For the better part of the week, Alex had steadily worked his way through the house, trying to purge the clothes that no longer fit, books that had been read and then forgotten, and the assorted bric-a-brac that had accumulated over the many years that he and his family had lived in the house. Fortunately, he’d had assistance from Cam and Charlotte as well as Jesse. Meanwhile, Jesse had begun to do a similar purge of his own possessions, knowing that soon he’d leave his apartment behind. After working diligently for much of Saturday, Jesse and Alex decided to take a break from sorting their possessions into ‘keep’ and ‘discard’ piles. After dinner, the two decided to head to Jesse’s place, where they’d consider what furniture would go to Alex’s house, and what wouldn’t.
When they walked into Jesse’s bedroom, Alex announced, “Of all the furniture in the house, I want to keep my bedroom set. I love the pine four-poster and matching pieces.”
“I agree completely, Alex,” replied Jesse. “I love your bedroom furniture. I was thinking maybe Cam or Charlotte might like to switch out their twin bed for my queen-size.”
“I’m not sure. I mean, I’m sure they’d both like the bigger bed. It’s just that their bedrooms are so small, Charlotte’s especially. A queen-size bed might be too big.”
“True. I guess we should ask them first, anyway.” said Jesse. “If one or the other is interested, we could take some measurements to see if it’s even feasible.”
“Quite honestly,” commented Alex, “I really think we should keep all our furniture. I don’t really like the idea of using the garage as a furniture store, but it won’t be too long before Cameron will be moving out, and Charlotte will be right behind. Having furniture ready to go when they get their first apartment would be a great start.” Jesse nodded in agreement, before Alex continued. “Gosh, I hope it doesn’t sound like I’m giving away all your things.”
“No, I didn’t even think that,” replied Jesse. “I agree. Anything of mine that we don’t need I think we should keep for Cameron and Charlotte. Maybe they’ll want my old stuff, and maybe they won’t, but I guess it makes sense to keep everything for them, then let them decide. It’ll certainly be cheaper for them than going out and buying new furniture.”
“Okay,” said Alex. “Is there anything of yours in particular you’d like to keep and use in our place?”
Jesse walked up to Alex from behind, then wrapped his arms around him. “Man, I love the idea of ‘our place,’ you know?”
Alex turned and gave Jesse a quick kiss. “Me, too.”
“Most of my furniture is older hand-me-downs or thrift store purchases. The only thing I really like is my dining room table and chairs. They’re quite old, but they’re hard rock maple and in good condition. They’re from my grandparent’s house.”
“I definitely think we should use those, and move my table and chairs out,” replied Alex. “I’d never want to get rid of anything that had sentimental value or came from your grandparents. I like your set better than mine, anyway.”
“Well, I think we pretty much agree on what furniture of mine we’re going to use, and what we aren’t. I do only have a one-bedroom apartment, so there really isn’t that much furniture to begin with.”
“What about some of the other things, though?” asked Alex. “You know, lamps, pots and pans, dishes, silverware, that sort of stuff?”
“I would like to continue to use my dishes,” replied Jesse. “They were a gift from my parents. Do you think that would be okay?”
“Of course it’s okay, Jesse. If I’d have thought a bit before speaking, I would’ve suggested using your dishes. I think the set we have is a rather ugly shade of blue. I loved your dishes the first time I saw them, with the cows and chickens and stuff. Your folks did a nice job picking them out.”
“Actually,” said Jesse, “I picked them out myself. My mom and dad took me out shopping for housewares before I moved back to Des Moines. We got them at Dillard’s.”
“Well, I think you’ve got good taste, I guess.”
“I’m dating you, aren’t I?” Alex turned and gave Jesse a quizzical look. “I’m dating you, Alex, ergo I have good taste.”
Alex snickered. “Sorry, my mind is elsewhere, I guess.” He turned to give Jesse a quick peck on the lips. “It seems merging our things is going to go much better than I’d have thought,” Alex commented.
“I agree. Now, before we get rid of my couch, how about we get a little more use out of it and snuggle for a bit?”
-----
“Hi, Sean. Thanks for stopping by.”
The two hugged before Alex shut the door.
“My pleasure, Alex,” Sean responded. “I think we’re ready to make our move on your old employer.”
“I really wish you’d stop saying ‘old employer,’ Sean.” After a few seconds of silence, Alex added, “I’m sorry. Here you are helping me out, and I’m criticizing you.”
Alex and Sean sat down next to one another on the sofa.
“It’s okay, Alex,” replied Sean. “I do get it. I know you loved your job and worked there for such a long time. It’s just that I don’t think that most people would even consider going back to an employer after having an experience like what happened to you.”
