Final Peace

Raquel suddenly began to cry and seemed surprised by it. Elaine pulled some tissues from the box in the back window and handed them to the woman. She offered nothing else as the CEO wasn't the type who'd welcome it.

Instead, Elaine turned her head to give the woman privacy. It took some time, but eventually, the tears ended, then the sniffing. When she cleared her throat, Elaine turned to face her. The redness in her eyes and the faint tracks of tears in her makeup greatly softened the image of the ballbusting CEO. The lawyer knew which judge they'd face in the preliminary hearing and realized this would work in their favor. Heather made a huge mistake, but they had a chance to mitigate the damage.

Raquel read something in her evaluating look and pulled a compact from her purse.

"Oh my God! I look a fright!" she gasped as she looked into the little mirror. "I'll need a moment when we get to the courthouse."

Elaine locked eyes with her. "Do you trust me?"

Raquel stared back in surprise. She was definitely feeling unsettled and shaken this morning, but she answered honestly. "Yes—"

"Don't touch your makeup. Leave it exactly as it is, and don't smile at the judge. Don't smile at all."

Raquel's eyes widened as she considered what Elaine was asking her to do. She never let anyone see her in less than perfect condition. But the woman exuded confidence. What she'd considered as escort wear she now saw as armor for a warrior going to battle. The calm strength in her eyes made Raquel finally nod acceptance.

The limo approached the court building, and they stepped out to climb the stairs. Raquel felt naked without the armor of her makeup, but she followed her lawyer into the building. They found the doors to the courtroom, and Heather was already there. She'd been on medical leave for stress-induced exhaustion since Lindsay Prentice filed a lawsuit against her and the company.

Elaine pulled Heather aside and looked her in the eye until she had her complete attention. Then, she leaned closer to give her quiet instructions. "You don't smile in there. You don't look at Raquel. You've worked too hard, and you're mentally exhausted. This caused a lapse in judgment, but you're taking time off to deal with that. You are also retaking the sensitivity training courses once you return to work. These are the only statements you are to make in there. Be honest, bluntly honest, as this judge sniffs out candy-coated words. Is this understood?"

Heather looked like she might cry, and Eliane thought that might be useful. "Cry if you need to."

That comment surprised Heather, and she choked out a sob as she moved a hand to her mouth. She pulled a tissue from her pocket.

Elaine guided her group into the courtroom and to the table they'd sit behind. She spared the smallest glimpse towards Lindsay Prentice and nodded to her lawyer, who was scowling at the obvious emotional distress his opponent's clients were displaying. By comparison, his client looked like a royal bitch with her nose in the air. He leaned closer to mention she should try to appear humble but got a glare in return. He looked over at the beauty in leather and felt defeat sink into his bones.

Elaine faced the entrance where the judge would enter. She knew how Judge Laraby's mind worked. The man was a diehard misogynist, though he considered himself chivalrous instead. She glanced at Raquel's shaken and slightly unsettled expression and the genuine tears on Heather's. A quick look at the angry, arrogant expression on the ex-employee's face told her she'd already won.

"All rise for the honorable Judge Laraby."

As they stood, she leaned over and whispered in Raquel's ear. "How was James a victim all his life?"

The hammer blow on the woman's shaky emotional state brought fresh tears. This triggered fresh sniffles from Heather and a scowl from Lindsay.

But it was Judge Laraby whose expression Elaine was tracking in her peripheral vision. The older man had a slight build, a ring of short grey hair around his head, and sharp foxlike features. His pinched expression indicated he was distinctly uncomfortable and was looking back and forth between the tables. Only Elaine wore a serene expression, so naturally, he addressed her first.

"Ms. Montgomery, are your clients up to attending the hearing this morning?"

She gave him a smooth nod. "Yes, your honor. Apologies for the outburst."

The man nodded as if this was expected, then looked to the other table. He looked down at his paperwork with a frown to read the case's details, and his frown deepened. He looked up at the stiff smile on the face of Lindsay's lawyer, then over to Elaine. He sighed.

"Ms. Montgomery, let me see if I understand. The claimant states that she was engaged to be an informant for the HR department, and the head of HR, one Heather Duncan, outed her before her colleagues, making it impossible to continue her employment at the company. Is this what happened?"

