this case he was going to make an exception. Greg was a pain. He was on a completely different plane to Steve and they clashed on everything. How could anyone achieve so little for the company and still expect to remain employed? Steve even got to thinking that the only way to get Greg to do anything sensible was to claim that the exact opposite was his preferred option. Steve had leaked a rumour out through Penny that the Marketing Department was on a short fuse and Steve’s covert information was that few people were surprised. The writing was on the wall the moment Steve took over as CEO said Penny confidentially so Heather and Roxette should have been forewarned. The only person that seemed to not know going into his meeting with Steve was Greg himself….

“The point is Greg, we don’t need a Marketing function in the way you envisage it in this company. Our market presence is significant enough and we’re in touch with as many new prospects as we can handle”

“But expansion is key”

“Yes, in a controlled manner. We don’t need, and quite frankly can’t afford external consultants telling us which market sector to expand into”

“Well there’s not much left, is there” attacked Greg “You postponed my rebranding and now Keith’s cancelled it. And now you’re cancelling my contractors”

“Not quite, Greg. What I’m doing is closing the entire Marketing Department. It’s a function that isn’t needed. And that means, you and your team will be leaving us”

“I guess I should’ve been expecting that. At least since you took over”

“Greg, I think the writing has been on the wall for some time. However, as a senior man I will be expecting you to leave immediately. But you must understand that it is the function we don’t need and that is being terminated. I also appreciate that while you may have been looking for alternative employment already, jobs in this area are not plentiful. I have therefore agreed with my senior colleagues that your redundancy pay should be six months. I have also agreed that you should keep your company car for those six months, although we don’t expect to be picking up any expenses as you will not be making any trips on company business”

“Six months, Steve?”

“Yes, I think that will reduce the impact on your family as far as we reasonably can, while you get yourself sorted out. There are many companies that need your kind of expertise, particularly in the retail sector. Unfortunately, we’re not one of them”

Which all sounded generous, given the circumstances.

Steve handed him a large envelope and Greg removed the contents as Steve commentated “Ok, there’s your cheque. Yes, its drawn on the Production account. We can’t get access to the others right now. There’s your P45 and other documents, and I’ve included a Letter of Reference”. 

Greg scanned it quickly “That’s very kind of you. I guess I get fifteen minutes to collect my personal things. What about my team?”

“Jacqui is talking to your team right about now. Greg, I wish you every success”

Ruth slipped back in as he was leaving

“That all sounded quite amicable, And very generous”

“Ruth, we have to give guys like that the best possible opportunity to succeed when they leave”

“Why?”

“Otherwise they might come back”

Jacqui’s similar chat with Roxette was less formal and more downbeat

“No, Jacqui. I’ve no idea what I’ll do now. Might bum my way down to New Zealand. I got my sister down there. Then maybe think what to do next. Whatever”

Roxette, left with her head bowed and nowhere to go. She said so long to Heather who was already in a panic and trying hard not to hyperventilate. 

She was a few years older and a rather insular character who had suffered from being overshadowed to a great extent by the domineering Greg, and the artistically flighty Roxette, and now felt she was caught up in this without it being any of her own making. Except, she conceded to herself, she hadn’t done anything to prevent it. 

But Steve hadn’t given her any warning of this when they’d had their short discussion about a staff communication only a few days ago. That was disappointing. No, she didn’t know him, but it didn’t quite confirm his reputation.

She took a deep breath as Jacqui approached her. Jacqui had already made a brief general announcement to her and Roxette so her expectations were set. Jacqui looked at her watch. Ten to twelve. Just in time! 

“Heather.”

She bowed her head and moved forward as though it were her turn at the gallows.

“Heather. As you would expect, I have an envelope for you with regard to the necessary redundancies due to the closure of the department”

“But its addressed to Steve?” as she took hold of it

“Yes” agreed Jacqui with some frustration “I’m not sure about the regulations regarding this, but then, Steve has no real regard for regulations anyway. All I can say is that you should take this to Steve straight away. Without delay”

“Whyever?”

“Heather, I am not the best person to ask, I’m afraid. But it is important that you do not open the envelope that is inside there, even if you are tempted to. Maybe things will all work out right. Now please. Go and see Steve”

Heather climbed the staircase without thinking and then realised she didn’t know which room was his.

Rescued by Ruth, she was still in something of a daze as she found herself at Steve’s desk.

“Ah Heather. Perfect timing from Jacqui. Do sit down. Coffee?”

She handed him the envelope. 

“You do know what this is, don’t you?” he asked as he opened it to reveal another envelope, but this time with Heather’s name on it.

She nodded, partly in confusion, but said nothing. 

“I am obliged under the regulations, to give this to you”

She looked over at him registering the phraseology 

“However, I suggest you do not open it. At least not yet. Additionally, I would suggest that you do not leave this room. That way we can claim that discussions are on-going, and can therefore overrun the official timescale which is 12 noon.

So Heather, How did you like working in Marketing?”

This took her rather by surprise. This was unexpected 

“It… It…. It was a job, although it wasn’t what I expected when I joined”

“And what about the company. How does it compare to previous places you’ve worked?”

“Company’s great. The people are great.” 

“So, why did you join Marketing if it wasn’t what you wanted?”

“I didn’t know that at the time. This is all consultants and high level and I don’t know how many times we’ve redesigned the rebranding project. Mr Bergstrom, we never seemed to achieve anything. Its no real surprise that you’ve shut it down. Although I’ve no idea what I’ll do now. But of course you don’t want to know about that”

“On the contrary, Heather. I’d actually be very interested indeed in what sort of operation you would have preferred, or maybe that should be, what sort of thing are you looking for next?”

Heather perked up a little. This seemed to be more of a lunchtime chat than a redundancy interview and even if the same result was anticipated, at least the conversation was amiably easy 

“Maybe I just got the terminology wrong, but I was more expecting maybe producing a quarterly magazine to be sent to our customers, and answering general corporate questions that weren't directly sales. Press releases. That sort of thing.” 

“Would that be more, Communications?” 

“I suppose so. But I still thought it would be covered by Marketing. I don't think you get Communications Departments, do you?” 

“Maybe not, I don't think I've come across one, at least, not yet. But I expect that the largest corporations have one. So is that the sort of thing you'd like to move into?” 

“Yes. It's hands on. It's achieving something, it's making a contribution. I think everyone benefits if everyone knows what’s going on. It improves confidence all round” 

“Ok. So its now gone 12 o’clock and the Marketing Department is now officially closed. However, I've still got your envelope and of course you can have it any time you like as part of the ongoing discussions. However now that Marketing is closed I am in a position to discuss something that you may be interested in”

She looked at him blankly. This was all very strange. What was so complicated about giving her the pre-prepared envelope and saying goodbye?

Ruth slipped silently in through the door 

“Sorry for the interruption Heather. Steve, this is the paper you need for Heather that Jacqui wouldn’t let me give you before midday”

He separated the two A4 sheets and held one out to her

 “I could read this to you, but I'm sure you can better read it for yourself. Just in case you’re interested”

Even more bizarre, until she scanned it. TRE headed paper. Neatly typed. She read the heading, and glanced up at Steve, then she read the heading again, this time out loud 

“Job description - Communications Officer 

Responsibilities include but are not limited to

Production of monthly internal communications briefing for all staff

Production of bi annual newsletter for distribution to customers 

Responding to external requests for general information 

Organisation and setup of corporate presence at major trade exhibitions 

Responsible for press releases and interface with media on all corporate issues” 

Her voice had risen with excitement as she completed the list 

“Mr Bergstrom, are you serious? Is this here? Where do I apply? “

She continued down the page 

“Candidates must be self starters, self reliant and confident talking at all levels of engagement 

Must have excellent verbal and written English and a penchant for authoring short articles. Oh wow!

Mr Bergstrom, this is exactly what I was hoping marketing would be” 

“So, would you agree that I was right to interrupt your acceptance of your redundancy package, because if you want it, you must take it before we leave the room as part of the ongoing discussions?” 

“No! Thankyou. Not if I can actually apply for this? I haven't seen it advertised at all” 

“No, I guess, technically, you can’t apply. Because I was hoping not to post it at all. You see. I’d rather just ask you if you want the job” 

She was suddenly speechless. She hadn’t seen any of this coming. When she’d really thought about it she was expecting there to be major changes to the department and she was right. But when Jacqui had announced the department closure she had blindly assumed that she’d be out the door too. And now this, with the smiling Steve innocently and patiently waiting for an answer to a very straightforward question and she was sitting there like a zombie and this is why he hadn’t mentioned it when they met on the path

“Oh My!” she blurted out “I can even put some of my degree in journalism to good use”

“Degree in journalism!” repeated Steve giving it unexpected emphasis Yes, of course she have. That’s key. He picked up the phone

“Excuse me a minute Heather. Ruth, can you update that job description to say that a degree in journalism is mandatory for our Communications Officer post. And make sure that Jacqui gets a copy. Thanks babe”

That's what I needed. That's the big thing that would have prevented Roxette and Greg applying. Sorted. That will mean Jacqui can stay within the limits of her protocol and regulations.

“Ok, Heather, the choice is yours. The Marketing Department is closed as of 12 noon today. However. I’m offering you the job of Communications Officer which reports directly to me. You can accept that offer, and Ruth will return this envelope to HR for destruction, or you can take the envelope and leave the company. That is the choice, and it's all up to you, although if it is of any consequence I think you know where I stand on the issue. You can think about it overnight if you want to. Maybe you need to discuss it with someone?” 

“No, I mean yes. Yes, take the envelope back to Jacqui, although there's no information on salary and benefits here? “ 

“No, that’s because, if I had posted it, I didn't want anyone applying just because of the salary, or in fact, not applying because it wasn't high enough. I need the right person for the job. And I think its you”

Ruth interrupted again

“Sorry Steve, but we ought to run through the agenda before the others arrive”

“Yes Ruth. Sorry Heather. Just the day to day issues of a maxed out schedule. But think about it please, and maybe we can have a more detailed discussion tomorrow to get you started”

“That's ok. I'm sure we can discuss the details then”

“So you want the job?”

“Yes!”

“Just keep saying yes Heather, and you'll be fine” 

“Is it within the regulations to kiss the CEO?”

“Yes”

Next morning, she got in early. Unusual for her, but as a gardener, her husband was always up at crack of dawn. He was eager to get started and was outside in all weathers with an enviable enthusiasm. Her fall-back position would be to do the admin for his three man company, but they had both decided some time ago that it would be better if they had diverse careers rather than work and live together 24-7.

But now she felt the vestige of enthusiasm herself. No more Greg – bonus. Staff communications – bonus. Articles for the press – bonus. Interview senior management! The more she thought about all this the more she wanted to just get in there and get started. And bumped straight in to Ruth at the gatehouse

“Do you always get in this early?” she asked by way of conversation, although she hardly knew her. In fact, she realised, she hardly knew anyone despite having been at the site for 4 years.

“No” I’m late today “I missed my bus. Maybe it was early or perhaps my watch is running slow”

Heather felt deflated. Somehow she was expecting to be the first person on site at that time in the morning, but instead there were people milling around, mainly in the direction of the cafe where the sweet aroma of bacon buttie seemed to be attracting a large audience. But this hardly lasted long.

“Steve has some time between 10 and 12 today, if you needed to continue your conversation I could book something for you” said Ruth helpfully. 

Heather thought about it quickly. Later would be better. By then she could even have a first draft or at least some ideas together. But that was kind of Ruth to think about it.

“Ok. Have you made a decision?” opened Steve almost before she sat down

“Yes. And the answer is Yes. And I’ve put together a few ideas on format and content for the first monthly briefing, if you have a few minutes”

The meeting with Heather went rather well. Nothing was planned on communications but she’d already created a rough draft just to indicate the direction she was taking. Steve listened attentively.

He’d never paid much attention to her. She was seldom well dressed, but looked elegant when she bothered and it had been her body language rather than her words that had said more about working for Greg in Marketing. 

“Can we discuss that in just a minute or two? I’ve updated the job spec to include the bit I wanted on degree level qualifications and I’ve added the section on salary and benefits. I’ve also had another look at your file, Heather, and your old salary wasn’t as high as I expected it to be so you may find this more of an incentive than I had originally presumed”

She looked at the revised paper. It didn’t seem to have changed except where he’d described

“Wow! I just hope it doesn’t set the bar too much higher than I was expecting!”

“It’s a very responsible position, Heather. I’m not expecting to proof read everything before its distributed”

She bit her bottom lip, suddenly nervous

“But don’t worry, I won’t leave you on your own either and I am here to help. The other thing I want you to think about is your office. I don’t mean to be mean, but I want to commandeer the ex-marketing office to consolidate the finance team. I think you should still base yourself somewhere here in the Old Building, but there’s plenty of space. Jamie’s old office is available. Mine will be available shortly, which is slightly larger. Or there’s the small Sales meeting room, but I don’t think you should be looking to knock any walls down especially if they’re structural. You might like to consider where you’d conduct interviews if the need arises, with Matt for instance or with the press. You might like to consider Richard’s old office”

This was altogether something else, but the very least she would have her own dedicated space. And if she planned it right, her own dedicated meeting room. Now that was a change from working worthlessly for Greg and his unnecessarily and impossibly adventurous pipe dreams.

Steve kept her talking for an extra half hour, and discovered that her husband ran a small gardening and grounds maintenance business.

Steve outlined his ideas including constructing a bridge over the river to access the meadow at the other side. It was reserved as a sacrificial flood plain to protect the site, but Steve’s angle was that that didn’t mean it couldn’t be used on the 364 days in the year that it wasn’t flooded. Sheep permitting.

She suggested that he’d be happy to take a look and at least put in a competitive bid. It was, Steve said, important that whoever did the work had some of their own ideas and wasn’t too inflexible because he only had an outline plan rather than cast iron detail.

“One last thing for today, Heather. Can you think about image? I expect that on many occasions you will be the external face of the company and your office at least ought to reflect that”

Now in her new capacity she seemed much more alert, more alive maybe?

Maybe it was all about being in a job she wanted, a job she was looking forward to liking and a job she thought she could do well.

Steve was slightly late back to his office for his next meeting with her. She was waiting for him with her first internal communication. It was quite short and designed to be posted on the noticeboard. The idea was to issue a statement that said that it was almost certain that a very high percentage of the missing funds would be transferred back into accessible accounts. And that would hopefully close down the Event.

“I think you should include something about Daisy moving to Logistics, just to indicate she’s still alive. Maybe you could disguise that in amongst a bit about Greg and Roxette leaving. And can you talk to Matt about what he’d like to say about his changes in Field Service. Maybe you could write that like an interview”

“Don’t you think that if we do all that, we’d need to distribute it rather than just post it on the board?”
 “Yes, if you like”
 “When do you want to review it?”

“I’m not sure I do”

“I’d rather you did. I mean, I did hear what you said, but this is the first one and we don’t want to risk getting off on the wrong foot”

But Steve had no doubt about her getting off on the wrong foot. She was enthusiastic bordering on bubbly. She was full of ideas and could sensibly articulate them, he’d looked at the plans she had for her office suite which was suitably opulent. And she’d clearly bought a new dress.

And that was another piece of the puzzle sorted

Bonuses Cheryl?

Now that they were confident about accessing the accounts, Steve regulated the rate of transfers so long as the company had sufficient working capital. He didn’t want to arouse suspicion from any of the financial regulators by making single large transfers although Jasmine now had a steady stream of cash flowing back into the company and Keith and Matt were keeping the customer base under control. Gerry had his finger well and truly on the button of Production but none of this could have prepared Steve for his next meeting with Cheryl. Ruth placed the coffee tray on the informal table and retired to take stock and try to get a handle on just where on this roller-coaster they now were.

Cheryl had drifted into his office on time, but with a distant look in her eyes as if something was spinning round in her head so fast that it was draining her concentration. 

“Bonuses” she said before she even sat down. He hadn’t decided what the best structure for the finance department was. One thing he didn’t want was an all-powerful Finance Director. He wasn’t a control freak, it was more once bitten twice shy and Cheryl had simply drifted de-facto into the position of head of finance, and at least random one word comments served to set the scene.

“Bonuses, Cherry?” 

“Yes. I've taken advice from an expert at the National Association and resubmitting our annual accounts to Companies House following the Event is not the best plan. We need to keep them as they were because that was the information that was available regarding our position at the time. There's nothing in there about how the money was spent, only the summary figures that indicate it was. And if we try to change it now it will open a whole can of worms and we’ll almost certainly incur a hefty fine for misreporting” 

“So that sounds to me like we don't need to take any action at all” 

“No, because there are two complications. One is finding a believable excuse for suddenly being quite so liquid this year, because posting such a large loss back in April gave us a significant tax advantage and the second is the bonuses. Especially the senior team.” 

Steve looked bemused. So far he couldn’t see the problem. The much improved results for this year would result in much improved bonuses for everyone and the system would correct itself. However, Cheryl seemed intent on continuing

“There's the ones that get paid at the end of our financial year depending on results at the end of the tax year. They weren’t paid because the bottom line figure of money in the bank showed us to have nothing at all, but if the money hadn't been stolen we'd have made a good profit and these bonuses would have been paid. So there are guys out there who have missed out big time through no fault of their own. And it now appears that the money was there. It just wasn't in an account we could easily access” 

“Sounds like you're suggesting that we go back and revisit the figures, and retrospectively pay bonus based on the numbers that should have been in our bank” 

“Yes, I think that's where I'm getting to”                                                           

“I think you're over complicating it. We paid out based on the money in the bank. That was audited. If you change that, your new numbers will contradict our annual return. Can’t we just look at the numbers at the end of this year and pay bonuses based on that. It should be significantly better than last year because we've had such a major cash injection, and then the figures will be consistent. So for staff, we’re simply expecting the bonus to be exceptionally good this year” 

“Hmmm. Can I think about that?” she responded. As an accountant, this solution seemed far too simple.

“Of course. Up until the end of the year!” 

“Good. But then there's two other bonuses to consider. Matt’s, and what I’m presuming is yours” 

“Mine?” 

“Yes. A number of years ago, Jamie introduced a system to encourage longer term thinking and prevent short term decisions. That included bonuses being paid two, and even three years in arrears. So using your principle that last year end stays as it was reported, and therefore ignoring the fact the funds were stolen and then returned, the stark fact jumps out that last year was incredibly lean, but now this year is incredibly good. So yours and Matt’s bonus this year will reflect that, which is good for you and that effectively corrects itself. But there's also a historic bonus which would have been paid to Jamie. Clearly he isn't around, but the rules as he wrote them dictate it should be paid to whoever is in the post at the time instead. This was introduced to encourage people to stay longer and not just make some short term decisions, make a fast buck and shuffle off. So, you don’t get the Production bonus from two years ago because you’re here rather than there and Gerry will get that. But then there's the MDs bonus, which is you. I know you decided to be called CEO, but it's the same position, and that's where the problem is” 

“So you're saying that it's me that's the problem” 

“Yes” 

“Have you only recently discovered that the problem with this company is me?” 

Cherry laughed “That, Steve, could not be farther from the truth. However, Jamie, God rest his soul, had accumulated a significant roll-up bonus. Clearly he's not here, and so it transfers to whoever is in the position, and thats you. Now I know you said we should repatriate as much as possible back into the main company accounts and expand the investment fund, but that gives us an issue with the Companies House report. And what we don't need is CH snooping around asking questions.” 

“That's true, but why would they?” 

“Because the number is significant enough to be reported separately, and it would have to go into one of these boxes on the form that no one ever uses. And that’s obscure enough for someone their end to pick it up” 

“Ok, so what do you suggest?” 

“The simple solution is that it gets paid directly to you. That way it only gets annotated by a comment that says paid to CEO in accordance with schedule 5 of the senior team engagement policy” 

“Surely you'd need agreement from the board?” 

“No, it could go to the senior team meeting, but there's no point because the policy is quite clear and I've already canvassed Jacqui and Keith, and at a board meeting it would have to be minuted and that defeats the objective” 

“It doesn't sound right. I don't deserve all that” 

“I think you'll find dissent in the ranks on that one.” 

“But I can't take that bonus!” 

“Well, it gives me another major accounting problem of you don't. It's already been accrued, and I'd have to find a way of absorbing it back into the figures. And that would look suspicious and the last thing we need is to draw attention to the state of our accounting. But I’m only trying to implement the policy as it is currently written. With any other solution I’d have to explain why I’m making up my own rules on this” 

Cheryl left in marginally more confusion than when she arrived 

“What was that all about!” Asked Ruth 

“Bonuses” 

“Oh. But that reminds me, can we have a chat about my salary sometime please” 

“Salary? I thought you enjoyed it here so much you didn't need paid as well”

That evening he got back home just ahead of Geneviève. She looked whacked 

“Oh, daddy. Piano was murderous! Howard is going away on holiday and I think he was trying to get through next week’s lesson as well. I was looking forward to trying my new set piece by Finzi tonight, and now I’m not so sure. Maybe after dinner” 

“Ok, in that case I think we should go out for dinner. That will save us cooking and washing up, and it will give us a chance for a discussion”, 

“Any one in particular?” 

“Yes, I want to know what you think about buying a house” 

Steve continued the theme as they sat down in the Old Mill. 

“We've rented houses up till now so that I was flexible in being able to move for work. But I'm looking to stay at Three Rivers for a while. And I think you could do with some stability at school as you start your exam years. And I seem to have acquired a substantial bonus that I wasn’t expecting.  So I thought that buying somewhere would give us a more permanent base” 

“Yes please. I'd like that. Especially if it was a bit bigger. It's difficult to invite friends round when there's only room for three people in the living room.” 

“So, we need to consider what we want. What you want. And then I can contact a few agents and see what's available that meets the criteria” 

After scouring the many details sheets and driving interminably around the likely areas, the best that came out of the new house hunt was that they’d found four more good pubs. But not to be disheartened, they viewed them instead, and then looked at a couple of houses as well, and that helped crystallise the requirements. Like it shouldn't back directly onto the gas works, or be sandwiched between the bypass and the railway. 

But Steve was fairly quickly losing patience with the agents. The issue seemed to be that the specification that they’d come up with far exceeded the spec of the houses they were being offered, and despite the market being depressed they needed to re-focus on a higher price bracket. As before, the agent was helpful, even if rather disappointed, but pointed them in the direction of their sister division which specialised in more exclusive property. Almost miraculously the whole picture improved and Geneviève found herself mulling through six page brochures for 9 bedroomed mansions in need of modernisation. 

“Do you think, daddy, that if I dressed up and wore a little makeup, I could pass for, maybe, 23?” 

“I expect so, but you only need to make 18 to get served” 

“No, I was thinking I might go and take a look round some of these houses after school while you're still at work. That way I'd get a better idea of what's out there and be able to balance what we need against what we can afford” 

“Try it! You should be able to bluff it. And if anyone challenges you, just look indignant, and if that fails, walk out” 

But as it happened the estate agents were more than pleased to be able to show anyone round. She got the impression that they would happily have taken an eight year old three legged cat just to get out of the office and delude themselves that there was anything resembling life in the property market. 

Steve had set a top budget, but she soon realised that there were sellers out there who would seriously consider any offer even if it was 20 or 30 percent lower than the asking price and Geneviève’s budget suddenly jumped to scary heights. Not that she wanted to sign anything, or make any binding commitments and she knew she'd feel bad if she misled the agents or the sellers too far from reality. 

Evening discussion was around the day’s new batch. She explained why she had rejected some out of hand, and why others were still in the running, and also a few that looked amazing, primarily because they were so far out of budget. 

Steve also said that with this new job, he would need to have a decent sized living room for entertaining, and a larger dining room, and a properly equipped kitchen, and Geneviève was hardly disagreeing with any of it. What she wanted was a large bedroom indulgently with an en-suite and enough space somewhere for the grand piano she aspired to getting someday. And there were even a few properties that would provide all of this inside her revised budget.

Steve had already warned Ruth that he would be contacting a number of estate agents. The economic downturn had depressed house prices and estate agents equally, and she was hardly looking forward to fending off another barrage of calls all charged with false hope. 

But it hardly mattered, she had so many things on her mind already because this was a big day, Ruth had reminded herself as she was getting ready for work – As if every other day wasn’t! 

It was new office day. The work had flown by. It was quite amazing at how much experience these guys from Production had at building. She’d put up her advertisement for people to move the furniture and clean and redecorate the maintenance building, and all of a sudden she had volunteers stopping her on her way through the Production building to tell her not to waste company money on builders to partition Steve’s new office when there were so many perfectly capable volunteers working on the Production lines. And capable they had been. Stud walls, doorways, carpet laying, plastering, decorating and every other thing that was needed with hardly any organisation at all – just point them in the direction of what the finished project looks like and magic! Its all done.

And now it was time to move in. 

Steve seemed to settle in almost immediately, but the new environment was quite different for her. There was a lot of glass in the new office walls, but her office was quite distinct and separate from his rather than the casually shared space they’d had while using his or Jamie’s office. Still, he seemed intent on keeping his door open so that they weren’t completely isolated. Maybe that was the reason for the door between her and the landing, and now the design started to make sense. But then, she had heaps of work to get on with without being involved in every little thing that Steve did as well.

Matt was due to see Steve that afternoon so she only really had the morning to get everything set up and organised. Especially the coffee machine and the drinks chiller. Ruth knew this was important. Sure, Matt worked for Steve now, but respect was not guaranteed from a veteran like Matt. It had to be earned. She’d taken some extra effort on her appearance to support him, even though she hardly expected Matt to notice. It just made her feel that she’d done something to help.

He was exactly on time, although he’d probably stayed lurking in Production after popping in to say hi.

“Hello Ruth. Do you always come into the office looking like that, or are you especially dressed up for something today?”
 “Thanks Matt. Its because I knew you were coming” 

But he didn’t believe her

Not the First Time

Matt had developed the habit of staying away from Head Office. His Field Service operation ran remarkably well and he usually managed to find an excuse for avoiding most of the meetings except for the monthly Board. This last few weeks had seen him in more meetings than the previous six months, but then, the Event was rather exceptional.

Now with Steve heading up the show, and being his new boss, he felt inclined to show up a bit more, and then later on he could back off to normal working. Or maybe he would make it down to head office a bit more often if some of his ideas were going to be considered and he felt he would be making a recognised contribution in a more integrated team.

He’d heard that Steve had a new office and Penny on reception had made sure he knew where he was going. And now in the new suite, he stood looking out through the window surveying the site.

“What do you think?” Steve opened

“I like it. Its just what you need. Keith was always so embarrassed by that cupboard Jamie used to call an office. This is central to the site. Symbolic for central to the company?”

“That’s right. But also what I want to do is set the direction for the next few years. I want a new product range and I want to get this site looking neat and tidy”
 “What you want is to stamp your badge without upsetting the existing applecart”
 “Yes, but our product line won’t last forever, even with cosmetic changes. And I’m looking for expansion as well. From where I’m sitting now, I can see we’ve got the funds….”
 “….you mean, what’s left of the funds after you refurbished this place”

“Not so much, Matt. Most of the work was done by our current staff. Volunteers being paid overtime rates to come in on days off, evenings and the weekend. They boosted their pay packet, and it cost a fraction of what a contractor would charge. It also boosted morale through increased involvement and they all bowled on down the Frogs afterwards, and that’s good too”

Matt sat down at the table looking out towards the main entrance while nodding approval

“So you’ve put the Event behind you and moved on. That was quick!”

“I’d rather give everyone something else to think about”
 “Well, you wasted no time in making the changes everyone knew were coming. Jamie would never have done that. He just didn’t think that way”

“I think the Event changed the way quite a few people think”

“Yeah. Of course. But Steve, it's not the first time this had happened. Jamie's predecessor transferred huge amounts of money into offshore funds. Then he reported the financial position based on what was left in the bank. The results were less than quietly published. Well! City analysts pounced on it cat on mouse. The share price plummeted, not helped by various statements that were released forecasting doom and gloom. Over the next few days and weeks he quietly bought as many shares as he could with the offshore funds without being noticed and rather quickly became the largest shareholder after the internal transfers between the shell companies. Over the next two years he bought all the remaining stock. Some strong arm tactics were used too. Like, being the largest shareholder, any hint of dividend was vetoed, and that persuaded a lot of investors to bail out. And it's because of that, that this company is self-determining. There are no shareholders left. The company owns all the shares itself. Very good move, if somewhat dubious. It means we can run the company the way we choose without a corporate pension fund advisor telling you what's best.”

Conventional?

Now with tacit approval from Matt for his plans, Steve was in the middle of creating an outline concept for a new range of products when Ruth passed the call through. The caller had an Australian accent and could Steve meet him with the offer of lunch as well to discuss a property that he was selling. Steve listened to the description becoming more interested as the call continued. He tried not to give too much away, but although the house sounded like it would be perfect – if a little large and was seriously under-priced, it was still well outside his budget. 

But the Australian introduced himself purely as Previn and expanded the description including the amount of land – the garden, huge lawn, the woods that surrounded it….  Steve reiterated that it was way outside his budget and let slip an indication of what he could stretch to so that Previn would appreciate that fact. But the Aussie was undeterred saying he was not an agent, that it was his house and that he was sure he could put a deal on the table that Steve could not refuse. He tried to think what angle the Aussie had on this. It sounded too good to be true, and that was very suspicious. But then, there may be a simple explanation and there was only one way to find out.

Lunch was nothing special. Just a sandwich and a pint and the Aussie sounded genuine. But then Steve reminded himself, conmen always did. He said he knew Steve through his recent reputation as CEO of one of the bigger employers in the area and was looking to his honesty and integrity as something of a last resort. The deal, he said, was what the Americans would call a fire sale. He was looking to get what he could for all his UK assets, and reminded Steve that anything is only worth what someone else is prepared to pay for it. However, he was also looking for Steve to provide some services to him, particularly in the shape of handling both sides of the transaction as he, Previn, would be shortly leaving the country. He suggested that he would cede control of the house way before he got any money and that he was prepared to make the house available at an almost give away price just inside what Steve had said was his top budget. This was hardly normal, but Steve quizzed him on the motives and details to weigh up the risks. He allowed himself a minor diversion into thinking what life might be like living there and, considering the price that Previn had put on the table and that no money would change hands before the formal exchange of contracts, Steve provisionally agreed with the proposition pending his farther serious consideration.

Previn then explained that he was not sure how long he would be able to stay in the country due to business imperatives, not to mention a complex international tax position, but it hardly mattered he said, so long as the sale continued to go through. Previn seemed totally up-front. The trouble, he’d said, with estate agents is that they want to involve lawyers and lawyers want to hold large amounts of your money in accounts that they, not you, have access to. And his issue with that was that the UK Inland Revenue might take an over-zealous interest which he might find detrimental. Plus they cost so much.

It was a huge amount of money. More than Steve had ever spent. More than he could afford to lose by a vast margin. But he’d only agreed to part with the cash in return for the property and he hadn’t signed anything. If anything happened to that side of it – no payment. The deal was all on trust and Steve was hoping that flattery did not get the better of him. Previn gave him the details of a numbered Swiss account that funds should be paid into when Steve was happy with the paperwork and got up to leave with a handshake and a broad grin. 

Think about it Steve. You know if something looks too good to be true, then it probably is. But this is different. This is just a once in a lifetime opportunity. 