For the next several minutes, Sean went over several papers that he’d pulled out of a manila envelope, explaining to Alex the purpose of each. Once he’d finished with his explanation, Sean returned the papers to the envelope and asked if Alex had any questions.
“Sean, I’m sure this isn’t the way it’s normally done, but rather than having someone serve the papers to Mr. Scribner, what do you think about letting me do the delivery?”
Sean looked at Alex for several seconds before responding. “You’re kidding, right?”
“No, I’m not kidding.”
“You want to serve papers to the man who fired you yourself?”
Alex simply nodded in response.
“Okay, Alex,” said Sean. “You do seem to want to do things unconventionally. I don’t really understand why you’d want to, but I guess there’s nothing that says you can’t.”
“Well,” commented Alex, “you said you wanted to surprise Mr. Scribner. I think this will come as a surprise.”
“I guess I’d have to agree with you there,” replied Sean. “When do you want to do this, and would you like me to go with?”
“I can drive them up tomorrow,” said Alex. “It’s not like I have a job to go to. I really don’t know that you need to go with, though.”
Sean wrinkled his brow. After a few seconds, he responded. “You know, Alex, the more I think about it, I think I should be with you. Since you seem to want to do this your way and not the normal way, it may be best if I’m present, too. Just in case.”
“Okay, not a problem.”
“I do have a big meeting tomorrow at one o’clock, though. Do you think we could put it off one more day, and go up Wednesday, instead?”
Alex agreed. “How about I pick you up then Wednesday morning? Name a time, and I’ll be there. I’m really looking forward to the look on Mr. Scribner’s face when he sees me walk in.”
-----
Sean was waiting when Alex pulled into Sean’s driveway a little before 8 am on Wednesday. Alex had just turned off his car and was climbing out of the driver’s seat when he saw Sean’s garage door open. Sean walked out of the garage, then used the keypad to shut the door behind him. “Good morning, Alex,” he said as he walked to the passenger side of Alex’s Civic.
As Alex backed out of Sean’s driveway, he asked, “Have you eaten? Would you like to stop before heading out of town?”
“I’ve already eaten, Alex.”
“Good. It’s the most important meal of the day, you know.”
Sean snickered.
“What?” asked Alex.
“Nothing,” was Sean’s reply. He then added, “We should be up to Minneapolis around 11:30. Let’s get this taken care of before lunch. Then we can have a nice, relaxing meal before heading back to Des Moines.”
“Sounds good.”
“Oh, and Alex?” said Sean. “Are you sure your boss is going to be in the office when we get there?”
“Shit. I didn’t even think of that.” Alex thought for a second, then said, “I’m going to call Carrie. She’ll probably know if he’s in the office today, and if she doesn’t know, I’m sure she can find out for us. God, I hope I haven’t taken you away from something important for nothing.”
“Alex, right now, your case is what’s important, so don’t sweat it. That being said, though, please call Carrie and find out.”
Alex chatted for a few minutes with Carrie. Being the efficient administrative assistant that she is, she knew Mr. Scribner’s schedule and confirmed that he’d be in the office. “Why do you want to know Mr. Scribner’s schedule, though?” she asked.
“Carrie, I don’t know that I should say quite yet.”
“You aren’t going up there to shoot up the office, are you? You’re not going postal on us, right?”
Alex was shocked at Carrie’s response. “Of course not, Carrie. I don’t even own a gun. I can’t believe you’d even suggest that!”
Alex then heard Carrie’s laugh. “Jeez, Alex, you had to have known I was joking.” Alex realized that, even though he’d been unemployed for just a few weeks, he really had missed both Carrie’s laugh and her sense of humor.
Shortly after 11:30, Alex found a parking spot in a nearby parking ramp, then he and Sean walked the block to the office building where Scribner & Associates was located. When they reached the eighth floor, they strode out of the elevator and into the corporate headquarters of Alex’s former employer.
“Good morning, Alex!” said Claudia, the receptionist. “What brings you to Minneapolis today?”
Alex glanced at Sean before turning back to Claudia. Claudia’s greeting was unusually friendly, considering Alex had been fired a few weeks before. Certainly, Claudia would’ve known about Alex’s firing. Like Carrie, Claudia seemed to know everything.
“Err…uh, hi, Claudia,” Alex stammered. “Is Mr. Scribner around?”
“He is, but he’s currently on the phone. Why don’t you and…”
“Sean Mitchell,” Sean interjected.
