See Me (41 page)

At her desk, Maria forced herself to stare at the claim that had been filed against the hospital, but every few minutes she found herself replaying the conversation and thinking of ways she could have responded better. She found herself wondering what Colin would have done…

“There you are.”

Lost in thought, Maria looked up and saw Jill in the doorway. “Oh, hey…”

“Where were you?” Jill asked. “I came by a little while ago, but you weren’t in your office.”

“Barney wanted to talk to me,” she said.

“Figures,” Jill said, closing the door behind her. “How did the meeting with the detective go?”

Maria proceeded to update Jill on the things Margolis had told her. Like Maria, Jill wasn’t sure quite what to think. She asked the same questions that Maria had and was left with the same sense of confusion.

“I don’t know whether it’s good news or bad news,” Jill finally said. “It’s more confusing now than it was this morning.”

That’s not my only problem
, Maria thought.

“What are you thinking about now?”

“What do you mean?”

“Your expression just changed.”

“Uh… just thinking back on my meeting with Barney.”

“And?”

“Ken was there.”

Jill nodded. “Because of the lawsuit?”

“Of course.”

“And let me guess. Barney did all the talking… and he poured on the Southern charm and started talking about ‘doing the right thing’?”

“You know him well.”

“Sadly, I do. So… did you learn anything?”

“They want to present ‘a united front.’ ”

“Okaaay… but what exactly does that mean?”

“They want me to sign an affidavit that would essentially say that I never saw Ken do anything wrong, that he’s always professional, and that he never harassed me.”

“Did Barney ask that you sign? Or insist that you sign?”

“He asked. In fact, he made it perfectly clear that he wanted it to be my decision.”

“That’s good.”

“I guess.”

“You guess?”

When Maria didn’t answer, Jill looked at her. “Don’t tell me there’s even
more
,” she prodded. “Something you didn’t tell me this morning?”

“Well…”

“Let me guess. Ken has been harassing you for a while?”

Maria looked up. “How did you know?”

“Don’t you remember our lunch? After you’d gone paddleboarding with Colin, when I kept asking whether things at work were going okay? I knew you’d gone to the conference with Ken, and I’ve been around here long enough to know exactly what he might have tried to do. Even while you were swearing that everything was fine, I had my suspicions.”

“Why didn’t you say anything?”

Jill offered the kind of shrug that asked,
Do you really need me to answer that?
“Office politics suck. That’s why Leslie and I have already outlawed them. Back then, I didn’t want to put the idea in your head if it hadn’t happened, but I remember thinking that I was correct in my suspicions. Which is terrible, of course. But I was kind of happy, too, and I know how awful that is for a friend to say.”

“What do you mean, you were kind of happy?”

“If you loved it here, you might not have been so eager to throw your lot in with us. Of course, at the time, I didn’t know about the potential lawsuits.”

“I’m glad you’re so concerned with my well-being.”

“You’re a strong woman, Maria. And frankly, I think you’re smarter than Ken. I knew you’d figure out a way to keep him at bay.”

“I did tell him my boyfriend, the MMA fighter, was the jealous type.”

Jill laughed. “Like I said. Way smarter than Ken. Okay, but back to the meeting you had with Barney and Ken, our illustrious leader. So Barney asked you to sign and you essentially told him that you’d think about it.”

Maria’s jaw dropped. “How could you know what I said?”

“Because I know Barney. He’s a master at masking the obvious, showing how his side is the righteous one, and then mixing in a dollop of guilt, in case you’re still wavering. It’s important for you to put all that aside and think about what actually happened. And by the way, what did happen?”

Maria then offered a recap of the conference – to which Jill didn’t raise an eyebrow – but when she told her about the subsequent encounters, Jill went stony.

“Hold on,” she said. “It’s one thing to offer the ‘my wife doesn’t understand me’ tale, but you’re saying he actually touched your chest?”

“Well, my collarbone… or maybe just below. He didn’t —”

“But his intent was obvious to you? And he wanted to have lunch and discuss being more of a ‘team player’?”

“Yes. But I stopped it from going any further… He didn’t —”

“Come with me,” Jill said, reaching for the doorknob.

“Where are we going?”

“To see Barney and Ken.”

“Let’s just let it go… I’m leaving anyway. And he didn’t actually touch my breast or anything…”

“Well, Barney doesn’t know the details. And I’m sure that the meeting wasn’t only about trying to protect the firm; it was also intended to keep you from joining the other women and filing with the EEOC.”

Maria shook her head. “I’m not going to file.”

“Are you sure you don’t want to?”

Maria thought about Barney and the other employees of the firm. Ken’s attentions had been awful and had caused her stress, but to her mind, simply putting it all behind her and moving on was a far more appealing option than pursuing the matter further.

“Yes, I’m sure. I’m leaving anyway.”

“But don’t you think Ken should be held accountable? At least a little? For all the stress he caused you?”

“I guess. But like I said, I don’t want to go to the EEOC.”

Jill smiled. “They don’t know that.”

“What are you going to say?”

“Exactly what should be said. And whatever you do, let me do all the talking. Don’t say a word.”

 

 

Before she even realized what was happening, Jill was marching toward Barney’s office, Maria racing just to keep up with her. Barney’s door was closed, but that didn’t deter Jill in the slightest.

Barney and Ken, occupying the same seats they’d been in only minutes earlier, were startled by Jill’s sudden appearance.

“What’s going on? We’re in a meeting —” Barney began, but Jill strode into the office, Maria right behind her.

“Would you mind closing the door, Maria?” Jill’s voice was steady and professional, but determined. Maria realized she’d never heard her like this.

“Did you hear me, Jill?” Barney asked.

“I think you need to hear
me
.”

