Lucy's calendar pings a notification. She holds up her phone and sees the meeting reminder.
Freaking HR bullshit again.
She is already on her way to the meeting but was really hoping something more important would come up, something that would excuse her from a meeting that will, as it inevitably does, lead to mounds of paperwork. Old fashioned pick-up-a-pen-and-scribble paperwork. Why couldn't the mainframe crash or something fun? Instead, she is on the shuttle to the HR building, to a discipline hearing, chaired by the new guy, Fryer. A bit of eye candy, Lucy has been told, so at least she has that to look forward to. What a way to end a Monday.
Vincent Duke initiated these discipline committees a number of years ago. They were part of his "Collaborative Justice" model of management. He instituted these silly bottom-up management gimmicks to make the workers feel like they have a say in things. Some things anyway. Play the game, that is what it is all about. Act like you care.
Lucy has been acting for as long as she remembers. Not really faking it, like some people around here do, because she is good—really good—at what she does. But acting out a life that seems scripted for her. Her mother came to the States as a young nanny from the Philippines and started working for a the Cerimon family near Sacramento. When Lily, her mother, ended up getting pregnant from José, the gardener, the Cerimons took Lucy in as one of their own children. Lily was able to stay in the United States, working for Dr. David and Elizabeth Cerimon. José, their former gardener, was shown the sharp end of a garden hoe, but Lucy was given every opportunity available to an Upper-Middle class American child. She excelled at school, was popular, got the lead roles in all the school play productions, and acted like she was born to play the part. And she is still acting.
Lucy is forcing herself to focus on her good fortune as she makes her way into the brightly lit conference room in building 6A. There will be a few other departments represented here: there is that Francis guy from the cafeteria. This dude washes dishes or something, but he is a hell of a jazz flutist who plays every weekend in San Fran. Who else? Let's see: Tom Snout, Internet Security; Nick Bottom, who Lucy always saw as a bit of an ass; there are a few others as well. Yes, this will be quite a show.
She nods, gives a polite hello and takes a seat at the table, while the others stand and chat, waiting for the meeting to begin and for a few more to arrive. She moves next to the man seated at the end of the table. Head down, he is buried in his work. His hair seems to be streaked with dirty brown highlights, intentionally dyed that way, perhaps; there is no way that someone would be blessed with such beautiful color. He is dressed in a tie and jacket, very un-Valley in his attire, and looks to be the one directing this little performance. The fabled Mr. Fryer.
"Hello, I am Lucy Lumalabas, Marketing. I don't believe that we have met."
"Mr. Fryer. It is a pleasure to meet you Ms. Lumalabas. We will be beginning shortly." He looks down at the folder in front of him, then says to her, "Tell me, Lucy, do you know anything about this Pompey guy from IT? The one who allegedly moderated an online chatroom on Alpha's servers?"
"Ah, no, Mr. Fryer. I never heard of him, or the chatroom. Why do you ask?" Lucy feels a burn in her throat, like bile, but swallows hard and reminds herself that she has done nothing wrong. Act innocent.
"Oh, Mr. Pompey's file is one of the items on the agenda today, and, well, with me being new here, I didn't know if he was seen as some kind of local folk hero or something. I thought you might be able to say a few good words in his defence. I guess not."
"Well, if he is guilty of a crime, then so are most. If Alpha is going to go after people for what they do in their private lives, you may as well outlaw eating and drinking. Why not look at someone like Grace Donor, who sleeps with half of the company to get ahead."
"I'll make a note about her, since she is on the docket too." Fryer writes something in his file. "Thanks for that tidbit."
Lucy doesn't know how to take this Fryer guy. He seems sincere, at her level, yet she feels that she was just tricked into divulging incriminating information about one of her colleagues. She will be cautious, in case he has any other tricks planned.
"What is happening to this company? It has only been a few days since Angelo Lord took over, and already heads are rolling."
Fryer looks at her. "Tell me what you have heard, Lucy?"
Lucy looks both ways before leaning in, like she is about to read his fortune or reveal a prophecy. "Oh, I've heard a lot of things about him, not much of it good. People around here don't think very highly of the man, to put it politely."
"Like what? This sounds interesting."
"Well, some say that he's even not human. He is a ruthless monster. People think that there are some fishy things going on, with this sudden morally-correct climate being shoved down their throats. I bet that this wouldn't happen under Vincent Duke."