“Why don’t you and Mr. Mitchell have a seat. I’m sure he’ll be off the phone shortly. So good to see you, Alex. It’s been a while!”
Alex glanced once again at Sean as he sat down. Sean returned his look. Alex wasn’t the only one who was surprised by the cheerful reception.
A few minutes later, Claudia said, “I see he’s off the phone. I’ll let Mr. Scribner know you’re here.” After exchanging a few words on the phone, Claudia hung up and said, “You can go right in.”
Again, Alex and Sean glanced at one another as they rose. Both were clearly confused about Claudia’s friendly greeting.
Just as they reached Mr. Scribner’s office, the door opened.
“Alex, my boy!” Mr. Scribner said in a booming voice. “Come in, come in! What brings you to Minneapolis today?” Noticing that Alex wasn’t alone, he added in a softer voice, “and who’ve you brought with you?”
As Sean closed the office door behind him, Mr. Scribner extended his right hand to Alex. Instead of extending his in return, Alex thrust the envelope towards Mr. Scribner’s hand. The smile quickly disappeared from Peter Scribner's face, replaced by a look of confusion. “What’s this?” he asked as he took the envelope from Alex.
“Mr. Scribner,” said Alex calmly but coldly, “this is Sean Mitchell, my lawyer.” Sean nodded, his face void of expression.
“Uh, hello, Mr. Mitchell,” said Mr. Scribner, his confusion still evident.
“I’ve just served you papers, Mr. Scribner,” said Alex, who then turned to Sean and asked, “Am I supposed to have him sign something?”
“Serve me…papers?” responded Mr. Scribner.
The calm façade that Alex had erected for himself on the trip to Minneapolis suddenly gave way to anger. “Peter, I can’t believe that, after more than thirty years, you couldn’t have asked me for a simple explanation!” exploded Alex. “I would’ve thought that you’d have known me well enough to know I’d never do those things!”
Mr. Scribner stared at the two men standing before him for several seconds before asking, “Alex, what on earth are you talking about?”
“How could you have dismissed me so coldly?” spat Alex. “You didn’t even have the balls to do it yourself!”
“Whoa, wait a minute,” Mr. Scribner said, irritation clearly mixing with confusion. “Dismissed you? What do you mean ‘dismissed you’?”
“And now you’re playing dumb with me?” Alex continued. “What, if you can convince me you’re senile, you think I’ll go quietly? I know damned well you’re not senile, Peter!”
“Alex, please, calm down,” said Mr. Scribner. Though he was still very confused, he realized that he needed to get Alex to dial back his anger a few notches.
Sean, too, knew that he needed Alex to get hold of himself. He reached out, put his hands on Alex’s shoulders, and said as calmly as he could, “Alex, you need to settle down.” He then turned to Mr. Scribner, his hands still on Alex’s shoulders, and asked, “May we sit?”
Peter Scribner shook his head, almost as if to dislodge cobwebs. “Uh, yes, yes, of course,” he finally managed to say. He retreated behind his desk as Sean guided Alex to one of the chairs in front of the desk. Though Alex remained quiet, he was now shaking, overwhelmed by a mixture of anger, disbelief, and embarrassment. Sean took the seat next to Alex, then reached over and placed his right hand over Alex’s left. Alex, staring at Mr. Scribner, didn’t even seem to notice. Peter Scribner returned Alex’s stare for several seconds before turning towards Sean.
“Okay, Mr., uhh, Mitchell, was it?”
Sean nodded in reply.
“Mr. Mitchell, could you please explain what the hell is going on?”
“Of course, though I don’t understand why you wouldn’t already know as this was all your doing,” Sean said calmly but icily. “My client, Mr. Kimball, is quite clearly and understandably upset, first with being accused of doing something which he did not do, and then to be fired from his job of more than thirty years without having the opportunity to defend himself. And, as we believe his coworker made false accusations against my client as retaliation for denying her daughter a summer internship, I have advised my client that he has grounds for a lawsuit against you and your firm.”
Again, Mr. Scribner shook his head in disbelief, his mouth hanging agape. After a few seconds of silence, he managed to find his voice, though very few words. “What?”
“Mr. Scribner, did you or did you not order the manager of the Des Moines branch of your firm to fire my client over the accusation of sexual harassment, an accusation which we intend to prove is not only false, but was also done as retribution?”
“Mr. Mitchell, I still don’t know what the hell you’re talking about, but I certainly can truthfully say that I never ordered Judy Stills to fire Alex for any reason, sexual harassment or otherwise.”
Alex, who’d remained silent since his outburst, finally spoke. “But she said the order to fire me came straight from the top.”
