Only the Strongest Survive (15 page)

Emely was
glowin
g with satisfaction. Finally her
studies were over. It wasn’t that she couldn’t go on, just that she
had felt in the last year that things were getting repeated and
there was no more she could learn in the area that interested her.
She would much rather spend the spare time she had looking at
various books on shares and bonds, improving her already
considerable knowledge.

“
Good job
we’ve still got a bit of that champagne
in the fridge that we didn’t finish last week.”

“
Oh, no,
Sally, that champagne is
flat. I’ve
worked really hard all these years and I think I can give myself
something more. Let’s go for dinner somewhere.”

“Oh, that would be wonderful. Where do you
suggest?”

“
Not
McDonald’s, that’s for sure. This time I’d like to be served like a
lady, the full works. We’ll order an aperitif, an
appetizer
, and all the rest.”

“Super, Emely, I’m sure we’ll have a
wonderful evening.”

*

At work they
were also happy about her success. Everyone knew she was a good
student and never doubted that she
’d
succeed. They organized a wonderful party. Her boss told her that
in the morning they would be installing a new software system and
so there was no point in her coming to work before ten.

When Emely
arrived at the office at nine fifty five the next morning, she was
shocked. The premises were decorated with at least fifty colorful
balloons. Everyone was there already and as soon as she came in,
they all got up and walked toward her.

Adam, one of
the brokers, said,
“Congratulations,
Emely, on your success.”

“
I knew you’d
do well,” Miriam
said. The accountant
squeezed both of Emely’s hands.

“
Congratulations
…
congratulations!” Everyone was shaking her hand.

“
But how did
you know I’d succeed? I could have failed,” she
said.

“
We
jus
t knew,” her boss said, kissing her
twice on the cheek during all the commotion.

What he
didn
’t want to tell her was that the day
before, he had called the college for the first time and inquired
about how she had done. He had always been a prudent man and it
would seem silly to organize a party unless he was certain. After
all, these things cost money. But he was surprised to hear what her
mentor had to say to him: “Has she successfully defended her
thesis? Who do you say you are? Oh, yes, the director of the
company she works for. Listen, not only has she defended her thesis
successfully, she surprised everyone here with her work. Do you
know what she wrote about?”

Emely’s boss
became embarrassed
since he couldn’t
answer the question. Once, he had asked her about the title, but
his thoughts were on some liquidity problems the company had that
day and so he was not paying attention. “To tell you the truth, no,
I don’t know.”

“
It’s
fantastic. The title is
‘The Short-Term
and Long-Term Forecasting of the Value of Securities,’ and we were
all surprised to read about the new approaches she came up with.
Listen, what does she actually do at work? I suppose stock analysis
or trading.”

“
No, not
really
. She’s my secretary.” He didn’t
know why he felt embarrassed saying that.

“
A
secretary?” shouted the voice at the other end of the line. “Are
you crazy? Listen, in case no one has told you yet, Emely is a very
capable woman who knows how to
use her
brain and I’m certain secretarial work is too undemanding for
her.”

“
I was going
to offer
her the position of executive
assistant,” he said weakly, embarrassed again.

“
Well, it’s
your decision. You manage that company and know best what you need
most. But I think that Emely would do the job of an analyst or a
stockbroker much better than that of an executive assistant. Have
you any other questions?”

“No, thanks for talking to me.”

“Then I’ll say goodbye, I’m late for a
lecture.”

“
Bye,” the
director
said, and spent a while holding
his chin, thinking what to do.

*

“
T
his really wasn’t necessary,”
Emely said.

She had never
expected such a reception. She was thrilled and her cheeks were
glowing.

Then they all
took tall glasses and opened
the
champagne bottles. Emely was speechless; it was all too much for
her. Never before had she been given such a party. She liked her
colleagues and got along well with nearly all of them. She loved
going to work and because she often stayed there well after
quitting time, they seemed like family to her. She had never argued
with anyone and always tried to be nice. And now all these people
got up from their desks and interrupted their important work just
for her. She wanted to hug everyone and cry.

“
So, Emely,”
her boss said, “the time has come to offer you a better job. I’m
sure being my personal assistant was getting a bit boring for
you.”

Emely shook
her head and smiled.
This is
where I become an executive assistant,
she thought with bitterness.

“
As of
tomorrow, you no longer sit next to my office, but back
there.” He pointed to a desk. Emely only now
noticed a new desk positioned between two others. She thought it
strange that she would be sitting between two
stockbrokers.

“
As of
tomorrow,
” he added, “you’ll be buying
and selling shares and bonds to your heart’s content.”

Emely could
not believe her ears. She stood there in front of everyone,
speechless
. This was a complete surprise.
“What … how come …?”

No longer
being able to control herself, she began to cry the first tears of
happiness.
The joy she had felt after the
defense of her thesis was nothing compared to this. She wanted to
scream with joy. Some of her colleagues were also surprised about
the boss’s decision. Emely could see it in their eyes. But she
detected no disapproval anywhere. Some looked at each other, then
came to her and congratulated her again. She stood there still
unable to believe that it was true, while they all shook her hand.
She was no longer trying to hold back the tears, there were just
too many of them.

