I take a breath. “I’m not supposed to be your lackey, and I don’t appreciate Eve trying to turn me into one.”
Mitchell looks at me with his beady eyes. “You’ve made some good points, but Eve isn’t trying to turn you into any sort of a lackey. She’s just concerned about the future of the company.”
“That’s part of it, I’m sure, but ultimately she just wants to win. I’m not going to let her do that.”
“Listen, if this continues for much longer, the battle between you two will tear this company apart. I’m not sure you would want to be CEO of what remains.”
“That’s a little dramatic. By the end of it all either Eve or I will be gone. It’ll be a clean break and the company can move forward.”
“Why won’t you listen? It’s almost as if you’re determined to kill this company.”
“Let me ask you something. Have you had this conversation with Eve?”
He is silent, so I continue, “Exactly. You know she’s the one being unreasonable, yet here you are in front of me, trying to get me to bend to her. It’s never going to happen. So you can run back to her and let her know that I will not back down. I’m going to use every tool at my disposal to bring her down just as she’s trying to do with me.”
He climbs to his feet and buttons his jacket. “You know she will wipe the floor with you.”
I smirk. “I look forward to seeing her try.”
Mitchell smiles at me but it looks more like a dog baring its teeth. Then he turns around and struts out of my office.
I don’t think he enjoyed me implying that he is Eve’s messenger boy, but guess what? I don’t care. He is a ridiculous man who believes he has more influence than he actually does. Someone needs to knock him down a peg.
Eve is clearly behind his visit. Which means she’s heard of the moves I’m making. I have managed to spook her. I like that, but at the same time I am also aware that she’s going to come at me even harder.
I would like to say I’m prepared for whatever she throws at me, but I can’t. The woman could come at me from any number of angles. There’s only so much preparation I can do. I just have to make sure that however far she’s willing to go, I am willing to go further.
I won’t let her push me out of my own company, and for such a stupid reason.Harris Techis one of my legacies. I refuse to go out with a whimper.
I massage my temples. Man, do I want to go home. As I have already established, I can’t. The next best thing will have to do.
I take my phone out and call Naomi.
She answers on the first ring. “Hey.” I can hear the smile in her voice.
“Hey, how’s your day going?”
“Fine. Ethan’s been an angel all day. I was actually worried for a while that he was sick, but I guess he’s just turning a new leaf.”
I chuckle. “The little man is maturing.”
“So what’s going on? You never call from work.”
I could tell her the real reason I called; that I wanted to hear her voice. That I know a conversation with her would calm me, but I’m not ready to be that vulnerable with her just yet. So I shamelessly use my son to lie.
“I’m missing Ethan and was hoping to speak with him.”
“Sure. Just hold on.” I hear some rustling over the phone and I can barely make it out when she says, “Ethan, your dad wants to talk to you.”
When there is silence over the line for a little too long, I say, “Ethan?”
“Daddy!”
“Hi, big guy. How’s your day going?”
“Fun! Me and Naomi did a volcano.”
“Oh wow. A volcano? Cool!”