He called Steve the following Tuesday sounding international and up-beat. He said he was busier than ever, but was hoping that Steve would give him some good news. Steve explained that in view of the amount of money involved he was just checking a few points that should be resolved that week. He was nervous that Previn might take this as a sign that he didn’t trust him, but Previn was all for it.

“Steve, the deal is genuine – check all you like but I need an answer by Monday if at all possible.

Steve was reluctant to discuss it fully with Geneviève. He didn’t want her to get too excited about it and then it all disappear, but admitted that he’d had some discussions about a property that wasn’t one of the ones she was considering as it wasn’t being sold through an agent. But it looked very interesting and was everything they’d wanted.

She in turn was enthusiastic. It wasn’t a competition, it was a team game and if it was right then that was the thing to do. She was only trying to help – and make sure she got room for her piano. Oh, and her en-suite bathroom.

But, serious as that was, Genevieve made him forget all about that as she served dessert 

“There's something else I wanted to ask you, since we're having another discussion evening. I’m worried that with this new job of yours you might not get any time off in the summer for us to go away somewhere. But there's a really interesting holiday advertised at the library. It's only for younger people in a number of age groups but I would get into the 13 to 16 group. It's all sorts of activities like rafting and abseiling and orienteering. It's all outdoors.” 

“When's this? 

“It starts next Saturday for a week. So its all of half term. The cost is reduced because there’s still places left”.

“7 days of outdoor activity! Sounds expensive” 

“Yes it is, especially the flights. That's why I wanted to mention it after you'd had half a bottle of wine and a gin, although perhaps the other way round might have more success” 

“Flights! Where is it?”

“The Ardeche”

 “It certainly sounds good. I think you should take the opportunity while it exists. You never know what might happen. You get the forms and we'll get it all filled in?” 

Wow! That was easier than expected. Maybe this house thing really is distracting him!

Saturday started early. Geneviève’s flight was at 9 and that meant being somewhere near the airport by half past 7. She was really excited, and the break would be good for her – and a bit more interaction with other kids.

But once inside the airport Steve remembered back to when he left her at the airport in Perth to fly back on his own. At that time it had been tragically sad for other reasons, and this wasn’t really sad – just part of Geneviève growing up. But the similarity was that he intended to spend 18 hours a day at work again – and oh my! Would even that be enough? 

He had so much planned to do while she was away but before that, it was time to use this key that had turned up in a small box at his office yesterday.

He diverted into Apple Grove on his way back. The note with the key said simply ‘We both trust each other, don’t we’. And while Steve had no intention of defrauding the Aussie, he was also now quite sure of what his problem was. He wandered slowly round the house. This was amazing. So much more than they’d been looking at, so much more than they needed, but it would be so different living here. He sank into a settee in the living room and decided. Yes, no funds transfer until the papers cleared, so, come on Steve! Where’s the risk?

“Yes” said Steve to Previn’s question the following Monday “Its all looking good”
 “Glad you said that” replied Previn “because the world, you know what! It keeps movin’ on”

“In a good way or a bad way?” 

“Depends how your perspective. Its either a bonus for you or the mother of all chores”
 “Ok. Sounds to me like a bonus but with some work attached”

The Aussie laughed “Yeah. Look, I already mentioned that, at the price, I’d be looking for some assistance. Now look,  I’m unlikely to be back to the UK anytime soon, possibly anytime ever. So I need to include the entire contents of the house in the deal. Same price, just I can’t organise a clearance so its either a bonus to you, or a shedload of work to clear it out for me – or you – whichever way you look at it”

Include the contents? What everything! Jeez! 

“No problem” said Steve “It might even persuade me I’m earning my keep!”

“There’s one exception. We’ve lost a gold jewellery box. It might be at the house, or it might not”
 “No problem there either. We’ll look for it”

“And one final thing, Steve… In the study there’s an envelope. If anything stalls, you can make sure it restarts even if I’m not easily contacted. These papers are all pre-signed. And there’s a letter of authority, but of course you shouldn’t open it unless you absolutely need to because that’s really a risk I don’t want to take”

That evening Steve returned to the house to have another look. There was stuff everywhere. It was like a show-house, or a movie set. His mind still spinning, he migrated to the pub in the village main street and another pint helped him consider his position. While Previn was almost certainly the wrong side of the tax man, all Steve was doing was buying the house at the agreed price, and making sure that it ran to completion. Was he an accessory to any sort of fraud? No, he wasn’t aware of anything illegal and would simply act for his friend in the event that action was needed in advance of him returning to pick up the details himself. And in any case, he had no money in the deal till completion. And he had no power of attorney and no partnership, so he wasn’t liable for anything Previn did or didn’t do. Sure it was up to him to make sure that Previn actually owned the house for his own protection, but it wasn’t his responsibility to check out what business Previn was in.

That Wednesday evening saw him back at the house again.

Yes, that house. The one he didn’t own yet, but had the keys. The one he had no paperwork or boundaries for but hadn’t paid for either. But what could go wrong? There were no lawyers involved to get in the way. No agents. Just a guy who had already left the country who was trusting him to wire him several hundred thousand pounds when the documentation cleared from the Land registry. Come on Steve, take a small case, you might not be coming back.

But even after every weird thing that had twisted and turned to get this far, he was somehow not expecting the house to be quite so ready to move in to. Steve had thought it would be impolite to look in the cupboards or fridge before, but now he found that the kitchen was well stocked. There was food in the fridge and the freezer, drink in the bar and upstairs the beds were all made. There were garden tools in the outhouse and a regular electric bill on the table in the hall. This was a completely different take on moving in. He certainly wasn’t going to send this bill to the previous occupant and argue about how much of it was theirs. It felt just like he had been away for a few weeks and had right then just returned.

Suddenly the week was slipping away. There was so much he wanted to get done but this property issue was cutting into his evenings. Where had all these 18 hour days gone! And despite these warnings to himself he was back at the new house yet again on Friday evening to complete the explore. 

That evening he managed to retire to the Cider Press pub in the village to assess where the sale had got to and what to do next to push it along. 

Previn hadn’t been in touch since Monday and at that time he seemed quite happy for Steve to handle the whole issue. And that was ok. Complex issues were always easier when everyone else kept out of the way, and this was a classic case.

Geneviève returns from Holiday

Next thing on the agenda was to get up to the airport and collect Geneviève. If the flight was on time, she’d be through immigration by 6. In fact it was just gone. She looked tired but seemed as pleased as ever to see him waiting for her. He nearly squeezed the life out of her but it didn’t diminish her smile.

“Hungry?” he asked 

“For British food! I think I’ve lived on baguettes for the last week”
 He guided her through to an airport restaurant

“Tired too?” he said trying to lead up to telling her as they ordered

“Yes – its exhausting. And I didn’t just do all the activities, I spent my life translating. Most of the kids didn’t speak a word of French. The instructors English was quite good, but it didn’t cover the colloquial language the kids were used to, so it often sounded a bit formal. Still it was great fun”

She rabbited on about the canyoning and the orienteering, mountain biking, skydiving….

“Skydiving! I didn’t know that was included”

“It wasn’t. It was a special invitation from the instructors for doing so much translation. Not that I think I’ll take it up as a hobby. Anyway what have you been up to – or just work, work and more work?”

“Work, Geneviève, is as manic as ever. But on the up side… I ….I bought a house. At least, I might have”

“Might have, daddy? Ok. What’s it like, Will I like it? Is this the one you mentioned before?”
 “Now, would I buy it if you wouldn’t like it?”
 “Big?”

“Yes. And your bedroom has an en-suite and there’s room for a piano or even two”

“Big garden?”

“Possibly bigger than we need”

“But we don’t know how big a garden we need?”
 “But this is probably bigger than that. But that’s partly because we don’t know where the boundaries are”
 “No road, or hedge, or neighbours garage or…”
 “Some of those, but not on all sides. And there’s some woodland attached to it as well”
 “Are we going there now? Oh, no, if you’ve not actually bought it yet. but it certainly sounds exciting”
 “Ok, but yes, we are going there now. At the risk of you getting really excited about it and then something goes wrong”
 “Like what?”
 “Like maybe the garden pond is the remains of an open cast cyanide mine, or its built on top of a manganese mineshaft. Everything else I think I’ve got a contingency for. But we haven’t parted with any money yet”
 “Wow! Sounds fantastic fun whichever way it goes”

They got to the gate and it creaked and rumbled open. Geneviève had already decided that she’d love it just because it was already so intriguing, but it hardly prepared her for the real thing from gazing at the mock Palladian frontage to wandering from room to room in awe”

“We’re not just renting it, are we daddy?”
 “No, its just the sale isn’t completed yet. But the vendor has already left the country. I think he’s gone back to Oz”
 “Oh daddy. I was thinking the excitement would wake me up with a kind of second wind. But I’m so overwhelmed I think its just making me dizzy. Maybe the excitement will have to wait till tomorrow”
 “You’ve got all day tomorrow. You’ll be able to get to know it a whole lot better than me. But the big thing is the Mining Search. The only big risk I haven’t covered is if the area is contaminated or its about to sink into a tunnel. I’ve made up the bed in the room above the study. Only because I think it’s the room you’ll like least and it will be easier to move into a room and move furniture about if you’re not already living there!”

But Geneviève now had so much spinning in her mind that she went back downstairs to unwind a bit by having a quiet cuddle with her daddy.

She lay down on the settee beside him and spent the next half hour just studying the room in detail trying to come to terms with it all with her best friend’s arm round her neck like a warm comforting scarf.

Fruitcake for a Boundary

Sunday found them moving furniture around and discovering what additional gadgets they needed in the kitchen while they made lunch. Then Geneviève took a walk around the lawn and peered into the woods through the half open gate beside the cattle grid. She headed back along the side of the lake with the intention of playing the piano that she’d found in the smallest of the three living rooms that Steve had already designated the music room. But instead Steve hijacked her turning her around by playfully hooking her neck with his elbow and pointing her instead in the direction of the outbuildings that you’d find on the right if you carried on past the front door. He opened the door to the far garage and Genevieve’s face lit up. Facing her with something of a friendly smile as its face was one of the oldest Land Rovers she’d ever seen

“Does it go?”

“Certainly does! It needs a bit of attention, but it runs, a little rough, but it moves forwards and backwards. It starts…. eventually, and stops. I remember you saying you’d done some illegal 4x4 driving with Ches”

“It wasn’t illegal daddy! Ches said it was all on the ranch so that was private property” she frowned at his teasing as he continued

“I think you’d find it fun and there’s enough space especially if you clear a track through into the woods. Tomorrow we’ll check it over and then you can see if you remember how to drive. Just don’t expect it to behave like a BMW round an obstacle course” 

But despite the excitement, the huge number of new things that needed doing and all the ideas buzzing around in her head, she still had to go back to school on Tuesday. Steve dropped her at the gate, but she nearly missed her stop on the way home. It was the first time she’d taken the bus out to her new house and it was all quite strange. She found the shortcut through the alley beside the pub and walked slowly past the new houses, onto the track at the end of the new road, through the creaky big green gate and round the dense rhododendron bushes until the house came in to view at the end of the drive. And it was all equally amazing as the first time she’d seen it. 

This new house was so exciting. So much to do, and such a pity that school would take up so much time.

She was intrigued by the wording on what official documents there were. It seemed that there was an acknowledgement that there was a boundary between the forest and the farm land beyond, but equally hinted that it was only vaguely defined, and Geneviève set out to determine where it was. Quite apart from it being the sort of thing that ought to be resolved because she’d like to know when she was trespassing on the farm and would need to apologise, it would be so embarrassing trying to sell the house – eventually – without knowing what they were selling. Their only hope would be to have someone like Steve and her rock up with an attitude flexible enough to hardly care.

Just getting to where it might be was a task in itself. Making her way through the dense trees and even denser undergrowth was proving impossibly scratchy.

So why not take this from the other side? Cut over into the meadow and see where the fence was that stopped the sheep getting into the woods. But it would have to wait.

Next day she rushed home from school and headed out to the edge of the village and up the farm track trying and failing to keep her eye on her trees. She got as far as a field gate and leaned on it looking across at the sheep, but she realised that she had no idea if this field bordered her trees or even exactly which direction the house was. 

Steve was back early and soon had dinner in the oven and a present in the hall for her

“Ooh! What is it?” she asked as she got herself a drink in the kitchen

“Have a guess” suggested Steve “The clue is its made by Husqvarna”

“Husk who? I’ve never heard of them”

“Its to help you clear your track in the woods. I think we need to discover where the boundary is. It’s a very dangerous piece of equipment, but I’m going to show you how to use it safely.

She looked blank 

“Is it a bulldozer attachment for the Land Rover” she speculated, purely on what she’d find useful

“No, but it might have the same effect – eventually”

“Chainsaw Daddy!” she exclaimed tearing at the paper “Chainsaw?”

“Yes. If you’re going to sort out that boundary and work your way through that dense forest, you’ll need some powerful help”

“Oh wow! How about that. This should be fun. I’d never even considered this before”

The next day it was time for a new tactic. With this new weapon in her armoury rather than a pair of secateurs she gingerly made progress cutting a channel through the vegetation. It was strenuous, this thing was heavy and he had a mind of his own. Just so long as he didn’t turn around and attack her. Maybe she just wasn’t strong enough, or at least not yet. But it would certainly keep her fit. 

It was a good hour later that she thought she could see light through the trees and emerged into the sunshine with her way blocked by a wire fence. She clambered over it and headed along the edge of the field to where a farmer was assembling some hurdles

“Hey there missy, there be no footpath here ye know” 

“No? But I’m glad you’re here”
 “Oh aye? Why for?

“Because I’ve recently bought those woods there and I’m not sure where the boundary is because I can’t get through the brambles on my side to find the fence. Maybe I could borrow some of you sheep to eat some of it?”

“Arr. Well that aint gonna happen. Sheep - they only eat grass. They’s not handlin thar brambles and nettles. So where does thee think thy boundry is?”

“I don’t know. Its somewhere near here I think. But I think some of these trees belong to you – or would if you owned this field, but I don’t know how many. Maybe its just this fence here”

“No missy, it aint this. This here fence is stock fence. Thar used to be a fence. Bout twenty yard into woods. But no-ones been in and around there for years and years”

“Whyever not?”
 “It be and old tale missy. Dates from way back in’t war. There’s an ole house in there somewhere too. But I’m busy now. I got this here pen to build afore the morrow”

“Maybe you’d have some time tomorrow and you could tell me about it?”

“I’m busy with them ewes. Ah’s not got time to sit around chattin in the afternoon”

“I could bring you a fruitcake”
 “Course, I could spare a few moments I s’pose!”

Geneviève returned the next day and took along a small rucksack with a couple of cans of cider and a fruitcake that she’d made. This all worked well and it was enchanting just sitting on the edge of the field watching the grazing sheep and listening to the tales of fear and ghosts that had prevented anyone going in to the woods for so long that the undergrowth had taken over and in any case he’d said ‘Even I don’t knows where the boundary is, its somewhere between here and that house. But there’ll be the posts from the old fence to give ye a clue’

She relayed the story to Steve that evening saying that she’d love to go and find this house. The story goes that a Luftwaffe plane came down there in 1943. The crew managed to land the plane somewhere and escaped from the wreck. The story went that they’d headed for the house and the old lady that lived there came out to meet them helped by her walking stick. Having just crash-landed, the airmen were a bit confused and when she called and waved her stick to attract their attention, they mistook it for a rifle and opened fire, shooting her dead. The British military sealed off the area looking for the crashed plane and any survivors but didn’t find any evidence except for the unfortunate lady. The fact that they didn’t find the plane at all started all sorts of rumours like maybe these airmen were ghosts and the possibility of science fiction technology or that someone else intent on villainy had killed her and was blaming the Germans. After that, none of the neighbours were very keen on investigating with the possibility of armed enemy airmen loose in the forest, although the farmer had conceded, they’re unlikely to be still there. And anyone showing an interest in the property situation would be accused of the crime itself. 

“And daddy, its been like that for the last forty years!”

“Ok” Steve had said, “even if we don’t know where the boundary is, this farmer of yours thinks the house is our side. If there is a house, there would have been a path or a driveway and that should have retained its definition even if the forest has taken over. There’ll be clues like kerbstones or gravel and the different sub surface would make the vegetation grow differently. A bit like an archaeological dig.”

All this only intensified Geneviève’s resolve to find it. And that was another thing to fit in after school. Maybe she could get up earlier and have a look before school as well. Or if she did the housework before school she could concentrate on the search when she got home.

She’d only just got in and had quickly changed ready to head back into the woods when she answered the knock on the door. Strange, she hadn't heard a car. And the gate had closed behind her, hadn't it? 

The couple standing there were well dressed rather than in working clothes and looked comfortably mid fifties. They asked if she now lived here and introduced themselves as Marina and Nigel as she invited them in. They seemed to know their way around the house and headed without hesitation towards the kitchen when Geneviève suggested tea. 

He put an envelope of the table as though it was in exchange for a biscuit. 

“We've come to pay the rent” 

“Rent?” 

“Yes, for Silver Birch cottage” 

“Oh, of course” 

Geneviève had no idea what they were talking about and maybe it showed in her expression 

“You know the cottage? It's just beyond the hedge on the far side of the west lawn” 

“Oh, I see. Thankyou” 

“But we do have a question. You see, now that you're here instead of Previn, we're concerned that you might want to put the rent up” 

“Oh, I see. I hadn't considered it. There's so much else to think about” 

“It's just that if you did, it would make things even more difficult for us and we’d like to know so that we can consider our options” 

“Difficult?” But they both looked in good health, and expensively dressed and did not look like the kind of people who had worried about money all their lives.

“Yes, you see we're running out of savings and it can't last and we'll have to start prioritising the bills. And the long term investments. Of course, Previn never had any time to talk about any of this. He was hardly ever here and his wife never made any decisions at all” 

They looked at each other as if agreeing in tune 

“You see, about a year ago, we made a rather serious mistake. It was to do with an investment. It's rather a good deal, but we failed to realise that it was a minimum of two years before we can release any of the funds. It was such a good deal that we put everything into it that wasn’t already in investments, leaving out enough to live on for a year” 

“And that has been working. But now we’re going to have to wait another year and that's a big issue”

“We're not used to having to restrict ourselves on things like food” 

“Oh my!” gasped Genevieve pushing the envelope back towards them “if you need this, you'd better keep it. I'm not taking any money from anyone if they're about to go hungry” 

They both brightened up noticeably at this display of generosity 

“Perhaps you could get a job?” Genevieve offered, trying to be helpful 

“Yes, but that would involve tax and at the moment we’re completely off the radar concerning that and we’d rather stay that way for another year at least” 

“Of course we're not afraid of hard work. It's just the .... implications. We took some advice from Previn, and that looks as though its more complicated than we realised as well” said Nigel sadly

“But, if you are open to suggestions” said Marina hopefully looking for any encouraging signs “I'd quite happily do a couple of days housework for you - in exchange for a consideration on the rent?” 

“Well, yes. I try to keep a very open mind on everything. And that sounds eminently sensible. I hadn't even got round to thinking how I was going to find time for all the housework. This house is much much bigger than our other house” 

“So perhaps you'd consider a couple of days gardening as well. I mean, I'm not a professional gardener, but I know a weed when I see one, and the lawn takes a whole half day to cut properly” 

“Yes. Ok. It sounds like a good idea” 

“I expect you’re thinking about just how much. It's maybe a bit ambitious just to spring this on you, and you seem to be such a co-operative person. What if I put together a proposal for you taking account of what gardening and cleaning would cost on the open market and see how that balances with the rent?” 

“You're used to producing proposals like this then?” 

“Oh yes, I've spent most of my career in sales. International. Mainly southern Europe. The current situation has taken us quite seriously by surprise. Actually, we’re relatively well off. Its just the current liquidity”
 “Liquidity?”

“Yes, the amount of money you can use on a day to day basis rather than being locked away in property or investments that would take months to release”

“Oh. I see! Ok. If you want to write up the suggestion I'm sure we can come to an agreement” 

“That solves those two problems”, said Steve when she explained it to him over dinner. 

“And effectively free. I had no idea we owned that cottage as well. One day we’ll figure out just what it is we’ve bought – once we buy it”

But Geneviève had also managed to get back into the woods. She was torn between looking for the forgotten fence posts, the probable driveway and the abandoned house. She decided to check if her neighbour was in his sheep field again, and then move straight on to looking for the house. 

And yes, there he was back in the sheep field by the pen he’d built, but he was not alone. The other man was making some progress in re-establishing an overgrown gateway that clearly hadn’t been used for decades as Geneviève arrived. He glanced over towards her but without introduction started making progress straight through the undergrowth, brambles, small trees and saplings clearing a path by wielding his vicious chainsaw like a machete. She stood next to the farmer as they watched for several minutes until he silently announced success by tapping a lone wooden fencepost with the butt of his chainsaw.

“That’s what thee’s lookin’ for” he said as she finally caught up with him to examine it. She raised a delighted smile as a thankyou “Good job I brought another fruitcake” she said offering the foil wrapping to him. He took it nervously and unwrapped enough to recognise what was inside

“I thank ye kindly, ma’am. That be well ‘andsome”

Bosendorfer

But Friday was not for continuing the fence hunt. Friday was for house hunting but of a different kind. And now that her neighbour of few words had shown her the technique with the chainsaw she made good progress. By seven o’clock, she’d found her way to another overgrown gate, this time out onto a far lane. Surely this would be the old entrance to the drive to the house. Now all she had to do was find her way back.

Steve slumped onto the settee after saying good night to her. He idly poured a small glass and drifted through to the smallest living room. There had been a piano at Station Road that the landlord had asked if it could stay when they moved in because it might just drop to pieces if he moved it. Steve had had it properly tuned and it sounded ok, especially when Geneviève played it which she did for at least an hour every day. He surveyed the dilapidated upright piano leaning forlorn against the back wall and was acutely aware that she had left the old but tuneful upright at Station Road, and that this equally old and abandoned piano was so far out of tune that it would soon put her off playing at all. She was already adapting some pieces to avoid certain keys that didn’t work properly.  

He’d told her that he’d buy her a good piano when they had space for one which he thought she’d understood to mean sometime never. But after the Event had calmed down he told himself not to forget what part she played in cracking the code. And now they had the space and tomorrow was the day to do something about all that

 “Oohh daddy! Look at that. Isn’t it gorgeous” 

She sat down on the stool to lift the keyboard cover

“OI! Oi! What do you think you’re doing?”

“I was only going to play it”

“Young Lady. This is a Bosendorfer. A Bosendorfer I tell you! It is the finest concert grand piano in the world.”

Geneviève nodded in agreement. After all, that’s what it said on the sales ticket

“… And, it is only to be played by concert pianists”

“Do you get many of those in here?”

He scowled at her

Steve held up the sales ticket to check the price.

“Not cheap, is it. But Geneviève, don’t get too excited about it because we won’t be buying it without trying it first”

“Out of the question. This instrument is not for beginners. Now, over here we have a nice little Walls. It’s got a lovely tone and is easily tuned because the cover comes completely off”

Geneviève sat down at the Walls upright piano “Its locked, too!”

Steve leaned on the top of it

“We already have an upright, but it was in the house when we bought it” he said hoping that some background small talk might improve the salesman’s attitude.

Grudgingly he unlocked it and a number of people stopped to listen as Geneviève started playing some Rachmaninov 

“Oh, that’s captivating” enthused an elderly lady to her husband.

“Hmm. I think it might be more suited to jazz or ragtime”

She ran through a bit of Scott Joplin.

“Jazz” she said

“Why is that?” asked sales, now visibly taken aback at the expertise 

“Because that F sharp is so flat its like automatically playing 7ths. And it’s a bit tinny. Be alright as a honky-tonk in a pub maybe”

“Well, I’m sure …”

“Come on, Geneviève. We’re not buying one here anyway”

“We have a very large range, and the prices are competitive.”
 “That is as may be. But we do need to try the instrument first, the staff are unhelpful to the point of being rude”

A twenty minute drive saw them in an entirely opposite situation. The elderly salesman listened attentively to Steve as he described what he was looking for, and then led them to the far doorway. It led out into the shopping mall rather than the High Street and next to the entrance as something of an advertisement was a large Beuchnal. Genevieve leant her head over to one side. Its not as imposing as the Bosendorfer… not quite “ 

She sat down on the stool “but its still, I don’t know what. Maybe its too similar”

“Have you ever played a Bosendorfer?” asked the salesman, surprised that she even knew the brand name

“No, I wasn’t allowed”
 “Shame. They really are excellent, but they are produced almost entirely for concert halls”

She played the first movement from Clara Schumann’s Trio for Piano and turned her head to one side

“I’m not sure about this. Maybe its just that its so different from my old upright”

“Why don’t you try this Bechstein. After all, its likely to be less than half the price of a Bosendorfer” added the assistant “Is Schumann you’re favourite composer?”

“No, I play loads of stuff. The usual classics mainly, Listz, Rachmaninov, Mozart, Chopin. But I‘ve had a go at rock and roll and ragtime as well. I’m quite keen on French ballads. French are more sincere than English. And they’ve often got a cello accompaniment which makes them so much more mellow to listen to, although I don’t actually know any cello players to play them with.” 

Cue The Only Thing Worth Fighting For by Roseanne Cash 

The assistant stayed to watch as she played more Rachmaninov

“And my voice isn’t very good” she continued as a few people started to gather at the doorway “I’m better sticking to music rather than singing” 

The mall was busy with the weekend window shoppers, with some now drifting into the shop to browse around while they listened.

“What level is she at?” inquired the assistant by way of conversation 

“She’s done her level 8, but she’s interested in doing Novice Pro early next year. I think things will get busy later on and I want her to get to NP before that”

“Ambitious, but hearing her play, perfectly achievable”

“Yes, that’s why I want to get her a better instrument”

“Well, quite honestly, at that level, you can’t do your best on an entry level piano”

“I like this Bechstein daddy. Its so much more .. .. friendly”

The manager peered out from behind the display of violins curious to see who was playing, but stopped to serve some of the queue that had formed. A plectrum here and sheet music there, but it all added up. It wasn’t all about selling four figure priced pianos. Geneviève shook her head.

“Its got a gorgeous feel to it. It’s got a kind of personality of its own and, Daddy, I can almost feel it encouraging me. But it’s a huge amount of money. There’s some less expensive ones over there”
 “But I want you to have every chance at passing your NP” 

She meandered over to the back of the store and tried some others but with noticeably less enthusiasm

“And?” asked Steve. “Your choice, but my opinion is that the Bechstein sounded best”

“Can I really. It’s a lot of money. Can we afford it?

“Yes, Yes and No. In that order. Geneviève. I don’t think you really appreciate how much solving that clue during the Event helped everyone. And now that we’ve got the space in the house, its my thankyou, not just for the clue but also for being the most wonderful daughter in the world”

“Daddy! You make me feel all embarrassed”

Steve turned to the assistant as the crowd dispersed “Does the price include delivery?”

“Yes indeed. And setup, which we consider to be essential for an instrument of this calibre”

“We’ll take the Bechstein, please. When can you deliver it?”

Steve went over to the desk with the assistant to sort out the details

“That was a very impressive impromptu recital” said the manager approaching Geneviève.

“Oh, thank you. Daddy’s thinking of buying it for me to practice for my NP”

“NP! Oh my! That’s impressive. I was wondering what level you were at. We don’t get many players of that standard in here”

“We’re over from Apple Grove”

“Interesting, I would have thought you’d just go down to Whyte and Wilson’s in town”

“We did. But they don’t let you play the instruments there. And they’re rude. So we came over here”

“Don’t let you try them? How do they expect to sell anything?”

“You have to ask them that. That was our question too”

“Well, I’d very pleased if you bought the Bechstein”

“I’m sure you would be!”

“No” he said in a more considered way “no, it’s not just a sale. You see, at a certain level, I think, and I’ve found over the years, that you form a kind of bond with your instrument. I think, you, yourself said you felt that it was talking back to you. And I think that’s what makes a perfect partnership. Does that sound a bit silly? After all, it’s not a dressage horse is it! But I do believe there is a connection that is made, and you seemed to make that connection with the Bechstein”
 “I don’t know. It was a funny sort of feeling. But I’m not sure if we can afford it. Have you played much?”

“Not recently, although I have played with the Berlin Philharmonic in my time”

“Really! I’m so impressed!”

“Yes, before the arthritis set in.

“He shook his hands in obvious disappointment “Listen, what would you say to playing here on a Saturday morning, for a small consideration of course?”

“You mean, like, as a Saturday job?”

“Yes, but we have to be careful because you’re not a professional”

“We can get round that if it’s only a few hours because I’m still at school. That changes the rules, I think. Daddy, they’ve asked me to play here as a kind of Saturday job”

“Good idea. That’ll help pay for that Bechstein”

“Oh, You have bought it have you?”

“Yes.”

“Well thank you so much. I’m Gordon Oliphant, the store owner and manager”

“Do you really want me to play?”

“Yes, I’d like to give it a try. Of course if additional sales don’t start to cover the cost, then we’ll have to reconsider”
 

That afternoon it was time for a walk out into the woods so that Geneviève could show Steve what she’d been discussing with the neighbours about the boundary and an investigation into the rumour that there was an abandoned house hidden amongst the brambles and ivy.

An early dinner left Geneviève plenty of time for a walk back to where they thought the house might be. Peering through the vegetation with an active imagination she thought she could see an outline, except the undergrowth was so thick and tangled and prickly that she couldn’t make any more progress towards it. There seemed to be the vestiges of a path as Steve had described, but trees had grown up through most of it and really she was no farther forward except for an increased conviction that there was actually something there.

Just living in the house gave both Steve and Geneviève an increased confidence that the whole deal would actually drift to completion eventually and that living at their Station Road house was now history. And now on Sunday it was time for definitive action. Geneviève had done an amazing job of sorting out the new house to be properly habitable; stocking cupboards and cleaning and making sure there was plenty of drink in the built in bar in the living room. That had been interesting. It needed planning. Dress up and make up to look 25. Check that they take credit cards before putting anything in the basket. That way if the assistant had any issues with her buying alcohol it would be obvious before she started and therefore less embarrassing. But the whole thing went to plan and now spirits and liqueurs adorned the bar top while beer and fruit juices occupied the fridge. And Steve had checked and rechecked the progress of actually becoming the official owner rather than just the obvious resident.

And now they were headed for Station Road to move the rest of their belongings. It was hardly a sad episode. Ok, so the house had served them well as a place to sleep and chill out in the evening. But it had never been a home. It was simply too small to get attached to or have friends round. And when Daisy had stayed there she was sharing Geneviève’s room because there wasn’t another viable option. Geneviève was decidedly against Daisy sharing with her dad – that would be like having her new mum only 3 years older than her and that was big sister territory not mum territory.

By lunchtime they’d squashed everything into the car and had run the hoover around the empty space. The rent was pre-paid for another three months so it was always possible they could come back but neither of them was thinking they would. 

They’d moved everything they owned but there was so much that needed rearranged or supplemented and that meant trolling round the shops. She didn’t mind, in fact she quite enjoyed it. Its just that there was so much of it, and it was only when she actually stood back and actively thought about it that she realised how much progress was actually visible. 