The director
looked on with satisfaction. He liked Emely and was
sure that his decision was the right one. He
also knew that he’d miss her gentle voice on the telephone, telling
him who was on the line. Now she’d be a stockbroker, he told
himself, trying to get used to the strange turn of
events.

“So, my dear Emely, we’ll have some more fun
and then you’ll go home and have a rest.”

“
But
I’
m not tired,” she said. She wanted to
sit at her new desk that very minute and start her new
job.

“No way!”

“
But
…”

“
Would you
rather become an executive assistant?” her boss
said jokingly.

“No.”

Everyone laughed.

“Then I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Chapter
10

_______________________

The next day
Emely began asking questions again. “How come you never married,
John?”

The question
came as a surprise. “I ….” He wanted to say something, but the
words would not come.

“You never found the right woman?”

“No,” he said dryly.

“Have you ever been in love?”

He scratched his head and smiled. “When I was
at school I did fall in love a few times, but never later. I’m not
interested in a serious relationship.”

“
I see,”
Emely said with a nod
. This was precisely
what she had thought about him.
A person so completely devoid of feeling is incapable of
love. That’s why he’s so aggressive.
She
said, “What about your mother? Did you love her?”

“
No. My
mother took no notice of either Ronald or
me. Once when Dad was on a business trip, I found her in
bed with another guy. I often felt that Ronald and I were a burden
to her.”

“What about your father?”

“He was a good man, but always away. He
invested all his energy in the business. He got up before me and
often came home when I was fast asleep.”

Looking
searchingly at his face, Emely began to think.
An interesting psychological case.
When she was a child, she had wanted to become a
psychoanalyst. She liked listening to people and trying to analyze
their personality.

“And who helped you when you had
problems?”

“Ronald,” he said without hesitation.

“Is he married?”

“Yes. He has a daughter and a son.”

“And what about you? Didn’t you want what he
had?”

“No. I’m not very good with women and kids’
crying gets on my nerves. No, I’ve never wanted a family.”

“But children don’t cry all the time,” she
said with slight irritation.

“
Oh, I know,
but I still don’t think I would make a good father.”

Emely wanted to offer him a few words of
encouragement, but was unable to express herself. “Who knows, maybe
you just haven’t come across the right woman yet. I’m sure one day
someone will set your heart on fire.”

“I very much doubt that.” He looked down and
then immediately at her. “And why aren’t you married?”

For a few moments Emely was speechless. She
had become engrossed in the role of psychoanalyst and felt she
should be the one asking questions.

“
Well
…” She took a deep breath. “Until not long ago I
was sure I didn’t need anyone. The only important thing to me was
my company. But a year ago I met Philip. Our friendship soon turned
into real love and I can honestly say that I truly love him. I had
a few men before him, but I can’t say that I loved any of them.
Before Philip, no one attracted me enough. We haven’t talked about
marriage yet, but I’m sure we’ll soon start thinking about
it.”

“
I see,” John
said with a nod
. He took a last sip of
the coffee he had brought with him.

There followed an awkward silence and they
both turned to the computer screen, hoping to see something
interesting.

Emely
reached for the pocket calculator and did a
quick calculation. “I suggest you buy seven hundred Micro
Investment shares immediately, but at a price of no more than four
hundred and fifty dollars per share.”

Obediently
John picked up his cell phone to call his broker and carry out the
transaction. He never doubted her decisions since so far they had
always resulted in considerable amounts of money.

*

During the
day they focused on the securities market and
didn
’t say much. John wasn’t exactly
talkative anyway, and Emely kept thinking about Philip.
Who knows if we ever will get
married?
she thought bitterly.

She looked at
John, squeezing her fists and thinking about ways of escape. After
hours of thought she was no nearer a solution.
Hell, if people have managed to escape from
Alcatraz I should be able to get out of this damn hole,
she thought.

*

In the late
afternoon she tried to concentrate on a book John had bought her,
but her thoughts kept wandering.
When she
began dozing, John appeared. He was in a good mood and invited her
for dinner. It had been quite some time since they had eaten
together in the dining room. Lately he had been bringing all her
meals to the basement.

“I can see you’ve made us some wonderful
food, John. Are we celebrating something?” she asked in a friendly
manner as she examined the richly laid table.

“
No, we’re
not celebrating. It just seemed right to cook something nice. But
it is true that the Micro Investment shares have gone up by 6
percent.”

“John, you know they may fall again by twice
as much tomorrow. The stock market is unstable at the moment.” She
was being extremely friendly toward him, part of her strategy. When
he relaxed and began to trust her, she would attack.

She had a
cocktail to begin with and then they had the appetizer, tiny slices
of bread covered with cheese and cauliflower that were truly
special. Emely’s stomach ached from hunger so she ate quickly and
was looking forward to the entree.

“The appetizer was delicious. I’m really
curious what’s next.”

John brought
out a stuffed turkey with new potatoes, carrots, and bell
peppers.

“
Oh no!”
exclaimed Emely, and burst into laughter. “Who’s going to eat this
huge turkey?” With her hand on her mouth she admired the roasted
bird’s golden skin.

“
We’ll manage
somehow,” he said, pleased at her response. After all, he had gone
to a great deal of bother and spent a lot of time cooking the
meal.