"That's what happened, your honor!" Lindsay exclaimed.

The judge looked at her. "Ms. Prentice, I was addressing the opposing counsel. You will not speak unless directed to do so. Am I making myself clear?"

Lindsay blinked at the cold tone in his voice. "Yes, your honor."

Judge Laraby looked back to Elaine and gestured for her to speak.

"There was no official engagement with compensation for services rendered. Ms. Prentice instigated a series of messages with our head of HR, Mrs. Duncan. She sent messages conveying she'd witnessed what she considered incorrect behavior by the staff around her. One message thread did lead to the termination of one of her colleagues. She requested the terminated employee's desk location by the window, but company policy allocates these by seniority."

"Are you suggesting it was her expectation that this was her compensation," the judge asked.

"Mrs. Duncan indicated Ms. Prentice suggested she was owed said desk location during their last encounter," Elaine offered.

The judge looked back at the paperwork and frowned again. "Yes, the last encounter. Mrs. Duncan, can you tell me why you chose to verbally accost the complainant in the presence of her colleagues."

Heather stood then began by shaking her head. When Elaine prompted her, she answered. "I-I wasn't thinking clearly at all. I've been suffering from mental exhaustion, and I'm afraid it led me to make some unfortunate decisions that day. I'm... taking leave to deal with that and retaking a sensitivity course when I return."

"Ms. Prentice can't go back, can she," Laraby insisted, and Heather sniffed as her bottom lip trembled, tears beginning to fall. He grimaced as he hated being the cause of a woman's tears. He looked back at the papers on his desk. "You may sit again, Mrs. Duncan. Thank you." He glanced up at Lindsay and frowned once more.

Seeing his displeasure, Elaine quickly glanced toward the other table and saw a satisfied look on the woman's face.

"Mrs. Davenport, you're the CEO?" the judge asked, and Raquel stood.

"Yes, your honor," she replied with just a little roughness in her throat.

He nodded, looking at the papers, then fixed his eyes on the CEO. "As the leader, you were aware of this engagement?"

"No, your honor. I was not. I let my executives run their departments. That's what they're paid to do. I only get involved when their department begins to show signs of not reaching the goals I set for them."

"Was Mrs. Duncan's department showing any signs of failing?" the man asked.

Raquel looked to Heather, but the HR head looked away, recalling Elaine's instructions not to look at the CEO.

The chief executive looked back at the judge. "No, your honor. Heather has been with me since day one. She's always been so dependable and protective of the company. I-I suppose she became a little too protective. I didn't see it. That was my failing."

Elaine watched the old man smile to himself. She knew he would be replaying Raquel's moment of humility over and over in his mind tonight. She kept her expression impassive as she hid her distaste for the small-minded man.

Exposure to minds like his during her academic and professional careers soured her view of life.

Standing in the courtroom before this little troll in black robes, her mind had a sudden epiphany. Compared to most people she interacted with, James was a breath of fresh air. A much-needed healing balm for her soul. That's why she was so drawn to him and wanted to spend more and more of her time with him. It was so clear to her now.

"What is it, counselor?" Judge Laraby snapped, drawing her back to the present.

Embarrassed that her surprise had caused her to stand, she nodded contritely to the judge. "Sorry. Nothing, your honor." Elaine said as she sat and watched him roll his eyes at her behavior.

The judge made some notes on the paperwork before him, then looked up and actually smiled.

"When I first received this case, I expected to sit through a lengthy process of finger-pointing and blame-flinging. It was a refreshing surprise to encounter actual contrition from the defendant. You admit you made mistakes. There will be consequences, but you genuinely seem prepared to accept that. I applaud your integrity." He nodded to Elaine's table and then turned his attention to Lindsay, who was smiling. "Ms. Prentice, you found yourself in an unworkable situation that forced you to submit your resignation. You are asking for compensation to assist you in finding employment elsewhere. In light of the admission of your past employer, I'm willing to grant your request. First, in the sum of ten thousand dollars for the mistake Mrs. Duncan made as head of Human Resources and secondly, an additional ten thousand dollars for the mistake Mrs. Davenport made as CEO in not being aware of the mental state of her executives, which led to the event. I am denying your claim for one million dollars for the mental anguish you say you endured. Your active role in poisoning your work environment must be taken into account. Mrs. Duncan may have callously blown your cover, but the need to maintain the secret was due to your own duplicitous behavior—"

"That's not fair!" Lindsay blurted.

