Fiona snapped her head in my direction. "Look, I said I was sorry, okay? Please don't make jokes like that. And anyway, I've heard things … "
Her voice trailed off, leaving footprints of innuendo in their path. I felt a smirk come to my lips as I let her comment hang in the air between us.
Cheeky.
I studied her for a moment as I considered whether or not to entertain her gossip. Even under the less than flattering glow of the lights overhead, her beauty was getting harder to ignore. I'd only meant my threat to fire her in a teasing way. It would take a lot more than a silly panic attack, or whatever it was, for me to even consider doing such a thing.
As to her remark, well, she only had one side of the story. It didn't matter much to me where she'd heard it. Anyway, it wasn't something I cared to discuss with her now, if ever. I continued to look at her and as the seconds ticked by, her features flickered with lines of worry, even sadness. I nodded and pushed myself to a standing position.
"Is there something I should know about you, Fiona? Something you're keeping from me? It's not every day things like your fainting spell happens around here."
Fiona dropped her head a bit, lowering her eyes and looking away from me in the process. "Gabe, this job is really important to me. That's all. I get overwhelmed sometimes. I'm working on it. Getting better I mean."
I wondered if she'd go so far as to tell me what I already knew about her … the death of her family, her grandmother's illness or her debt. But instead of continuing, she turned away from me and grabbed her pen from the desk.
"Would you like an update on my lab work?" she asked, changing the subject.
I narrowed my eyes as she closed herself off from me. There'd be time to get to the bottom of all these issues. Although I enjoyed getting under her skin, I couldn't quite get a read on whether it was affecting her in a negative way or not. That was also something I'd have to wait until later to figure out.
"Sure thing Fiona," I said, as I leaned in towards her. "Talk to me."
GABE
Early the following week, I asked Holly to summon one of the men from the lab, Andrew Monroe, to my office. I'd just wrapped up a call and lowered the phone back in its cradle when I heard a knock against the inside of my office door.
"Gabe?" Andrew said, as he rapped against the wood. "You wanted to see me?"
"Andrew. I did, yes," I began as I stood. I gestured towards one of the oversized leather chairs across from my desk. "Come, have a seat. Hey, close the door first will you?"
Andrew did as I asked and a moment later he began walking towards me. He was a tall, thin man with a bowl haircut and the longest legs of any human being I'd ever known. Looks aside, he also happened to be one of my best researchers and most senior employees. His loyalty to me was beyond question, so he was the logical choice for the task I had in mind.
"How's your week going so far?" I asked, as he eased into the chair.
"Fine. No issues," he began. Suddenly a frown came to his face. "I'm sorry, Gabe. Holly didn't mention why you wanted to see me. Should I go back to the lab? Is there something specific you wanted information about? Updates on my Link Protocol work or … "
Lifting my hand, I waved at him, cutting him off mid-sentence.
"No, no, Andrew. It's nothing like that."
He nodded for a moment or two before he leaned back into his chair. "Oh, okay then. Well, what can I do for you?"
I mirrored his body language and reclined in my chair as well.
"How's the new hire working out?"
Andrew's eyebrows tented. "Fiona, you mean?"
"Yes."
"Oh," he said as he cleared his throat. "Well, I haven't had much interaction with her just yet."
"Mmm, hmm." I replied. "Were you by chance in the lab last week when she had the fainting episode?"
"No, I wasn't. Amanda and Melissa were there though. It's my understanding they helped her to the infirmary." As he finished speaking, Andrew gestured over his shoulder in the direction of my office door. "Should I get them? I'm sure they could tell you about it."
I shook my head. "No, I've been briefed on what happened. That's not necessary."
"Oh, okay."
"No, Andrew. I've asked you here for a different reason. I need something from you."
Confusion spread across Andrew's face. It was understandable. Our discussions didn't usually have clandestine overtones to them. He listened as my statement hung in the air between us, while he waited for me to elaborate.
I leaned forward a bit and continued, "What I require is someone to be my eyes, and ears, in the lab right now. Any behavior that could threaten the progress of the Link Protocol could be detrimental to the entire future of the company. Do you understand?"
His expression darkened with concern.
"Um, no, not really. Is there something you're not telling me Gabe?"
I shook my head. "No. Not at all. It's just that this a critical time for the company and I need people I can trust without question to keep the work on track. That's it."
Andrew nodded. "Well, okay, but why me? Why not Colin? It's his lab, his team."
As he spoke, I interlocked my fingers on the desk in front of me. "True. But Colin's gonna be buried deep here soon with other work surrounding the project. And anyway, you're not a substitute for Colin, Andrew, you're my first choice here. Okay?"
Andrew considered my request in silence for a moment or two before he started to nod.
"Um yeah, okay Gabe, sure. Whatever you need. What did you have in mind?"
I smiled as he agreed with my request.
"It's real simple. If anything unusual happens in the lab, I need you to let me know."
"Unusual how? What do you mean?"
"Um, anything out of the ordinary that's not directly related to work on the project. For example, like Fiona's fainting episode. Strange behavior, gossip, what have you. It's for the good of the project and if we've got any instability in the team, it needs to be dealt with right away. I've got something I'm going to be discussing with everyone later. Bottom line is it could create in a change in team dynamics and if it does in a way that's harmful, I need to know about it."
As I finished elaborating, he remained quiet for a second or two before speaking.
"That's a bit mysterious but um, okay, not a problem, Gabe," he said at last. "You can count on me."
Unlocking my fingers from each other, I placed my palms flat on the desk and a moment later, pushed myself into a standing position. I extended my hand towards his shaking it with a firm grasp.
"Excellent, Andrew. Excellent."
A few hours after my talk with him, I summoned the lab team to the conference room for the meeting I'd mentioned to Andrew earlier. I had a notion about how to get more productivity out of them and ease Fiona out of her comfort zone a bit. If my hunch about her was correct, I sensed she'd rise to my planned challenge with enthusiasm. And so it was I stood before them at the head of the conference room later that day. Rubbing my hands back and forth with an easy rhythm, I began to speak.
"Before I get to the details of why I've gathered all of you here, I just want to tell you how pleased I am with the progress you've made on the Link Protocol so far. That said, I've been through similar fund raising efforts in the past. Time seems to have a knack for getting away from you when it's needed most and even though we're doing well, there's room for improvement. In short, things have got to move more quickly."
I paused for a moment to gauge them for any immediate reaction. Seeing none, I continued, as I was sure what came next would get one.
"So, what I'm proposing is an idea I believe will enable us to achieve our goals much sooner and … have a bit of fun in the process. In short, I'd like to hold a competition among you. The winner of this contest will receive a significant prize. I intend to create a new position, Director of Lab Research, which the winner will assume. In this role, you will report directly to me and be involved in the company's future projects in addition to key lab initiatives. In essence, along with me, you will be integral in shaping the direction of Hawkins Biotech. It's an incredibly exciting opportunity for whoever gets it. Not to mention a dramatic increase in your salary."
I paused once more and glanced around. Expressions changed as I did. Postures shifted to attention as they started to lean forward in their seats in unison.
"I know this is the first you are hearing of my plan. Anyone have questions so far?"
Amanda raised her hand.
"Go ahead," I said, nodding in her direction.
"Gabe, how will our performance be evaluated? After all, no two of us are working on the same aspect of the project."