“Oh, Christ,” Peter said. He was silent for several seconds before saying, “Alex, I still don’t understand what is going on. But I do know this…I never ordered Judy to fire you for any reason.”
Upon hearing these words, Alex exhaled his breath, which he had been unaware he was even holding.
“Alex, I know about Judy trying to change the internship recipient. But I don’t know anything that happened after that. Can you please enlighten me?”
Alex launched into his tale. Sean was silent as Alex spoke; Peter Scribner was largely quiet as well, though he did utter an occasional profanity under his breath. Halfway through the tale, Alex’s mouth had clearly become dry; unprompted, Mr. Scribner turned to a small refrigerator behind him and grabbed a bottle of water which he then handed to Alex. Alex thanked him and had a drink before he returned to his tale, finishing the story after some ten minutes. When he finished, Peter Scribner sat still, his elbows on his desk and his fingers pressed together, clearly thinking of his response. He finally spoke.
“Alex, first of all, I want to be clear. I never fired you, and you still have a job. I apologize for the anguish you’ve suffered since your ‘firing.’
“I think I know you well enough to know that you’d never say some of the things you were accused of saying. However, sexual harassment is obviously a very serious allegation, and one which this firm does not take lightly. Even though I would never think you’d do such a thing, had I received a report of potential sexual harassment against you from another employee, I would have ordered a thorough investigation of the matter, just as I would have if any other employee was accused of harassment. That is company policy, Alex. This case would’ve been handled the same, regardless of who the accuser and accused were. You would have received no favoritism. To be clear, though, no one would lose their job until the investigation was complete. Everyone is entitled to due process. During the investigation, you would have been prohibited from going into the office. However, your ‘suspension’ would be with pay.
“Since you have just notified me that a complaint of sexual harassment has been filed against you, I am going to do just as I have indicated. You will be placed on paid leave and barred from returning to the workplace. Now, it certainly appears that the accusation against you is false. I don’t think you have anything to worry about, Alex. You’ll just be off work for a bit longer. I may have you work on a special project or two as well.
“Now, there are some other issues that have cropped up in your office that don’t involve you but do involve Judy and Jenny. It seems that they started shortly after Jenny began, but escalated rapidly after Judy took over the office.” Mr. Scribner glanced at his watch. “Considering it’s after twelve, I’d like to take you and your attorney to lunch. There’s a great little bistro just around the corner from here. How does that sound?”
Alex nodded in agreement, then turned to Sean. “Sean, I am so, so sorry that I dragged you into this. I appreciate all your help, and then to find out I was worried over nothing.” He then dropped his head, his eyes facing his lap.
“Alex, look at me,” said Sean.
When Alex again raised his head, Sean continued. “Alex, you’ve got nothing to apologize for. I am very happy that everything has seemed to work itself out for you. You were so overwhelmed with your feelings and concerns when this first happened, I got the impression that you really had no idea what to do. Thank goodness Jesse asked for my help. Yes, it turns out you didn’t need it. But if Jesse hadn’t intervened and then gotten me involved, you would still be without a job. So, in a way, you did need my help. Just look it that way rather than feeling guilty that I spent a little time helping out a friend.”
Alex sheepishly smiled and said quietly, “Thanks, Sean. You’re the best.”
Alex then turned his attention back to Mr. Scribner. “Peter, I’m sorry I was so angry with you when I first arrived. I don’t know exactly what I said…I hope nothing too offensive.”
“Alex, everything is fine. Well, everything is fine between you and me. But not everything is fine in your office. Let’s head to lunch and I can fill you in.”
The trio walked to the bistro that Mr. Scribner had mentioned, where they enjoyed lunch. After they’d ordered, Alex then apologetically brought up his conversation with Phil Bowers of Blue Mountain Group after explaining that he was unable to complete the last project for him, and how Carrie relayed the details of the conversation between Mr. Bowers and Judy.
“Shit,” muttered Peter. He was quiet for several seconds before chuckling. “Alex, I knew you were a smart man. Always stay on the good side of your administrative assistant. When push comes to shove, they’re the ones who really run the office. We’ve got quite a few great administrative assistants in our company, but Carrie is probably the best.”
“I think I actually learned that trick from you, Peter. This whole episode almost seems like espionage. You know, like Carrie is my own personal mole inside the enemy’s intelligence bureau.”
Mr. Scribner chuckled again before continuing. “Alex, I don’t know how much I should tell you of what’s been going on, but I think at this point I need to share at least some of it. Obviously, you know how Judy tried to change the recipient of the internship after-the-fact, and how when that news made it back to corporate that we put a stop to it.”