This now felt like their permanent move to this amazing, huge house with so much woodland next to the garden that Geneviève hadn’t even walked to the other side of it yet – or even found out where the other side was.

But just because Steve had more personal things to think about did not mean that the raft of problems in Production had in any way diminished.

“Its unsustainable” moaned Gerry foregoing any pleasantries “and its sending production costs through the roof  because Cheryl is adding Simon and Luke’s costs on because they’re working on those motors nearly full time”
 “Its only fair, Gerry. We need to know what the real cost of production is, but I think you should talk to Cherry. Get her to work out some real numbers. Can’t see Keith being able to increase prices though. We’re still on the back foot following the Event so while that keeps on it’s the margin that will take the hit”

“Trouble is, that motor is at the heart of pretty much every machine we make”

“Yes” said Steve “But that’s what gives us the precision, and that’s what differentiates us”

“That’s all very well, but out of the last consignment of fifty only 24 were working”

“So what happened to the rest” asked Jacqui innocently

“We dismantle them, and then rebuild them if we can and that gets us to about 35”

“And” said Steve “We need all of these for production. If Matt needs any in the field, we have to try to build another one”

“So why don’t we just send them back?”

“Because we don’t have an alternative supplier, and Cave Brothers can’t keep up with demand”
 “That’s not surprising if half of production gets returned. What are other customers doing?”

“Don’t know. Caves are being pretty secretive”

“So what are we going to do?”

“Well” began Gerry slowly “I’ve got Terry checking out Far East and German suppliers”

“But we have to be careful not to give our position away”

“And I’ve been trying to get in to see Arnie Cave himself, but all that happens is their sales rep comes round and apologises”

“Can’t we set up our own production, we’re practically doing that anyway, from the sounds of it?” suggested Jacqui
 “We don’t have the skill set to do the winding accurately enough. And we’d be in breach of patent, not that they’d dare sue us. Jason’s had a look at the potential, but we’d need a whole new production line, and that would mean converting a building somewhere or commandeering the R&D space”

“Ruth, can you see if you can get hold of Arnie Cave on the phone later. See if you can get past that dragon he keeps in his front room”

“Ok, Steve. But I do hope people don’t say that about me!”

Ruth failed to get past Arnie’s dragon, but Giles Cave came on the line instead, because as Ruth had pointed out, we are your biggest local customer and she finally managed to make an appointment for Steve to visit them.

Steve’s report back to his team was not good.

“Next item on the agenda, is Steve’s visit to Cave Brothers” prompted Ruth

Steve hesitated long enough for the team to get the idea that things may actually be worse than anticipated

“The news from Cave Brothers is not good” he opened “The site is filthy, morale is poor to non-existent, and I didn’t meet anyone on site who was actually polite. It seems that Giles, who is Arnie’s elder son, has been left nominally in charge, but there is something very strange about the atmosphere there. Its as if he’s either not in control, or he desperately wants to be somewhere else”

“They’re late filing their accounts” added Cheryl “I checked Companies House”

“Thanks Cheryl. Can you spend a little time digging around and see if you can come up with anything else on their financial situation”
 “Ok. I’ll mention it to some of our suppliers. They may supply to Caves as well”

That afternoon she was back in Steve’s office after talking to her contact in their sheet steel importer

“Oh Cheryl” he’d said “Don’t talk to me about Caves. Please! I’ve just transferred their last two invoices to bad debt. Its not huge money, but I can’t see us getting any of it” 

“Ok” Steve replied hardly hesitating “Withhold any more payments to them. Get Terry to work out the numbers. How many motors have we had that actually worked first time, and how many have we paid for. And treat the difference as an overpayment to redress the balance. And can you let me know what that is. Just the bottom line”

“Ok, but Steve, the impression I get is that that might actually sink them”

“Yes Cheryl, it just might”

“But Steve”, commented Ruth later, “That’s just not like you. Those guys have wives and girlfriends and little kiddies. What future do they have if the guys are all put out of work?”

“Babe, I can’t disagree. But we have our own people to look after, and they are my priority”

Ruth gave him a puzzled old fashioned look thinking that didn’t really answer the question she’d intended to ask, but let it drop, at least for the time being.

Saturday came round again all too quickly for Geneviève. She’d spent as much time as she possibly could playing her new Bechstein since its arrival on Thursday. It was great fun, as well as being necessary practice, but it detracted from her house hunt and boundary marking, and her new old Land Rover needed some attention too.

But her initial nerves were replaced by excitement as she adjusted the stool and soon there were half a dozen people standing around the piano, just listening, with a few others a little farther away as well. And then there was the boy in the scruffy designer jeans leaning against the window frame. She was finding that she needed a lot more concentration with all the background noise and distracting movement than she did in her peaceful music room.

There was some short applause as she finished the piece. That restored her confidence enough to consciously decide not to play anything too complex. The listening public probably wouldn’t appreciate the technicalities. Perhaps, she thought, if I treat this just like a practice session where I just play what I want and ignore the audience, maybe it’ll be all right. And suddenly it had gone 1 o’clock. Gordon Oliphant came over and listened politely as she finished her Chopin. 

“Thank you so much for letting me play” she opened. 

“Not at all! It’s delightful just to hear the instrument played as it should be. Do you like this piano?”

She hesitated “yes, but its not like my Bechstein. I just love my Bechstein. And I think I’m getting the connection as you described. This Mason is a little bright for me and the keys seem heavier. The Bechstein has a mellower tone, but its way better than the old upright I was playing”

“What is your old upright?”

“I don’t know exactly. It was left behind when we moved in. It really is falling to bits and a number of the keys don’t work. It says Essex on it, but the rest of the nameplate has gone. It’s held together with string, wire and sticky tape”

“All the same. If it’s an Essex, then it’s actually made by Steinway”

“Really! Oh my goodness, but it does sound quite good, for an upright. Except for the keys that don’t work”

They walked back towards the desk

“We never discussed payment, did we? If I gave you ten pounds would you come back next week?”

“Ten pounds. Oh my! And an invitation to come back. Oh thank you so much”

He handed her an envelope “Next week then?”

“10 o’clock!”

First call from Lisa

It was no longer than the following Monday that Ruth answered the call from Caves. She transferred the call with as much formality as she could muster even though the caller sounded rather downbeat to start with.

“Bergstrom”

“Hello Mr Bergstrom. My name is Lisa Byrnham and I’m financial controller at Cave Brothers. I’ve been talking to Cheryl in your accounts office and she tells me that she has been instructed not to pay our latest invoice. I thought you might be able to shed some light on this?”
 “Of course, Lisa. I did discuss this with Giles last week, but the situation is that out of the last 500 motors we’ve had from you, less than 300 have actually worked. Up till now, we’ve paid all your invoices in full, so in effect we’re way ahead on payment compared to delivery of usable goods. We’ve not been getting timely replacements either and this is now causing us to limit production. This clearly has a major impact on us. Talking to Giles has had no effect, and my Production Manager has been talking to his counterpart down at your place, but all to no effect. So we’ve had to revert to financial pressure”

“Oh, I see”                                            

“What I’d really like you to do is send me an entire batch of usable product and then we could get back to a normal customer – supplier relationship”

“I’m afraid that is out of my hands”

“In which case, paying your invoice is out of the question. You could of course sue us….. But you know you’d lose.”

He heard only a huge sigh at the other end of the line

“Ok, Lisa I don’t like this any more than I suspect you do. So if you come up with any other alternatives however far off the wall, please give me a call, and I’ll be very happy to discuss any suggestions with you”

“Cheryl is even more convinced than anything that they’re going to go down” said Ruth as the conversation finished

“Could be” agreed Steve cheerily.

The following day Giles phoned again. Steve assumed he’d be chasing his invoice, but in fact he was more interested in setting up a lunchtime meeting involving ‘something important’. Maybe he was looking for Steve to pay the invoice to keep the company afloat.

Steve however had enough to do that day, and in any case did not want to give the impression that he’d jump at any chance of a meeting and perhaps resolving the situation. But Thursday was a definite possibility.

“What was all that about?” Ruth probed as Steve returned from lunch with Giles

“He’s trying to sell the company”

“And do you want to buy it?” she continued, impressed with how calmly she managed to say that.

“Maybe, Jamie was looking at that possibility at the start of the year. But probably not. I need to discuss it with Gerry, and Jason and maybe Terry. And then separately with Jacqui” 

The following day a few phone calls confirmed his expectation that Giles was looking for interest in several different areas, but Steve was increasingly convinced that the death of Cave Brothers was imminent and also that the other interested parties seemed to be evaporating. 

Steve also reckoned that the isotope called Cave Brothers had a half-life counted in days rather than months and there was no point spending money on it if it would be worth so much less before the ink was dry. And shelving that issue gave him the time to consider other pressing troubles. 

Then finally, just to round off the day Lisa called asking if they could come over for another discussion on Tuesday

He wanted to drag Gerry along as well, but Gerry argued, it’ll be mainly financial, so Steve would be better off without his help!

And with yet another week rounded off, Genevieve was due back at Gordon Oliphant’s music store. 

During the week she’d thought about what she wanted to play. She could use the whole thing as a practice for a recital she wanted to give someday but hadn’t even started planning yet, and maybe she’d get used to the background interruptions. It was so different from playing at Howard’s or in her tiny living room in the old Station Road house, or even in her new music room and all too quickly she was on the 9.15 bus.

Cue Piano Concerto Number 2 by Shostakovich

 “What is this called?” asked a man or her left. The interruption made her jump, but just as quickly she realised she’d managed to keep the flow irrespective and hadn’t missed a note.

“This” she said slowly trying to concentrate on the keys at the same time “is the second movement of piano concerto number 2 by Shostakovich. If…” she continued concentrating on not stopping “…If you’re familiar with the piece, you’ll know that the early introductory part is played on violin. But what I’ve done is transpose it for piano. That means I can play the whole piece without needing to wait for a fiddle player to rock up”

She noticed too, that the boy with the scruffy designer jeans was there again. She looked over at him, and then back to the keys. But every time she looked, he was right there looking back at her. Strangely, she thought, it wasn’t putting her off, and he looked quite cute. Not sure how old he is, Maybe 16 or 17. Not older. Well probably not.

Gordon brought her a glass of water and she paused at the end of the Concerto in G Major by Ravell. “Quick breather” she announced to the audience of about 20 “back in five”

She sipped her glass

“Hi” said the boy in scruffy jeans, very nervously

“Hi, are you down to buy something in the shop?” she asked, not wanting to ask what he thought of her playing 

“Oh, em, em ,yes. I, I came in to buy, eh, a new guitar”

“Really! do you play?”

“No. Oh but that’s because I don’t have a guitar. Em , that’s why I need a new one”

Geneviève giggled

“Come on! What did you really come in to town to buy?”

“Well, actually, I really came in to town to … to buy you lunch”

Geneviève choked on her sip of water

“I’m not really a lunch person” she replied, then seeing his immediate look of disappointment “I’m more of a coffee and cake person”

“Coffee and cake’ll make a good lunch” and then perking up “Especially if you’re on a short break, I guess”

“I finish at 1. But I don’t have a lot of time. I’ve got loads to do this afternoon”

“Ok, I’ll see you back here at 1”

She restarted as the few people left waited with anticipation 

“This next piece is a variation of Beethoven’s piano concerto number 3. I say a variation because again, I’ve transposed the string section to piano. I’m not saying I can improve on Beethoven’s effort. Far from it. But I don’t have the luxury of having whole orchestras lying around everywhere like he did, so I have to improvise” 

Now she seemed to be getting into the swing of it. Of course, she had no way of telling if any of the audience were musicians or what comments they were muttering to each other as they moved on through the mall, but she was enjoying it and that meant she was wearing a smile, and that, she knew, made her play better.

“I’m going to finish today with Piano Concerto number 2 by Chopin. It’s in F minor, which has to be one of my favourite keys”

“Which key is that?” asked a numpty to her right waving his finger towards the keyboard as she also became aware that scruffy jeans was back on her left 

“That one there” she replied pointing to the F2.  She heard a muffled something from scruffy jeans. Well, she thought, maybe he knows something about music.

Gordon arrived silently as she started the piece and listened, largely with his eyes closed swaying his head gently. She looked around. Most of the audience now were smiling to themselves some nodding with the gentle pace of the music. This, she thought, must be why she played piano, but it hadn’t been apparent before because she hadn’t played in public. She managed to take her eyes off the keys long enough to look around quickly. A well-dressed gentleman in a designer cut suit had been standing at the end of the piano, but now moved around to watch her playing rather than just listening. He seemed to be studying her hand movements and it made her feel a little self-conscious. But it was five past one, and time was up.

“That’s all folks. Maybe next week”

“I hope so” said Gordon. “It’s just beautiful. As I said, I play. I’ve played since I was seven. And I’m an ex concert pianist. But this puts me to shame”

“Oh, I really didn’t mean to do that!” she replied in sudden panic “You being a professional and everything”

“But, like I said last week, it’s worth every penny just to hear this being played properly. So many of my customers are beginners and they do tend to murder the instruments” 

He handed her the envelope “Must go, I think that man may be interested. And anyway, I think this gentleman here is waiting for you. Next week?”

“Sure, and he’s kindly offered to buy me a doughnut”

They walked towards the free-form café at the foot of the escalator 

“I’m Charles”

“Geneviève” 

“Oh wow”

“What?”

“It’s such a beautiful name. I wasn’t expecting that”

“What were you expecting?”
 “I don’t know, I guess. Susan maybe or Christine. Do you shorten it at all? Gen or Genny or..”

“I try not to. I quite like my name the way it is. What about you? Charlie?”

“Like you. I prefer Charles. But a lot of my mates call me Chas.”

Coffee arrived, with walnut cake

“Do you play, Charles?”

“Yes. But I’m no where near as good as you. You’re amazing”

“That’s kind of you, I do try to play every day, but sometimes its difficult fitting it in. What about you? Do you get the time to practise?”

“Yes, well, actually, In fact I, eh I em I go to the Conservatoire. It’s a music College”

“I don’t know that one. Is it like a real school but with the emphasis on music, like a sports college has the emphasis on football?”

“Yes, we study music for two periods a day, and then there’s practice in the evening. But, I guess you think it’s a bit of a nerve, you know, being asked to lunch by a schoolboy”

“No. Not at all”

“It’s because you’re absolutely amazing at playing and I just wanted to talk to you for a while.”

 They munched the neglected cake

 “When did you start playing?” he asked “I guess it was when you were about three or four”

“No, I started when I as five, but I only started playing a lot when I was eleven”

“So how long have you been playing now, then?”

“You mean how old am I?”

“Oh, sorry. That’s not really what I meant! I didn’t think of it that way. I guess it was really quite rude of me taken that way!”

Geneviève chuckled “Not really, it’s no secret. I’m 15”

“You’re joking!? That’s a year younger than me. And that’s why you’re not offended at being asked to lunch by a schoolboy”

The conversation moved on but was suddenly interrupted

“Oh, there you are. Thank goodness!”

“Oh, hello Mr Oliphant”

“I’m so sorry for the interruption” he puffed breathlessly “being your lunch date and everything. But I was hoping you’d do me a huge favour”

No reply from Genevieve encouraged Gordon to continue “You see, you remember seeing that man in the posh suit? Well, he doesn’t play but he wants to hear the pianos before he buys one and I thought if you were still in the mall you could oblige me. You really would do the best job”

She looked over at Charles “There’s a queue waiting for our table anyway” he said. 

“Oh, its you!” greeted Mr Posh who had waited impatiently.

“I gotta get back” interrupted Charles “Are you here next week?”

“I’ll be here” she replied non-committedly 

“Yes. I’d like your opinion” posh was saying to her “It’s for my daughter. But I’m hoping my wife will take up playing again if we have the right instrument”

She played a few minutes from Clara Schumann’s piano concerto number 1 on the Mason

“I suggest that I play the same piece on this Beuchnel as well, so you can compare them”

“I think I prefer the Beuchnal”

“I’ve assumed” Genevieve said, “that your daughter would be playing classical music. That may have been a rash assumption”

“I expect as she gets older she’ll want to play modern styles, and I’ll probably encourage it. Would you play a bit of, say, popular music”

“I’d need some music for that” she apologised. “I’m afraid I don’t play it enough to memorise it”

She ran through some Scott Joplin as Gordon fetched a book of No 1 hits.

“What would you buy?” asked posh, piercing her with a stare.

“Me? I think the Mason has a slightly sharper tone that the other one”

“Let me tell you. I’m a man who does what needs to be done. Sometimes it’s unpopular. But if I do it, it gets done properly. I want the best piano I can get, but I need it by next Tuesday. Oh, and you should reserve Tuesday evening. The issue I have is that I don’t know enough about it to define what ‘best’ is. But your standard of playing shows that you know something about this, and on that basis I am prepared to trust your judgment”

“Well, if it’s the best you want, you should consider a Bosendorfer”

“A what?”

“Bosendorfer. They’re made virtually exclusively for concert halls. But occasionally one comes up for sale, but clearly it would be second user”

“My dear young lady, I have a mansionful of ‘second user’ furniture. You’ll find most antiques are not new”

Gordon had been quiet up till now, letting Genevieve lead the conversation.

“Except” he interrupted “that we don’t have one here right now” 

“No”, agreed Geneviève “But we could have by Monday. Of course, they’re not cheap” said Geneviève with a straight face even though she could see Gordon going a little bit pale and twitchy at the figures she was mentioning

“Sounds like an option. But a bit risky for Tuesday. So the Beuchnal or the Mason?”

“What do you play at home?” he asked Geneviève rather impertinently 

“I have a Beckstein, Sir, and I love it. But Beuchnal is generally regarded as being better. And are certainly more expensive with far fewer being made. More exclusive, if you like”

“But not as exclusive as this .. , what did you call it”

“Bosendorfer. Yes, that’s correct”      

He drew his hand across his face in thought

“I think what we're deciding on is that the Beuchnal is the most suitable, Mr ...?” 

“Erdmann. Duncan Erdmann” 

“So what about you place a deposit” he said trying to close the deal 

“I'm still thinking about that Bosendorfer, but no it's too tight on delivery”

“So” said Geneviève slowly “why don't we book delivery for Tuesday, and then decide exactly what we deliver on Monday. The Beuchnal is the default, and we’ll reserve that for you Mr Erdmann, but if you prefer the Bosendorfer on Monday, then we switch to that instead.” 

“I say! There's an idea. And are you available to demonstrate it?”

“Yes, but not till later in the afternoon” 

“Like?” 

“4.30. Maybe?”          

“But we'd get through in half an hour?”

“Oh yes. It's just a matter of five minutes on each instrument to compare the tone, and decide” 

Geneviève waited until Gordon had taken the details and Mr Erdmann was ready to go, but he turned to her instead.  

“I want you to give a recital on Tuesday at the party. I will of course make it very worth your while. But I think it is appropriate for me to be able to demonstrate the capabilities of this instrument to my daughter and perhaps to inspire her. What do you say?” 

Geneviève was momentarily overwhelmed “I'd love to. I'm sure I can rearrange my plans” 

“Excellent. Knights Gardens Manor. 7.30 don't be late. But I'll see you on Monday anyway” and with that he was gone. 

“So what's all this about a Bosendorfer?” asked Gordon with more than a hint of trepidation. 

“Well, it's like, Whyte and Wilson have got one. It looks in near perfect condition, although I've not heard it. It's retail at twenty five thousand. So if you could sell it for 30 it's a good deal.” 

“I see. But supposing he doesn't like it?” 

“You have to see if they'll lend it to you. Just tell them that you may have a customer, and if it goes through you buy it from them and sell it to Mr Erdmann and you all gain the sale. If he doesn't, then you just send it back” 

“And if they won't, as you say, lend it to me, what then?” 

“We just tell Mr Erdmann that the crew dropped it taking off the truck, and sell him the Beuchnal instead!” 

Geneviève was early on Monday. She'd managed to escape from class first and was quick enough to catch the earlier bus which was running late. Due to its size, the Bosendorfer was sitting majestically in the doorway to the mall and Mr Oliphant seemed to be on guard as he stood beside it watching the late rush of home goers troop past. 

His face lit up as she arrived and sat down on the stool. 

“Wow, at last! I was hoping to get a feel for it before Mr Erdmann arrived” 

“And I was hoping to hear you play it without the pressure of attending to a valuable customer” 

She ran through Finzi's piano concerto at a slightly increased tempo and managed to retain her composure as a small crowd gathered and Mr Oliphant stood by with his eyes closed gently swaying his head left and right.

“Oh my!” he said turning to her as she finished “the last time I heard that was in the opera house in Prague and you took me right back there” 

“So hopefully Mr Erdmann will think this sounds better than the Beuchnal. We'll see what he says when he gets here” 

She returned to the keyboard as Gordon returned to the desk to wait. 

The shopping crowds were dispersing, being replaced by early commuters using the mall as a shortcut. 

She had just closed her eyes to visualise the keys as she played through her Grieg when a high note discord interrupted the spell. 

“What are you doing?” she asked crossly of the older schoolboy who had just laid his hand on the top octave. 

“What are you playing?” he asked aggressively 

“Grieg’s Piano Concerto Number 2 in B Minor”

“And who taught you?”

“I'm sorry, but what's it got to do with you?”

“Because I want to know” he said moving his face closer to hers. 

Two of his friends had arrived 

“Well go on, the audience is here, get on and play!”

“I'm sorry, I’ve finished playing here. I have another appointment” 

She got up to go, but was immediately pushed back onto the stool 

“I said PLAY”

Now she felt intimidated. The first boy was behind her, and then his friends were either side. 

She lifted the lid. 

“What would you like me to play?” 

“Just play!”

She resumed Grieg’s concerto 

“Oh, ouch. Ow” as the keyboard lid slammed onto her wrists 

“Hey leave if it out Clarkie!”

“PLAY”

“What you doin’ Phil?”

His friend grabbed his arm but he shook it off. Now she was getting scared. The action was hidden from the few people in the mall by the piano. She wished Gordon would come back. 

“PLAY” 

“No.” 

She stood up and turned to face him directly

 “No. I've been patient with your childish vandalism for long enough. She got up to head back to the desk but Phil Clarke was blocking her route, she changed direction, but he was still there 

“Leave if out Clarkie! What you doin' ”

He moved close to her. “You! You have no business playing like that. Me. I'm made to practice four hours a day. Four hours! And you! You rock in playing complex Grieg and Finzi and that's why I'm gonna break your frigging wrists”

“So which primary school do you go to?”

The boy was taken aback “Primary? I’ll have you know I go to college” 

“I assume its an agricultural college?”

“No.. its….”

“Really! I’d only expect to find worms like you on farms”

His friends fell about laughing watching him being shredded like this

He grabbed her arm 

“Let go of me” 

He started to twist it up her back 

‘I’d let go if I were you. Before someone gets hurt”

“That’s exactly the idea…..”

But he was unable to finish. Felling trees and pushing Land Rovers had left her with stronger arms than anyone could possibly suspect even if her fingers were still delicate enough to dance on the keyboard. She flexed her free arm and took a firm hold of the wrist that was assaulting her. Fixing him with steely determination she used pure strength to replace his hand down by his side.

“Don’t do that again. I told you, someone might get hurt. And I can assure you it won’t be me”

His friends looked on in astonishment bordering on fear as he turned a darker shade of red “Nobody, nobody humiliates me like that and gets away with it”

He reached out again roughly grabbing her arm again,

“I'd unhand her, if I were you. Or I shall detach you from your spleen” said a loud voice behind him but Genevieve had already spun round, grabbed his arm and twisted it up his back as far as it would go. He started to bend under the pressure.

“You will find you have to bend your knees to prevent your arm being broken” she said quietly and directly but he was already bending. 

“Oh I see! You're now going to pretend that you need to fall on the floor. But that’s only because you’ll try to look up my dress”

His friend sniggered but Clarkie was now gasping for breath. She held the position despite gasps of protest and despair. The tall man in a dark designer suit towered over them as she continued to lower him to the ground under the pressure, letting go only as he fell lower than her outstretched arm. He squealed in pain as Mr Erdmann looked on with increasing approval. Clarkie’s face was now almost touching the ground as she let go

“I’d appreciate it if you would take this worm back to the dung heap he squirmed out of. Before someone gets hurt, because as I already warned you, it won’t be me and I am unlikely to be so gentle next time”

But while she had finished with them, Duncan Erdmann had not

“What sort of behaviour is this?” he demanded as the villain got back to his feet shaking visibly and quickly backing away from her 

“She has the aptitude and skill to perform such beauty and you? You threaten to do what? For no better reason than she’s better than you. So maybe you should try harder. This is no way to treat a young lady. And especially a friend of mine”

“This has got nothing to do with you” said Clarkie

“But it has. It is the responsibility of every citizen to uphold common decency and apart from that I have an appointment with this young lady, and you are interfering with my schedule, and worse, interfering by being a violent idiot. But wait, I know you anyway. You're Neville Clarke’s son aren't you? Philip, is it not?” 

Clarkie simmered 

“And” he continued with the utmost authority “I suggest you inform your father of this before I do, perhaps with a more conciliatory explanation. In addition, if your father and your mother were considering bringing you along tomorrow, tell them not to bother as I shall be instructing Curtis to refuse you entry. Geneviève, I believe we have some business to attend to. You know I don't know what they teach them at the Conservatoire. It appears to be a den of criminals. But…” he continued as they moved into the shop “…I’m so glad you’re here. I admit I was concerned that you might not be.” 

“Oh dear! That's disappointing. I did say I would be” 

“And that half nelson you put on him was impressive. Is that another of your many talents?”

“I do quite a lot of forestry. Chainsaws can have a dangerous mind of their own if you don’t keep them under proper control”

Duncan Erdmann glanced at her with impressed astonishment as Mr Oliphant guided them toward the Beuchnal and she opened with a Chopin nocturne, playing the same on the Bosendorfer. Oliphant frowned a little as she finished the piece and Erdmann took a step back into the mall to get a better perspective. 

“Could you possibly play the Beuchnal again, please?”

With round two complete they stood next to her at the Bosendorfer. 

“I remember that the plan was to compare the two and decide on a preference?” 

Erdmann took another step back and asked her for her opinion. 

She glanced over at Oliphant “well, she said evasively it's not me that’s going to play it .. .. but if it was I.. I prefer the Beuchnal. But..” she added quickly, “…that’s a very personal choice” 

Erdmann retained his poker face and turned instead to Oliphant 

“And Mr Oliphant. What is your opinion?”

“They are both excellent instruments, so it depends on the circumstances.” 

Erdmann pierced him with a stare to encourage him to expand that remark 

“The Bosendorfer is more exclusive, but it needs more attention to keep it perfectly tuned. In that respect the Beuchnal is more forgiving.” 

“It's for your daughter isn't it?” confirmed Geneviève 

“Yes, and I'm hoping my wife will return to playing as well. But Geneviève, I've heard you play both of these now, and I’m relying on your opinion. Put it this way, which would you prefer to play at the Manor tomorrow?” 

Geneviève now found herself between a rock and a hard place. But she'd been asked 

“Mr Oliphant, I know we've gone to a lot of trouble to get the Bosendorfer over here, but there’s very little difference in the sound quality. My personal preference is the Beuchnal, from a playing perspective. But I also think that the Bosendorfer might be a bit too imposing for a younger player. As you yourself said they’re designed for concert halls, and it's just, well, big” 

Erdmann raised an unexpectedly gentle smile 

“I agree with all that. And especially that it may be too imposing. I think its size may be too daunting for a little girl - although I guess she's not so little now, unfortunately. But I'm also thinking that I could levy the same criticism on the Beuchnal. It's impressive. It would look very much the part sitting in the corner of the orangery as an ornament. But I need something that encourages Toulouse to play. I said I wanted the best. But I'm not convinced that the best piano will be the best birthday present.” 

Oliphant’s face fell markedly as he could see the sale slipping away altogether 

“Hmmm” said Geneviève “so if it's not the best at being a piano, maybe what you need is best at helping her make a connection with the music? Would you not agree Mr Oliphant” 

“Yes, that is what we discussed a few weeks ago when you were in here with your father” 

“So, in that case. Why not have a look at a Bechstein? There's a beautiful one over at the other side of the shop. I think, when I play, that the instrument has its own personality, and it can either help you play better or it can be a bit, well, mardy”. 

They all moved over to the much smaller Bechstein and Geneviève once again ran through Chopin’s nocturnes. Followed closely by the opening introduction to Grieg’s piano concerto number 2 as she had on the Bosendorfer.

“Talking personally, I find the Bechstein just more friendly, and I think that little Toulouse would too. How old is she?”

“10. She just made it to double figures. At least she will tomorrow” 

“And there is another advantage” added Geneviève “it's at least a couple of thousand pounds less expensive. I know you said you'd pay whatever it took to get the best, but I expect you're also quite careful that your money is well spent, especially now that we have revisited what best really is”

“I agree with you yet again, Geneviève. You see, I can see Toulouse playing this. I can just picture it now in the lesser drawing room. With the Bosendorfer I can just see her standing next to it, squinting sideways at it being too frightened of it, or maybe by it, to actually lift the cover and take control. I'll take the Bechstein, Mr Oliphant, if you'd be so kind as to prepare the paperwork. Were you able to reserve the evening for me? I do hope you were” he continued turning back to Geneviève

“Yes, I'd be only too pleased to demonstrate the Bechstein”

“Perhaps you could be at the Manor for six thirty? It’s a big day for a little girl and it may be that 7.30 is too late for her. Oh my, is that the time. I really must fly. I'll see you both variously tomorrow” 

Oliphant smiled down at her. “I don't suppose you want a job in sales do you?” 

“No, thank you. But you're not cross with me are you? I know it was my idea, and its caused a lot of trouble, but the Bosendorfer really is too scary for a ten year old. Although I expect you still made a profit on the Bechstein” 

“Quite so. In fact the margin is somewhat better than on the Beuchnal. And as a bonus, I actually got to hear the Bosendorfer played properly for the first time in years and years. We'll get that down to him first thing. And you are right. It's much more suitable for her. I think Mr Erdmann was impressed that we tried everything to get him the most suitable instrument rather than just the most expensive. And I do have my reputation to maintain not just my turnover figures” 

Will Three Rivers Cave In?

Stress the next day would not be confined to Geneviève’s recital. Giles and Lisa looked frazzled when they arrived ten minutes late at the Riverside site. Lisa apologised saying they were delayed by the Union representative who was complaining of not being kept up to date. However, spurred on by the quiet ambience of Steve’s office the meeting was cordial, and even good humoured. Steve listened to their proposal

“So”, he said “what’s the company’s financial position?”
 “Yes” said Giles “I’m hoping Lisa has a copy of just that with her”

Steve buzzed through it briefly picking up a number of points. However there were also a number that he noticed that he did not immediately raise with them.

The discussion seemed to be taking a turn for the worse as Steve picked up on the involvement of the trade union, and the recent departure of their Production and HR Directors, due, Giles admitted, to stress.

Lisa was becoming increasingly quiet and looking increasingly nervous, and Steve was becoming concerned. He tried asking her directly for her opinion but to little avail, until she suddenly announced that she was terribly sorry but she would have to visit the little girls room.

