Juliann

Chapter 2- Negotiations

Los Angeles, Ca

A tall glass high-rise stood proud. It shined in the noon-day sun and even seemed to glow a blue hew. The pinnacle of this modern marvel reached so high that it was unseen by the pedestrians strolling below. The name KNIGHT was etched directly into the marble entranceway.

Some 26 floors above the hustle and bustle of the downtown LA traffic, a small meeting was taking place.

"We have called this meeting together to discuss the possible employment of Mr. Martin David Hartman." Adrianne announced officially. On each side of her sat a grey-haired lawyer in a perfectly pressed, black business suit. Off to a quiet corner of the glass enclosed large meeting room sat a court stenographer. "Mr. Hartman, you have successfully passed our rigorous background checks as well as being superior in your line of work. Knight Reconstructions wishes to offer you employment."

On the opposite side of the highly polished Redwood conference table, sat Martin and his 16 year old daughter, Rebecca. Martin had only that morning purchased an expensive burgundy business-suit for just this very occasion. He needed to look the part. Rebecca purchased and currently wore a conservative Forest Green cocktail dress. She looked magnificent.

Both Martin and Rebecca were really nervous and kept examining the large meeting room. Not only that, they both couldn't take their eyes off of the 2 lawyers and the stenographer that had joined them in this uncomfortable space.

Martin might not have been in this position before in his life but that didn't mean that he was an amateur in the art of negotiations. Being in the business that he was in, Martin knew how to talk the talk and walk the walk. It didn't really matter how much money you profess to own or the environment you decide to use. It still had the same rules of engagement.

"Before I go signing my life away in your fancy paperwork, I want to know what exactly I am signing up for. Tell me about Knight Reconstructions and what you expect from me in this business. I know that I have a talent. Now I want to know how you will use it." He inquired with a very slight smile.

Adrianne's eyes lit up as she made eye contact with her next possible employee. "Well Mr. Hartman, Knight Reconstructions is just like the name sounds. We rebuild the impossible. Our current project is a Goliath of an endeavor. That is why we are seeking your level of expertise. We are willing to compensate you handsomely for your efforts. How about we begin our negotiations at $20,000 a month along with room and board?" Adrianne offered with a slight nod to each of the lawyers. As she laid out her proposal, both of the silent lawyers began feverishly writing.

Rebecca nearly choked on her own saliva when she heard the Huge amount of money the red-headed lady offered her Dad. She had figured that the offer would be substantial but she had never thought that it would be that high.

Martin did much better at maintaining his composure. He was just as stunned with the calmly offered amount of cash as his Rebecca was. He hadn't expected to be that valuable of an asset, but if this woman had considered him as such, he wasn't going to argue with it. Well, maybe just a little. "That is a mighty nice offer Miss Margeaux, but I have a feeling that you can do better than that." He led in with a sneaky tone. "You see, my beautiful daughter Rebecca here. She needs every advantage in life that I can somehow provide her. Right now, I need the funds to send her to a reputable college. Do you see where I am going with this?"

Adrianne slightly nodded her head in understanding and then began a silent conference with the two grey-haired attorneys. It lasted a good 30 seconds and was so silent that even their whispering was unheard. Finally, after some obvious agreement head-bobs, the two grey-haired lawyers began writing frantically and Adrianne locked eyes with Mr. Hartman.

"I was under the assumption that you were going to immediately accept my gracious offer. You sir have never had that kind of money offered to you in your whole lifetime. And after further conversation with my cohorts, we have decided to not increase the offer. Granted, you are talented, we can easily find a different individual with the same level of skills who will accept our terms." Adrianne firmly stated. "So, in short, take it or leave it."

Rebecca hadn't expected that. She had figured that the rules to negotiations had been: Offer-Deny, Offer-Deny, and then reluctantly accept. When had the rules of negotiations changed? Was Daddy going to accept the offer? Should she say something?

Martin wasn't about to fall for such an obvious trick. He knew this ploy. This was to put him in a worried mood so he would immediately accept. "Well Miss Margeaux, if you can find that talented someone else that will happily accept your offer, then so be it. I however, have now laid down the foundations of my negotiations. If you find them unacceptable, then we are done. Have a great day." He then stood up from the large solid wood conference table and tapped his daughter on the shoulder.

Rebecca was now really confused. Why was Dad suddenly cutting off the meeting? Why didn't he just accept the huge offer the nice lady had given him? Why did he want to leave all of the sudden?

"Rebecca, come let's go. We are done here." Martin said more for Miss Margeaux than his confused daughter. "We are off to the lake. Oh, and Miss Margeaux, if you change your mind about my offer and want to try this again, I am ready to hear it. Until then, I am going to be at my Lake Tahoe cabin. I have a feeling that you know exactly where that is. "He said with a smile as he pushed his daughter out of the glass enclosed conference room.

Adrianne let him go. She knew this tactic as well as he knew her tactic. She knew that he needed time to swallow her generously given offer and that she needed to consider his daughter more. She smiled wryly as she watched him walk off with his daughter in tow. Oh yeah, he was an asset alright.

