Chapter One
"Your father is on line one, Mr Anderson", said his assistant over the intercom. Dave sighed. He hadn't spoken to his father in months and couldn't understand what he'd need.
"Thank you, I have it," he replied. He took a moment to clear his thoughts before picking up the phone. He knew he'd need his wits in full before taking the call.
"Hello father, what can I do for you?", he asked coldly.
"Is that any way to talk to your father?" he asked. Dave could hear the hurt through the phone line and he cringed. His mother had been the glue holding their family together and since she'd passed he'd hardly spoken to his father or siblings. He didn't know if he even remembered how to anymore. They used to be close but had all withdrawn when their mother passed. They had to protect their hearts from the unbearable pain, somehow. She would be so disappointed in them.
"Dad, we've barely spoken in the last five years. Why change anything, now?" Dave asked.
"I can see this is going to be harder than I imagined. I'll just get to the point, then. I've moved the corporate headquarters to Seattle. The paperwork went through today. If you still want to run the company you'll have to relocate. You have thirty days to make your decision - before your offices will no longer be available to you in Chicago," George said.
Dave sat at his desk in shock. He'd never been made speechless before, but his father's words actually left him without words. The line was silent for several moments, while neither of them said anything.
"Why would you do that?" Dave finally asked with rage in his voice. How dare his father try and control him. He'd run the corporation on his own for the past five years, when his father retired abruptly. The fact his father still had enough control to be able to move the offices had never been a factor, as he'd been a silent owner.
Dave tripled profits during his reign as president and the corporation was worth billions of dollars. Many lives depended on them to make a living. He didn't see what his father had to gain by moving the corporate offices. Most of their business was done internationally and their home office wasn't significant, but Dave had grown up in Chicago and had no desire to leave.
"It was time for a change. I've let our family drift apart, but I'm done with that. I'm still the head of this family and this is what I've decided. I know you well, son, and I know the second we get off the phone you'll be calling your attorneys to see if you can put a stop to this. I'll try and save you some time - the answer will be no. I may be silent in the corporation but I still have certain rights and if you read through the paperwork, one of those rights is to have the corporate offices wherever I choose, so long as I give the current President a month's notice. So, here's your notice. If you check with your assistant, a fax has been sent, laying out the move and the new building. I'll see you next month," George said. He disconnected the call and left Dave sitting with the phone pressed to his ear, seething in rage.
Andrea, get in here, now!" he shouted into his intercom. His assistant came running into the room, looking a bit frazzled. She had the paperwork from his father in her hand, knowing he'd want it. She laid it on his desk and stood back for him to read. "You can leave," he dismissed her. She quickly exited.
He knew he could be a hard-nosed boss at times, but he felt he was fair. If his employees did their job well, they had nothing to fear. He just didn't tolerate errors or slacking, so if they messed up, there were no second chances.
Dave spent the rest of his afternoon confirming what his father said. It looked like the old man was right. There was no way he could stop the move. He had enough of his own money that he could tell his father to go to hell, and just start over - but he didn't run the corporation for the paycheck, he did it because it had been in his family for longer than he'd been alive and he had a lot of pride in it.
He hung his head in a rare moment of weakness. He knew he couldn't quit. He knew he'd be playing right into his father's hands, but he'd move with the corporate offices. He also knew that meant a lot of new staff and a hell of a lot of headaches.
He went home, drank a double scotch, then pulled out his phone. He had to call his siblings, which he hadn't done in over a year. Each of them worked in different areas for the corporation and they were going to be just as pissed at their father as him.
His father may be getting him to move across the country but he wasn't going to get the happy family reunion he was hoping for. Dave was enraged and he was going to let his father know it.
"Are you sure we've done the right thing?" George asked Joseph.
"I'm sure. The first step in this process is getting the kids together, again. We can't very well match them up if they aren't here, can we?" Joseph asked.
"Dave's been distant in the last several years, but I've never heard him speak to me so coldly, before. I know losing their mother was hard for all of us, but I should've never let us grow this far apart. I can't believe this is the same boy who used to worship the ground I walked on," George said with sadness.
"I guarantee you, Brother, by this time next year, you and your boy will be together again, and things will be back to normal. I can't say I've gone through what you're going through but nothing brings family together more than other family members in their face. They used to be close to their cousins and we'll all have that bond again. Just you wait and trust me," Joseph reassured him.
"I've always trusted you," George said.
"Well that's because I'm much older and wiser," Joseph said, while puffing out his chest.
"You're exactly three minutes older, so don't give me that, again," George said with a laugh.
"Hey, those three minutes gave me a world of knowledge."
"Yeah, I think it gave you a world of arrogance - just like your eldest nephew," George said. He could feel things were going to work out. His family was at the beginning of truly mending.
"He did what?" Max yelled into the phone, causing Dave to hold the piece away from his ear.
"He said it was time for a change so he's moved the home offices to Seattle. We now have twenty-seven days before the official opening in Washington," Dave repeated.
"You have got to be kidding me. Can we stop this? He's obviously gone insane," Max said, but there wasn't much oomph in his voice. They both knew there was nothing wrong with their father's mental capabilities.
"I already checked every which way to Sunday and there's nothing we can do. I was sorely tempted to tell call his bluff, and leave the corporation," Dave threatened. Max knew there was no way that would happen - just like he knew the same of his siblings.
They'd been inseparable at one time, but through their grieving over the loss of their mother they'd gone their separate ways. But, they each had a love of the corporation in common, even if they were involved in a variety of different areas.