“And I thought it was only blokes that suffered like that” Giles said as he leaned back in his chair

“I’ll get Ruth to rustle up some more coffee while we wait for her”

But Steve was hardly happy with the whole episode, and even less so five minutes after Lisa had returned. Ruth had tapped on the door

“Sorry for the interruption. Something important just came up. I thought you ought to see this straight away” 

She passed a note to Steve. He glanced at it, and with a knowledgeable nod glanced up at Giles and Lisa. She looked more nervous now than at any other time, almost twitchy

“Sorry guys” he apologised “Thanks Ruth. I’ll deal with this immediately after the meeting. Although...” he broke into a short smile “…I might just pick up a bacon bap from the café on the way”

“What’s the verdict?” Giles asked as Steve showed signs of winding up the meeting.

“Its interesting” Steve started, but noticed that Lisa seemed to have some sort of sudden seizure “But, the whole picture isn’t exactly up to date. There’ll be additional returns and such like. Overall, Giles, its in poor shape and I can only assume that you’ve already tried to improve the situation. So the conclusion I’m getting to is that its just too risky, even if at this point its unquantified. I’ll spend a bit more time on it to give myself a better estimate, but I expect that will only confirm my suspicions”

Giles retained a fixed face, but Lisa, standing a little behind him breathed a visible but silent sigh of relief.

“I’ll see you in the office” she said as she and Giles headed down the stairs

“But first I need to go somewhere”

Steve walked with them to the door, and said goodbye to Giles as Lisa disappeared into the loo. She watched Giles get to his car and now with him out of the way, she took a left turn towards the door marked ‘café’. 

Steve was already in the short queue 

“Sorry, I missed lunch. I was preparing for a meeting with a couple of representatives from Cave Brothers” 

“Sorry?”

“Bacon bap?” 

“No, thankyou. But I will have a cup of tea” 

“Are you all right?” he asked with genuine concern “I was getting a bit worried about you during the meeting” 

“Yes. I'm fine. Or at least, ok. But you don't even know me, so don't get worried about me. No, I only left the first time so that I could write that note for your PA, and then again to lose Giles” 

He peered over the top of his bap with a look that asked her to continue. 

“Look, Steve, we don't owe each other anything, and as far as I remember, we've never met before. But I have a certain level of integrity and self-respect. I think Caves has stripped me of most everything else, but I will retain my personal integrity. I wanted nothing to do with all this. I was happy to go two weeks ago when Giles fired me” 

“Fired you, so why are you still there?” 

“Because then he immediately told me I had to work a month’s notice” 

“So he gave you a month’s notice for no reason?” 

“Kind of. Anyway, the thing is, the company has already gone down …. “ 

“Shh! Lisa, who knows who's listening here. Its a works cafe” 

“But Steve, I need to tell you this. If not for your benefit, then for mine” 

“Ok. It's nearly six thirty, maybe we'd be better off in a pub or a restaurant and get some dinner” 

“As well as a bacon buttie?” 

“I'm sure I can manage both. Have you got your car with you?” 

“Car! Don't wind me up. I had a company car till last month. Then it went back and I've been on the bus since then” 

“I feel maybe I've been kidnapped” she said as they drove out of town to the Pheasant.

“But it's good to get out of the office. I've been there 12 hours already today” 

“No family?” 

“Yes. I have a daughter, but she’s out this evening. I just need to pick her up at 9.30 or she won’t be fit for school tomorrow” 

Lisa looked a few years older than him, and quite slim, but she may have just had a hard life. 

She said she was from Manchester, had been married, had two grown up sons, one still at Uni doing a PhD and the other somewhere between Singapore and Fiji. Exactly where, she said, was anybody's guess. Even if by magic you actually spoke to him, he wouldn't know where he was either and you'd be none the wiser. 

“But what I really need to tell you” said Lisa returning to the original theme “is that the bank has already given notice of closure. The company is already bankrupt. My worst fear was that you'd sign up to Giles deal. And I wouldn't be able to live with myself for letting that happen. And for being party to it. It's like being an accessory to a crime” 

“Lisa, I thank you for that. And its good to know that there are still people with integrity working in business. But there were too many unknowns. You dated these accounts ten days ago. There must have been sold updates since then, and returns. And the debt situation is unknown. Then there's the TU. How strong is that? Is there a major membership?” 

“It's mandatory. So there's no telling how many would sign up voluntarily”

“Then there's redundancy costs. That doesn't appear anywhere. I know Giles wasn't asking exactly a king’s ransom, but there are too many unknowns and some of these are completely unquantifiable. The level of risk is just crazy. And I've no way of quantifying that either. So it has to be a no from me” 

“Thank goodness for that” 

“When's the announcement to the workforce?” 

“Probably Friday, late morning. This was Giles’ last potential rescue meeting”

“It’s a real shame, but every cloud has its silver lining and I've enjoyed this evening Lisa. Just goes to show that serious work can be done and have a good time at the same time”

“Thanks Steve. I've had a good evening. I've redressed the balance of honesty and I'm no longer stressed out by being part of trying to sell a ship that's already sunk.” 

They exchanged smiles, and shook hands as he dropped her as her house. 

Friday, he thought. I might just crash that mass meeting. But now it was time to get over to Knights Manor to collect a budding pianist.

For Geneviève, six thirty had come round remarkably quickly. She took a taxi to the Manor giving Steve the opportunity to stay at work a little longer as she wouldn’t be in for dinner. 

The door was answered by a girl who looked no older than her in a smart black pencil skirt and white frilly blouse. She led her through the hallway to a small study at the back, although Geneviève could hear the voices of a crowded room somewhere over to her right. She waited almost motionless for a few minutes, not wanting to read anything or even look at anything in too much detail in case it was confidential or business or both. 

Duncan appeared looking relaxed 

“How did you introduce yourself?” he asked without introduction 

“I said I was Geneviève and that you'd invited me and before I could say anything else I was brought in here” 

“Yes, I must apologise. You see I didn't add you to the guest list as Lorraine would ask me who you were. And I've managed to keep the piano a secret all day despite three fellows in a large liveried van showing up to commission it. So what I'd like to do, if it's all right with you, is simply introduce you as a guest at the party. It's mainly family with some close business colleagues who already know us anyway. Then after the buffet, I'll take Toulouse and Lorraine through to the lesser drawing room and unveil the piano. I'm sure a fair percentage will follow anyway. Then I'll ask if anyone here would like to demonstrate it to Toulouse and you can take that as your cue” 

“That's wonderful. I wasn't expecting to be part of the party as well, and I'll make sure I stay confidential. But I was also wondering what you might like to hear. So I thought maybe I could meet Toulouse and if I can talk to her for a few minutes she might give me some ideas. I don't want to play something she hates that would put her off before she even starts” 

“Yes. Yes. What a good point. I'll get Giselle to help you find her” 

Giselle was the girl in the frilly blouse. She replied to Mr Erdmann request in French and gave Geneviève the narrowest of smiles as she led the way through the crowded room past the sombre faces of businessmen double crossing each other and the plastic smirks of the ladies planning their next affair. 

This was an ancient maze of a house and Geneviève saw the opportunity as they left the formal gathering behind. 

“I do hope I can find my way back” she remarked casually in French. The au pair stopped and turned, startled and continued the conversation in French, becoming disarmingly more friendly. It appeared that she was supposed to look after Toulouse, but she was also supposed to teach her French. After all, her mother Lorraine was French as well. But this wasn't going down at all well with the younger girl and life was becoming difficult. And Giselle’s other issue was that she herself didn't actually know very much English, what with Lorraine always talking to her in their native language and having little chance to learn English properly. And so she wasn't able to fully explain this to Mr Erdmann as he had short patience for such issues. 

“Hi” opened Geneviève as they found Toulouse in a far playroom “I've been looking for the birthday girl” 

“That's me” she said flatly 

“I thought you'd be the centre of attraction over in the main hall” 

“No, they've all come to see each other, not to see me” 

“But I've come to see you” 

“Thankyou” 

“Do tell me, what did you get for your birthday?” 

“I got some clothes, and nana bought me a new saddle. And I know there's a big box of chocolate something from someone but I'm not allowed to have that in case I'm stupid enough to eat it all at once and make myself ill when what really makes me ill is that mother and father think I'm that stupid” 

Giselle returned to her other duties while Geneviève played with Toulouse for a while eventually asking if she liked music and if she played at all

“There used to be a piano, but it drowned”

“Drowned? Did you push it into the pond?”

“No” she laughed “There were two men cleaning the windows with a hosepipe and the window was open and it just filled up with water. Father had it taken away, but it never came back”

“How very odd!”           

“Yes, I used to like playing. It used to make me feel happy, even if I wasn’t very good”

Giselle returned to take Toulouse back to the main hall because they were about to cut the cake

“I suppose that’s my contribution” said Toulouse sadly

“You should make a speech” said Geneviève “No, you should!” she encouraged. “Just before they cut the cake, you should stand up on a chair and bang a glass with a spoon, except not too hard in case it breaks and then say ‘before we cut the cake, I’d just like to thank everyone for coming’ or something like that”

“I could just get sent to bed”

“Surely not. Not on your birthday. Not before cake! And you’re a big girl now”

She took hold of Toulouse’s hand and she smiled up at her with the wide eyed innocence that was about to be shattered.

She reached the table where the cake was and Geneviève could see those innocent eyes darting around and resting on an empty wine glass. Duncan was about to call for some attention, but instead noticed Toulouse using Geneviève’s arm to lever herself up onto a chair. She had the glass in one hand and was wielding the large, lethal looking cake knife in the other. She tapped on the glass with the knife, gently at first, then stronger and louder till the room fell quiet. Now all eyes had turned to her 

“Just before I cut my cake” she said in a crystal clear voice “I’d like to say how pleased I am to have reached the ripe old age of 10 and look forward to the next three years before the next milestone which is to be a teenager. I would like to thank you all for coming to help me celebrate and hope you like the cake”

Geneviève was a little stunned, but not nearly as much as Duncan who was staring unbelievingly at his little girl. He didn’t seem in the least bit cross, just fully surprised. The lady Geneviève assumed to be Lorraine tried to take the knife from her, but Toulouse resisted that as well as she climbed down

“That’s ok mummy. I can manage” and with that she plunged the knife into the centre of the cake. Geneviève reached out instantly to help steady her hand and added some pressure to produce the first slice, before drifting over to see if any of the buffet was left and quietly munched a few nibbles. She was actually quite nervous as it suddenly occurred to her that this was really her first proper engagement. Playing for Gordon Oliphant at the mall was just a practice session with a few passers-by as onlookers. But this was premeditated to an invited audience and was of the utmost importance both to Mr Erdmann in front of his business colleagues but also to little Toulouse to reignite her interest, and possibly also to Lorraine as well.

Geneviève watched Duncan. He was clearly mulling over these events, and she just knew he was wondering who was behind Toulouse’s behaviour. But now he led his daughter and wife from the room and she followed on as she had been instructed. Sure enough there was a large pink sheet covering the piano in the corner. She stayed back a little as a large man with an enormous moustache approached him

“Congratulations Erdmann. Jolly well done!” 

Duncan was clearly taken aback. Perhaps this guy was an important client. Maybe his boss?

“Bringing up kids these days isn’t easy. Giving her the confidence to stand up unannounced in front of 100 people is nothing short of remarkable. I have directors who squirm at the thought” 

But the room had filled up now. He pulled the cover off the piano and lifted Toulouse up to stand on the stool. 

“Toulouse, since you’re big girl now, I’ve bought you this and hopefully you will be able to resume playing and enjoy playing as much as you used to. You might even want to lend it to your mother on some occasions. Do you want to play it now?”
 “Thankyou daddy, but I’m a bit out of practice. I think I might embarrass myself”

“Perhaps one of our guests would like to demonstrate its capabilities? Martha? Or perhaps you’ve not had enough to drink yet”

Geneviève moved forward and offered to play a short piece. She opened with two of Chopin’s nocturnes as Toulouse stood wide eyed at her side. There was polite applause. She turned to Toulouse “Do you want a go?” 

She just shook her head but “Would you like me to play something else” was received with enthusiastic nodding, and she started straight in to Shostakovich 2^nd piano concerto, and then Trio for Piano by Clara Schumann. Toulouse disappeared saying she’d be back in a moment and sure enough was back with two large pieces of cake, and one was for Geneviève. This, she counted as success enough. There was a large audience through the entire recital, but now she lifted Toulouse up onto her lap and encouraged her to play with her on some simpler Beethoven that she now knew had been her favourite. Toulouse slipped down onto the piano stool in between Geneviève’s legs and while this was a little unladylike, she found it easy to guide Toulouse’s fingers to run through the piece. The little girl beamed up at her still stuffing her face with cake. Genevieve gave her a squeeze and was rewarded with an even bigger beam. But she couldn’t help but feel sorry for her. The archetypical poor little rich girl, but maybe now if she could focus on her piano, she might overcome the other issues as Geneviève herself had done. And with Toulouse now playing rather badly, the audience drifted back towards the drinks table.

“Will you come and help me play?” she asked as she lost concentration on the keys.

“I don’t know Toulouse. I’m very busy. I expect your daddy has a really nice tutor lined up for you. But you’d have to ask him anyway”

But she could also see that the birthday girl was getting very tired. She held Geneviève’s hand as they set off in search of Giselle, who was stressed out in the main hall. Geneviève suggested in French that putting Toulouse to bed would be less manic than whatever she was doing and knelt down to be at Toulouse’s level. 

“Now you take care of that Bechstein piano. And if you do, he’ll take care of you”

But with Giselle upstairs, there was no-one greeting visitors at the front door as Steve found out when he pulled the long bell chain a second time. He pushed the door open and made his way towards the sound of the party but instead finding the large gentleman with the handlebar moustache before he got as far as the crowd

“Good evening Neville” he opened cheerily

“Good grief! If it isn’t Steve Bergstrom. How are you, old boy?”

“Never better, Neville. And you?”

“In fine fettle, since you ask. A bit late though, aren’t you. Birthday girl has just gone to bed, not that we saw much of her.”

He was still chatting to Neville when Duncan wandered into view. He looked quizzically at Steve. He was expecting to know all of the guests he’d invited, and here was someone he didn’t recognise

“Looking puzzled, Duncan” opened Neville

“I’m sorry, but I don’t recognise this gentleman” he replied accusingly.

Neville made the introductions

“And what business are you in, Steve?”
 “We make food processing equipment, industrial ovens, sausage machines, that kind of thing. And you’re in shipping?”
 “Yes. International freight. Who is it you use at present?”
 “We’re UK and Eire only. I run a private fleet of vans to deliver our products. They co-ordinate with our installation engineers. But really, I only dropped by to pick up my little girl”
 “Little girl?”
 “Yes, she was playing the recital for you this evening”

“Ah Yes! Geneviève. An absolutely delightful young lady, if you don’t mind me saying so. I am much indebted to her in making the right choice of piano.  But she can’t be far away. She was right here a few minutes ago, although she may have taken Toulouse up to bed with Giselle”

Talking with Neville and Duncan was useful and interesting, too! But he also wanted to extract Geneviève fairly quickly After all, it was a school night.

Friday morning saw Steve at Cave Brothers and discontent was manifest. It was getting well into late morning now as a plain white van drove into the yard. He watched as he skulked near the wall trying to remain inconspicuous in working overalls. Two men got out, opened the rear doors and heaved a large pile of Cave produced products out onto the yard in an unruly heap. They headed into the far building, returning almost immediately with a cardboard box, and drove off in a hurry without commotion or challenge.

Now the yard started to fill up as the workforce appeared from the various low doors, blackened by time and concealing who knows what. Some blinked as they were hit be the sunlight like they were hibernating moles. Steve moved forward as a young worker appeared from the far door and stood gazing down at the heap of junk motors some with exposed windings just lying as scrap. Steve moved up beside him, curious as to what the fascination was.

“I wound most of these motors” the young man said without looking up, without addressing Steve, or even acknowledging him.

“I put heart and soul into these, and won’t you look at them now” he cast a desolate gaze up to Steve. “Trouble is, I then pass then on to Brad Montgomery. All he has to do is fix the connections and screw the backplate on. Except more often than not, he just stuffs the wires inside and puts one screw in. Another unit completed, even though it would never work” 

Steve continued just trying to look inconspicuous, but it seemed that no-one cared one way or the other 

“You don’t work here do you” the young guy was saying

“No, No I don’t. But I share your sadness”

“You from the Gazette? I know what’s coming this morning. Been expecting it for weeks. Not that that helps”

He saw Giles appear and climb onto the back of a flat-bed truck that had been set up with a microphone and a tinny speaker at each end. Arnie was on the truck as well now, but what was this that he caught out of the corner of his eye. It was Lisa coming out of the far building, clearly distraught. In fact, visibly crying although no one else seemed to notice, or maybe they were past caring.

Giles had tapped the mic for attention as yet another man joined him on the truck as Giles started speaking 

“It is” he said in a clear voice and waited for some hush “a sad day for Cave Brothers. Despite my strenuous efforts to find either a buyer or a backer for the company, I am devastated to announce to you all, that the company has finally gone into receivership and will be closing and locking its gates at noon today.”

A ripple ran through the assembled crowd and Steve moved towards the side of the truck towards Lisa. 

The third man now grabbed the microphone

“I assume, that the redundancy payments including owed wages, accrued holiday pay, a months wages in lieu of notice, plus a consideration in lieu of anticipated overtime for the months’ notice will be available from the accounts office.” he bellowed down the microphone

“No” whispered Lisa almost to herself. “There’s nothing, not a single penny, for anyone” 

Why not? he whispered to himself, but Arnie had grabbed the microphone and hit McCauley a severe blow to the neck with his walking stick.

“There is only one person responsible for this state of affairs through his interference, meddling, restrictive practices and constant demands, and that is your Union Leader, Joe McCauley. But you are all not guiltless. You followed him like a god, a messiah. And this is where your false prophet has led you. This scumbag standing here is the root cause of this disaster. I slaved for this company, to bring you jobs and to bring you a livelihood, to give you a future. And you! You threw it back at me in favour of indolence, greed and selfishness. You have brought this on yourselves. So get out, get out all of you before I charge you all with trespassing. And there are no payments, not any. The very last of our funds was reclaimed by a customer not half an hour ago who returned the rubbish we sent him. And it was rubbish because you, yes you made rubbish. We used to produce a quality product, but no longer. Because your false prophet removed our quality control in the name of equality and anonymity. I spit on you McCauley. May you rot in the 9^th level of Hades for what you have done to me and my company. I will be locking the gate in ten minutes. Anyone left will be locked in and …” 

He choked on the next words and tried unsuccessfully to complete the sentence a second time. Instead he choked and stumbled and Giles helped him to the steps as he collapsed onto the truck bed. Giles half carried him off the stage although McCauley appeared not to notice. He was beside himself with rage and hopping from one foot to the other in raw frustration 

“I demand that you retract those slanderous statements, and I demand that you pay the workers their dues” 

But Giles had already helped Arnie from the truck and was ignoring him completely, now staggering back towards the rear pedestrian gate. 

Lisa was still distraught at the edge of the truck. 

“But that's outrageous” he roared throwing the microphone down towards her. “You tell them” 

Lisa was too distressed to argue. Her voice faltered over the first few words

“I'm sorry to have to confirm, that the money that I got from the bank to pay the wages this week has been taken. It was snatched from the accounts office by the two men that left all those motors over there. There is no money. There are no wages, there is no redundancy. The company has nothing to give you. There is nothing left.”

 She collapsed into tears, totally alone amid a hundred devastated, angry, hostile workers, abandoned by her management and with violence simmering all around as the full impact of the situation began to sink in slowly.   

Steve slipped his arm round her shoulders unannounced, checking to see how quickly he needed to hustle her towards the back gate. She jumped, but on looking round broke into a weak smile at the sight of a friendly face. 

“Jeez” breathed the young guy who was now standing right next to her. “I didn’t see that coming. That’s everything gone. I needed those wages to buy food for my baby” 

“No explanation, no answers, no questions” seethed McCauley, hauling the microphone back up from her.

“I've got a question” said the young guy in a far-away voice. “Can anyone lend me a fiver to buy food for my 6 month old baby girl?”

But there was only a rising crescendo of dismay and grief. 

“6 months old” repeated Steve “What’s her name?”

“Isla. She is our island of hope, what with everything else going on”

Steve tapped him on the arm 

“Hey, mate, I'm going across the road for a pie and a pint. You wanna come?” 

“Sure, but I'm skint. Totally brassic” 

“No matter, come anyway” 

“No thanks. I can’t afford to be owing anyone else. I gotta get back to my baby and start to figure out where to find a couple of quid. And start looking for a new job”

“New job? Today”

“Sure, can’t wait till Monday. Everyone will be out there on Monday”

“What’s your name, asked Steve”

“Jack . Jack Kenton, and you”

“Steve. Listen. If you don’t find a new job by Monday, phone me on this number. Just ask for Steve. We might be able to help each other. And, sorry, but I’m not a journalist, I’m an engineer. And eh, take this”

He pushed a ten pound note into Jacks hand

“Look, mister, you just heard the score round here. I can’t pay that back” he said trying to return it

“You don’t have to. It’s a gift. I’m not standing by while a little girl goes hungry”

Steve turned to go while Jack held out the tenner, then turned away finally accepting that he’d have to keep it. But, he consoled himself, he’d tried.

“Did that invitation extend to me?” asked Lisa,

“Which one, the tenner, the pie and a pint, or the phone me Monday”

“Both”

“Both! And you’re the company accountant! Look, we’d better get out of here. And I recommend we stay out of the pubs around here. Looks like something might be turning nasty up there”

He nodded towards the main gate where the noise was increasing and a scuffle had already developed

“C’mon. Back gate, my cars down there somewhere” as he pointed her in the direction of the rear pedestrian gate to avoid the crush of the crowd and helped her hurry.

Cue The Whisper of the Ages – Edenbridge from the Acrana album

“Anyway, what are you doing here?” she asked once she thought they were out of earshot “I guess Jack thought you were from the press?” 

“Yes, which was a good cover for most of the morning” 

“So what's your plan?” she asked 

“I haven't got one. Not yet. I'm still trying to figure out whose side everyone is on. I don't know how loyal the workforce is to Cave’s or the Union, or if they're just independent souls making their own mind up” 

She looked over quizzically as he glanced at her. 

“I mean I don't even know whose side you're on?”

“Me! Well I'm not on Caves side, and I'm definitely not on the Union side. I can't say I can condone Arnie’s approach of having a rant at everyone, but I have to agree with his fundamental sentiment that McCauley is largely responsible. So I guess I'm on my side, unless there are any other sides to join” 

“I think there's my side. Except I haven't got many recruits, not yet” 

“So you have got a plan! Do you think it might include me?” 

Steve looked concerned “Involve you? It could do” 

“Because, as of about right now, I'm looking for a new job too” 

“Ok, but who took all the money?” he asked casually changing the subject, hoping to get a better insight as they got to his car

“Some guys from the midlands. They make toys. You know, motorised pedal cars for toddlers, that sort of thing. They said there’d be a lot of disappointed kids this Christmas if they didn’t get their refund and buy alternative stock. And” she continued “I think I’ve been kidnapped again”

“Doesn’t sound like you’re complaining”

They talked a little about themselves over lunch, Lisa saying a lot about her new husband and her two grown up sons, and Steve largely listening, but mentioning that his daughter was currently practising hard for her next piano grade. Lisa seemed to relax a bit more after that. Maybe she now realised that this was more work than social, although she admitted it did have the hallmark of a casual rather than business meeting. And Steve moved the conversation back to Cave Brothers.

“I need to have another chat with Giles, but I also need someone who knows the Caves staff.” 

“Is that why you invited me to lunch again”
 “No, Lisa, I invited you to lunch because you were upset and I got you out of there because it could easily have become dangerous. I think you were very brave bordering on foolhardy making that kind of announcement to that kind of audience. But now you’re asking about the plan. I’m toying with the idea of restarting production. But there’s a lot of unknown quantities and I’m especially nervous about the Union affiliation. With that sort of impact and control, there’s every chance of the same disaster happening again?”

“Maybe the guys will have learned their lesson” she replied optimistically

“Do you think they’ve got enough sense to prioritise their own families over the brothers of the union?”

“I think you’re doing them a disservice”

“Ok. Maybe. But would you consider helping me put a plan together? Maybe then I can start to identify the risks – and the costs”

“You mean like a project plan with the activities, the events, and some of the costs?”

“But less detail. More of an outline so that we can assess feasibility”

“Sure Steve, I can do something like that”

“Then maybe we get back together and root out the risks if I take some time to just think about it”

“Ok”
 “But Lisa, to be viable we need to be able to employ enough key people from the old workforce, but make sure we avoid the lunatic fringe activists”

“Wow. That’s ambitious”

“Its going nowhere without it, Lisa. Make no mistake. If I invest in this, I will be in control. Not some jumped up communist urchin throwing his weight around at everyone else’s expense. So did Caves have an HR department?”

“Of sorts. It was called Emma, but lately she was mainly McCauley's gopher. I guess Emma was the nearest thing we had to an HR representative. She was driven to distraction by McCauley, and after her boss left due to stress, she decided just to go with the flow and pick up her paycheck for as long as it lasted. It was Emma that first told me that the writing was on the wall about 6 months ago, so I started looking for the signs in the figures”

“Ok. So, one of the activities will be to go through the staff register and decide who’s safe and who isn’t”

“I’m not sure we’re allowed to do that! Even if it’s not illegal, it’s pretty judgemental”

“Ok, but so is selecting the team for the match on Saturday. Some make the first 11, some are on the bench and others are only ever going to make the transfer list. And it’s the team manager who makes the shout. It’s not democratic. Why would it be if you’re out there to win, not just individually, but as a whole team?”

“So you’re not a democrat?”

“No. Not at all. Advise me, challenge me, shout, scream, yell, argue. All of these are acceptable and I’ll even buy you a drink afterwards. But after all that, I make the decision and I will usually tell you why. And then I expect everyone to get behind that decision and make sure it works, even if it wasn’t the option you would personally have preferred”

“Ok” she said with quiet acceptance as though she’d already been put in her place

“Lisa, in my team you get your say. And most important of all I’ll listen to your point of view and if its good advice I’ll gladly take it. But not all votes are equal. And its only me that has a veto. If anyone doesn’t like it, they need to find a company to work for that they do like. Having said that, each department knows where its meant to be going. I plan to meet them there, but you won’t find me dictating what mode of transport they use”

She remained quiet, having got the gist. But here was a guy who sounded like he meant business. Here was the opportunity to be part of this. And she was looking for a job starting about an hour ago. Getting carried away was not on his agenda. And it could work, maybe. But she’d need Emma’s help.

“Ok, do you want to join my side? Do you think Emma would join my side? “

“Maybe. She’ll be looking for a new job as well I expect” 

“Ohh, Lisa, buying Cave Brothers with an unknown debt mountain, unknown staff attitude, negative customer goodwill, rock bottom morale, lousy quality, no QA process and infested with Union prima donnas. It was always a non-starter. Giles must have known that”

“Which is why I had to warn you. Even now, I’m so glad I took that decision”

“Me too. But setting up a new operation to make similar products needs some serious consideration. But it also needs to be done sooner rather than later or the good guys will have all moved on. And it needs to keep out the radicals or it will be doomed from day one. So, Lisa, are you still up for making a feasibility plan?”

Emma was in the depths of depression when Lisa finally got through to her that evening. 

“No! What do you think? I don’t have anything lined up” she said after some idle chatter. “And I don’t think many of the guys have either. I don’t know anyone who was expecting this. Not so sudden and with no payout at all. I feel so sorry for everyone, all their families. I mean, I’ve been expecting this any day for over three months, but I don’t think many of them saved very much. Everyone was relying on redundancy”

“I agree, Emma, They all just followed God McCauley. They all believed in him and now its proved to be a lie….” 

She stopped short “But listen, Emma, I’ve been talking to a guy who is interested in a recovery plan. It wouldn’t involve getting everyone back to work, but it will need some of the old staff. As a new venture it sounded quite exciting to me. In fact, I was hoping you might be interested as well. Except it's rather secret at the moment.”

“Well, he must have a screw loose. He’ll pour his money into it and the same thing will happen again. I do feel sorry for everyone, but I don’t know if there’s any helping those guys. They’re like sheep, just follow”

“Like lemmings, Emma, lemmings! Follow the leader straight over a cliff edge. But that’s where you could help. If this plan is going to succeed we need to make sure that the bonkers die-hards like Brad Montgomery don’t make it into the new company”

“That’s hardly fair, Lisa. I’m not sure we can do that”

“Depends how you define ‘fair’. Its not fair for a few loonies to spoil it for everyone. And Emma, we can do what we like. What we’re doing is trying to provide employment and some longer term prospects for some honest guys by identifying the ones who will just sink it all over again and destroy it for everyone all over again. So we make sure we keep them out in the first place” 

“They’d find out and get back in, even if its as Union reps. Oh, Lisa its too ambitious!”

“But it’s not us that’s doing it. And at the moment it’s only a feasibility study. The guy behind it has some experience in this kind of thing. What I want you to do is help me go through the register and identify…”

“…You mean, make a black list”

“Or maybe a white list”

“Oh. I don’t know. It sounds a bit underhand”

“But surely creating jobs for some is better than no jobs at all”

“Ok” she said after a long pause “But we’d better keep this well secret. It could get real dangerous if the wrong people find out”

Final Whistle

The following Monday Steve took a detour after dropping Geneviève at school but his train of thought was interrupted as he approached the main entrance to the Cave Brothers site. There outside the main gate partly obstructing the road were a number of men hanging around in what looked surprisingly like a picket line. He drove on. Clearly McCauley didn’t believe the game was over. But, he reflected, maybe he has to keep this pretence active to maintain his credibility. After all, the faithful still have to pay their Union dues even if they’re out of work.

But now in his office it took a while for Giles’ phone to be answered, as he heard it being transferred before a quiet, almost subdued voice said she would try to find him. Giles too seemed subdued, but Steve accepted that it was to be expected in the circumstances 

Steve asked him what the plan was now. 

“There isn't one. Final whistle’s gone. Although, personally, I'm intending to go over to Italy, I have some other business interests there. But. Steve, before you go on, I need to tell you something. And that is that my father died Friday night. The works was everything to him, and without it he had nothing left. So, I guess he decided it was time for him to go too. That heart attack on the trailer was the catalyst but my view is he’d lost everything he ever lived for”

Steve offered condolences and asked if there was anything he could do, but he was also keen to explore the possibilities. He really needed Lisa’s feasibility study first, but opportunities needed to be taken when they were recognised. Giles could only say no!

“I guess if the final whistle’s blown, you won’t be needing those patents any longer. Maybe you’d consider selling them to me?”

“Steve, I don't know about this. They're owned by my father, so I guess they form part of the estate” 

“So they'll pass to you” 

“Yes, but should be split with my brother and sister, although they won't be interested in them. They won't even know what they are. Although I appreciate they could be worth a bit to you. And our financial situation here is less than perfect” 

“Ok. I'd still have to set up a whole new production unit. But bear it in mind anyway. Actually Giles, I’d quite like to help you out. This isn’t an attempt to take advantage when you’re already down. Maybe we could do it as a private transaction, between you and me. Not the company, which would just put money into the creditors pot, and not the estate for tax reasons. Just a quiet exchange of goods and the requisite funds, preferably before you go to Italy, if that’s possible.”

