Elaine Viets & Victoria Laurie, Nancy Martin, Denise Swanson - Drop-Dead Blonde (v5.0) (pdf) by Unknown (howl and other poems .TXT) 📕

``What a stupid present,'' Vicki said when she pulled it out of the bag. ``My sister is an Avon lady. Take it back right now.''

Vicki practically threw the box in my face, as if I were some foolish ladies' maid.

``Then you should have said so before you sent me,'' I said. ``Maybe you'd like to discuss my duties with Mr. Ham- monds. I have a list of the times, dates, and stores where you've sent me, along with your memos ordering me to run your errands on company time.''

The color drained from Vicki's face. She'd forgotten about those little notes she'd left on my desk. Vicki had made a fatal corporate mistake: She'd put it in writing.

``You'd better go back to work, Margery,'' was all she said.

I think she took the Chanel set back herself. I'd left the receipt in the bag. Vicki never asked me to run errands for her again.

That was her only mistake. Vicki kept most of her tan- trums confined to me and her little pink office. Word of her erratic behavior hadn't leaked out to the important people in the company, like Mr. Hammonds. She was still on the fast track.

Minnie had changed, too. She was still shy and quiet, but it wasn't a sad quiet. She grew more self-assured. As I said before, her crying days were over. Her face never crumpled when Vicki said something mean. Minnie just set her jaw a little, and Vicki would back off.

That's my girl, I thought. You're learning how to deal with a bully.

People make jokes about a yellow streak being the sign 124 Elaine Viets of cowards. But putting some gold in Minnie's hair put steel in her spine. Each month, Minnie was a little blonder--and a little bolder.

She started gently resisting Vicki. She didn't tell the boss off exactly, but Minnie would say, ``I can't possibly do the Watkins report in twenty-four hours. I need at least forty- eight.''

Minnie didn't sound angry, but she was firm.

Of course, Vicki gave her the extra time. She had no choice. She couldn't have written the report if she'd had a month. Now that she'd chased off Jennifer, she really did need Minnie.

The staff had always appreciated the quality and quantity of Minnie's work, but when she stood up to Vicki a bit, she was treated with new respect. Some people said Minnie would replace Vicki when she was promoted. I wasn't sure that would happen, but I looked forward to the day when we were free of Vicki. Minnie would make a much better boss.

I was proud of her, and I told her so. ``Smartest thing you ever did was walk out of this office and into Mr. Rick's salon.''

``He wants me to go all blond,'' she said, ``but I don't have the courage.''

``Why not?'' I said. ``All the changes he's made have been good so far.''

``I'm afraid.'' She looked at me so seriously with that little cameo face. ``I'm afraid it will set something loose.''

``Oh, you don't have to worry about Vicki anymore,'' I said. ``She's thoroughly tamed.''

``I wasn't talking about Vicki,'' Minnie said. ``I meant me.'' Chapter 6

It was another six months before Minnie was ready to go all the way.

I don't know what triggered the final change. Vicki didn't treat her any better, or any worse. But I could feel some- thing unstable in our office. Everyone had the jitters.

We were a week away from our next evaluation time. There were more rumors than usual. There would be changes this time, bigger than the annual chopping of the deadwood.

A special corner office was being built for the new divi- sion manager. Mr. Hammonds had personally picked out the furnishings. Francine, his secretary, showed them to me. I was bowled over. The new office would have an antique partners desk that cost a thousand dollars, luxurious sculpted brown shag carpet, a silver pencil holder that once belonged to John D. Rockefeller, and a leather wastebas- ket. It was a palace compared to the cubicles for us wage slaves.

I knew the staff would kill one another to sit behind that ornate desk. The competition would be vicious.

Minnie wanted a promotion. She was determined to sit at that partners desk someday. But first she had to make department head. She wanted to pump me for information, so she took me out to lunch. I appreciated the gesture. Vicki wouldn't have bothered.

Minnie didn't get me cheap chicken salad at Renee's Tea Cozy, either. She sprang for steak at Harper's and a decent red wine.

``You know everything and everyone at the company, Margery,'' she said. That was pure flattery, but I liked it

125 126 Elaine Viets just the same. ``I want to be department head. What do you think of my chances? I do most of the work. I should be able to run it.''

I chomped a juicy hunk of cow and considered her pitch. This was before we knew about cholesterol. Sirloin steak was almost a health food. With a scoop of cottage cheese on the side, it was a diet dinner. But I wasn't on any diet. I had a baked potato slathered with sour cream and chives.

``I think you have a good shot, as long as Vicki gets promoted to division head,'' I told her. ``If you get pro- moted over Vicki, there will be hell to pay. You'll spend so much time putting out the fires started by Vicki, you won't be able to get your work done.''

I took another bite of sirloin, chewed, and thought some more. ``Vicki's your only real opposition. You have a lot of friends in and out of the department. Mr. Hammonds sees himself as forward thinking, so he wouldn't object to another woman