Claire decided to take the stairs to prolong the time until she faces her immediate death.
The forty-second floor was dark, with barely a few lights from outside sneaking in.
She walked up to the door to his office, steadying her breath.
Claire knocked and entered the dark office. At first, she thought that it was empty but as her eyes adjusted she spotted a lit-up cigarette. She heard the chair being moved and as she readied for the 'tiger' to pounce on her and pull her into shreds, the small side lamp was turned on.
Gabriel's face was calm. Too calm.
The light from the lamp was soft and warm, making him seem not as scary as before. He sat down in his chair, put out the cigarette, and he pointed at the chair on the opposite side of the desk. Claire slowly walked across and sat facing him.
The liquid courage still helped her as she looked directly at him.
She recognised her resignation letter on his desk.
"Claire, may I ask what motivated you to resign?"
"It's a combination of reasons, sir."
"And I'd like to know them. Every single one of them."
"I'm sure that there's no need for this," Claire said in a cold tone. Gabriel shifted in his chair. Claire was recently quite happy around him, smiling and laughing, and she even was joking. Now, her eyes were cold and lifeless.
"Then tell me what would you like to get to stay."
"Well…" Claire thought carefully. "I have received a very good offer from X6 Global. There's not much that could entice me to stay back in your tyranny."
"Tyranny?" Gabriel raised his eyebrows.
"I-…" Claire stuttered readying herself to speak out the most outrageous terms that Mark Pattison helped her come up with just a few hours earlier. "I want full control of my team and my department."
"You're joking, right?" He laughed.
"Mr Moor, do I look like I'm joking?" Claire asked. "Anyways, if I were to return I need a contract with no break clause. I want shares of the firm. And I want the freedom to lead my department without any nuisance, particularly from you. And a pay rise."
"You must be joking." He repeated but Claire's scowl made him retract. He went silent, thinking over the terms listed by Claire.
"How many shares?"
Claire looked around in disbelief. "What?"
"How many shares do you want? 1%, 2%?"
"Don't be funny." Claire laughed, still ensuring that she puts as outrageous demands as she can so that she never had to return.
"How many then? 5%."
"25%" Claire decided, still trying to keep her composure.
"25%?!!!" He exclaimed, his brows furrowed in anger. "I own 60%. I can't just claim 25% for someone else. The board wouldn't allow it. And if I give you 25% of my shares I'll lose the golden share. Do you understand that?"
"Yes, I do." Claire nodded. "May I ask you something though?" He nodded. "How much is your company worth?"
"About £100billion."
"How much is based on contracts?"
"At least 90%."
"How much does my department contribute towards those contracts?"
"Your department contributed over 20% of our value if that's what you're getting at."
"I want 1% of shares for every billion Pounds we contributed in the last year. Not any less."
"So, you want me denounced as a CEO?"
"Not necessarily. I don't care where those shares come from and whom you have to buy them off."
Claire leaned back in the chair and watched as the man was trying to contain his rage. She was truly amused at it. She tried her hardest not to laugh.
"Anything else?" Gabriel asked as he picked up his pen and started tapping on the desk.
"I want the contract to be indefinite so that I can continue my work even if you are gone, for as long as the company exists. I want to sit on the board of directors and contribute to the key decisions that will influence my department's work. I want full control over how my department operates, including hiring and firing and any projects we undertake. And quadruple of my salary." Claire hesitated. "And hire Mark Pattison back. He really is the most loyal employee you'll ever get."
Gabriel put the pen down and stood up, walking up to the window, deep in thought, silent.
"What did they offer you?"
"10% of shares. Triple of my current pay. And full autonomy over the new department."
"And you want me to give you over 20% of the shares, quadruple of your salary, and full autonomy over the department?"
"Exactly."
"Your salary is already at market average."
"Then go and find someone who is at market average to do this job. Market average is not sufficient to compensate for my capabilities."
Gabriel thought in silence for a long while. He stood by the window, gazing into the space. At last, he moved and walked up to his desk. Without a word to Claire, he dialled a number.
"If you are to call security, I'll let myself out." Claire stood up, readying to leave.
"No, sit down." He ordered. Claire hesitated but she remained standing. Someone answered the phone and he spoke to it in almost a whisper.
Claire couldn't distinguish what was said and her heart was pounding. Soon he disconnected and sat back down on his chair. He lit up a cigarette at which Claire frowned.
"I believe that there's nothing more," Claire said quickly. "I'll take my leave now as I have previous arrangements for early morning. Best of luck in finding an appropriate replacement."
"I'm not done yet." Gabriel's voice was sharp. Claire was stunned to see that he didn't have his usual rage outburst yet.
"I am though." Claire walked towards the door, but as she was reaching for the handle, the door opened. An older man in the suit walked in, looking at her with curiosity and surprise. He walked past her towards the desk.
"Watters, this is Miss Thompson." Gabriel introduced her.
"Good evening, Sir." He nodded at his boss. "Good evening, Miss Thompson."
"Good evening, Mr Watters." Claire nodded at him, still keen to get out of the office, but now intrigued by the new arrival.
"Mr Watters is my lawyer. He can draft the contract for you tonight, and ensure that any terms are negotiated fairly."
"With all due respect, I am not here to negotiate. I've stated my terms, and if that's not something you can offer, I'll take my leave." Claire was surprised.
"Mr Watters, what's the easiest way to give someone 20% or more of the company's shares?"
"Well, it's not that simple, sir. Only 10% of the shares are available to the public. 59% belongs to yourself. And remaining is spread equally among the board of directors." Mr Watters walked up to the desk.
"So, how do I get someone 20% of the shares without losing my status as a CEO and my golden share?"
"Ehhh…" Mr Watters was stunned into silence. A few moments passed before he uttered. "Marriage, sir?" He looked down, not daring to look at his boss, who looked coldly at him.
Claire laughed but Gabriel didn't change his facial expression.
"Well, as I've said, I have commitments to attend to early in the morning. Goodbye, Mr Watters, a pleasure to meet you. Goodbye, Mr Moore, never a pleasure." She walked out of the door before another word was said.
She almost run for her life, her heels permitting, so happy that she managed to escape. As soon as she was outside of the building, she messaged Gina and Zoe to let them know that she was still alive - at least for now
Back in the office, Mr Moore didn't finish his conversation with Mr Watters.
"Marriage, you say." Gabriel seemed to think deeply about it. It startled him to realise that he didn't find this idea off-putting. He fired his assistant because he spotted Pattison with Claire. He didn't want to leave her to anyone else. He wanted her.
"Yes, sir. In that way, your spouse owns half of what you own, yet, it doesn't directly affect your influence within the company."
"I need you to draft the contract for me."
"Of course, sir."
"Miss Thompson will have full and indefinite autonomy over the Contracts and Services Department. She will be given a C-Level position on the board of directors."
"Sir?" Mr Watters looked worriedly at him. "Is that wise?"
"Miss Thompson's leave, which was my fault, will lose us a £1 billion contract within a few hours. More companies will follow her in our competition. I estimate at least a 20% loss of our company value. This will then break the trust with other companies meaning that we will lose even more customers."
"What kind of contract would you like me to draft?"
"Marriage. With no break clauses. With the equal share of assets between myself and Miss Thompson. And with conditions, I've just listed."
"Any other conditions? Are you sure that no break clause is appropriate? It will be hard to overturn it if it were to come to the divorce."
"You dare to question me?!" He yelled. "Do as you're told."
"Of course. I'm sorry, sir."
"I want the draft by the morning."
"Understood."