48- The call

“Hello,” I put the phone to my ear.
A few seconds go by as I listen to the man complain to me. “I’ll call you back,” I say and end the call.
Allen is still watching me, especially at the deep frown on my face. “Mariam still hasn’t set it up, has she?”
“She really knows how to piss me off,” I hiss, and storm over to the door. I jerk the door open and walk out to reception to find her on the phone.
She is cackling out loud with her feet on the table, and her forefinger twirling the curls in her hair. She immediately sits up when she sees us walk out. “Brenda, I’ll call you back,” she says, and clears her throat at my approach.
“You haven’t set the meeting up?” I ask quietly.
Her expression turns sheepish for a moment. “I’ll do it now. Sorry, I had to take a call.” I lose my temper. “You’re fired. Pack your things and leave. Right now.”
The shock strikes her face like a hand slap. “W-what?” Without answering her I turn around to leave.
“You can’t fire me,” she blurts out.

I stop for a moment to process her response, and then turn back to her. “Excuse me?”
“Mr. Canter owns a part of the company. He guaranteed that I’d always have a place here.”
I cock my head at her. “Which Mr. Canter are you referring to? The one behind me right now, or the one who passed away some time ago?”
Her lips parts dramatically in distress. She really is a much better actress than she is a secretary.
“Mariam you can’t say that to him,” Allen states. “My father only passed fifteen percent on to me. He owns the rest.”
Her eyes fill with tears. “B-but, he promised I’d always have a place here.”
I walk back to her, the heat of my anger scorching the pit of my stomach. “Is that the reason why you’ve taken the liberty to be absolutely useless around here? We have a thousand employees to manage and you think this is a joke?”
“I gave this company ten years of my life. All I’m trying to do now is to—”
“Leave,” I growl. “Right now. Out of respect for Robert, I’ve given you more than enough chances and you’ve screwed up over and over again. I’m not going to take it anymore.”
Tears flow down her cheeks.
I turn away to return to my office.
After a few puffs of grief, she calls after me, “Fine, I’ll leave! I don’t need you. I don’t need this company. I have an audition tomorrow and I’ll make sure to ace it and everything else that comes my way. I’m going to be big, do you hear me? I’m going to be really big!”
“Good. Go do what you love and stop wasting your time here.” I slam the door to my office shut, and return to my desk.
A few seconds later, it reopens, and Allen stands at the entrance. “I guess now, you really need a new secretary, but don’t worry I’ll handle it personally,” he says. “Do you have anything in particular you need?”
“An ability to work hard. This is the last time I’ll ever keep a useless employee out of sentiment.”
“Roger that.” He grins evilly. “I think I have the perfect candidate for you.” With that, he turns around, and takes his leave.
For a second I wonder about that grin, then I lose myself in the report.
“When are you going to find out?” I ask. “If the baby’s a boy or a girl?” “In about two weeks,” Lee Rang replies. “We have a visit scheduled for the 28th.” “We? Matthew’s going to be around?”
“He will. He’ll be back from the oil field by then.”
“Nice,” I say and once again press my ear to her protruding belly. Suddenly, there is a slight movement against her skin and I scream.
“‘Blair!” Lee Rang looks startled.
“‘They just moved. I mean he—or she.”
“Yeah,” my sister laughs. “They, or he or she moves from time to time. “Oh, my God,” I squeal again.
She shakes her head and moves my hands away from her stomach. “I’m not having twins,” she says.
“I know.” I laugh. “I just lost it for a moment there. Oh, my God. I can’t wait to be an aunt.” My heart is racing in my chest.
“Well, I’m scared out of my mind,” she says as she heads over to the refrigerator to retrieve a carton of milk.
“Don’t be.” My voice softens at the worry in her tone. “You’re going to be fine. Everything is going to be fine.”
She sighs as she opens the carton, her face away from me. “Yeah, but I’m scared of handling it alone.”
I return to my seat on one of the stools in the corner. “What do you mean alone? You have Matthew and you have me.”

“I have Matthew but Matthew’s not always here. And neither are you. You’re just in to visit for the weekend.”
My lips part to speak but I have nothing to say, so I give it all some thought. “Well, I could move. It’s not like I have anything holding me back in Texas. I just graduated, so all I’m doing now is looking for a job. And to be honest, I’d rather search for one here where I can be close to you than somewhere else random.”
She turns to me, her eyes sparkling at my words even though she tries not to show it. “Are you serious? Would you have any prospects here in Denver?”
“Lee Rang, I have a degree in computer science. I think I’ll have a pretty good chance wherever I go.”
She thinks on the idea for a moment and then turns away. She pours herself some milk, and then downs it all at once. “No,” she says as she wipes the corners of her mouth.