Steve was fairly sure that Giles would co-operate. He must have known he’d never sell the company and now he must be interested in salvaging anything he could. But how quickly could he create a new production line? These things take years, don’t they? Or maybe not.

“Ruth, can you get Jason, Terry and Gerry, you and me together this afternoon. We need to figure out how long we can maintain production without any new components”

It was no later than 10 o’clock when Ruth put the call through 

“He says his name’s Jack Denton. And you asked him to give you a call” she said sounding puzzled

“Steve?”
 “Hi Jack. I take it you didn’t find a job over the weekend”

“Yeah, I did actually, but its only two nights a week in a pub. Still better than nowt. But you work at Three Rivers, yeah? That’s what the lass on reception said”

“That’s right, Jack. And I understood that you’re a winder?”

“Yeah. Was a winder.”
 “Look, Jack. Here’s the deal. Somewhere on site here I’ve got a pile of motors that don’t work. You’ve been working on this kind of thing especially the complex bit which is the winding, so you must know these things inside out”

“Yeah”

“Ok. You rock over and use your expertise to fix some motors, and I’ll give you an envelope with some cash in it. Its as simple as that. I can make some time to discuss details if you want, or take some time to think about it.”
 There was a short silence at Jack’s end

“If you like, you could pop over, say 3 o’clock and have a look round and see exactly what’s involved. See what state our stock is in. And if you think its up your street, we can talk money”

“Yeah. Yeah please. Sorry. Yeah I’ll be there. Sorry, I was just gobsmacked. That’s way out of the blue. Three o’clock Steve? I’ll see you then”

Jack put the phone down as Lindy came through to make sure he was all right.

“Hey babe! I think I might just have got a job at Three Rivers!”

She threw her arms round him “Might have?”

“Yeah. This dude was just hanging about at the works last Friday. I think he may have known Lisa. He just said give him a bell Monday. He’s the boy that gave me the tenner. Wants me to go see him at 3 to sort the deal”

“Oh! That’s awesome!”
 “Yeah, but I can only blow it now. I’m not good at interview type things”
 “Jack, you’ll be fine. Its about time we had the turn of a friendly card”

But Penny on reception did little to calm his nerves. He’d introduced himself and she’d checked down her list before issuing his visitor’s badge

“What’s this dude like?” he asked her “Seemed like a good bloke when I met him first time. But that weren’t in work”

“Steve?” she paused “I think he’s adorable”

“Ok, so who is he. Is he in like maintenance or something?”

“Steve? No! No, no. He’s Chief Exec”

Skunks! I was thinking maintenance manager or maybe just an engineer who I’d work with….But Ruth was as delightful as ever as they walked across to the Old Building passing Daisy on the way

“Are all the lasses dead pretty in this place?”

Ruth paused, but only for a moment “Yes. I guess so. Steve’s angle is that he’d rather it was that way if they’ve got the right capabilities. Is that something that particularly interests you?”

“I guess. Its always nice to see pretty faces. But my fiancé Lindy is the best in the world, and out baby Isla is second best – sorry, no offence”

 “Hey Jack, good to see you again” opened Steve as Ruth herded him into his office. “How much do you like interviews?”
 “Emm”
 “Thought so. So lets take a walk. We’ll check out the warehouse, the Maintenance building and then we’ll take a look at some motors. If you're still interested, we’ll agree some numbers, then I’ll hand you back to Ruth and she’ll help you fill in the answers to the HR questions. How does that sound?”

This was different. Jack felt that this guy was almost tuned in. He seemed to know how nervous he was and not just that, he seemed to care as well.

Jack phoned Lindy at five o’clock saying he’d be back around half past six. Not only had he got the job on good money, but there was plenty of work for several months just fixing the stockpile. It was regular hours, not shifts and there were opportunities as well

“Jack! I told you our luck would change soon”

This skewered another layer of pressure for Steve. The other members of the board were quietly impressed by how calm he managed to stay despite the gravity of the situation but for Steve there was no choice so it was a matter of just getting on with it.

If Jack could keep pace with production, or even show Simon and Luke how it all worked and only had to do the complex bits himself then the stockpile would keep them going for months. In fact it was only now that Steve realised the extent of over-ordering that Terry had done just to get enough working units for Production.

Steve wasn’t spending time on self-doubt. But was it really looking like the current production line would only survive for three months? Redesign? Or a new factory diversifying the company into components? This was tough.

New Old Car

But his new house and everything that went with it more than compensated and in any case kept him so busy outside work that he had no time left to get wound up about it.

Ruth was a star as usual. Her angle was that ultimately Steve was responsible and while she was only too happy to provide whatever support she could, her job was to support and she was doing it very well. In contrast, Steve’s job was to succeed and on that the jury was still out.

But the main calming influence on Steve was Geneviève. She was revelling in the new life that she’d discovered since moving to this obscure location surrounded by high fences, electric gates and impenetrable woods that hid a multitude of myths and intrigue. 

She’d found more than enough to do and with so many options she hardly had time to decide which one to do next. Would it be to play her new piano which was awesome. Or to look for the lost boundary to find out how far the woods extended or spend time thinking about what to do with the house she’d found strangled by the brambles and ivy? But all that had been overtaken by her new find.

Steve pulled up at the front door, glad to be home again and looking forward to some quiet time, maybe cooking dinner or maybe just watching Geneviève cook dinner. What he was not expecting was that she appeared suddenly and looking rather dusty from one of the workshops that Steve had not yet explored and pounced on him in the front driveway

“Daddy, Daddy – you’ve got to come and see what I’ve found”

He dropped his briefcase inside in the porch and turned to walk back towards the garage. But by that time she’d run across the drive, started her land rover and was now waiting impatiently with the engine running. This was something of a novelty – being chauffeused by his daughter

“Its at my house in the woods” she gasped quickly as they set off with only minor wheelspin and charged through the hidden overlap gap in the hedge and round the west lawn. Steve held on as best he could as they bounced and bumped through the trees like a stage rally. She grabbed his arm and ran towards the garage that adjoined this deserted house and threw the door open

“Look!”

“Wow. What is it?”

Steve walked slowly round the vehicle. It was certainly old, maybe 1920s? It was certainly in good condition as he opened a back door and flicked the layer of dust off the leather. 

“The badge on the grill says Lanchester” she said questioningly

“Ok, they were later allied to Daimler in some way but they were never produced in huge volumes. Its got to be quite rare”
 They continued looking at it for some time before sealing the door back up and heading for dinner.

She hurried home from school the next day and finished cleaning up the workshop. Steve found her in there as he got home and immediately hijacked her and her land rover to take the flatbed trailer that he’d borrowed from the transport team at TRE complete with a large liveried van. It was gone 8 by the time they’d winched the Lanchester onto the trailer and offloaded it into Geneviève’s workshop. The work was physically tiring and the brisk walk down to the Cider Press Inn was welcome relaxation to both of them. But it saved cooking and it gave them a better environment to discuss what Geneviève wanted to do.

“Of course its your car, if you want it”

“But you bought the house and everything. It must be yours daddy”

“I doubt if its registered at all. But that’s just another complication”

Next morning she took a couple of polaroid pictures before school, and spent her English lesson writing a very polite letter to the vehicle licencing agency giving some details and that her information was that the whole site had been abandoned in 1943. There was no immediate probability of it being road worthy, but asked what she needed to do to make sure she complied with the rules. 

After school she headed for the library as soon as she got out. The array of catalogues intrigued the librarian as Geneviève sat off to one side in what appeared to be an attempt to display every book of vintage cars in the library’s possession

“Are these recent photographs” the librarian asked as they finally found something that looked the same. Geneviève nodded 

“Yes, I took them this morning”

“So why did you not just ask Sir Mark about all this?”

Geneviève looked blank

“It says here that there were only 34 ever made and that there’s only one left and it belongs to Sir Mark Eastall. So if you were photographing it today, you could have asked him”

“No, Steve, I don’t” Neville Clark was saying the next day “But I know someone who almost certainly does. Actually, you know him too. I introduced you just the other day. Duncan Erdmann will know him. Actually, Eastall may have been at the party too. Now you mention it I think I heard the name, but I don’t know anything about him”

But it was Geneviève who phoned Duncan. Steve had said he’d be only too happy to help as she’d made such a good impression on him in the first place and to Geneviève this was just another new thing she’d never done before and it was intriguing and exciting.

“Hello, Mr Erdmann, Its Geneviève Bergstrom”
 “My, what an unexpected pleasure, and I’m delighted to say that Toulouse plays her piano every day without fail. Actually, I think mama is a little miffed that the new saddle has hardly been used, but what can I do for you. Geneviève?”
 “Thankyou, I’m so pleased for you and Toulouse. Is your wife playing at all?”
 “Not yet. But I think it will come shortly”

“Mr Erdmann…”
 “No, please, you should call me Duncan. And Toulouse keeps asking me when you’re coming back to help her”
 “I’d love to, but I’m so hugely busy on everything else. Although Saturday may be possible if she was serious about it. I’m a bit nervous at playing for Mr Oliphant since, well, you know”

“Quite so. And I’ve got your number have I not. But that’s not what you phoned me for?”
 “No, I was wondering if you knew a man called Sir Mark Eastall? I heard he might do some business with you in shipping”

“Hmm, yes. I do. He’s a broker. But if its shipping you need, I’m sure I can help you”
 “I’m sorry, Duncan. Its not shipping I need. I want to talk to him about his car”

“His car! What on earth has young whippersnapper been up to?”
 “Oh, nothing. Its just that I believe he owns a rather rare Lanchester and I’d like to talk to him about it”
 “Oh, I see. He can be quite hard to get hold of by people he doesn’t know. But what I can do is I’ll phone him for you and either make an introduction or get him to call you”
 “Oh! Would you really! Thankyou so much. And if Toulouse does want me to pop over, do let me know and I’ll find time somewhere”

The conversation with Mark started with intrigue drifting into an atmosphere of frost

Sir Mark sounded much younger than Geneviève had expected

“Miss Bergstrom. I had a rather cryptic message from a business colleague of mine, Duncan Erdmann. He said you wanted to talk to me about my car, for some reason”
 “That’s right. I heard that Duncan might know you and your number so I asked him”
 “Yes, well, we do quite a lot of business together. In fact I was over at his place recently for his daughter’s birthday. Anyway, which car is it that you have such a problem with. I have a dozen cars”

“It’s a Lanchester”
 “Ah yes. The 22. And what particular interest”

“Well… .. In the almanac it says that yours is the only one in the world”
 “Yes, only 34 were made and all the others have been lost. Even mine had severe front end damage when I found it. So, are you interested in buying it?”
 “No, I’m afraid not. Because I’ve already got one”

“You’ve got one?”

“Yes”
 “So how have you got one”
 “I found it. It was in the garage attached to a house that we’ve bought”

The silence at the other end of the line persuaded her to continue

“So I thought I ought to contact you and let you know”
 “Well why would you do that!” he responded crossly “apart from to tell me you’ve knocked a good twenty thousand off its value”

“Because I didn’t want it to come as a surprise when I register mine with the National Association. I thought it might cause complications with yours being unique up till now”

“Ah. Yes. I see. Good point. I suppose I must thank you for that. So what shape is yours in? And are you sure it’s the same model?”
 “Apart from the steering being seized, its looking in remarkably good shape. Of course I haven’t done a complete study yet”
 “Hmmm. Remarkably good, huh? What about the front suspension?”
 “Oh, all the parts are there where they’re meant to be. Its just the steering jumps a bit at a time instead of being smooth”

“I say! How would you feel about me popping down sometime to take a look. You see, mine had serious front end damage. My team has rebuilt it to what they think it should have been, but it still feels a whole lot less stable than I’d expect, even from a car of that age. Its actually putting me off racing it”

“Sure. I’m intending doing some work on mine to get it working perfectly, so it won’t be going anywhere for quite some time”

“I’m due to be out of the country for a few days. Can I call you when I get back to set something up?”
 “Certainly. I’ll look forward to it”

Mark’s next call was back to Duncan

“Tell me something about this Geneviève of yours?”
 “I don’t know a huge amount about her, except that she’s absolutely delightful. Do you know Neville Clark? Because he buys most of his plant from her father, Steve Bergstrom. He runs Three Rivers Engineering. Anyway, she’s still at school, although I don’t know what year she’s in. But you must have noticed her at the party. She was the one playing the piano”

The steering assembly that was causing her all the trouble was not responding to treatment but Steve responded to her request to look at what she was doing. 

“You’re danger is that if you use any more pressure on it, you’ll bend it. That will weaken it and then there’s no telling when or if it will break”
 “Looks like I need to buy a new one”

That weekend, Steve introduced her to the AM400 milling machine that was hiding under an assortment of junk at the back of her workshop. Genevieve looked on in amazement as the raw length of steel was trimmed to size and took on a new thread at each end 

“But how do you tell it what to do?”
 Steve went through the basics of programming it and they retired back to the house for coffee, cake and a crash course on how to figure out what measurements you need to feed into the machine for it to do its magic.

Genevieve was fascinated by it. She ran another, and then another rod through the machine varying the parameters each time and examining the differences that it made

She managed to fit in a visit to Toulouse that weekend and insisted that Duncan did not pay her for it because of the help he’d been in contacting Mark, and in any case, she found Toulouse so mischievously sweet.   

The following weekend she agreed that Mark should come over and found herself watching the driveway from the balcony. She’d opened the gate for him but it hardly prepared her for the sight of the ink blue Bentley convertible with pure white leather interior that floated towards her,

She invited him in and found him surprisingly attentive as she expanded on their short phone call. Duncan, she had thought, was far too serious and concerned only about business. Mark, in contrast wanted to see where her car was found after they’d had their cup of tea. She led him out towards the garage beyond the front door, but Mark was surprised that she’d got into the Land Rover there and started it up.

“Come on then! I thought you wanted to see where I found it”

“I thought you said you found it at your house”

“Yes, at my house. This is daddy’s house”

Nothing had prepared him for this. He’d decided from his conversations that she was no older than 16, but now seemed intent on driving him some way as they headed round the west lawn and over the cattle grid into the forest. She tried not to bounce him out of the car as they bumped down the potholes and thumped over small branches that littered the route.

This appealed directly to Marks sense of fun. He’d set off on a trip to look at a suspension setup and now found himself alone in the middle of a forest with a wonderfully attractive young lady in a jaw dropping black microprint dress. She was clearly underage for driving on the public road but had no issue at all with throwing her land rover around like a stage rally on her private forest track.

Back at the workshop, Mark took a number of photographs of the front steering and suspension saying that he was fairly sure that his team had not built his like this but had to admit that hers did, indeed, look genuine.

The problem that he shared with her later in the week was that the setup on her car was unlikely to give the steering the rigidity he’d like, even if it was the original layout. And he didn’t have the measurements of the rod ends to an accuracy that would let him specify a special build to an engineering house. But, he said, he would have his rebuilt to her specification and see how bad it was. It was worth doing, he said, because there was a limit to how much modification you were allowed to make if he wanted to race it. And putting this back to the way it should be gave him more flexibility elsewhere.

Geneviève sat in her Maths class thinking about it. What he needed was a cross rod like hers, but with integrated ends so that it was rigid all the way across, getting rid of the linkages that connected the sections. She drew a rough sketch of what she thought was needed and measured the ends when she got home. 

“What I don’t know, daddy, is how to set up the mill. You see, all of these parameters are used, but I still need to put these other bits in”
 “That” Steve said flatly “is because your little machine can’t do something this complicated”

But he did know where there was a suitable machine that would do this kind of thing and it wasn’t long before the delightful young lady in the short black microprint dress was being introduced by Penny to Alan Forbes who headed up the fabrication unit at Three Rivers Engineering. A7

Steve had told Penny that Geneviève wanted to use their machine for a complex piece of work for an engineering project she was doing and Penny had assumed that this was for her school project. Heather had hinted before that there were likely to be closer ties with Education to encourage more school leavers into manufacturing. So was this the start?

Geneviève explained to Alan what she wanted. Which quite simply was to be let loose on their AM600 which had the complexity to do this job. She showed him her diagram and explained the issue with her 400 and where that would fall short. She started to explain how she’d worked out the exact parameters, but saw that Alan was beginning to glaze over

“I don’t think we’ve ever made anything that complex” he said. 

Genevieve looked downhearted

“Because” Alan continued “if it was that complex and it broke in the field, it would be days before we could create another one and that’s an unacceptable timescale for our customers.”

Geneviève suggested that maybe they could make it strong enough so that it didn’t break, but Alan was somehow not convinced.

Her first attempt at setting up the 600 did not go entirely to plan. She found that she was rather nervous. She felt like she was telling these experts who used this system every day, how to use it better and the small team had gathered round to watch.

Being unfamiliar with the feeder, her first rod was picked up slightly askew and almost immediately the machine stopped. It was a manual operation to retrieve it and that meant leaning over all the way to the back of the machine. Geneviève powered it down and climbed up as far as she could leaning over to retrieve the rejected rod. She’d got hold of it and was trying to slide backwards when her hand slipped. She fell forward, now lying face down across the whole machine with nothing within reach to grab hold of. She’d yelped in surprise, but it was several moments before the guys realised she was actually stuck and moved forward to rescue her. She knew she’d turned a shade brighter red as four guys lifted her off the machine making minimal efforts to minimise her embarrassment

“Well! At least I know I’ll get rescued if I get stuck again” she said lining up the rod for a second attempt. This was way more successful as the guys watched as the machine milled the shaft and then returned to various points to add the grooves and finish off the ends. A questioning look asked Genevieve to explain it again, this time to appreciative nods. 

“So if we wants another one, we just puts them paras back in?”
 “That’s right. You need to clear them out of the machine when you’re finished, or it will mix them up with whatever the next guy wants to do. But if you need another like this, you just set it going again. So if you do have a complex shaft and it breaks you just need to make sure you’ve got a note of the parameters to make a new one” 

She fed another rod in and this time it all went perfectly. The team was impressed. They’d always used it in a sort of manual mode positioning each section individually for processing. It had never even occurred to Genevieve to do that. To her it was always automatic with the finished product ejected at the end but this level of automation was a revelation to the team. They passed the finished rod round for examination and approving nods, and Geneviève felt that she had redeemed herself for her initial humiliation

“I think I’ve got a steering connector rod for you Mark, she said on the phone that night. I’ve tried it for size on my car, and its good, if you want to try it on yours. Yes, with the fixed ends”

“Where on earth did you get that from?”

“I made it – eventually”

“Made it!”

“Yes, after I managed to track down a complex enough mill”

“That sounds amazing!”
 “It was. In a number of different ways. But Mark, it’s not a story I’m going to tell very often”

Sunday found her walking quite slowly through the paddock at the Castle Combe track. The weather was perfect for racing and she felt both conspicuous and also rather at home in her black microprint while everyone else seemed to be in boiler suits in assorted shades of oil. Her rather weird and unique steering rod was completely unwrapped, so it would be obvious to anyone what her purpose here was as she looked all around for Mark or his garage or even just his car.

He’d told his team he was expecting the steering adaptation to be there in time to fit before the second race, and the first race would give him a good comparison point.

The mechanic looked at it with some distain as she presented it to Mark.

“So all we need to do now is figure out which way round it goes and how to thread it in. Mark, you could’ve got the production engineer to bring it along so’s we knew what we was doing”
 This was something of a red rag to Geneviève the bull. She glared at the mechanic but said nothing as she snatched it back from him, selected a five eights spanner and socket from the tool box on the ground and slid herself under the car. She‘d done this twice before to make sure it fitted. It was simply eight bolts and four lock nuts. Undo, fit new rod at each end refix bolts and the whole job was done in twenty minutes.

Mark was not surprised that she knew what she was doing, but was indeed surprised that she’d simply stepped in and done the whole job herself rather than get his mechanic to do it under instruction. The mechanic himself was nonplussed especially as Geneviève then said she was going to walk across to Bobbies to see how it all worked on the ‘wiggly bit’.

Mark used a practice lap to weave around the circuit to try to get a handle on the handling and was happy enough with it to keep the setup for the next race. He now had the setup he’d been longing for and by the third lap was throwing the car around the bends at Bobbies and finally sliding past the Rover that was in fourth place at Cobb and Campbell that belonged to his business colleague Auden Merton-Dunster.

Back at the pits, Auden came striding over

“That’s a different car you’re driving Mark. Supercharged is it? Sure you’re still inside the regs?”

Mark introduced Geneviève and explained that following new evidence the suspension had been reset to the original spec and the concession transferred to the revised steering rod which Geneviève had designed and build

“Well! I’ll have to see which parts of my Rover I can get you to adapt if you’re going to make that kind of difference. But I’d never have taken you for a mechanic when I first saw you”
 “No? But that’s not an issue because I think first impressions are the most important” 

Geneviève had far more things she wanted to do than go into the precision engineering business and contented herself with acting as hostess when Mark and his team came over to check the specification of various other parts.

Steve had enjoyed his day at the vintage meeting at Castle Combe and even considered investing in his own entry from the various cars on display, deciding only at the last minute that he was far too busy to prepare for motor racing as well. 

And busy at his office also meant being busy with interruptions.

He was about to phone Lisa when Ruth passed through an international call.

“Giles! How’s Italy”

“Hi, Steve. Italy is great. But it also has its issues. I’m actually really glad I came over, and there’s nothing that a little investment won’t solve. Which is why I called you”

“Hey, Giles. I’m not up for investing in Italy right now”

“No” he laughed “but you expressed an interest in my patents, and I’ve been considering that. After all, they’re no real use to me so selling them to you sounds like a win win situation”

“Especially if you’re looking for some additional investment funds. So I agree with that, but you would probably get a better price if you targeted the Far East. Of course, you’d have to go there, and get yourself a translator you trust”

“Yes, Yes. I know all that. I explored that option for selling the company and it always takes these guys six months to make a decision”

“Except your asking price is 25% more than I figured they were worth. They time out you know”

“Do they?”

“Yes, they only last 10 years, and these have been running 4 already”

“Oh, so its more like a lease?”

“That’s one way to look at it. Its supposed to be enough time to get a head start on the opposition without getting to a point where you can dictate the market”

“But I’d rather move sooner than later, due to the situation here”

“Ok, my offer is still on the table. Look, I’ll meet you part way. I’ll raise 10%, if that gives you something you’re not going to resent. I said before, I’m not a guy to take advantage just because a man’s down”

With that deal now sealed, Giles moved swiftly on 

 “So, any chance you’re interested in the premises as well”

“Might be. What kind of deal did you have in mind?”

“Straight sale”

“Ok. Maybe I could do you a favour and get a couple of agents to do a valuation, which I could share with you. That might be a starting point, and would mean you could stay in Italy a bit longer and sort that out”

“Would you? That would be much appreciated”

“Maybe, in return, you could give me permission to access the site, so that I can evaluate it, and of course, to let the agents in. It think it would be in your interests if it wasn’t completely deserted”

“Sure. Good point. I can’t see a problem with that. My sister’s holding the keys”

“Just thought I’d check, because your mate McCauley has only set up a picket line at the gate”

“He’s done what! What on earth for? It was game over when dad kicked everyone out”

“No idea Giles. I just hope he doesn’t get in the way too much”

“Thanks Steve. If I can be any help, just let me know. But tell me, at the risk of being rude, when do you think you’ll be able to complete the deal on the patents”

“I can set up a funds transfer the same day you get the signed copy back to me. I appreciate it’s a straight sale and normally a receipt would be good enough. But patent infringement is an expensive hobby”

It didn't take long for Emma to go through the register to create the white list, the black list and the grey list of those in the middle. And it also didn't take McCauley long to figure that something was brewing after Brad Montgomery had spotted Steve meeting Emma and Lisa at lunchtime.

Steve had Ruth with him when he pulled up at the gate. He wanted her to see the site and to meet Lisa so that she could put a face to the voice on the phone. As suggested, Lisa and Emma had used the back gate. The main gate was chained shut although the minor pedestrian gate was clearly open. 

“You can't come in” 

“Why ever not?” 

“Cos it's a 'ficial picket line” 

“Don't be silly. This works closed down last Friday” 

“Don't matter. You don't get to cross if you're going in to work” 

“And suppose I just want to practice some yoga? 

“Don't know nuffin about yoga. S'pose that's ok” 

Steve got out and unlocked the gate. There'll be another fellow along shortly. Estate agent, from Franks and Marshall. Be a good chap and let him through will you” 

“Estate agent?” 

“Yes, the Caves are selling the site. I reckon it would make a good location for a hotel, don't you think? Near the station, and the bus station, and just off the town centre. Not far from the river and the park as well” 

“But it can't be hotel. It's engineering works. We works here” 

“No you don't. You just stand outside, although I've no idea why” 

“We'll be here till our demands are met” 

“And what is it that you're demanding?” 

“The right to work” 

“But you already have that” 

“Have what?” 

“The right to work. All you need to do now is go off and find yourself a job. Or are you waiting for someone to come along and do something about that as well?” 

“Yeah. That Cave fella, the old bloke” 

“Oh, Arnie Cave. I wouldn't wait for him. You’ll be here far too long” 

“Why’s that then?” 

“Because he's dead” 

“He were ‘ere last week” 

“Yes, but that was last week. This week he’s dead. It doesn't take very long to die sometimes. His family are looking for a Mr McCauley. They claim he's responsible for the old man’s death. On a charge of indirect manslaughter” 

The numpty looked perplexed

“I don’t know nuffin about that. Anyhow, what about that young Cave then” 

“Who? Giles! He's not even in the country. He’s in Italy. Look it's a lost cause. I'd pack up and go home if I were you. Of course I'm not you, but if I was, actually, I’d relocate to the pub” 

The buffoon looked completely confused now, but called out “ ‘Ere, Mr McCauley, there's a bloke here says them Caves ain't comin’ back. Says one of ‘em is out the country and the others dead, says you killed ‘im” 

McCauley strode over aggressively. “I vehemently deny this. I have certainly not killed anyone” 

“I didn't say you had. I was only passing on what I heard that you may be able to use to your advantage”

“Oh, hello Mr Bergstrom. I’m expecting Giles to be along soon to reopen the works. He won't want to let all his customers down” 

“I doubt it. He's in Italy and has business there that will keep him there quite some time. But in any case, he can't reopen the works” 

“But he has to. He has a responsibility to provide work for all these men – and supply his customers!” 

“That's a tough one, for a start the site's for sale, and additionally he’s already sold the patents for the designs”

“So what’s your interest?”

“He wants to build a hotel” cut in the buffoon

“Yoga” said Steve “For the time being. And leave the gate open for the fella from Frank and Marshall. Cheers”

“Yoga? Steve?”

“No, not really, Ruth. All that sitting cross legged on the floor with your ankles round your neck! I just don’t have the time. Now, ankles round someone else’s neck might be different”

Ruth looked askew at him with a mild smile of possibility. After all, he did admit to being unconventional.

But Ruth’s spirits fell noticeably as he showed her round the site. It was run down, dilapidated and ultimately depressing 

“Maybe we could use the Maintenance Building” she suggested as the grime from years of neglect started to overtake her

“I did think that. If I was sure this would work, I might even do that. But the risks are so high that we might need to invoke a high speed product redesign and if we do, we’ll need that R and D space”
  Steve continued to think through the practicalities of restarting components production while trying not to think of what would happen to Three Rivers if they ran out of parts. There was hardly time to redesign, but maybe they just had to. Right now he was banking on Jack turning out enough units to keep pace with production, but also decided to experiment to see if Jack would work with Luke and Simon to increase the pace. 

Or maybe Lisa would come up with a plan that was actually feasible and would help him look for the risks. If he knew who the loonies were. And the contracts were specific. And they’d need to be explained. But on the bright side, TRE was running rather well and, at least in theory he could make some time to dedicate to this, except that….

He thought about writing some of this down, or maybe drawing a diagram like a timeline, but it all depended on Jacks ability and attitude and right now, that was completely unknown.

Meanwhile, over at Riverside, Jack was feeling relaxed as he answered the phone. The middle of week two, and money still in his pocket left over from the previous week. And they’d bought a pram at the weekend.

  It was Lindy, sounding perturbed. She’d just finished talking to Betty, who, in her usual style was trying to stir up trouble, disquiet and nervousness. Yes, Lindy had said, Betty says that some guy has called a public meeting for Friday and might be re-opening the works next Monday, It sounded like a perfect opportunity, but, of course, she said, they’d miss out since Jack had already jumped ship. 

Jack called Ruth, and was informed that Steve would not be back till late. Now he had trouble concentrating on his work and took a walk around the works, soon ending up in Logistics. It was, he reflected, a good place to work. He could do this! Just go for a short break when he needed to, and Betty’s meddling usually resulted in him needing to take some sort of calming action.

Daisy was not surprised in the least. It was as if she already knew about it. “There’s a demand” she said. “We’ve had a number of calls asking if we’ve got any spare. And Terry is having little or no success in finding a supplier in the Far East. There’s a couple of companies that will build to our spec if we send it to them, but it’s a long lead time, and the cost is hardly attractive”

Gerry was sitting on Jack’s stool at his bench when he got back.

“Ah, there you are!”

“Sorry, boss. I needed to clear my head. Just had some disturbing news”

“Sorry to hear that. Is it anything we can help with?”

“No, Its probably ok”

“Fair enough. I just needed a quick word. We can take another little walk if you like”

Gerry led him through the gate to the river side

“I didn’t know we were allowed in here” Jack commented to try to break the silence

“Oh, yes. It can be really therapeutic, just listening to the water, and sometimes the birds. But yes I meant to catch up with you yesterday, and the day before, but I just kept getting side-tracked”
 “Is something wrong, then?”

“No, but the world moves on. I hear from Daisy that we’re ahead of schedule for the rebuilds”

“Yes, Simon and Luke are good guys. Pick stuff up really quickly. And then remember it”

“And Cassie has been making some notes?”

“Yes, mainly on when to stop and check. If things aren’t right at certain points it’s a hell of a job to go back, like a complete rebuild all over again, so its worth checking. Its more efficient in the long run”

“Sounds good. And Cassie and the guys are a happy little team?”
 “I think so, unless you’re going to tell me different?”

“No. But I need Cassie back in production a bit more. How do you think the other two would get on if you weren’t there either?”

“Ooohh. Not sure. Cassie doesn’t really want to be there at all. She says she’s isn’t even meant to do R & D with Jason. And Si and Luke are ok but they need to be given confidence”

So far this had done nothing to calm Jacks nervousness

“Why d’you ask boss?”

“Because Steve’s got something going on at the old Caves site and he wants you to get involved with it as well. Me, I’d rather keep you on motors for the next few weeks to safeguard production, but this other stuff opens up longer term opportunities for the company – and for you. And you’ll be back here just to keep an eye out for Si and Luke anyway.”

With all the immediate issues now under control, Steve sat down at his old desk. Ruth came in with a mountain of paper and balanced it carefully on the work table. He looked at it slightly askance 

“Is that all? Whatever will we do tomorrow?”