"And you know Mr. Duke, then?" Fryer looks at her with a puzzled grimace.
Lucy finds his stare odd, but continues, playfully. "Sure, he and I go way back. He is quite a horn dog, that one."
"Really, I had heard that he was pretty particular, and private, about his women."
"Then you have heard wrong. He is quite a partier too, you know?"
"That's funny," Fryer chuckles, "because I thought most people find him to be wise."
"I'm sure he wants people to think that, but really, he's very superficial and ignorant."
"Since he is not here to defend these claims, I can only conclude that either you don't know him at all, or you must know him better than most." Fryer is smiling, obviously enjoying the banter. "I actually quite like the man."
Lucy, smiling back says, "Sir, I know him enough to know that regardless of his personal shortcomings, I loved him as our CEO. I can't say that I feel the same way about the new man in charge."
The meeting is called to order and the group is given the terms of reference for their role by Mr. Fryer. Each will be given the opportunity to ask questions, comment and arrive at a recommendation as to the best course of action. Sitting around the table on the high back black leather chairs is the cast of characters Lucy first saw, plus a handful of newcomers, since Vincent Duke's original idea for the committee was to avoid the star chamber syndrome and always have a certain number of members only attend once, then cycle in new members. The water glasses are full, the LED pot lights above illuminate the scene.
Charles Escalus joins the meeting via video feed, and listens to the proceedings. He interjects occasionally with a prompt to help clarify a point, but, generally, remains in the wings. The committee listens to evidence against a number of Alpha employees whose disciplinary actions are being considered. Everyone around the table has a chance to submit commentary about the antics of Kate Keepdown, who allegedly has been using the company's benefit plan, meant for therapeutic orthotics, to buy shoes for her numerous children, children all from different fathers, they are told. And Grace Donor, of course, who will go down in Alpha history as the woman responsible for the institution of the 4 inch cleavage rule, now about to be constitutionalized in the new company dress code.
It strikes Lucy as ironic that there will be, for the first time, a dress code for the company, and this dress code, although it will help define the ever-so-critical differences between, Wine Country Casual and Business Smart, it is really about limiting slutwear. It is not that the guys don't want to see a hot babe at work, they are all for that, it, really, comes down to power. Just as the authorities in the middle ages tried to chain the sexual power of women by making them into harlots and witches and sinners, these guys today are just looking to keep their power. That is why Grace Donor is being disciplined, because she has a power that men don't, and therefore, they see her as a threat. So, they call her a slut and discredit her for using what she has got, while they glorify the men who use what they've got to get ahead: strength, power and a two thousand year history of privilege behind them. Yup, better button up that blouse woman, that should restore world order.
The meeting continues and the case of Claude Measures is not mentioned at all, not until Lucy asks about it. This is a matter of Executive Order, Charles Escalus explains from the video monitor.
"There are certain matters which the hierarchy of the corporation believe to be too sensitive to disclose to this committee, and are therefore dealt with by an order from Mr. Lord himself. Matters to do with internal security, classified corporate documents—those kind of things."
"I don't understand why something like Mr. Measures's behavior would be considered a company secret," Lucy states, while asking for clarification.
Escalus quickly shuts it down. "The matter is not up for discussion. Mr. Lord's orders are final."
Now, this is what Lucy finds strange. Not that the matter about Isabella's brother is so secretive, or because it has received the attention from the highest echelons of the company, or that there seems to be something shifty going on behind the scenes. It is this: the instant that she mentions Claude Measures, Fryer begins typing on his laptop. No big deal, right? But, from her vantage point next to Fryer and looking at the video monitor, she can see Escalus reading a message that is being typed in real time. And then Escalus looks through the camera at Fryer, then types something back. And Fryer reads something on his laptop. Then types back. Escalus grimaces. There is no doubt that these two are having a private conversation during what is supposed to be an open forum.
But that is not all. Lucy reads people well. She has always been able to pick up on the unspoken, the subtext of body language, the subtle gestures and the way the eyes tell it all. And what she sees in the hidden dialogue between Fryer and Escalus is a conversation between two friends, as though they are two people who know and understand every aspect of the other. She sees the secret communication between them, and wonders, who is this Mr. Fryer?