“We’re supposed to interview another paralegal in five minutes.”

“Tell her that she’s going to have to wait. You’ll want to hear what I have to say. It’s about the lawsuit and it concerns both of you.”

Ken remained silent and Maria watched as he paled. Barney stared at her before finally reaching for his phone; Maria listened as he did as Jill instructed. After hanging up the phone, he stood from his seat. “Let me bring over the chair from the window —” he began, but Jill shook her head sharply.

“We’ll stand,” she said.

If Ken didn’t understand what that meant, there was no question in Maria’s mind that Barney did. She saw an ever-so-slight lifting of his eyebrows and assumed he was doing some rapid mental calculations. Most people would likely have taken their seat again, but Barney understood the value of maintaining eye level, even if Ken did not. He stood straighter.

“You said this matter concerns the firm?”

“Actually, I said that it concerns the both of you. But yes, in the end, it concerns the firm as well.”

“I’m glad you came by, then,” he said, the drawl and syrupy cadence returning. “We just had a discussion with Maria about the false allegations, as I’m sure you’re aware, and I’m confident that Maria will do what’s right for all involved.”

“You shouldn’t be quite so confident,” Jill countered. “I wanted you two to be the first to know that Maria just informed me that Ken Martenson has been engaging in conduct that any jury would construe as sexual harassment and that she is strongly considering filing a report with the EEOC as a preliminary to filing her own lawsuit.”

“That’s not true!” Ken erupted, the first words Maria had heard him speak all day.

Jill turned toward him, her tone as even as before. “You told her she should try harder to be a team player. That having you in her corner could help her when she came up for partner. And then you groped her.”

“I did no such thing!”

“You touched her inappropriately, on her neck and chest.”

“I… I only touched her shoulder.”

“So you admit to touching her? And keeping your hands on her even though she clearly found it offensive?”

With her words, Ken realized it was probably better to shut his mouth, and he turned toward Barney. If Barney was angered by what Jill had said, he didn’t show it.

“Maria made no claim of sexual harassment in our meeting today, nor in fact has she ever said anything to me in all the months she’s been working here.”

“Why would she? She knew you’d cover for him. Just like before, when the other sexual harassment cases were settled.”

Barney drew a long breath. “I’m sure there’s been some sort of misunderstanding and we’ll be able to work this out amicably. There is no reason to resort to threats.”

“I haven’t resorted to threats. In fact, if anything, you should be thankful that we’re here so you aren’t surprised.”

“I am,” he agreed. “I do think we could discuss the matter more civilly if we take our seats. I would like to hear what Maria has to say.”

“I’m sure you would. We’ll let you read her statement in detail as soon as it’s filed. For now, I’ll speak for her.”

Ken’s eyes went wide, but Barney simply looked at Jill.

“You do understand that you can’t represent Maria for obvious conflict-of-interest reasons?”

“I’m here as her friend.”

“I’m not sure that makes a difference.”

“Then let’s start with this: Both Maria and I will be leaving the firm. We had no intention of informing you of that today, but considering that Maria can additionally make a case for retaliation, I thought it best to get it over with now.”

For the first time, even Barney wasn’t sure what to say. He looked from Jill to Maria and back to Jill. “Did you say you’re both leaving the firm?”

“Yes.”

“Where will you be working?”

“That’s not the issue we’re discussing. Right now, we’re talking about the lawsuit Maria intends to file. We all know that the allegations being made by Lynn and the others are serious, and can you imagine how much more heft their cases will have when Maria comes forward as well?”

“But I didn’t do anything,” Ken mumbled. Barney merely glared at him.

“Do you think anyone will believe that? After everything the others say in court? But of course, it won’t get that far. Everyone in this room knows that you’re going to settle. These cases are almost always settled. I’m not sure I can say the same for Maria. She was pretty upset when she spoke with me. Though I won’t be her counsel on this case, my suspicion is that she may elect to take this as far as it can go.”

Barney straightened his jacket. “I’m assuming that you’re here not simply to inform us in advance that you’re going to file or that you’re leaving. I assume you’re here because you would like to resolve this matter.”

“Why would you think that?”

“There is nothing to be gained by telling us in advance that you intend to make a report with the EEOC.”

“Maybe I just felt a remaining bit of loyalty to the firm.”

“Perhaps.”

“Or maybe I just wanted Ken to know that in addition to ruining the firm and having his savings wiped out, he’s probably going to have to sell that ridiculous car of his by the time Maria is through with him.”

Ken moaned ever so slightly. Barney ignored it.

“How can we resolve this?”

“For starters, Maria wants six weeks of vacation this year.”

“Why would she want six weeks’ vacation when she’s planning on leaving?”

“Because it’s on her bucket list. Because Ken is an ass. Because yesterday, she saw a rainbow when she was walking by a yard with the sprinklers on. Because Maria had to work evenings and weekends because of you and so she hasn’t had a day off since she’s been here. My point is, it doesn’t matter why she wants it. She does, and that’s that.”

“First-year employees are only entitled to a week.”

“Then make an exception. Paid vacation, mind you, which will be added to her final check.”

Ken was about to say something, but Barney held up his hand to stop him. “Anything else?”

“Yes. As far as a two-week notice goes? That’s out. Today is Maria’s last day and she won’t be coming back. She gets paid for these two weeks as well.”

Barney looked like he had eaten something unpleasant. “Is that all? Two months’ salary?”

“Not quite. For her mental suffering, she needs a bonus. Let’s make it… three additional months’ salary on top of those two months.”

Barney was quiet. “And in exchange for that?”

“I’ll have to talk it over with her, but I’m fairly certain you’ll never hear anything from her about any of Ken’s deviant behavior. No reports, no lawsuits. Just over and done and we’ll go our own separate ways.”