“The other 90%” replied Ruth with a smile

It didn’t take as long as Ruth thought it might. She’d skimmed through the it all as it had come in and had a rough idea what each of them was about. But Steve’s plan was simpler. It was to define the direction and expected result and get Ruth to take them back where they came from for the real work to be done. Two hours in, and the heap had diminished substantially when Cassie came through on his direct line

“Steve, there’s a guy called Joe McCauley trying to contact you. I said you’d call him back”
 “Did he say who he was?”
 “No, he said, you knew him”

“Yes. But be careful, Cassie. I do know him, but it doesn’t mean I want to know him. Still, I suppose it might be better if I include him”

 Even, he thought, if it just gives me a chance to humiliate him

That evening, Steve phoned Lisa with the update.

“Oh hi Steve. Wasn’t expecting you to call. Now Phil really does think we're having an affair”

“Is he there?” 

“Yes, he says hi” 

“Hi to Phil” 

“Is that your daughter I can hear I the background?” 

“Yes. Yes, what is it honey?.. .. She says, if that's her new mummy on the phone she wants to meet you soon. Honey, she says she's already married. .. What she says is that if you're already married, does that mean she'd have two daddies instead of just one” 

“Steve, we are way of subject, yet again. And, just by the way, I think that’s weird” 

“Agreed. What I wanted to tell you is that I spoke to Giles earlier” 

“But he's out the country” 

“Quite so. Italy. Anyway he says it's ok to use the admin block. I suggested to him that the occasional person wandering around was good for security” 

“You star! So Emma and me can do the setup for Monday from there” 

“Yes. But I’d use the back gate to avoid Joe McCauley’s picket line. But he’s also agreed to sell the site at valuation if we decide that the plan will fly. Oh, and Lisa, can you be at the foyer of the Royal Park Hotel at 10.30 tomorrow morning” 

Ruth and Lisa were already drinking coffee at the table and Steve was last to arrive. The rumours all around town that production might be restarted at the Cave Brothers factory had finally reached McCauley and with Steve’s frequent visits to the site, McCauley had demanded to meet him about it. As usual, McCauley wasn’t in listening mode and spoke first before Steve even sat down

 “Ah hope the management has found the time to consider favourably the Union requirements. Furst, the imperative of …”

Ruth was taken aback by the vehemence of his attitude. Every meeting she’d been at in TRE had been conducted in a conciliatory manner. Even when the parties disagreed they didn’t shout at each other.

But Steve interrupted him. Quietly but firmly

“Ok Mr McCauley, I heard you before. I don’t need to hear it all again today. So lets put a few things in perspective and get back to reality. Lisa, Mr McCauley, Ruth. This is not a standard Union - Management discussion where the Union makes demands, the management mumble platitudes and then we ignore everything that was said. This is because I, as the management, have not yet put a single brass cent into this operation and there is no workforce on site. Furthermore, there is no money in the bank to pay for even the most sensible suggestions from the Union. Fortunately, this hardly matters as the Union is extremely unlikely to make any sensible suggestions” 

McCauley was outraged. 

“I demand you retract that remark.”

Steve ignored him. “However, at this morning’s mass meeting we’ll see who’s interested. Who knows how many people will be there. It should be interesting”

McCauley joined the surprise. “Ah didnae call a mass meetin’!”

“No” said Steve, “I did. While you were wasting your life on rhetoric, I put the word out to meet at 11 o’clock at the works”

“You have no right to call a mass meeting. That’s a Union job!”

Steve shrugged “Ok. Whatever”

He desperately wanted to be rid of this obsequious vermin, but had already decided that retaining a cool reputation was even more valuable.

“Wha’s gonna talk tae them anyway?”

“Me. And you, if you want. Mr McCauley, I have invited you because I want the workforce to have a choice. I want them to make that choice actively. So, just to give you the context, I will be saying that the recruitment office will open on Monday. But only those who accept my terms and conditions will be hired. You can tell them anything you like, or nothing”

“Over my dead body” shouted McCauley, rising to his feet with his hands firmly on the table

“In that case” continued Steve “I suggest either a hose from your exhaust pipe, or a gas oven. I understand they're the least painful.”

Lisa burst out laughing and just as quickly caught a grip watching Steve dismiss Joe McCauley as an irrelevance. If only Giles had operated this way!

“I'm heading over to the works now” announced Steve. “Happy to give you all a lift if you want”, he said shifting glances between them. “You're welcome to join us Mr McCauley”. 

McCauley, still standing, glared at him questioningly.

“Look” said Steve still quietly sitting on his chair “I'm diametrically opposed to your rhetoric, politics and ethics, but that doesn't prevent me extending common courtesy to you” 

He smiled. He didn't want to be anywhere near Joe McCauley, but he reckoned that the effort would gain him the moral high ground.

“S’pose I’ll have to come with you if ahm gonna be there on time.”

They drove across town in silence, Steve thinking of whether his effort first thing would yield fruit and wondering how Joe McCauley could keep the jobless crowd believing in the utopian vision.

“First or second?” asked Steve

The impatient McCauley took the stage. Steve was happy with being second. His priority was to pick up a few phrases from McCauley’s speech which he could re-use and to judge the reaction and mood of the audience. Looking round he found a likely candidate to focus on and speak as though he was talking only to them. This he figured would make it all sound more personal.

 His fear that the crowd might be relatively hostile proved to be unfounded, but then, they’d all come here of their own volition… 

McCauley was on a rant about loyalty, support from central office and mistrust of management, which was all standard dross that Steve had heard so many times before. But he could also see that the crowd was getting bored starting to fidget and lose interest. Too long and they'd drift away, but leaving it a little longer would continue to reduce McCauley’s support.

Steve moved forward signalling that it was his turn now.

McCauley finished by thanking them for their continued support and loyalty to the Union and Steve took the mic.

“Hi y'all....” he started , fixing on his selected focal point “Thanks for coming along this morning, and hopefully we can end the meeting on a high with some good news.

Being unemployed is no fun. Been there, done that... got the tea shirt and I also promised myself I wouldn't be going back there. I know what its like” 

The few hecklers fell quiet and he lowered his voice not having to shout across the background noise. It was possible now to use a conversational voice in stark contrast to McCauley’s hell-fire preaching.

“So what I want to do is get people back to work, back to earning a living, back to supporting their families and back to having a life. Redundancy is all too common in businesses today. But it happens, and it happens for a reason. Running a company is like running your family budget. You have to earn your income before you can spend it. At home it pays the rent; in the company it pays the rent. At home it buys food and drink and clothes for your family. In the company it buys raw materials and supplies for the production line. At home you have to save up for a new washing machine or a new car. In the company we have to save up to buy new plant and tools. At home you have to give your kids their pocket money. Here at work we have a slightly higher bill – paying the wages. We could all just borrow the money….. but we then have to pay it back, with interest. Paying more out than we put in is unsustainable – at home and in the company.

Arnie Cave built Cave Brothers and this site up from the modest beginnings that his father created. It made good quality products and held a good reputation, and everybody benefited. Working here was good. But. But, then something went wrong. Quality dropped. Sales became more difficult. Income went down and suddenly the lifestyle you all had come to expect was not matched by the company’s income.

The union and the management clashed on the reasons why, and on the solution. Industrial action followed and the result is that you are standing there and I am standing here. 

So who am I and why am I here.                                                    

I am Steve Bergstrom. As a day job, I’m Chief Executive of Three Rivers Engineering based only five miles from here and one of the biggest manufacturers in this town.

I have acquired some of the assets from the estate of the late Arnie Cave. And yes, I do mean the late Arnie Cave. For those that don't know, your ex managing director did not recover from the heart attack he had while, how do I say this, giving his closing address to you the workforce as he announced the closure of the works. It was his dream and it was destroyed and maybe he felt he'd failed. But be in no doubt. Neither he, nor his son Giles, nor any other members of his family will be reopening this works, no matter what anyone else tells you.

 But I have a vested interest in reviving production and producing once again top quality products. As one of Cave’s largest customers, I do not want to buy an inferior product from Japan or Korea and I would prefer to make the quality components I need here in this town. But I cannot do this single handed. I need you to help me. And that’s why, at 10 o’clock on Monday I will be opening a recruitment office. Cave Brothers Engineering is finished, but I intend to start a new company in these premises making a similar product range. The works will be run on similar lines to Three Rivers, which you may already know is very successful and this site will be known as Three Rivers Components.”

He paused hoping everyone would digest that information as the good news before the next part which was the bad news

“But….”he bellowed “And you knew there would be a but. The new operation will be smaller. We will not need everyone who used to work for Cave Brothers. It will be more efficient, more agile and more integrated. The production lines will work in the same way as TRE production, the management style will be similar to TRE and I hope and look forward to the works being as happy a place as TRE. I sense a certain enthusiasm from some of you for an opportunity to work in this new environment, but this will not be a return to work. It will be completely new.

As some of you will know, over the last few days I have had some discussions with Joe McCauley from the engineering Union and he has taught me a lot about making 'demands'…”

There was a ripple of laughter through the audience which he took as positive as he continued 

“…So here are my demands. If - and right now its an if.-  If I invest in this works and the creation of jobs, there will be no trade union representation. If anyone has anything to say, they come right in to my office and say it. If its sensible, then I will implement it. If not, the reasons why not will be explained. Either way, my decision is final.

As at TRE, there will be strict quality control. If units continually fail QC for the same reason, that reason will be found and cured. If it is down to a process, then it will be revised, if its down to a person, training will be given. But if there’s no improvement, then that person will be replaced. And again to be clear what I mean is they will be sacked. So let’s be clear. Nobody likes a witch hunt. But production is a team game and must be efficient. There’s no room for passengers because its simply not fair on the rest of the production team exactly the same as if it was a football team. The best make it to the match – the rest are on the bench and too long on the bench, you make it to the free transfer list

Everyone wants to work in a happy environment. It is disappointing that you have not had one here. The one place you spend more time than anywhere else, and you're unhappy. But it does not need to be like that. TRE Riverside is a happy environment for the whole team at whatever level. There is no reason why this Central location cannot be the same.

Together, we can rebuild production – but only if we believe in a spirit of honesty, trust and hard work. Not just between management level team members and production line team members, but between members within teams and within production line crews.

There will be no anonymity. Each employee will have a flexible contract stating that in addition to your specialist job – winder, cleaner, chef, fabricator, or whatever, you are responsible, collectively with everyone else including me, for the production of top quality products at a price our customers can afford. So we will not be stopping the production line and wait for a cleaner to come and pick up a loose bolt because its a health and safety trip hazard. Bend down, pick it up, continue, as a chef in the kitchen does if he drops an onion. That chef in the canteen is responsible for keeping his work place clean and tidy, so too are all other production staff. 

In return, ladies and gentlemen…  In return for all this I will pay as much as the company can afford, no more because that is unsustainable. And no less because that is unfair, and to prove it, the company accounts will be open to inspection by any employee. Together we will make this a happy work place.

You don’t want to be unemployed, and I want to produce top quality motors in the UK. So on Monday at 10 am, the recruitment office will be open. Not everyone will be employed – it simply isn't viable. Cave’s was overstaffed and as I said, there will be no passengers. But I also know that not everyone will want to work in this new regime, as the production structure will be different. Some will want the security of trade union membership. Some will distrust the management, some will prefer anonymity. If that describes you, don’t bother turning up.

However, for those who want an opportunity to work, to work differently, to work as part of a team and to take pride in their output, consider a few simple questions – each of you, individually. Question. How many lives have you got? Question. Whose life is it? Question. Who is responsible for you being happy? Question. Who is responsible for supporting your family? Question: Do you want to earn your crust honestly in a company where your opinion matters? Do you want to adopt a team attitude and contribute with me on this opportunity? 

I want you to think about it. I want you to discuss it. I want you to decide depending on what is best for you, personally. I also know that some of you may be short of the price of a pint right now. So to encourage this discussion amongst yourselves, I’ve put some money behind the bar in The Crown and Feathers on the corner. Just tell them its on Steve’s tab which will be open till it reaches its limit or it gets to 1 o’clock whichever is first. 

I thank you for your time and for listening, and I hope to see enough of you here on Monday to make this plan viable”.

McCauley was seething. He bounced back towards Steve

“Gimme that mic!” but Steve had already unplugged it.

“Meeting’s over Mr McCauley. It was my meeting, and I closed it”

McCauley attempted to shout at the crowd, but there was an impatient and excited buzz already bouncing around the yard as they turned to leave, already discussing it, even before they got to the Feathers.

Steve climbed down from the truck, the same truck that saw Arnie Cave’s last steps, with the intention of collecting Ruth and heading directly for his car. Yes, his instinct had been right, there was an appetite for getting back to work but a number of the crowd had stayed behind at the foot of the steps. The conversational tone of the address had suggested that this guy might be more approachable than the previous management and in any case, there was nothing to lose right now. 

“ ‘Scuse me, guvn’r..”

Steve leaned forward slightly to make sure he could be seen to be listening

“Them new conditions. I’m not so good at understandin’ legal type stuff. I might not know what I’m signin’ up to”

“Ok. I can understand that. The first way is to think about it is to trust me. Now, if you were in my position would you get people to sign up to something really bad? Because they’d all not turn up on the second day….” This raised a slight grin “… its just not in my interests. But the other way is this. When you turn up on Monday there will be members of my engineering production line here to help you understand it and answer any other questions you might have about the way we work. These guys won’t be management, they’re straight off the production line just like you. I’m not telling them what to say. I’m just expecting them to answer any questions you have about how they work. And they should know the answers, because they do it every day”
 “Is that so! Well I’ll be…” 

He turned back to his colleagues “Y’know, that Three Rivers is doin’ all right. Ah know blokes work there. This could be a good deal after all….”

He turned back towards Steve “Are you comin’ for a beer?”

“I’m very happy to have a beer with you. But I’m not keen on going to the Feathers. I’d rather that anyone that wants to can discuss this at my expense down there without me or Lisa interfering. But we can go down the Kings Head at the other end of the road if you like – or you can join your mates in the Feathers. Your choice”

Still nervous, Lindy phoned Jack to update him on what she’d heard about the meeting and that the recruitment office was opening. She said she’d told Betty that just having another job didn’t exclude him from going on Monday

“I don’t need to, babe. I’ll be there anyway. Steve already told me about this. I’ve been helping with the organisation for Monday. What he said was its not I’ve jumped ship, just I’ve got there first”

“Jack, I told you we were due the turn of a friendly card”

 The weekend with Geneviève was a wonderful distraction that worked perfectly but Monday morning he was feeling more tense than he expected. He'd dropped Geneviève at the library and now headed to the production building to find Jack. 

Jack was rather an unknown quantity. He had a history that could best be described as 'interesting' but also had a recent arrival with his girlfriend. That seemed to have knocked him into the real world and while he was valuable to Steve as an expert motor winder, Steve was already pushing him out of his comfort zone into other areas, organising, staff management, training. Jack was one of the few people who knew the value of quality control and knew the production process well enough to know where it should be applied. Jack was bright, but as a rebel at school had never got the qualifications that would now be useful.

But this particular task wasn't difficult. Put up a notice asking for volunteers, hire a mini bus to take them over to Components and then bring them back at the end of the event. Steve would do the briefing. What was so hard about it? And Jack was beginning to find out - nothing. 

The small meeting room in the Production building went quiet for Steve’s briefing at nine fifteen. They were going there to answer questions on how they worked. It was a day to day subject that they all knew about. They were not there to persuade people to apply, or persuade them not to. Just to help them understand what they were signing up to. 

The process would be simple. Emma would register the name and check it against her wanted list. This contained the names of people with key skills without which the production line would be unviable. Then there would be a short interview with Lisa or Gerry or Emma, then they'd be given a copy of the contract which they could discuss with the volunteers from the TRE Riverside production lines if they wanted. 

Steve’s main concern was that no one would turn up and second, but a long way second, that there would be a Union delegation or even a picket line at the gate. 

Ruth had jumped at the invitation to go along and had equally enthusiastically accepted the offer of a lift from Juliette from HR who was leaving immediately rather than wait for Steve’s briefing to end. 

But people were turning up and there was even a buzz of enthusiasm as the production line guys talked up the benefits of just getting on with doing a good job. ‘It makes you feel better’ Ruth heard and ‘it gives you security for your family. My boy’s just going off to uni and he’ll need a bit of money. I can’t afford to be out the door or its his career that’s on the line as well’. ‘I put my family first, pal, that’s why I get on with the boys in the line’. ‘They don’t have to be your best drinking mates to work as a team’ ‘we get out something we can all be proud of. Proud to talk about in’t pub. Like when there’s a darts match. I’m proud to explain what I do at work’

One of the most common questions was 'when do we start?' But Steve was keeping the lid on that. He wanted to make sure that the ‘start’ as it was being termed would be as unconventional as the way he wanted to continue.

Those that had actually signed there and then were being directed to the staff canteen where Steve was waiting for them. His angle was - you have a vested interest in having a nice, neat, tidy, clean bright place to work. So, starting tomorrow, anyone interested should turn up to help transform the works from a dinghy Victorian workhouse. Cleaning was number one on the agenda, then installation of new lighting, then decorating by getting some fresh neutral colours on the walls, with maintenance on the production line plant starting at the same time. After all was ready, the teams would be assembled and training would be started. This would not focus on technical issues as Steve expected most of the guys to know that already. It was how to do the job through co-operation, helpfulness and trust. Respect was key, such as getting to work on time so that you didn’t hold up the rest of your production team. And then the introduction of the new management team and techniques, and style and expected A7 attitudes. Anyone who was expecting to just rock in and carry on like a continuation of Cave Brothers was going to be sadly disappointed. Steve didn’t mince his words but balanced the message and the advantages. That too started to earn him the respect he was going to need.

Pay, said Steve in direct answer to an equally direct question, would start from when you started to work there – irrespective of whether you were doing your real job or were part of the refurbishment team. The aim was that this would work as a sort of team building exercise without anyone really noticing, but with everyone being bribed with their normal pay for painting and cleaning. Steve was hoping to get all this done in a couple of weeks but it depended on how many volunteers he got. Then again, that would indicate the level of support for the new venture operating in a new way. 

This was all going acceptably well. There seemed to be enough of the right people there to put together at least one of the production teams that Steve had envisaged and designed with Jack. And that meant that the whole thing was looking viable. And all with enough time to escape out to pick Geneviève up from the library leaving the work to Gerry and Jack, Juliette and Ruth.

Now, scanning down the confirmed staff list with Emma and Jack, Steve had enough confidence to go ahead with the plan. Now it was time to ramp up several gears. It would put a lot of pressure on the guys at TRE as well, but Steve was confident they’d rise to the challenge. Terry and Daisy in particular would need to apply their process and expertise to the new site, but they were the two people most acutely aware of the impact of running out of specialised components.

Juliette had all but moved in to work with Emma, but Steve knew she was looking for more responsibility and official acknowledgement that she was Jacqui’s deputy. He also knew that Gerry had ambitions of heading up the whole of Production even if he hadn’t said as much, but he had hinted that organisation would be simpler if Components was more integrated. 

Steve however was more cautious. He wanted to retain the threat of pulling the plug on Components if it started looking like a basket case. And if it went down it was going to go on its own and not take TRE with it. They had two weeks. That was Steve’s deadline for starting production, and less than three months to ramp up the volume at an acceptable quality and cost… Oh my, it still looked like a mountain to climb.

But the team from Riverside were backing this. Steve hadn’t asked Terry to oversee logistics and the warehouse at the new site, but here he was quietly getting a handle on it and he caught up with Steve in the foyer just as Production was going home.

“We need someone else in the warehouse here, Steve. I know we’ve got Louie and he’s good. And we’ve got another experienced guy starting through Emma. But the turnover here is higher because the end units are smaller so there’s more of them. They have to cover boxing, packing and despatch as well”

“If you say so Terry. Do we need someone experienced or someone inexpensive?”
 “I’ve got someone in mind. No, she’s not got any warehouse experience, not much experience of anything. But she won’t cost much either. More of a raw recruit. But that’s all we need and it keeps the cost to a minimum”
 “Go do it. But tell Emma. She’ll have to issue the contract from here. And if this position isn’t on the org chart she won’t be in the numbers. Make sure Lisa knows if its going to increase the overall budget”
 “It won’t. But I’ll update Lisa anyway, I’ve found some other savings that will offset it. Thanks Steve. She’s called Tasmin, just in case you hear the name”

“Say, buddy!”

Terry turned to see Big Ned Armstrong standing right next to him.

“Is that it? No advert? No big meeting round a table or nothin’ and the gaffer just agrees to it just like that?”

“Yeah. If it makes sense. And Steve trusts you there’s no hassle. We’re all in the same game. How’s he gonna know better than me what’s needed? That’s what he pays me for so why get in the way?”

“Do you think I could do that in my crew?”

“Maybe. Make sure you think it through. If you’re serious, bounce it all off me first if you like”

“Really? Struth. Cheers buddy”

Steve was to spend most of the next two weeks at the Components works, partly to show solidarity with the new workforce, partly to show a hands on approach and partly to explain what he thought needed to be done. He was pleased that a few suggestions were made as well and was happy to accept them. And he felt like he was making progress. 

Like when Big Ned Armstrong simply stopped him in the corridor to the café.

“Say Steve – there’s a huge load of real trash around in the warehouse. Can we just get another skip in and bin it?”
 “Sure its trash?”
 “Yeah, like there’s a whole aisle of circuit cards that you wouldn’t build into anything because you can’t get the components to repair them if they break”

“No direct replacements if they break?”
 “No, these things are ancient. They all use trannys. These control circuits are all IC based now”

“Its easier to change a transistor on a card than an IC”
 “Yeah, if you can still get the tranny”

“Ok. Do it. Ask Emma to raise the order to the guys we used before”

And that was it. Suggestion accepted, credibility improved, progress made – not to mention creating useful space in the warehouse. And then the next day when they met in the same corridor 

“And Ned. About that warehouse clearout. Make sure Tasmin knows. I don’t want her to catalogue stuff and then have to write location equals ‘skip’ in the last column”
 Ned raised a rare smile “Ok boss”
 But it was not without its incidents. Not everyone was able to change their working habits at the drop of a hat and it took significant encouragement to help some of them understand that the state of the workplace and the conditions that they worked in were up to them. This was not down to some nebulous management that would wave an equally nebulous magic wand.

Ruth had just turned up with Juliette again to continue the recruitment activity with Emma and work out what vacancies remained when a tall young man swaggered through the doorway “Hey Harry, what you doing? You’re a fabricator not a cleaner. What you doing with that brush?” he mocked

Harry stopped sweeping, looking round for confidence. “I’s making a clean place to work!”

“You’re doing a poor cleaner out of a job, that’s what you’re doing” chided the new arrival 

“We don’t have that kind of demarcation here – not any more” retorted Harry 

“We’ll see about that” threatened the new comer “Where’s Joe McCauley’s office”

“McCauley’s not here”

“Not here! Why not?”

“He got the sack” came a voice from somewhere behind Harry followed by a ripple of laughter. The new-comer now showed a slight sign of nervousness 

“That’s no excuse to abandon your brothers. Put that brush down, and that mop. Wait for the cleaners. And you can quit that painting too! And I understand that quite a few of you here are behind on your dues!”

Harry moved forward “I don’t think you should speak like that around here” he said mounting the tension as several others had stopped work not knowing where all this was going as Steve slipped in from the back corridor. His face was wrenched in fury and Ruth caught his arm and held him back.

But now big Ned Armstrong had moved forward

“Listen up kid” he said loudly, but not shouting “Not only is McCauley not here, he never will be. He is what’s known as persona non grata. He would be unwelcome if he did turn up. Him and his false promises put us all out of work. Not that it was all bad because it was a lousy place to work anyway. I was proud of nothin’ working there. But this is different. And due to what we’re doing at least it’ll be clean and bright and that’s a start. ‘Course, there’s no guarantee it’ll work, but I’m gonna give it my best shot because I want it to work. We’re gonna try doing it different. Its one team. I’ve never worked like this before, but it doesn’t mean I can’t”

“Listen up you!” he said getting agitated “I am the area representative from the Allied …” but he wasn’t allowed to finish

“I don’t care who you are mister...” broke in Leon juggling a screwdriver like maybe it was a chiv

“..It was the Union that destroyed my livelihood last time. I had to borrow money from my wife’s dad to buy food. Jeez – Do you know how that made me feel? I aint gonna let that happen again. This time it might be the management, but the guy that runs this shop has made me a promise and until he screws up I’m gonna give him the benefit of the doubt. Sure it’s a risk, but its a risk I’m gonna take cos it might just work cos it does at TRE. So I suggest you leave now because I paid my dues for the last 8 years and you know what? When the chips was really down, your Union did nothin’. Nothin’ at all”

“We could just string him up from that hoist up there…”

“No,” said Steve finally stepping forward “I’ll see this gentleman to the gate. Now we’ve got a works to clean up and get ready for production. Lets make some progress guys.”

He’d walked over to the new-comer now and had half a mind to continue where his guys had left off, but with Ruth now beside him and squeeeezing his hand for all she was worth he decided against it

“I apologise for my guys being less than welcoming, but they were on the street last week and most had hardly a brass cent between them. That situation was caused directly by the restrictive practices introduced by your colleague Joe McCauley because he only looked at one aspect of running a company instead of taking all aspects into account like I do.”

Almost everyone had gathered round. This was a showdown that Steve was expecting some day. Just not quite so soon. There was no choice. He would win. And with the supportive words from his refurbishment squad which was now looking more like a lynch mob behind him as sheriff, Steve knew he would win. Ruth had taken his hand and she’d never done that before. It had always been him that initiated that kind of thing

“But things will be different next week. I’m Chief Executive. I run this plant. What I say, goes. And I don’t need any interference from you and your anarchist gang of meddlers. And for everyone’s information, there’s no lock on the door. Anyone here can leave any time they like. If they don’t like working here, to my plan, they can go to somewhere they do like, any second of any minute of any day”

Less is more, he said to himself. You’ve said enough, and Ruth was now cutting off the blood supply to his fingers 

“There’s still the back dues outstanding” said the newcomer aggressively “And I’m here to collect”

A ripple of panic rolled round the room before Steve spoke again

“Sorry, but these guys are working here at my expense in my time. You want to interrupt that, you make an appointment or take it outside working hours”

“9 o’clock Thursday. Is that an appointment?”

“Ok” said Steve with rising malice “Your appointment is with Mrs Emma Wesmann. She will have the up to date position”

“That’s hardly a Union meeting”

“Absolutely right, and its as close as its ever going to get. Now if you’ll excuse us, we’ve got a production line to build”

They all watched as he turned to leave the site

“But Steve, how does that work, there’s no Union representation here”

“That’s right Ned. That’s why he can go and see Emma”

Ned turned back to the guys “Does anyone owe any back dues, or has we all quit from there”

There was a bit of nervous shuffling 

“Come on guys. You can’t have a foot in both camps. I can’t take that risk. Ok, lets get some progress”

Harry stayed back as the others went back to work

“Still think we should’ve strung him from the hoist…” and a ripple of laughter indicated that the mood had recovered

“I don’t think I ever actually quit the Union, Boss” said Harry

“No?”

“No. See I’ve got back dues owing as well. And they’d be chasing that up if I quit”

Ruth’s heart stopped. Surely he couldn’t give Harry the sack for that admission, even if that was the rule she’d explained so often in the recruitment office. Steve put his hand on Harry’s shoulder “I know. Its tough”

“But I can’t pay that till I get some wages”

“Ok, Harry. Today and tomorrow, what I want you to do is talk to everyone here and get together who owes what…”
 “No Boss, come on! I can’t grass everyone up”
 “No, Harry. That’s not the plan. I want everyone here clear of the Union. So you get all the outstanding Union resignations to Emma by Thursday. And anyone owing anything, the company will pay it for them. How about that”

“Hey boys” shouted Harry “Steve just said he’ll pay your back dues so long as you get your quit note to Em”

“Is that a fact! So maybe this joint will work after all”

The meeting with Emma was shorter than he was expecting. He accepted her offer of coffee and checked with dismay through the signed resignations

“There’s still the back dues. I’ll go through to the floor and do a collection when we’re through here”
 “No, the collection has already been made”

“What!”
 “Just tell me the total, and if it tallies with mine we’ll be finished”

But it didn’t tally. In fact Emma’s was quite a bit short. 

“Oh dear. That means we’ll need to go through the list one at a time”
 “I can’t do that. That’s Union business”
 “In that case I can’t pay you. The payment is on offer. If you refuse it you will forfeit rights to it”

“So, who is on your list… ah that’s it. Brad Montgomery doesn’t work here”
 “He said he did”
 “Perhaps, but he’s not on our payroll, and he’s not on site” and with that she wrote a company cheque, signed it and handed it to him

“And that concludes our business. I don’t think there are any reasons for you to visit us again”

Every day now was a hive of activity at Components. Terry and Daisy were both there looking at the detail of how to get stock to the production line taking advice from Jack on what they needed to do to ensure production went smoothly and make sure Tasmin kept learning enough to be increasingly useful. Volumes would be low to start with to meet the quality standard and having units returned to the line for rework could cause some friction. 

But the cleaning and redecoration work was going well. The results were becoming obvious and the mood and atmosphere was upbeat bordering on jovial. They’d got a lot more done than Steve had first expected and covered much more space including some of the offices as well as the production floor. And that meant that the back office staff could get a head start on the supply of raw materials and get transport organised to the Riverside site. A lot more people had turned up to take part than he had anticipated, but that was good. And now with the final maintenance checks expected to complete by mid-morning, Steve took up a vantage point on the tine of fork lift truck

“Listen up everyone! I don’t think anyone can fail to see the difference. I think you guys have made this a really great environment to work in and I hope you’re all looking forward to starting production. We’re through with cleaning, the decorating is finished and the refitting especially of the lighting is obvious. Maintenance of the essential equipment will complete by lunchtime and we’re all ready to start work on Monday morning.

And because everyone has done so well, put the effort in and made such a difference, I think you should all take the afternoon off. And tomorrow. On full pay. Then show up ready for business on Monday 8a m”

“You sure guv’n’r?”

“Sure I’m sure. I said in the beginning, if we can afford it, we’ll share it. If we can’t, we’ll all have to put in a bit more effort. This is ahead of schedule, so we should all share the benefit. Have a great long weekend and look forward to our new start next week. 8a m. Don’t be late”

Steve was nowhere near as nervous as he thought he would be. The transformation was obvious and there was a level of enthusiasm built up during the redecoration. The guys themselves had suggested that they extend the work and clear up the yard as well, but to Steve it had been more important that they had also mentioned that the additional skip they'd need would cost more. That was a major step forward - if it costs money, think twice about it rather than the Cave Brothers attitude that the 'management' had access to the magic money tree. 

The decision had been to invite Gerry and Matt, but not Jacqui and Keith at this stage, leaving them instead for another event to show off what had been achieved rather than just the first day launch which could have all sorts of issues. 

Ruth was there, of course. And Juliette and Cassie, the Production secretary 

Terry rocked in although he wasn't specifically invited, 

“Sorry” apologised Ruth “I didn't mean to leave you off the list”

“S'ok Ruth. I don't need an invite to go to work” and while Steve clocked it, he hadn't actually asked Terry to take control of the components warehouse. But Terry had sensed the question and looked over towards him 

“No choice Steve, the amount of stock we’re about to write off is ridiculous. Their order and reorder system is completely shot” 

“And you've got a new girl too?” 