Laraby looked to Lindsay's lawyer. "Speak to your client. Case dismissed with prejudice."

"All rise." The bailiff called out as the judge stood. They rose to their feet and watched the small man leave the courtroom. Lindsay stormed out, and her lawyer gave Elaine a nod as he quickly followed.

Raquel looked at Elaine. "Don't you ever do that to me again!"

"If Heather refrains from fostering a corporate culture that supports informants, I shouldn't need to. You're welcome for saving the company one million dollars," Elaine said calmly.

Raquel's eyes narrowed. "Catch a cab back to the office. Heather and I need to discuss this over lunch."

The dismissal was clear, so she nodded to the CEO and left.

Standing on the curb, her mind returned to her revelation of James' importance to her. Her intellect wasn't sure how good of an idea it was to take their relationship any further than they had. It preferred the safety of a platonic Executive-to-Executive-Assistant business relationship.

On the other hand, her heart and soul were screaming at her to take her foot off the brake and stomp on the gas.

She was normally such a cautious and rational person. Taking big leaps was foreign behavior. She'd never had a boyfriend, though she'd dated. She wasn't a virgin, but the sex she'd experienced hadn't been spectacular enough to compensate for the brutal awkwardness after the deed was done. She'd immediately wanted them to leave, or she left if she was at their place or a hotel. Exposing herself so intimately to someone she had no feelings for had been far too emotionally painful.

With a sigh, she shook her head and flagged down a cab.

As she rode back to the office, she wondered if she'd burned a bridge with Raquel. Her manipulation of the Mother's emotions helped them win, but perhaps these particular emotions were too personal to use in this way. Inside a courthouse, she found herself shedding social niceties in the pursuit of victory. Did that make her a bad person? Maybe it did.

She sighed.

She'd have to apologize the next time she saw the CEO.

Elaine found herself wishing the taxi would go faster. When she reached the office, she paid, got out, and consciously slowed her steps to prevent herself from appearing to rush.

James was sitting at his desk when she finally entered her outer office. He looked up, and his eyes lit up when he saw it was her. Elaine's emotions surged, and she struggled to keep her breathing under her control. The power of her reaction was almost frightening.

"How did it go?" he asked.

She nodded to him. "Very well. The fine was minimal."

He gave her a proud smile, which warmed her down to her toes. "How was lunch?" she asked to calm herself.

He shrugged, and the large bandage on his forearm finally registered on her tingling brain. Shock went through her body, and she found herself standing next to him as she examined the long gauze pad taped to the underside of his right arm. "What happened?" she gasped.

His smile dimmed, and he looked to the surface of his desk. "I tripped while carrying my lunch tray. My bottle of juice fell and broke. I landed on the glass."

She then saw the stains on his clothes. Something about his hesitant wording set off alarms for Elaine. "You say you tripped?" He wouldn't look her in the eye. Elaine recalled the conversation with Raquel earlier. How his siblings tormented him unmercifully.

"Look at me, please."

Nervous blue eyes looked up into her brown eyes. "Tell me the truth. Never less than the absolute truth," she insisted.

He swallowed. "I was tripped."

"By whom?" Her voice was icy calm, but inside, she was a raging inferno.

"Mr. Gray. His bullying skills are pretty rusty, though. My brother could teach him a thing or two," James said, trying to deflect.

Elaine envisioned how she would extract her pound of flesh from the man in gloriously violent ways. Then she heard a quiet voice saying her name.

"Ms. Montgomery, please! Please let it go. It's okay," James pleaded.

Her eyes flared with righteous anger. "No! It is not okay! No one injures my Executive Assistant without consequences! You're mine!"

"Yes," James sighed breathlessly, and then his face went crimson as he dropped his eyes.

Elaine's rage was swept aside by his submission to her bold statement. She hadn't expected to say the words, but he'd accepted so quickly, almost desperately eager. A warm tingle spread through her body. She'd never felt that before.

She felt like she was on the precipice of allowing someone inside the walls she'd built up around herself. She was both frightened and exhilarated by the change it would make to her life.

