AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“George, let’s not,” Dennis said in a tone that froze the man at the projector. “I’d like to see the receivables again.”
Talbot sent me a sneer.
Sweaty Palms complied and went back to the receivables page.
“The footnote on the bad-debts reserve seems to have been left off of my copy,” I said. “Could you slide that up so we can see it?”
Talbot huffed. “Are we going to go backwards and get into footnotes here? I thought this was going to be a signing meeting.”
“George, slide that up, please,” Dennis said.
He did. The footnote was at the bottom of the slide, but omitted from my printed copy.
I read it out loud. “Subject to revision. How big a revision?”
Sweaty Palms looked to Talbot for guidance but got none. “Double digit millions.” The blood drained from his face.
“Can you be more specific?” I asked.
“Eighty-ish,” was his reply. The man looked like he wanted to melt into the carpet.
I had him on the ropes. “Eighty what?”
“Eighty-nine.”
“It’ll be resolved before the end of the quarter,” Talbot said loudly. “Right, Malcolm?”
Baldy was a deer caught in the headlights. “Sure. It’s just a small disagreement in China.”
Dennis turned to me. “Does that answer your question?”
I swallowed hard and hoped my memory was good enough. “George, if it doesn’t get resolved, doesn’t that put you in violation of your bank-debt covenants?”
Sweaty Palms turned even whiter than before, but didn’t answer.
“Does it?” I asked Talbot.
“Technically, but I don’t like your insinuation,” he answered.
Dennis stood. “Syd, you can hold down the fort. Jenn, a word.” He grabbed his note pad and walked to the door.
I gathered my things and followed. I’d found the flaw in their numbers Dennis wanted me to find.
Talbot’s mouth hung open as I closed the door behind us.
Dennis went to his office door and motioned for me to follow him, which I did.
“Shut it,” he said.
I did.
He walked behind his desk. “I should fire you right now. That’s a two-month negotiation you just blew up. I wanted that division, and now you’ve insulted the hell out of old man Talbot.”
I sat and shrunk into the chair, my mouth instantly parched. “You weren’t clear about what you expected of me. I’m sorry. I thought you wanted me to point out discrepancies.”
“You don’t get it. We’re past that stage. We were supposed to exchange pleasantries and sign today. You just made us look like assholes.”
“They’re the ones who were hiding something.”