“Yeah. Tasmin. She's pretty useful already. No previous experience at all, so she doesn't have to unlearn anything” 

But that of course meant that Daisy was on her own at the Riverside site and that was another issue to add to the list. Oh, thank goodness Ruth is here to make notes. Good decision Steve, he congratulated himself. 

This first part of the morning was reserved for playing games. Not party games, but production line role play scenarios that Steve wanted to get clear. Jack and Gerry were in on the act creating potential situations and playing out how to - and how not to - resolve them. This was Steve’s way of introducing these guys to the way of working that he was expecting and by tea break, he seemed to be getting through. Big Ned Armstrong was vociferous as always 

“It's different, that's for sure, but it's without the hassle” 

“Yeah” said Harry “But I think I can handle that” 

Matt was impressed. He wasn’t involved directly, but he was ultimately going to take the hit on any quality issues and failures of the components in their installed machines. He inspected the QA station and scanned through the procedures that Jack had compiled as he stood by explaining the colloquial terms he'd used to make it more understandable to the production line rather than the senior management.

“I'm looking forward to coming back in a few weeks” he said as he was leaving “to see the full scale production at full capacity”  

“Me too!” agreed Steve 

They all spent the afternoon going really slowly through the Production process. Most of them knew what they used to do, but Jacks QA process seemed to get in the way of all the shortcuts they’d developed and it was tortuous for Jack and Steve to explain what would happen farther down the line and then in production at TRE and finally out with the end customers in the field if units didn’t work, or failed after installation. Steve didn't cut any corners on this. He explained it all the way from this component to Harry's wife buying the sausages for tea - or not if the sausage machine had broken. And the impact on everyone in between. 

By three o clock brains were aching all around the room until Stave called everyone round in a circle for a group discussion on how it was all going. This was new. Discussion? What's that about? But it soon became clear to the doubters that their opinion was important and dissent was allowed, and even encouraged so that Steve could explain why Jack had designed it all the way he had. Some suggestions were accepted and Jack was tasked with building them into the process. The mood in the room improved and as 3.45 approached Steve let the whole class out early.

Tuesday started on a high as Steve called another discussion ahead of starting production in earnest. But it was really to wait for Ruth who was helping Jack to write up the changes to the process that they'd agreed.

Finally moving around 9.30, progress was slow, and the whole team spontaneously left their stations to watch the final QA of the first units by Jack. He looked more nervous than ever with everybody watching him as he ran his tests and Steve was surprised by how little these guys knew about what the end product they'd produced was supposed to do. Steve called another recess to explain where all the individual parts contained in the unit played their unique part in making it work properly, and surprised himself - again - at how much he knew about it. Ruth was too – “not only Chief Exec, but product expert as well!” 

And while Steve took the comment in the spirit it was meant she apologised later when he asked her to take a note to remind him to establish a product expert that wasn't him.

Throughput was better the next day, but Ned suggested that they could get twice the volume if the quality went down a bit. Not worth it Steve said. Ok it's not the full 50% break even but there would be the negative effect on the production team of having units sent back, whereas having everything pass QA would boost confidence.

“Yeah” said Ned “but that way we can weed out where guys are going wrong” 

Jack and Steve accepted the compromise of varying the production line speed. Run a bit faster, stop the line to explain the issues, then run slower to build the confidence of getting things right.

But the bottom line was that the line was operational and the output was usable even if Si and Luke back at Riverside who mended the old ones were now raising worries about their own future.

Big Ned had stepped up as a self appointed and unofficial production team leader which seemed to be working rather well. He was a difficult guy to argue with. He wasn't called Big Ned for nothing and towered over most of the guys, he was even matching Terry for size. But he seemed to be one of the early converts to Steve’s system, and he listened carefully when Steve explained things. That gave Steve’s confidence that little extra boost. It was up and running. It was going to work. It would be a success. It's just a matter of what the throughput could be wound up to, and in the meantime, Steve would get Si and Luke to mend everything else that Daisy was stacking up and then get them to take a look at the Components warehouse and decide what if anything could be salvaged. 

Now with the specialist motor assembly line running, it was time to turn attention to some other products. They were significantly less complicated, and less critical to TRE, but Steve also knew that there was a good market for them if they could be made to be reliable. He already had the space. He already had the patents. He already had the guys and he had already done the induction to TRE working practices. Same process, less guys, less TRE, more product. Harry as team leader on this. And then finally, back to his office for some real work leaving Lisa and Emma on site to handle any issues.

Penny

Despite the rest of the senior team commending him for bringing the Event under control so quickly, it still had repercussions. Without that confidence they would never have agreed to his ambitious plan to resolve the disaster over components from Cave Brothers which was one of these projects that you would never have started if there had been any other alternative.

The Event had disrupted everything and some people were still destabilised. Steve had not previously extended that level of stability to Penny, but he now reflected on whether that was an oversight as she had now asked Ruth if she could have a special meeting with him.

Penny was one of those people in the company who had started to think differently due to the Event. She hadn’t been close to Jamie or Richard, or even Daisy. But it served to get her thinking about life, the universe and everything – especially where her life was taking her and what, if anything she could do about it. And in particular, what career she could create for herself and if maybe Steve was the guy who would help her.

The message from her flatmate said almost nothing except that she’d listened to the ansafone and then hit delete by mistake. So all she had to go on was ‘Millie called’.

As it turned out Millie wanted nothing in particular except someone to moan at. Her life was in a tailspin and she now thought she was beyond the point of returning to sociability. This, she said to Penny, was the end of the line. She’d said before that she’d recognise the signs. After giving up any hope of being rich or even just comfortable, she’d then turn to reading about people who still had some hope because they were already rich and comfortable and she could wallow in the second hand hope in contrast to her own dead loss.

“And look at me now!” she said. “Alone with a box of Milk Tray and a copy of Hello!”

“I’ll call round and haul you out to the pub screaming and shouting” said Penny, but her main resolve was that despite feeling significantly worse off than Millie, she herself had not given up hope. Not quite yet. In fact, the Event had re-energised her.

Cue Reconnected by Moon Halo

“You wanted to see me, Penny? I thought we'd just sit outside here by the river, unless you think we ought to have the formality of my office. It's quiet enough at this time of day and the background burbling will prevent us being overheard. Can I get you a Coke or something before we start?” 

“Thankyou, but no. If I have too much during the day I'll never sleep at night. Same if I have too much coffee”

“Hmm. I think I’m the other way round. I need to keep drinking coffee otherwise I think I’d just drop off. Penny, how long have you been with us now?” 

“Two and a half years now. I was in the cafe to start with, then moved to reception a year ago” 

“What made you make that move? I thought you'd get free food working in the kitchen!” 

“Yes, but I didn't see myself as a career chef. I thought if I got into admin I might find more opportunities” 

“So you're ambitious?” 

“I didn't used to be. Not at school. But now it's different. There's so much I want to do” 

“And that's what you wanted to talk to me about” 

“Yes”

“Why not HR?” 

She hummed for a moment 

“Because I don't think this follows the process, and HR are very keen on their processes, and maybe it's a plain daft idea” 

“So you think I'm dafter than HR?” 

She paused. This was a loaded question from her CEO but it was said so light-heartedly that maybe it didn’t matter. She’d always got on well with Steve and she’d always liked him although they’d never really got to know each other very well. She felt he was quite like her in many respects, like being happy and bubbly and tactile at work, but retaining a certain mystery if not secrecy about their home life. He had always been polite and considerate when he’d given her work to do when he was in Production if Cassie was overloaded and he always had a friendly word to say on the occasions they’d crossed paths. More recently as CEO he was never too concerned when she made minor mistakes with the car fleet.

“No” she decided finally “just more open minded and maybe more sympathetic. I think you’re more likely to look for the potential rather than the history like the qualifications and CV. You see, Finance. We lost Richard, Daisy's moved to logistics, Cheryl is unhappy and wants to leave - oh she did tell you that didn't she? She said she had! Lisa is doing everything herself in Components even with her ’Head Of’ title, Lewis plods on regardless and Jasmine! She's the only one holding the fort” 

“Ok so far” 

“So you must have some sort of reorganise in mind. And. And I was hoping I could apply to be part of that” 

“I see. I take it you don’t have any experience of accountancy. But you'd start at the ground level and train as an accountant, and work up?” 

“Yes. Although I understand that usually you need A levels to do this. And I don’t, which is why I was hoping you might give me the chance and see the potential. Which is why I asked to see you, not HR” 

“If you’re looking at more of a career, you don't fancy training in HR then? Or as an engineer. Field Service maybe?” 

“No, I don't think I'd get a fair chance in HR and I've not got the confidence to go out to customer sites. Especially if their production line is down and they're depending on me to fix it while they all stand there watching” 

“Your confidence is pretty good so far” 

“It's all rehearsed” she admitted nervously “I've had this conversation with me a dozen times” 

“You mean your mirror is sick of hearing it so you thought you’d try me instead? Ok. How far do you want to go in accountancy? There’s lots of exams if you want to progress” 

“I want to get into management” 

“What, Accounts management? There's lots of kinds of financial management, but you may not appreciate the differences until you understand some of the detail” 

“But it's not all technical stuff. There's people management as well” 

“I see. So it's get into accounting and worm upwards into accounts department management”

“Yes, I’d like to climb up a few rungs on the ladder eventually and its a good route to the senior levels” 

“Hmm. And you want me to look for the potential because you don’t have the normal A levels to take the traditional route. Ok. Here's a personnel question that requires management consideration. How would you handle this: Every company has its rules and people are trusted to do their job within these rules. If someone breaks the rules they may be asked to leave. It might not be that they've stolen anything and if they have it may not be very valuable, but they have broken the trust and that's the connection between manager and staff and between colleagues that need to work together, like a production line crew for instance. If that trust is broken, then its time to seriously considering parting company. A bit like you would with your boyfriend.  Now supposing that person writes a very apologetic letter, offers to repay the value and promises to be good in future if they can have their job back. What would you do?” 

“You're talking about Lucy aren't you? And you want to know what I’d do. That's hard isn't it? I mean if she came back, would she be able to do any work without looking over her shoulder every five minutes. And reinstating trust is hard too. But she didn't betray the trust in the work she was doing. It's not as if she was shouting about personal details or something confidential. I guess it's the time she spent on the phone. And those international calls aren't cheap. It's a risk. But. But surely hiring some new person is a risk too. They might have done this at their other company and you wouldn't know.” 

“So, you'd take her back” 

“I think that's what I'm saying.” 

“Any more reasoning behind that decision!” 

“Yes” she stopped suddenly hesitating. “Maybe I should tell you a story about me that would help you understand. You won't find this in my personnel file, but I hope I can trust you and you’d understand why I’d take Lucy back and also why I can’t go through the normal HR routes. If you can spare the time?”

Steve smiled ever so gently encouraging her to continue. She looked over towards him. Maybe that was the thing that made him so popular, especially with her.

“You see, when I was 16, I made a mistake. A big mistake. I was at a party, there was loads of booze there, I got ratted and ended up pregnant. I had to give up school to look after the baby. My parents were furious, absolutely livid. They could not understand what they’d done wrong in bringing me up to turn out so wrong and it became impossible to live there. My auntie Lena lived across town. She had a spare room in her little flat and I moved in there. Once Alex was sleeping through the night, my auntie looked after him in the evening and I got a job in a cafe. It was enough to buy food even if it didn't help much with the rent. And I was able to meet a few people as well and have a little bit of social life while I was working. I never went on any dates. I thought that would be taking advantage of my auntie. But Steve, that’s when I realised she was actually giving me my life back even though I imposed all these restrictions on myself. It's so easy to throw your whole life away with just one mistake. But I'll finish the story. Three years ago Auntie Lena was walking through town with Alex in his buggy. The lights changed to pedestrians and they started to cross, but a car jumped the red. Steve, they say it hit the buggy at over 75 miles an hour. It didn't stop and neither did the coppers that were chasing it. The whole buggy was thrown three floors high in the air. Auntie Lena spent four days in hospital. Alex. Well he was killed at the scene. So now I have my life back again and I want to do something with it. Its so easy to finish someone off for just one mistake and that’s why I’d give Lucy a break” 

Steve paused for a moment. This wasn’t the normal chat you’d have at work. No wonder she was secretive about her history

“Penny, I am so sorry. Can I guess that that's the reason you didn't go into accountancy after school?” 

“Steve, I don’t even have an O level to my name. And of course, no one would give me a chance. I’m hoping that you might be different because you already know me. You’ve already seen what I can do, and maybe you can see I’ve got a lot more potential too. That’s why I moved to admin from the cafe”

Steve was nodding sympathetically

“Penny, I need to think carefully about what sort of Finance department we need here. As you say, there needs to be a reorganisation of some kind, but nothing is going to happen immediately because there’s too much else going on. But I'll have a think. On both these issues” 

“Steve, that's all I'm asking you to do”

So that was another potential move to add to the mix. Still, it increased the flexibility and the options. If I got a new receptionist, where could I best use Penny?

Lucy Returns

And there were so many other personnel gaps as well. People in the wrong place. People not in place. But it all seemed to keep working one way or another because so many people just stepped up to the mark if it was necessary. They didn’t say anything or make a fuss. And the issue was that no-one else seemed to realise it was happening. 

“Nothing happens until nothing happens” he said to Ruth who looked back blankly

“What I mean is that usually no one will do anything until something stops working. So if everyone just gets on and covers all the bases and fills in all the gaps, Gerry and Jacqui won’t realise that there’s a problem”
 “So maybe there isn’t?”

“But there is. Its just not immediately obvious. Ok, supposing Penny left, Jacqui would hire a new receptionist, right?”

“Yes, that’s her job”                                         

“But how many people know that she actually does all the admin on the car fleet and the overflow admin from Cassie in Production as well. And Components. And overflow from Heidi in call despatch! And Jacqui and Gerry can’t take that in to account if they don’t know.

And Lisa. Lisa’s not supposed to be General Manager at Components, she’s meant to be head of Finance over here. But Cherry just gets on with it and Lisa runs the components works. Ruth, can you schedule some time for us. You and me. I want you to help me think this out so that we can at least know who’s doing all that extra work and at least recognise them for it, and make sure its included in recruitment activities”

One personnel gap was Lucy. She’d been quite useful Steve had thought, but Jacqui had fired her one day and with reasonable reason. Now she’d written this delightfully honest and apologetic letter to the company and wanted to come back that Steve had unintentionally discussed with Penny. And now she was due in for an interview. Steve was aware this would have raised expectations, but also he was prepared to keep an open mind.

“Hi Penny” she’d said rather more cheerfully than she’d expected as she bounced into reception.

“Hi, Lucy. Did you ask to come back? Thought you’d gone forever” 

“Still might be”
 “But you’re back now”

“Yeah. I wrote a letter to Jacqui and asked if there was any way she’d have me back. Juliette said it would be difficult when she phoned me and not to raise any hopes. But I’ve got an interview. So here’s hoping. I’m just praying its not with her if she’s gonna be negative to start with”

“I should have you on my list but I don’t remember seeing it. Cos that will tell us who’s collecting you. That’ll give us a clue”

“It was only set up late this morning. She gave me a choice of times including 7 o’clock tomorrow morning. So I chose half past three. ‘Course I’d have got here at 7 if that’s what time I’d been given”
 “Good for you. Beggars can’t be choosers – oh look – here we are. Sally must have added it while I was on lunch. I’ve only got one half past three. Lucy Perivale. Call Ruth”

“Ruth! But she’s in Steve’s office now isn’t she– that can’t be right!”

“Maybe you should ask Jacqui” she nodded towards the window where Jacqui was approaching across the yard. 

Jacqui wished Lucy a moderately cheery good afternoon as she arrived and motioned an invitation to step outside the reception office 

“Juliette told me you were coming in this afternoon. Now, I am quite sure I could give you a fair hearing to re-assess your case. But it is not just that we should be fair, it is that we should be seen to be fair. And as such, I have asked our CEO to take your interview instead of me”

“Thankyou Mrs Winchester” she gasped through her sharp intake of breath “I’m very grateful for letting me get this far. But I wasn’t expecting that”

“Yes, well, I can see that. I suspect you’d have worn an even shorter dress if you’d known. But good luck anyway”

“I wasn’t expecting to see Mr Bergstrom. I don’t suppose you can give me any tips before I go in?” she asked Ruth on their way across the to the Old Building

“Lucy, I don’t know much about it. Just be honest, be yourself and try not to be too nervous. He’s not going to take you back based on your CV and recent history, so its got to be personality and attitude.”

Steve was waiting for her at his meeting table. Less formal than at his desk, but not quite down at the coffee table level. He stood up as Ruth ushered her in

“Miss Perivale, do come in. Sit down please. Oh, the coat stand is hiding behind the door. Coffee? Tea? Or a soft drink maybe. Coke, Fanta, 7UP?”

If she was nervous to start with, this now knocked her completely off balance. Formal, but with unexpected hospitality. 

 “First of all, may I apologise for knowing very little about you except what’s in your HR file. And that, as you might expect, is dominated by the recent.. .. incident. So maybe we could start with a brief history of Lucy”

Steve listened attentively with only an infrequent word of encouragement to continue when she paused all leading up to how she started to take time out almost every day to spend hours on the phone to a guy in the Philippines.

Miss Perivale, sometimes when we talk about specific people our overall opinion is skewed because we take into account things that are out of character. So I want to see if an analogy would work. 

Supposing there is a tribe who live in a village beside the river. They all want to be able to get from one side of the river to the other so they decide to build a bridge. They all use the bridge and trust it to help them to go about their daily business. Then one day, the bridge collapses and the people on the bridge suddenly find themselves getting rather wet. Lets say, because we don’t want this to be too sad, that they all swim ashore. But they are all rather cross about it. Some of them lost the goods they were carrying, some missed appointments and some completely forgot why they were on the bridge in the first place. But they had taken time and effort and whatever resources they had to put that bridge up, and now its let them down. However, they still need to get from one side of the river to the other. They consider what to do but are reluctant to just build their bridge exactly the same as before, because that had let them down. Of course it never could be exactly the same because there will always be remnants of the old bridge, perhaps some foundations or supporting pillars. And if they built it in a slightly different place the ground conditions for the foundations may be different. Better, or maybe worse. Nothing is ever exactly the same going round again and some aspects will always be different. What they need to do is look at what went wrong and see if they can do anything about that, so that they can decide if its worth rebuilding or if the second bridge would be doomed to failure again.”

He paused as she looked across at him in silence and expectation. She nodded slowly

“I feel very much like your bridge, Mr Bergstrom.. ..I…. I can promise not to do it again..” 

But this raised no hint of hope and she continued with reducing confidence “I can pay back the cost.. .. maybe”

“The cost, Miss Perivale? The actual cost of the calls? Or the cost to the department in rework, in dropped issues that will resurface later causing significant personal grieve to as yet unidentified individuals? The cost to your colleagues and friends of having to pick up the pieces?” 

He pushed the phone log along the table for her to see

“Have you seen this before?” he asked “This was your extension number and here are the destination phone numbers with the date, time and call duration. So its not just the cost of the calls it’s the cost of you not doing any work, or possibly at a reduced capacity for these extended periods”

“I don’t know how much that would all be…” she tailed off in a whisper. The hope was now fading. It was just a few calls, wasn’t it. But no, not just a few – dozens and long as well as she continued to scan down the list and now the next page. She grabbed another sharp breath “oh my, I can’t have done any work at all that day!”

“I think you’ll find that was a Saturday. Maybe you came in especially to make that call?”

She sank in her chair feeling as low as she’d ever been in her whole life. She’d come in to this with hope and even expectation. Perhaps, she thought, Jacqui felt she’d been a bit harsh and had given the interview to Mr Bergstrom to give her the bad news.

“Mr Bergstrom, this has been praying on my mind every day since then. I know I’ll never do anything like it again. If you’d just give me a second chance. Please”

“Please try not to cry Miss Perivale – I’d be forced into giving you a comforting cuddle”

She lifted her watery eyes. He was speaking gently and somehow that made everything worse just as the door opened. 

“Steve, I’m so sorry to be interrupting but do you by any good fortune have the phone log for Lucy’s extension?”

Tristan seemed to be in an almost unheard of fluster

“Oh my goodness!” he exclaimed seeing it on the table 

“We’re through with it if you want it”

Tristan picked it up and turned it over to reveal a couple of pages of intricate and incomprehensible code scribbled on the back

“I’m so sorry for the interruption, but that has saved me a least three days’ work. I was trying to re-write it from memory. Gosh, so sorry but I need this for tonight’s run, ideally”

“What, no backup copy Tristan?”

“Sorry. Steve. Backup computers, no backup paper”

A7

Following the interruption the conversation improved and Lucy reluctantly allowed herself to believe that a glimmer of hope may be returning.             

Steve raised his head to look more directly at her “What I think is that we really can’t place you back in HR. There may be resentment. There may be mistrust. And in the longer term, you're opportunities to progress may be artificially limited”

“It wouldn’t have to be HR! I was only really doing general admin. Its just ..”
 “I know. Jobs are hard to come by at the moment – but its not just that is it? It’s the destruction of your confidence, maybe hopes and plans for the future?”

“Self confidence, and having ‘got the sack’ on my CV”

“No, I don’t want you back in HR.”

The vestige of hope suddenly disappeared and she let out a dying breath

“However” he continued slowly “there may be other options. We’re still in the aftermath of the financial Event and our new Components division has major back office teething troubles”
 “Mr Bergstrom, I’ll do anything. And I’ll work extra hard to make up for it…”

“Come on, we’re taking a walk over to HR”

“You're back!” exclaimed Juliette in as quiet a whisper as could still be heard

“Not yet” returned Lucy as she kept pace with Steve through to Jacqui’s office

“Good luck!”

“Do you want to bring Jacqui up to date?” he asked 

She sat fearfully on the edge of her chair

“Mrs Winchester, I’ve said sorry to Mr Bergstrom. I’ve promised not to be so silly again…”
 “…You did that by inference when you started” interrupted Jacqui, but with minimal malice in her voice

“I offered to pay everything back, but, but, but, I really don’t think I can when you see the whole cost of everything and the chaos I’ve caused. Mr Bergstrom has told me he doesn’t want me returning to HR, but he may have something else for me in the company”

“I see. I agree that it would be inappropriate for you to return to my department. How do you feel about Steve’s alternative?”
 “He hasn’t told me what it is yet”

“No, but so far she has 9 out of 10 for trying”

“Only 9 Steve?”

“Yes, she could have worn a slightly shorter dress”

Jacqui momentarily closed her eyes and gave him her old fashioned look as she shook her head slowly in despair. As the mother of two teenage boys, this aspect of fashion was never far from her back door

“What I want to suggest to you both” continued Steve “is that Miss Perivale takes an assignment, initially for three months, to help Lisa sort out the admin office and accounting system in Components. Any repeat of this behaviour would result in you leaving immediately and at that point I think you’d know that there was no return. It would work a bit like a trial and at the end of that we’d take a formal review and agree the plan from there. It may be that, at that time, you leave the company. But because I am giving you no choice of assignment that final review will not be based on success or failure of the project but purely on attitude and your approach to the assignment. We’ll see how you get on and if you like it. There’s more changes just around the corner and so other opportunities will arise.” 

He raised a sad smile “Assuming you survive”

“What do you think?” Jacqui asked her

“Yes please. I’ll try ever so hard”

“Does Lisa know this yet?”

“No. I didn’t know how all this would go this afternoon. Ok so we try to be flexible, but sometimes even in this company you just need to do what you’re told. I’m throwing her a lifebelt. She’d better not complain that the colour doesn’t suit her sense of fashion”

 “I think it’s a very fair compromise” said Jacqui

“Well done you!” whispered Juliette loudly as they crossed back through the office with Lucy using her smile to hold back a few tears of relief

“You seem to be quite popular?” he said hoping for some expansion as they walked back to Steve’s office
 “Yes. Its nice that Juliette can see more than just this issue. Mr Bergstrom. I got myself into a lot of trouble and you’re saving my life. Its not Lisa that’s getting the lifebelt, its me. Although I’ve never met Lisa”

“I think you’ll like her but you might find her a bit like a strict aunt that you’re sent to stay with”

“Is she really fashion conscious. I don’t really follow fashion, its too expensive”

“Maybe not fashion, but I took her to lunch one time and we had to ask to move tables because her dress clashed with the upholstery”

A7                                            

Ruth joined them back at the table, bringing more coffee and another Fanta.

“Now, a few details just so that you’re clear. On a day to day work basis you will be helping Lisa to the full extent that you can. But you will actually be reporting directly to me. That is partly to keep a special eye on you, but also because Lisa is nearly at breaking point and the general admin of a direct report is something she doesn’t need right now. Ok, any issues - talk to Emma or Ruth. If you’re not sure, come to me. This is to minimise the impact on Lisa. She is so much up to her neck that she can’t even spare any time for recruitment. There’s a huge amount of work there, but that means there’s a huge opportunity. For the first few days I want a daily update, the good the bad and the ugly – ok? I expect you to work at least your 34 hours a week but overtime will be payable only, yes only, at my discretion”

“…oh wow oh thankyou so much!” she said sitting up and nearly bouncing out of her chair

“You do get to give him a hug, if you want” added Ruth to lighten the atmosphere even farther

“Ruth, next time you’re out shopping can you buy a big wooden spoon for me. It can be your Christmas present”

“Miss Perivale, the company is not expecting you to repay its monetary loss. But it is expecting you to be a model employee. I will update the HR monthly report to mark this issue as suspended from work pending investigations rather than leaving the company. Considering what some people were getting away with, I think we need to be reasonable. Lisa works at the Central site and I’ve got a meeting with her tomorrow at 10, so I’d like you to be here at 9.30 and then we’ll go down together”

Steve was distracted by the phone ringing and took the call to talk to Gerry

“I’ve got a tip for you, if you want one” said Ruth “If anything was said while you were with Jacqui that you thought they shouldn’t have said in front of you, then make sure you don’t mention it to anyone. Its probably there deliberately”

Lucy was unusually nervous as she waited in reception for Steve. Penny had phoned him and she was expecting to be collected by Ruth. But it was Steve himself that signed her in and took her over to the café rather than his office.

He explained the setup at Components which she found very different even though he said he expected it to operate in a similar way to the main works here at the Riverside site. Except that the systems and processes weren’t in place yet and everything was being done in some random order and often caused confusion. Her job there was on the admin side but with the objective of taking the pressure off Emma and Lisa, and making sure that all the various questions from anyone in the works were answered. This might require her to ask someone, like Gerry if it was on company policy or Jack if it was on how something should be done, or maybe Juliette if it was on the personnel side. But the task was to find answers and develop some kind of consistency so that it minimised the confusion. 

“And above all, we need to be seen to be taking action so communication is key”

At the Central site he showed her round and introduced her to Lisa and Emma. He told her to contact Ruth to make appointments for her review meetings with him, then spent an hour in the production shop trying to define a plan for updating the building and facilities without taking an age and costing a fortune. If he had more confidence that this whole plan would work he’d hire someone to do all this. But the board meeting would be difficult enough without being over budget as well. Ok so everyone was backing him. But it was him they were backing, not the plan. Gerry knew a bit about this. Lisa knew a bit about this, Emma knew a bit about this and Jacqui just had faith in him. But it was only him that knew the whole story and that was scary because he also knew a lot of things that could go so horribly wrong.

Who Gets Fired

He was back at the Central site first thing Monday. He wanted to make sure that everything was running smoothly, or even just still running. He also wanted to reassure himself that Lucy would make a contribution and not become an immediate liability. 

Ruth was waiting at the gatehouse for him as he arrived later than expected. Geneviève had taken a little longer to get ready for piano and the delay had meant they’d hit more traffic. 

Waiting for him, Ruth had an ominous foreboding. 

The entrance was drab, there were no signs, no company name, no banners. Steve had not authorised the signage yet. First he wanted to be sure it would succeed and not damage the reputation of the main business. Not that there was an option. It had to succeed. These components were essential, but it was a huge risk and he didn’t want to tempt fate, and on the up side the thin stream of people heading for work looked enthusiastic.

He parked just inside the gate and headed towards the Production building as the last of the staff shuffled through the entrance. The ambience was calm, the inside of the building was brighter than the outside had foretold and there was more of an up-beat atmosphere than Ruth had expected. It was at an early stage but so far it was encouraging. 

They moved with the flow but Steve caught something from the corner of his eye.

“What’s that?” he accused in slightly too loud a voice.

“There’s a meeting at the town hall Friday evening. Its just to let everyone… “

“Take it down”

“But…”

“Did you miss the meeting last Thursday?”

“No”

“So you’ll remember that I said anyone promoting Trade Union activity should find themselves a company where the Union is welcome. And that is not us”

“It’s a basic workers right…”

A few people slowed to listen, now hesitantly nervous.

“Don’t you dare talk to me about workers rights! You chose to work here. You accepted my terms and my conditions. Don’t try to change it. It is the way it is for a very good reason and that is to the benefit of everyone. If you don’t want that, don’t work here. There’s no lock on the door. You have a choice. Take it down and go to your station, or leave it for me to take down and go that way to Lisa to get your cards”

“That’s….” began Moss breaking the hushed silence that had fallen all round the hallway

“C’mon Moss!” said Jack elbowing his way out of the crowd that had gathered “Leave it out. Its not worth your job, man.”

“He wouldn’t….” 

“Oh yes he would. Look, Moss, Steve’s the best boss you’ll ever find in the entire world, but when he says something like this… Man! You listen”.

Moss stuffed the poster back in his pocket and was about to say something

“Button it Moss!” Jack insisted squaring up to him to reinforce the point

“Consider this a formal warning, and … be careful. I’m looking for an excuse to fire your ass. Part of my job is to protect the workforce, the company and the supply chain from trouble makers. You remember what happened to Cave Brothers don’t you? and I’m not going to let that happen here even if you are the sacrifice. I’ll do what I need to do to protect the jobs of all these other people” 

He waved his arm as if introducing the crowd, turned and headed for Lisa’s office

“Whoa Steve! That’s’ a bit heavy for first thing on a Monday” Ruth said as they cleared the crowd.

“Start as you mean to go on” said Steve

“Ooh that sounds bad news”

Steve mellowed, “No, Ruth, its good. I made a few serious comments last Thursday, this just proves I meant it, and that should re-enforce our position”.

It was early break at the production line that Moss showed up at Lisa’s office.

“Can I see Steve?

“I’ll check” said Ruth, disappointed at how unfriendly she sounded

“Somethin’ wound ‘im up over’t weekend?”

“No, just you this morning”

“Moss! come in sit down. Coffee?”

“I come to explain”

“An apology would be a good start. I told you on Thursday that this kind of action undermines everything we stand for in this company – co-operation, helping each other, each individual doing the best he can not just for himself but for everyone else who works here. And trust. Those values are diametrically opposite to your trade union which stands for and implements divisive anonymity and restrictive practices. But I am interested in your thinking” 

“So can I ‘splain without getting’ fired?”

“Yes. Yes you can”            

“See its like my brother he’s a shop steward and he’s not working at the moment and he’s really struggling….”. 

Ruth poured the coffee and pushed the biscuit plate in Moss’s direction. He took one hesitantly.

 “Maybe you could ask if your brother is going to send down a wage packet every Friday”.