Alex nodded in understanding.
“There’s been some other funny stuff going on in Des Moines, though, too. Our new lead accountant, Eileen, pointed out some discrepancies with regards to cash flow in the Des Moines office. She hasn’t been quite sure of what’s going on, though, so she and I agreed to let things play out a little more, to see if other problems crop up. While I think someone, most likely Judy, is pocketing some extra cash, I want to make absolutely sure before I go pointing fingers.
“When Eileen first pointed out the discrepancies, I decided to contact Judy’s previous employers. That’s when I discovered our HR department fell asleep at the switch. It turns out we didn’t thoroughly check her references. One previous employer didn’t exist at all. Another previous employer existed, though the person named as a reference wasn’t the company president, as her resume stated, but instead was part of the office support staff.
“I then contacted the president of that previous employer. It turned out that Judy was fired because it appeared that she’d been stealing from the company.”
“Didn’t they contact the police?” asked Alex.
“No, they didn’t. They didn’t want shareholders to find out. They thought it was best for everyone to just dismiss her, then sweep it under the rug. I know they did what they thought they had to do, but that just meant we were left holding the bag.
“So, it appears that we’ve got a thief on our hands. Now, I think Judy made a mistake when she came to Scribner. She didn’t take into account that we’re a private company. We don’t have to make everything look peachy for our shareholders because there aren’t any. Believe me, if she’s done what we think she’s done, we won’t be sweeping her under the rug. She’ll be going to prison.
“And then there’s Jenny. I’m quite certain that she’s somehow involved, too, though I’m not really quite sure how. You see, I discovered that Judy and Jenny have worked together before.”
Alex gave Peter a look of surprise. Sean just whistled.
“Now you tell me there’s one more thing that Judy and Jenny are involved in – this false accusation of sexual harassment. This is a rather unique situation, Alex. You self-reported a sexual harassment allegation against yourself. I’m not at all sure how this is going to play out, but here’s what I’m thinking. The information that you’d requested in your subpoena is additional information we’ll be gathering as part of our investigation of Judy and Jenny. I think we’ll clear your name as part of the process. I guess, also, that if Judy and Jenny lose their jobs, and if what we think has happened, they will, that their accusation against you may become null and void. That’ll be one for our legal team to determine, if it comes to that. Like I said, though, the investigation into Judy and Jenny will likely end up clearing you.
“Guys, when we’re done with lunch, do you mind coming back up to the office before heading back to Iowa? There’s a couple of things I’d like to check on.”
Alex and Sean both nodded in agreement. Then Alex said, “Well, when we came up here today, I had all the time in the world. I was unemployed, you know,” he said with a smile.
Mr. Scribner returned the smile. “That brings us up to you returning to work. You’ll be receiving any back pay, of course. However, I don’t want you to return to work.”
Alex gave Peter a look of confusion. “Alex, firstly, because of the sexual harassment allegation, you won’t be allowed to. But more importantly, Judy and Jenny don’t think you’re an employee of Scribner anymore,” explained Peter. “I want them to keep thinking that.”
“Well, Peter, what would you like me to do in the meantime?”
“That’s one of the things I want to check on. When we get back to the office, I want to try and get hold of Phil Bowers at Blue Mountain. First, I need to apologize for what went down. But I think I’d like you to head out to California for a couple of days. Take Phil to lunch or dinner. There are a couple of other clients we need to visit as well. Hopefully everyone will be available.”
“You want me to do marketing?” asked Alex.
“I guess you could say that,” replied Peter. “Everyone does marketing, you know, including you. Doing good work and being on time with your reports is some of the best marketing a firm can do. But every now and again, we need to go just a bit beyond. So, if we can work it out, I’d like you to check in with Phil, as well as Bonnie Mueller at Western Restaurant Group and George and Brittany at American Real Estate Investments. So really, this isn’t marketing at all. Think of it more as client maintenance. Make sure we’re meeting their needs and that they’re happy with the services we’re providing, then feel them out to see if there are any other services we can provide. And, when you aren’t wining and dining the beautiful people in California, hang out. Go to the beach or see some of the other sites. Think of it as a working vacation. And, with any luck, by the time you get back, a couple of your coworkers will no longer be employed by Scribner.
“There’s one other thing I want to check on in the office,” Mr. Scribner added. “Did you get paid on the first like you would normally?”
“No.”
“I have a feeling when I check with accounting, I’ll discover that your monthly salary was disbursed, just to a checking account that isn’t yours.”
Posted 5 March 2025