Page 31 of The Betrayer
“I cannot believe you just did that. I cannot believe you would undermine me like that.” His words were quiet, dangerously so, as though a storm was building somewhere inside and getting ready to explode.
“Paul, you were too hard on him. Obviously, the kid felt bad about it. You have to treat people better, or you won’t have any employees left to run the business.”
“Oh, you think he’ll learn?” Paul came around the desk toward me. “You think so? You think I’m being so unfair? Did you know that ‘kid’ has been late with his reports every single quarter since he started working here a year and a half ago? Which means the rest of the department is late with their reports, including the legal ones. You think that a good thing for the company?”
I shook my head. “I’ve seen plenty of kids like him over the years—he’s young, and he’ll learn. You just have to give him a chance.”
“I’ve given him chances, over and over, but his actions are affecting other people, and it’s affecting the company.”
The words hung between us, nearly the exact words Paul had used on Friday night against me.
Paul shook his head in disgust. “You’ve always been too soft on people. Do you remember what was going on before I took over as COO? The way the company was tanking because you decided you’d had enough of being the rough and tough CEO?”
I had come in to make amends, but Paul seemed to be on the warpath. If he wasn’t willing to meet me halfway, I was just going to have to go to him. I could be just as angry, an emotion building high enough that I was ready to let it all spill out.
“Do I need to remind you who the CEO is here? You may be my son, but I’m still your boss, and I still run this company. I’m telling you to watch your mouth with our employees and me. No one is infallible here.”
Opening his mouth for a moment, Paul looked like he wanted to say more but closed it again. “Fine. I will be more mindful of my tone with you and the employees going forward.”
His words said one thing, but the sarcasm in his tone said another. So much for making amends and fixing things between us.
“You know, you remind me of myself when I’d first started, all piss and vinegar and eye on the prize. Like father, like son, I guess.”
A flash of anger in my son’s eyes alerted me to the storm brewing again, but I continued anyway.
“You’re going to learn just like I did what life is really like. I’m trying to teach you the easy way, but if it’s the hard way you want, there is nothing I can do about that.”
Chapter 13
Paul
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“I’M SORRY. WHAT DIDyou say?”
I couldn’t believe what my father was saying to me. Did he think he had the right to tell me I would learn what life was like? The guy who had taught me the harsh realities of life from the very beginning?