The phone rang, jarring her from her thoughts, and James glanced at her before he answered. It was Greg in accounting, so she shook her head. She'd speak to him later. James took a message and then hung up.

The call brought her back to the now, making her aware they needed to get through the afternoon before addressing the bigger questions of a relationship. She looked into James' blue eyes and almost felt her resolve crumble. She added some steel to her will and saw his eyes widen.

"Who else was present when Davin tripped you?" she asked.

His expression became troubled. "I don't know anyone here by name." His eyes lit up as he recalled something. "There was an older man, heavyset, balding; he wore a uniform with Earl printed on the pocket. I don't know if he saw, but he was there."

Elaine smiled in satisfaction, and James relaxed perceptibly.

She picked up the handset and dialed the building maintenance office. "Hello, Mrs. Jenson? It's Elaine Montgomery. Is Earl still at the office? Could I ask you to send him up to see me? No, just him. Thanks!"

She put the handset back and looked at James. "Send Earl in when he arrives, please." He nodded to her with wide eyes.

She entered her office and sat at her desk to review her afternoon tasks.

Ten minutes later, there was a light knock on her door jamb. She looked up and smiled at the custodian. "Hello, Mr. Tillison. Please come in and close the door behind you if you would." The older man shut the door and took the offered seat before her desk. "How would you like to make a quick forty dollars? All you'd need to do is sit in that chair and say nothing. It shouldn't take more than ten minutes. I'm not going to ask anything else of you, I promise. You just ignore everything you hear while you're in here."

The man shrugged and nodded. "I can do that."

She smiled. "Good!" She handed him two twenties, which he tucked into his wallet. He sat back as she picked up her phone and dialed Davin's extension.

"Davin. It's Elaine. I need to speak to you in my office. Right now." She listened for a second as he made excuses. "Or the courthouse, you decide." A moment later, she hung up.

"He's coming?" Earl asked with a slight smile.

"Poker face time."

His expression relaxed into a slight look of disapproval. She nodded, and he returned it.

She pressed the intercom. "James, send Davin in the moment he arrives."

There was a slight hesitation, then he answered. "Yes."

Moments later, Davin opened her door and entered with an annoyed expression. He glanced at Earl in confusion, then concern.

"Close the door, please," she said.

He did, then stood by the door with his arms crossed. "What's with the threat?"

She leaned back in her chair. "There is no threat. It's come to my attention that you intentionally caused bodily harm to my Executive Assistant. Please don't waste our time with lies. You did this cowardly act before witnesses! We're considering pressing charges. If you want to avoid that, you can formally apologize to James before witnesses."

For a second, it looked like Davin would tell her to shove it, but she held his eyes with hers until he looked away.

"Fine. I'll apologize," he grumbled.

"Be sincere, or don't bother," she snapped, and he nodded quickly, watching her with wide eyes.

Elaine stood, and Earl brought up the rear as they followed him out of her office to stand before James. He looked up at the face of the executive cautiously.

As Davin prepared to speak, Raquel stepped in the door. Elain hadn't expected her to return from lunch so quickly, but she held her finger before her lips to indicate Raquel should remain quiet. The CEO scowled but froze when Davin began to speak.

"Hey, I'm sorry you hurt yourself when I played my little prank on you. You fell so hard! Surprised the hell out of me! At least you didn't need stitches."

James lifted his right arm, and the gauze bandage was showing spotting where he was still bleeding. He looked a little ill.

Davin saw his expression and became worried he'd make a big deal of it. "It's just a little blood. Don't be a baby—"

"NO! No! You don't get to say that! You're fired!" Raquel raged. She looked at Elaine. "We have a zero-tolerance policy for bullying, don't we?" She didn't even wait for Elaine's nod before she marched over to James' desk and called security to come to Elaine's office to escort Davin from the building.

The Sales Manager looked desperately at Elaine. "You said if I apologized, you wouldn't press charges!"

"We're not pressing charges, but Raquel is quite correct in reminding me about the zero-tolerance policy. As our CEO, it's her duty to see it enforced," Elaine shrugged with a smile as two security guards arrived. Earl nodded to Elaine and headed back to the maintenance department.

Raquel directed the new arrivals to take Davin to his desk to collect his personal items and escort him out of the building. As they left, she contacted tech services to log his workstation out and change the password.