“No, well that aint ‘appen, ‘e’s bin on strike them last eight weeks.”

“Down at the steel works?”

“Yeah”

“Yes” said Steve with a sigh “They’re having a tough time. European imports from Poland are better quality, and cheaper. That’s who we’re competing against these days. Its not South Wales versus Yorkshire any more Moss”

“But, Steve, the workers are being penalised”

“No, they’re not Moss. It’s the workers that make the product. Its up to them, not the management. The MD isn’t operating a rolling press. But I can understand what I think you're getting at. You see TRE used to buy sheet steel from them before they closed due to the strike. We noticed the quality of the product drop month on month and Terry raised the issue with them. Its not that they didn’t know, its that they didn’t do anything about it. And the reason that the management didn’t do anything about it is that the workforce wouldn’t let them by withdrawing co-operation. But that strike did me a favour. It saved me having to cancel our contract due to the quality issues. And you know about quality issues from Caves”

“Yeah, well they wanted everyone to work harder but they wasn’t prepared to pay more. Some even said they’d do corrective action on overtime, but that were rejected as well”

“But that was just asking to be paid twice for the same job. If they’d got it right first time it wouldn’t need to be corrected. And that’s the kind of thing that made them uncompetitive. They can’t pay twice the rate for the same output. And it’s an international issue. The world is changing and we all need to change too. We were making shells out of some of their product. But companies like ours need to compete as well. If we’re not competitive, we’ll go down, just like Cave Brothers. Produce a good product, people will buy it, produce rubbish, and they’ll go elsewhere. And if companies like us simply feed the poor quality through their own production line they’ll produce rubbish too. Now, it’s the workers who produce the product, not the management. The management job is to provide the kind of environment where quality production is a way of life. That’s what Jack’s rigorous QA is all about. And if that doesn’t happen, everyone suffers. Salesmen can’t sell it, Finance have no beans to count, there’s no money for investment in production machinery and everyone’s on the slippery slope”
 “Ah but that’s when the Union needs to step in to make sure the workers aren’t exploited”

“But if the problems are caused by poor quality that they have trouble selling, having the Union rock in demanding a bigger slice of the smaller cake will just accelerate the problem. And its not just us, its dependant workers in support industries, like bus companies getting the guys in to work, or shopkeepers providing supplies. 

What executives like me do is look at all the angles, and that includes looking after the shop floor as well as sales, maintenance, future investment and a dozen others. They all need balanced and the problem with the Union is that they just look at one aspect out of context from all the others.

This works is going to run in the way that Three Rivers operates. Over there, the management regime works. They have a good sales forecast, and that means job security. They produce a good product so there’s finance available for investment in new products and that keeps the spiral going up rather than down.

Over here, we’re only getting off the ground. There’s an appetite for our products, but its got to be good and that means we need to work on getting that quality up to scratch. That’s what Jack’s here for. We’re coming from behind picking up the legacy reputation Caves left behind, but I’m still confident.

Now, if you can tell me how the Union is going to improve the situation, then I’ll be willing to listen, but I’ve spent some time recently with Barbara Miekleson and Joe McCauley, and neither of them could describe a single benefit to the company of me inviting them to participate.”

Moss looked blank for a minute. “So why were the workers not represented at these discussions?”

“The simple answer is that they were. They were represented by me, as were our customers, our suppliers and the secondary organisations that depend on our success for their own livelihoods. But the bottom line is, Moss, its about trust. You have to trust me and the management team to sell the product, to make wise investment decisions, to live within our means like you should with your household budget. And I have to trust you and your colleagues on the shop floor to efficiently produce a quality product. If that’s not the way you want to work, and if you think that the Union can do a better job of running this company than the existing team, or if you want to work in a Union shop because you’d feel more secure there, you need find somewhere else to work. And that’s not to victimise you – its to protect everyone else.”

Moss shuffled in his seat.

“Would you rather trust the Union, like the guys at Cave Brothers did, or trust the management team that are, at least at the moment, going in the right direction?”

“But the wages aint as good here as at Rivers”

“That’s a fair point Moss, and they’re not. But TRE is a separate company. Your next door neighbour probably works for a different company and his wages will be different to yours. Each company can only spend within its limits of income. Its like your household budget, you can’t spend more than you earn, at least not for long”

“But if we aint selling anything yet, we aint got no income, so that don’t work does it?”

“That’s correct too. I know of one company where everyone worked for nothing until sales started to come through and only then did anyone get paid. But the guys here can’t afford that, so instead I’ve put a fixed amount of money in the company’s bank account. The plan is that the sales start coming through before that runs out”
 “And if they don’t?”
 “We shut down and give up”

“What? You could just put some more in to keep us going!”
 “Where from? It doesn’t grow on trees”

“You could borrow it from a bank”

“And then we’d have to find the cash to pay it back, and all the interest as well. And if the sales aren’t coming through, where’s all that coming from? So what Lisa’s done is work out how long it will take to get sales through, and put that much in the pot. And that’s with the wages set as they are. I’ve already committed to sharing the profit with the whole workforce through increases in wages. But we can only do that when we can afford it”

“I don’t want to have to watch m’ back al’ time”

“Then stick to your job and leave me to do mine. Moss, I’m always interested in innovative ideas. But ideas for change must be judged taking all aspects into account, not just one or two. Ok” 

Moss had been a lot longer than expected and the shop floor was becoming concerned. But production stopped as most faces turned his way as he rejoined his station. Steve was not far behind and the faces turned instead to him half expecting him to bellow at them to get back to work as they’d expect from Giles Cave.

Steve jumped up onto the footplate of the forklift but turned instead towards Ruth.

“Ruth, can you round up the rest of the staff. All except Lucy. Leave her to pick up the phones.

“Guys” he said addressing everyone “We’re all going to take five. During our chat, Moss raised a couple of points that may be concerning more folks than just him. I want to make sure that everyone gets the same story and that it’s the same line that I told Moss. At the very first meeting I said if anyone had anything to say they should come right in and say it. And Moss has done just that”

Steve repeated the story all over again, looking over to Moss every so often to confirm the points. 

“Is that right, Moss?” he said eventually

“I think it makes more sense second time through” he said with almost a smile.

“Ok, so since we’re all here, does anyone have any other questions?

A murmur bounced around the plant, but no hands went up

“Ok,” said Steve with some finality “But if there are you know how to contact me”

Tentatively a hand towards the front was raised

“Excuse me sir, but there’s something I want to know” Steve waved an arm as invitation to continue

“Can you tell us what happened to Rowena. Seems like she’s just plain disappeared?” she asked timidly

Steve addressed the room repeating the question “How many people want to know about Rowena, or should I take this privately?”

“She was very popular, sir” as hands went up all around

“Rowena. Ok. Its quite personal, but I know she won’t mind me telling you, since you ask. Those of you who knew her better will know that Rowena was pregnant…”

“Yeah and if anyone knows who to she’d be well pleased to hear from you”

There was a ripple around the room, but Steve ignored the heckler. A bit of banter would never go amiss, even if on this occasion it was a bit marginal

“Unfortunately, the stress of the collapse of Cave brothers and being put out of work gave her a miscarriage. She applied for a job with us in our new company and was accepted. However, a couple of days later, she phoned me to say she wouldn’t be able to join us due to more recent events. She sounded very upset and I suggested I meet her somewhere. The issue was that she’d had a second miscarriage. It appears that she was originally carrying twins. Any midwifes amongst you will know that a dual miscarriage like this almost always results in complications which would probably mean that she would be unable to have children in the future. 

Now, there is no NHS treatment for this condition. However, there is an unproven experimental treatment available from a German research team. They can make it available privately through a subscription and its recent results have been very encouraging.”

The room had gone completely silent as Steve continued in a softer more conversational voice

“This subscription was way beyond Rowena’s means and having got through the redundancy and the dual terminations she was now looking straight at another disaster in her life. We do not provide healthcare as a benefit, either here or at TRE Riverside. But I took this case on its individual merits to the board and on this occasion the company has paid that subscription for her. She has been in Germany for treatment and I’m relieved to say that the tests that they have done indicate that it has been successful. Rowena expects to join us fully recovered next Monday”

A murmur ran round the room breaking into a spontaneous round of applause.

[ Falling Star by Place Vendome ]

“Any other questions? No?  Ok. Guys, the hope that this company will succeed is what gives Rowena the strength to recover. That’s what I mean when I tell you we’re all in it together. And Moss. Union domination led directly to the collapse of Cave Brothers. But it also caused death. Not only of Arnie Cave but also to two unborn babies. Justify that to the god of your choice on judgement day”

Ruth was silent as they headed back with Lisa and Emma towards the admin offices not knowing whether this was a happy event that Rowena would recover even though she didn’t know her, or if the day was dominated yet again by death. But now they were back and Lisa was about to speak when Steve raised his hand to stop her and instead checked that the door was securely closed

“Emma. When the three of us set this up we each had our part to play. Your part was in identifying trouble makers and making sure that they were excluded. Explain to me please how a Union activist like Moss comes to be working in our company. Was he not known to you?”

But Emma was gripped by panic as she stuttered over trying to say anything. Ruth expected Steve to calm her down as he always had with people in that state, but there was no comforting look or arm

“He… He promised not to be any trouble!” she gasped trying to hold back tears “He promised!”

“So you knew?”

“Yes” she whispered “he’s my brother in law….” 

Steve was unmoved

“….But he’s got four kids and another on the way” she bleated
 “Which is more than Rowena has. In that case perhaps you suggest to him that he prioritise his family over his misguided political agenda. And I’d also like you to consider your own priorities. And in order for you to have time to consider this, I am suspending you on half pay until 8 o’clock on Wednesday morning when you will explain to me why I should trust you to continue working here. I’d like that meeting to be at the Three Rivers Engineering Riverside site, not down here at Components.”

Ruth tried hard to stay in the background as Emma put her coat on and collected her handbag. She seemed to be shaking as she closed the door quietly behind herself.

Ruth diverted him to the café when they got back, and they sat by the river with their coffee “How many more tragedies do we need? Even if this one is going to have a happy ending?”
 “Ruth, darling, they’re all going to have a happy ending. We just haven’t figured out how, yet”

That afternoon Emma got her children’s tea and drifted through the housework like a zombie. She couldn’t get over it. He promised. She’d trusted him and he’d let her down. That evening she phoned her sister. She was expecting that the call would degenerate into a shouting match. Sharon was bound to defend Moss. She was still on the call when her husband got in, but her voice was quiet, perhaps subdued. He stood next to her as she spoke quietly “He promised, Sharon. But he broke that promise and Sharon, he might have cost me my job. I’m supposed to be in charge of recruitment and I’ve been suspended over this…”

She couldn’t continue and he took the phone from her and hung up without a farther word. She explained it to him as he held her nearly squeezing the life out of her. Oh! At least she still had her Jim.

The next morning she got the children up as usual. She got ready for work before remembering that now she had nowhere to go and instead she sank onto a chair welling up with tears, maybe of despair or maybe of pure frustration. How could she be so stupid? She knew it was back to survival rather than living, although while they still had Jim’s income from his taxi it wasn’t a complete wipeout. And the children? Oh my. 

Jim was back early saying that it looked like all the fares were out yesterday and there’s none left for today. But he got the tea for them all before sitting down with her suggesting that she have some idea what she was going to say at her interview. There must be some hope, he said, or Bergstrom wouldn’t be putting in any effort. Chief Execs, he emphasised, don’t tend to waste their time.

That day had started unusually down beat at the Riverside site. Ruth dropped her coat on her chair in her office and went straight through to Steve’s coffee pot. 

“Not the best start to the week?” she said sipping her coffee and staring at the tumbling water in the river swollen by the overnight rain

“Which means, it should only get better”

“Which it did. Because my boss already made the coffee before I got in”

“Good! So what’s next?”

“Next is sort out Heather to make sure she’s got a schedule to work to for her newsletters. I’d like to get something special out quite soon rather than combine it with a Christmas card to the customers.”

And true to form, everything seemed to settle down for nearly a whole day. Lucy’s daily report confirmed that there were no more incidents at Components, but that Lisa had given her only minimal direction and without Emma there she was coping. She was making some decisions on her own, based on previous incidents but nervous about making mistakes. And this was exactly the kind of honest report that Steve was hoping for.

Emma got to the Riverside site at quarter to eight feeling dejected and scared. She remembered back to the first phone call. Lisa was her friend and had invited her to join this venture. It was a lifeline out of the blue. It was exciting as a new opportunity. It was a new way of working to her and she was thinking it might even work – as it did at TRE. And….. And she’d let her down. Steve had trusted her based purely on Lisa’s recommendation. And she’d let him down. Her family depended on her, and she’d let them down. She knew the plan, she knew the rules, she knew why Steve took this line. The only thing in opposition was Jim’s comment that CEOs tend not to waste their time. And that was all that gave her hope.

At reception, Penny was still determined to impress Steve enough to give her a chance at a career and was on site early enough to sign Emma’s badge. She pointed her in the direction of the old building apologising that Ruth wasn’t in yet, but Emma was more than surprised at how many people were in. And these weren’t just production line guys who’d start at 8 anyway. It was everyone!

Nervously, she tapped on the door and waited, checking her hair and coat in the reflection in a glass window.

Steve appeared from the corridor and led her in. She felt she was shaking and hoped it didn’t show. The hope that Jim had given her was playing on loop inside her head and so all was not yet lost

“Coffee?” he offered as he waved his hand towards the table where a half empty cup sat amongst assorted notes and papers. She wasn’t much of a coffee drinker but on this occasion maybe she should, just to have something in common with him, however irrelevant. But she was too nervous to add her milk thinking that her shaky hand might just spill it everywhere and decided to drink it black. She was expecting him to demand some sort of explanation or plan or .. or?

“Emma...”

She smiled weakly and very briefly. Maybe she should start with an apology. Maybe keep quiet till she was invited to speak as she sat down.

“...I was hoping you’d be staying long enough to take your coat off”

She jumped up as he put her coffee on the table. Oh my. She knew she was nervous, but she hadn’t realised she was that bad. He took her coat from her and hung it on the stand before sitting down. That at least was courteous, but she felt that she was being studied and she was glad now that she’d taken some extra time. She suddenly remembered what it was like to sit exams at school twenty plus years ago. Every mark would count and there was only one point difference between pass and fail.

But Steve was studying her. He was looking for clues and already making an assessment. Lisa would have insisted on wearing navy blue rather than black tights with that midnight blue skirt, but the baby pink turtle neck knitted top contrasted delightfully, cuddly even, given more favourable circumstances. But she had clearly made an effort and was equally clearly as nervous as she could be without vibrating a hole in the floor.

“How did you like having a day off yesterday?” he opened far more gently than she could have ever imagined.

“Not.. not at all.”

“Oh dear! How would you like to do it all over again today, and tomorrow and maybe even Friday as well. Think of all that time you’d have to do everything you never had time for before”

“I’d rather not Mr Bergstrom. It was like the day after Caves closed”
 “And how did that make you feel?”

“Feel? Mr Bergstrom”
 “Yes, what did you feel like. You know, inside?”

She thought for a moment suddenly coming face to face with that particular reality
 “Worthless …” she whispered “.. Frustrated, let down. Disappointed. Frightened”

“I felt most of that too, on Monday afternoon. Someone I trusted had let me down, But not only let me down, but put everyone else in the company at risk too”
 “I’m sorry” she whispered

“On Monday, Emma, I asked you to think about why I should continue to trust you. And we also spoke a bit about priorities, particularly your own family. Did you have time to consider these yesterday?”

She thought about the precision of the question for a moment

“Yes. I had time to do so many things, but somehow I didn’t manage to do any of them”

“In that case, maybe we can think about that now?”

“Yes” she whispered again

“Emma, think about it this way. Suppose your brother used to be a bus driver. You’ve just put your kids on the bus and are about to wave goodbye except the driver hasn’t turned up. You can see your brother sitting on a bench not far away and call him over to do him a favour and solve the problem of the late driver. He’s ever so pleased at getting the job, but as he climbs into the cab you notice he’s a bit wobbly, a bit unsteady. In fact he reeks of booze and is clearly stone drunk and can hardly stand”
 “Oh my goodness”
 “Everyone on that bus is in serious danger, including your own children. And its you that’s responsible, and you suddenly remember that he’s no longer a bus driver because he’s an alcoholic”

She swallowed hard several times not knowing what to say, or even if a reply was expected.

“So what should we do? With you I mean. Not your bus driver. I don’t even know if you’ve got a brother”

“No, No I don’t. Just the one sister”

“Ok.” he said much more encouragingly than she was anticipating, and with a note of finality “I think you know what’s at stake. I think that this can only reinforce our conviction that we were right in our approach to recruitment. And we need to retain a significant level of flexibility. However, we must find a way to reinforce that the Union is not welcome in our plant.” 

She was fearfully trying to keep the waterworks turned off. She was a responsible parent for goodness sake, not a snivelling teenager. But Steve now sounded more disappointed than angry, and she was struggling to think of anything appropriate to say. Fortunately he continued

“But more important, Emma. I still want your help in setting up this venture, if you still want to be part of this. Its not going to get much easier for a while, I’m afraid”

“Oh!. Yes! I’ve been so worried about it. Maybe,… maybe I could make sure I keep an eye on him. An eagle eye?”

“Sounds like a good start. But I think we may need to do more than that. Independently we both recognised before we started the whole thing that the only route to success was to keep the radicals out. There were three of us in that conspiracy, me, Lisa and …you. If anyone knows the risks then you do. Oh Emma! But, with Moss on site, I guess we know where to start looking if there is any trouble”

“I know. I’m sorry. It won’t happen again”

“Maybe now you realise how important this is Emma. So because you just told me you still want to be part of this and you’re not very keen on taking days off I want you to return to work, straight after this meeting. But in addition to everything you were doing before and also keeping your eagle eye on Moss, I want you to take responsibility for ensuring that there is no political publicity circulating in the works. No pamphlets, no posters. Its probably not fair to ask you to specifically spy on your colleagues, but I think this hammers home just what the risk is and what’s at stake for you and for everyone who works with you”

She looked up. Hope had suddenly appeared as a ray of sunshine through the mist and cloud as Steve continued

“As we have seen, Union affiliation can and is seriously detrimental to health. Not just Arnie Cave and Rowena, but you yesterday as well”

“Yes. Mr Bergstrom, I felt physically sick all day”

Steve flashed a weak smile now believing that she might actually be sincere 

“Emma, putting other employees at risk is already specifically mentioned in the employment contracts. What I want you to do is to ensure that everyone is aware that due to these three specific cases, I include Union affiliation in activities that put employees at risk. In addition to that, if Moss steps out of line again I will expect you to fire him. Not me, not Lisa, you. How does all that sound?”

She closed her eyes “Oh thankyou. Mr Bergstrom. You won’t be disappointed. Not a second time”

“Emma, you’ve done such a good job right up till this. And I understand the personal circumstances. He’s family, and his family is about to increase, But we can use that to get him to value his job a bit more. Ok. When you have collected your thoughts and what specific action you intend to take, I’d like you to contact Ruth and get some time in my diary over here at the Riverside site to discuss it. That whole organisation at Components is still very, very fragile and we need to consider carefully anything that could disturb it”

He got up and picked up the phone “Penny, can you get a taxi to take Emma back to Components, please” 

“Emma, I can’t hang you from the yardarm for one mistake. But next year I’m planning a company summer family picnic down by the river and I’ll be looking for volunteers to walk the plank”

She managed to return his smile “I’ll need to start my diet about now if I’m going to fit into my bikini”

“I for one, can’t wait to see that! Although as an alternative, you could just dress up as a pirate”

She stood up to leave and Steve got her coat for her

“Penny says that Terry is going down to Components in about five minutes. That might be better than waiting for a cab. And Emma, please call me Steve”

Emma had never been more relieved. She needed this job, but not just that, she liked it. She was part of setting it up and she wanted to be part of making it succeed. And if she could make if feel the way that the Riverside site made her feel when she walked into it, it would be awesome. But despite that relative euphoria, she hadn’t even reached her desk before the next disaster overtook her. 

Tasmin

She was just going through the reception hall and in plain view, there in front of her was Tasmin from logistics pinning up that very same poster. 

Emma stopped and looked with her jaw seemingly hanging loose in astonishment. Tasmin turned with an innocent smile, but Emma lurched forward and tore the poster from its pins

“What’s going on?”

“Tasmin, come with me and I’ll explain it”

She tagged along with Emma towards the admin office in complete bewilderment. Emma put the poster on her desk but it unravelled as she hung up her coat. She was about to sit down to explain when Lisa finally lost it

“Is this yours?” she demanded pointing to the poster and glaring at Tasmin.

She nodded in confusion

“Tasmin, it is specifically stated in your contract that promoting trade Union activities is a dismissible offence”

Tasmin’s face fell “I didn’t know. Is that what this poster is about?”

“What d’you mean you didn’t know” exploded Lisa

“I was only doing it as a favour to a friend”

“Well this has better be a very good friend because they’ve probably cost you your job”

“What! No. No you can’t”

“Its specifically in your contract. paragraph 17. Now go and get you coat and go home. This...” she said turning to the filing cabinet and pulling Tasmin’s contract from the HR drawer “….is your contract” she said as she tore it in half and threw it in the wastepaper basket

“Lisa,” Emma finally cut in “I think we should involve Steve in this”

“Do you?”

“Yes, following my meeting with him that I’m just back from, I do think we should”

She dialled Steve while Tasmin froze to the spot in disbelief that this had just as suddenly escalated all the way to the very top of the company. Emma briefly detailed the situation so far then took a long breath

“Tasmin. You are to go home. Tomorrow you have an interview with Mr Bergstrom about this. Its at 9 o’clock and its over at the TRE Riverside offices” 

Tasmin left without speaking. She made her way home in a daze that was quickly turning to anger and then to fury. 

That evening, her mum and dad sat in disbelief. It was no secret that Steve was vehemently opposed to Union interference and her parents questions were around how Tasmin had got involved in the first place.

“And these Tom…” she said to her brother across the table “..are the last words I’m going to say to you for a very long time”

A frosty silence pervaded the house before she announced she was going out “But I won’t be long, mum”

Next day she was up early. She had a chance. Lisa had gone ape but Emma seemed more reserved and if Mr Bergstrom wanted to see her, maybe there was hope. But her contract was torn up and in the bin, so maybe this thing with Mr Bergstrom was just a formality. She got dressed in the black dress she reserved for special occasions and parties and brightened it up with a contrasting cream belt and bohemian beaded necklace.

“Is he very scary?” she asked quietly as Ruth collected her from the gatehouse and headed across to the Old Building

“Not usually. But with Emma yesterday and now you today, he’s not best pleased”

Tasmin failed to continue the conversation and timidly tried to hide behind Ruth as they entered the office. 

Steve was gazing out of the window and turned as Ruth announced her. His eyes landed on her with some surprise. He’d agreed that Terry should just get on with the recruitment of the suitable individual that he had identified, but Steve had never met her before “Oh my goodness! At the risk of being rude to a lady, would you mind telling me how old you are?”
 “16, Mr Bergstrom”

“I’m surprised you're old enough to join the trade union”

“Mr Bergstrom. I don’t even know what a trade union is”

“That’s strange. Its mentioned in your contract. Paragraph 17. I would have thought you’d ask someone”

“I didn’t read my contract”

“Not read it?”

“I.. I .. I didn’t see the point. Mr Bergstrom, I’d have signed anything to get that job. Anything at all and I was so excited to be offered I just signed it and took it straight back as soon as I could. I was so scared it might get lost in the post or something”

Steve paused, looking at her, a desolate, isolated, perplexed little girl that looked like she genuinely had no idea what she’d done wrong. His own little girl Genevieve was only a year or so younger but had met and impressed senior business figures like Duncan Erdmann and Neville Clark. But here, this little girl from her shop floor background was alone and on trial with her Chief Executive only a couple of weeks into her first job. He could just imagine her opening that envelope and instantly signing the two signatures and running all the way back to the works to give it back to Emma. And now the rug had been unceremoniously pulled from under her and she was about to come crashing to the floor. He let out a long sigh

“I think you should hang your coat on the peg over there by the door and sit down here for a few minutes. Ruth, don’t disappear.. .. And tell me the story of this poster of yours. What happened to lead up to you pinning it on our notice board?”

She sat down and although he sounded a little cross, he didn’t seem to be as scary as she had imagined as he smiled at her sympathetically

“It was my brother, Tom. He took me down to the pub to have a drink with him and his mates. He said I was a big girl now that I’d got a job and everything. I was talking to this friend of Toms and I said I was working here. I was so excited at having got the job. So he says he’s got these posters about how to have a better life and he’s got them put up in lots of places around town. He asked me if I’d put one up in our works. I was putting it up and Emma just happened in so I showed it to her. She seemed to go quite white and told me to go with her to her office. Except then Lisa went ape and now I’m here”

Ruth had sat down and was holding her hand in sympathy and support.

“But you said that you don’t belong to the trade union, and you don’t know what they do?”
 “No, Mr Bergstrom”

“What did you expect to happen here his morning?”
 “Lisa tore up my contract and put it in the bin so I thought this might just….  Oh, I don’t know”

“And do you think I’ve got the time to just rubber stamp something that Lisa or Emma can do?”

But Tasmin simply sat there gazing at the floor not knowing if there was hope or if all her dreams were disappearing. She’d persuaded herself there was hope. Just being deferred till today was hope.

“16” said Steve

She looked up wondering what that might mean

“The trouble with growing up Tasmin, is that it doesn’t suddenly happen at a number. Its more about being able to make the right decisions. One of the things you need to take into account is the implications. What is likely to happen if I do this or that, and what will be the impact on other people, intended or not intended. And that’s the bit you’ve missed out on this occasion. Its not just the implications of putting up a poster like that. It’s the implications of supporting an organisation like that. An organisation that sank Cave Brothers and put everyone out of work. I know of one little baby only six months old that was going without food. So how would you like to play a game instead?”

“A game?”

“Come on. We’ll do a little role play” he said stretching his hand out to help her out of the low chair, although she was even more surprised that she mindlessly took hold of it.

“Now, you sit over here behind that desk and for the next few minutes, you are going to be the Chief Executive and you are going to have to decide how to react. I am going to be the Union representative known as the Shop Steward. Now, because you’re the CEO you have a wonderful personal assistant called Ruth and she can help you with some of the answers and issues”

Tasmin sat up in Steve’s chair listening attentively. 

Steve started with a demand for increased wages. Ruth shook her head and Tasmin replied ‘no’. 

“It’s a pity you take that view, because in that case my members are unlikely to be able to work quite so quickly”

“That means there’ll be less output, so less units to sell and that means less income to the company” hinted Ruth

“Oh my! In that case, yes” said Tasmin quickly

“that means we’ll have less profit” said Ruth to her “And that means there’ll be no money to buy new machinery or fix the plant when it breaks down”

“Oh dear! So that means it ought to be a no!” 

Tasmin concentrated and tried very hard to find the right answers, but it all seemed so difficult. No matter what she said, it seemed to create a problem.

They ran through some of the other usual tactics like demanding shorter hours, better benefits and more holiday, with the standard threats of go slow, anonymity, work to rule and withdrawal of labour.

Tasmin played along becoming increasingly nervous as the extent of the potential impact on everyone who worked there became apparent. Eventually she stopped with a loud gasp 

“But that’s just blackmail, Mr Bergstrom! That’s not legal!”
 “Only sometimes, but it depends what you call it. Blackmail is illegal. Collective Bargaining is not – unfortunately”

But at that point Steve decided that she’d got the idea

“Come on, new chief exec” he said “You do realise that you’ve now lost all your customers because you’re too expensive and you’ve gone bust and your entire workforce is standing around in the street wondering where their family’s next meal is coming from”

“Oh my goodness. I had no idea”

“No, but that’s what happens when people join that gang and bully the company into agreeing with their demands. And Tasmin. That’s exactly what happened to Cave Brothers. Of course, the Trade Union view is somewhat different. Their published agenda is that they are there to protect the workforce from bad employers and to extract the best deal for their members which is why its published under the heading of a better life. And there are companies where they do a good job of balancing the over-greedy management. However, their demands rarely take account of what a company can afford. The benefits are usually cash not quality of life because many of the workforce don’t like living under a constant cloud of insecurity and friction, and any achieved benefits are always temporary.”

She followed him back to the high table. 

“By the way, did I tell you that you look fabulous? Its really encouraging to know that you bothered to make the effort. It’s a lovely dress”

“Thankyou. It’s the only one I’ve got”

He picked up the phone and had a short chat with Lisa all the while watching Tasmin’s reaction and seeing her face brighten up and even a smile appearing.

“We can’t crucify you for one mistake that didn’t really do any damage. I think you now understand what’s at risk and why I take such a hard line. What I want you to do is go home and get changed – I can’t imagine that you want to go climbing high ladders in the warehouse dressed like that. And then when you get back to the site, go to Lisa and just say sorry. Take her this” he said handing her a roll of sellotape.

“Really! But she’ll think I’m taking the….”

A broad smile crept across Steve’s face “Ok, you’ve already learned to think about implications!”

“Thankyou Mr Bergstrom, but I’ll just go straight back to the warehouse.”
 “Surely you’d rather change into your jeans for work?”
 “Yes, but I can’t.”
 “You can’t?”

“No. Mr Bergstrom. Last night, after dinner, I went back to the pub. I didn’t go with Tom because I’m not talking to him any more. I went to see his friend and when I found him a slapped him so hard round the face that he dropped his beer. The glass hit the table edge and smashed and the bits went all over my jeans and they’ve got bits of sharp glass stuck in them everywhere.”

Steve looked over at her trying to see into her eyes. And here she was with her first job trying hard to find her way with little or no help from anywhere

“Ok. But I think that dress will get ruined in the warehouse. And we can’t have that if its the only one you’ve got” 

He put twenty pounds from his pocket and on the table with his car keys “Ruth, can you take Tasmin into town please and buy her some new work gear. Then drop her off at TRC. And Tasmin. Remember to say sorry to Lisa. Then phone a girl called Juliette and – oh , no Ruth can you get Juliette to reissue Tasmin’s contract. Lisa’s got enough to do without that”

Despite the daily issues, Components was up and running – well, maybe walking or even staggering. It was a job for the eagle eyed to keep the production line running and not stopping for every little excuse, giving them a fighting chance to produce acceptable quality and avoid reverting to the old ways. It was a tall order. It was a tightrope walk. 

Continuous education was proving a useful ally along with daily group discussions about working practices. Jack was rising to the challenge, and had managed to maintain his popularity despite running around like something possessed enforcing his quality control regime. Steve’s original plan was to pile in hard on the first offenders and make an example that everyone might remember at the expense of some unfortunate guilty victim. But now as the first candidates turned out to be Emma and Tasmin it made more sense to keep them now that they were more firmly allied to him and on the lookout for any opposition.

In fact it had provided just the opportunity he had needed to explain the issue and to get it straight in his own head. He had far more confidence now that Components would become successful. It just needed that steady hand to keep it moving at the same pace because the longer it did that, the more likely it was that the workforce would adapt to that way of working and accept it as their new norm.

End of Steve’s Year 

Chapter 1

Ruth

Next Chapter is Eloise