"Daddy, why didn't you not accept the money when Miss Margeaux stopped the negotiations? What if she never calls us back? What if she lowers it?" Rebecca asked worriedly as they entered the all metal elevator.

"Sweetheart, she was trying to scare me into accepting her offer. She has no intention of letting me go. Actually, I would be surprised if we make it out of the building right now." He said with a huge grin as he pulled his daughter into a reassuring hug. "Stick with me on this. We will be fine."

"Okay Dad, whatever you say." She gave in as she returned the hug.

Sure enough, the moment the two walked passed the receptionist's greeting-stand on their way out of the tall high-rise, the blonde receptionist called them over. "Mr. Hartman? Are you Mr. Hartman?" She called out. "Please come over here."

Martin considered ignoring the blonde. He knew that she was going to be sending him back upstairs to complete their meeting. Instead, he knew that this had to be finalized before his jealous brothers found out about the job and the money. So he slowly approached the marble countertop. "Yes, I'm Martin Hartman. How may I help you?"

"Miss Margeaux wishes you to return. May I inform her that you are on your way up?" The happy Blonde spoke carefully.

"Yes, tell her that I am coming." He relented and then added, "In a couple of hours. I am taking my daughter to lunch." Then he turned away from the marble desk and headed out the glass doors arm-in-arm with his Rebecca.

Adrianne smiled devilishly as she heard the buzzing sound of the phone ringing. She knew that it had to be the receptionist calling back about Mr. Hartman's impending return. "Yes" She snapped as she picked up the black receiver.

"Mr. Hartman informed me to tell you that he is going to take his daughter to lunch and then return later." The normally bubbly receptionist spoke with quiet worry.

"Later huh?" Adrianne said with a smile. "Thank you, ring me when he arrives." She added roughly and then hung up.

"Well gentlemen, we have a good one this time. He will be sly and fun to negotiate with but I think we can still get the better of this. How about we go over our plan over a quick lunch while we wait?" She smirked as she stood up and opened the glass doors to the large meeting room.

About three hours later, everyone had reconvened in the large meeting room. The whole atmosphere of the meeting reaked of anticipation.

"Well Miss Margeaux, do we have a deal and if so, what is it?" Martin finally asked to cut the tension.

"We will fund your daughter's educational prospects to a limit. She has some goals that she must achieve to continue receiving funds. As to where she will be allowed to attend, we have no limit on her. We at Knight Reconstructions want the best out of everyone. If she becomes as talented as you, we may end up hiring her as well." Adrianne said with a wink to Rebecca.

"What are the goals? I need to be sure that she can maintain them?" Martin asked in worry. He knew that his baby was smart but maintaining an A+ average at Harvard was no easy task.

"Nothing too complicated. She must maintain at the lowest a B average, not miss more than 3 days of school in a semester –unless for medical reasons-, and she must reside in housing inspected and provided by us. Agreed?" Adrianne stated evenly as she nodded to the grey-haired lawyers.

"This offer sounds too good to be true. Which means that it may just be. Why such a generous offer?" Martin asked with skepticism.

"We at Knight Reconstructions want happy employees. Happy employees mean good work. If caring for the needs of your child gives me a happy employee, then I accept. So, do I have a new employee in Knight Reconstructions?" Adrianne asked with anticipation.

"So tell me exactly what I will be agreeing to and you may have a deal." Martin asked with slight worry. This meeting was going way to well. There had to be a catch somewhere.

"Knight Reconstructions will house both you and your daughter. We will provide 3 healthy meals a day for both of you. Also, we will be providing all the supplies of life for you as well as the comforts of home. Not only that, your daughter will be visited by a private tutor daily. Her education will be foremost on our list. If we are going to be sending her to college, then she needs to be prepared for it. And to top it all off, you will be paid $20,000 a month for your work. How is that for an offer?" Adrianne added excitedly.

Rebecca couldn't believe her ears. This was just awesome. She was going to have a private tutor and be able to attend any college she wanted. And not only that, she was going to be taken care of? Wow! This was Great!

Martin's enthusiasm was much more subdued. There had to be a catch to this. There just had to. Darn, he just couldn't see it. Well, this sounded great! So, might as well try it. "Okay, Miss Margaeux where do I sign?" He asked reluctantly.

"Call me Adrianne. All my friends call me Adrianne." She added with a glint of playfulness in her tone. "All of the paperwork will be drawn up and available for signature in one week. Mr. Hartman, you have one week to prepare for the relocation. We need you badly. Don't worry about your belongings. We will be sending for them ourselves. Everything will be attended to." She added with a nod to the frantically writing lawyers.

Martin quickly stood up. He needed to get out of here. Something didn't feel right and maybe this week would give him a chance to figure it out.

Seeing Mr. Hartman stand up to leave, Adrianne followed suit and then extended her hand for the agreement handshake. She needed to feel the weight of his confidence in her offer. She needed to know how sure he was with the deal.

Martin knew the art of the deal-making handshake. So he firmly grasped her perfectly manicured hand and gave it a good shake. He knew that this would make her feel good about the deal. And it sure did. He smiled inwardly as he watched her beautiful face light up with a huge grin.

"See you in 7 days. Be ready." She announced sweetly. "And once again, welcome to Knight Reconstructions."