Tiffany Lokasher
Tiffany reviewed the week's status of projects. She moved through the list as if skiing an obstacle course she's practiced on for years, smoothly avoiding the flags and swiftly speeding to the bottom with precision and vitality.
She addressed the legal and financial considerations which Willis was handling.
"The cases of the four women continue to gather momentum and one of them has retained Rare Flesh's law firm, SS&S." Tiffany looked over at Justin who was handling a file with his left hand and operating a calculator with the other. She paused long enough for him to make eye contact which signaled that he heard everything she was saying.
She continuted, "The line of credit has been renegotiated temporarily by Willis, operating under the procedure you submitted through Honklestein (Justin's personal and business attorney). The Wall Street Journal and the Times both have submitted official apologies and issued corrections in the most recent editions. Sales of The Pink are up seven percent from last week and The Scarlett E-mail is due to be released a week ahead of schedule."
"Get me a meeting with this...," he referred to the file, "Bai Ling Johnson, the Hong Kong stock broker who operates out of the third floor office above that laundry. The lady Stumps uncovered and thinks she must have some connection with Ripley's disappearance. (Brad Stumps was the in-house detective for Planetary Publishing and also Scoville's private dick).
"Will there be anything else Mr. Scoville?," Tiffany asked.
"No, that will be all. Wait. One other thing. Call Tsu Yen," Justin looked over to take note of Tiffany's body language. Tiffany showed no sign of anything but continued to add the instructions to her note pad with her pen.
"I want you to take her to breakfast tomorrow," Scoville continued, staring intently at the pressure Tiffany used on the pen and paper, to see if she would give any clue of her emotions. "Tell her I need to put her on the pay roll and send her back to Hong Kong. Ask her if she's ever been to Disneyland. Explain to her that you will be her supervisor and that she is to do precisely what you tell her to do. Explain that I'm very busy and that I will communicate through you for the next twelve months and that she is to have no communication with me except through you."
Justin watched Tiffany's right hand chop his words into precise succinct symbols of short hand. She had finished writing what he said within a fraction of a second of his completing his sentence and her wrist of the right hand and fingers holding the pen gave no signal that she was connected by anything except of wires and cold water, a robot of efficiency. She looked up and without blinking asked, "anything else Mr. Scoville?"
"Yes. You look nice today. That will be all."
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