Griffin by Rahela Ferarri (smallest ebook reader TXT) 📕

see the whole picture clearly. I took a bite of fresh butter croissant, while I was waiting for the breakfast. Then again, she crossed my mind. Those deep blue eyes. Am I really a fool to entrust her these tangible issues. I would like to hear her opinion. But why am I so distracted with her. I am having troubles to concentrate. I better call Doug. If this thing with data issues get out of control, then we’ll have some serious explaining to do. This is not an option.

               

I just finished lunch with Doug, and we agreed to go through the paperwork.

 

Doug:   “What do you think about all this, James?”

 

Griffin:  “Honestly, I still haven’t made up my mind. I’ll assign the subject to one of my employees, but it’ll take a lot of time for someone to get into the subject, and manage to find the cause.”

 

Doug:   “True. Did you have anyone in mind? I would suggest Mike.”

 

Griffin: “Actually, I already have someone in mind.”

 

Doug:   “Really? Who?”

 

Griffin: “The new girl. Miss Petrov.” – Doug’s eyes widen.

 

Doug.   “The new girl? Are you okay James? Did you bring her to the company?”

 

Griffin: “No. She applied herself. Besides, all of the employees I counted on couldn’t find a single flaw in the system, and we both know that there is one. Maybe a fresh perspective will do us good.”

 

Doug:   “Sure, I mean, if you trust her...”

 

Griffin: “I don’t. But she’s bright. Sharp. Craving for a chance to prove herself. She will do her best.”

 

Doug:   “But what if her best just isn’t enough?”

 

Griffin: “Then I would admit that I was wrong, and that I made the wrong decision hiring her. And I am almost never wrong about this.” – Doug smiled naughtily.

 

Doug:   “I bet she’s good looking.”

 

Griffin: “Doug, you know me better than that. Give her a break. You haven’t even met her.”

 

Doug:   “Well, she must be something special when you can’t stop talking about her.”

 

My phone rang and interrupted us. Diane. Shit. What time it is? I looked at my watch. Half past two. I promised to call her before her trial, as I always do. I can’t believe I forgot. Maybe Doug was right.

 

Griffin: “Di! How was it?”

 

Diane:  “They postponed the damn thing for three weeks. Is everything okay?”

 

Griffin: “Yes. Why wouldn’t it be?”

 

Diane:  “I expected your call. You always call. I was worried.”

 

Griffin: “Diane, we already had this discussion. I have a lot on my mind, and if you expect me to drop everything and call, just because you expect me to, this is not going to happen.” – I noticed that I raised my voice a bit higher than I intended. I was nervous, and I took it out on her.

 

Diane:  “Yes, James, you made it very clear where we stand. And it doesn’t have to mean that you could call only when you want a fuck or to talk to somebody when you feel alone. In that case you should call somebody else.”

 

Griffin: “Don’t make a drama out of it. I’ll talk to you later. How about we have a dinner tonight?” – I don’t know why I said that. For some reason, I felt guilty and wanted to calm things down. I was aware that I overreacted.

 

Diane:   “Well, then pick me up at my place after work.” – She was satisfied, since she got an unexpected display of affiliation, which was very rare. Besides, she always backs down. She knows that I don’t like when somebody opposes, and that it would be a way to lose that she has. Or at least she thinks she has.

 

Doug was the only one who knew about us. Two of them are friends from law school. He was the one who introduced us in the first place. I finished the conversation and hung up. I was tense, so I ordered a whiskey to relax. Doug was observing the whole show very inquisitively.

 

Doug:    “I must agree with you. It does seem you have a LOT on your mind.” – He started teasing me. I was annoyed as it is.

 

Griffin: “Just drop it. The last thing I need is to complicate my life even further. She would help the most if she could solve at least one problem in my life, and this is the data issue.”

 

Doug:    “So we managed to define “a lot” as a “she”! – He continued. I blushed for a moment. He was right. I just couldn’t figure out why wasn’t I capable to get the damn woman out of my head. I took a large sip of my whiskey, and stood up getting ready to leave.

 

Griffin: “Well fuck you too. Come on. We have work to do.” – Doug couldn’t stop laughing. “And I put you in charge of introducing the situation to her, and to monitor her work. Give her the info, and tell her I expect a report in a month. Let’s see how good is she.”

Chapter Four

 

Two months passed, and I managed to regroup my thoughts. Diane somehow sensed that something was different and tried really hard to keep my mind occupied. I may say that she was successful. I had a lot of work and I released the stress into her. She knew that I needed sex, and she wanted to make sure she will provide exactly what I needed to get things back to where they were.

 

Mia fit in the company surprisingly fast. Mia. I like the way the sound of her name resonated in my head... Of course, she was still Miss Petrov, but since they all referred to her as Mia, and I was probably one of the last ones to call her by her last name. It was for the best. The guys loved her, and I didn’t object the fact that they hung out privately outside the office. Actually, it was a good thing. The atmosphere was good. I may say, I was really impressed with the work she did. She burned in aspiration to prove herself, and she was actually that good. I tried to hide my enthusiasm.

 

This issue with the data really put a pressure on me. The Securities Commission scheduled another meeting and I really needed to find a solution. I called Claire.

 

Griffin:               “Claire, please give me all the files regarding this branch offices data, and schedule a management board meeting for tomorrow.”

 

Mrs. Claire:        “You mean all the files, or the just the materials for the board meeting?”

 

Griffin:               “I don’t understand. I thought I was receiving all the files related to the subject?”

 

Mrs. Claire:        “Well, yes sir, but only the ones forwarded from your C.E.O.’s, the ones they believe are relevant to you regarding this matter.”

               

I was furious. This was very important and I want to be involved in every single detail. Usually I wouldn’t care, but it feels like nobody gives a fuck, and I am the only one who really tries to find a way out of this shit.

 

Griffin:                 “What they believe is not relevant. I want ALL! God damn, Claire, you should know better. I want every damn file on my desk by noon. Understood?”

 

Claire:                  “Yes, Sir. Perfectly.” –She was hurt.

 

Griffin:                 “Good.” – I didnt care. Everybody should do their job, for a change.

 

For six God damn months I’m trying to find the source of the problem, and they decide on what information they “believe” to be important. If they knew how to separate relevant from irrelevant information, we would have solved the issue by now.

               

Claire returned with huge pile of papers. I was pissed. It’s not her fault, but she should have known better. I spent the entire afternoon browsing through the papers. A lot of files, e-mails, analysis, tables, reports...Then I saw this, a bit thicker, file that caught my eye. Actually, it was the title that drew my attention. “Data quality operational risk – threats, assessment, probability analysis.” What the hell? How did I miss this? I looked at the date. This was handed over a month ago. I started browsing through pages and pages of analysis, possibilities for security breaches, testing, graphs, scenarios, proposals... My god this was brilliant. So clear, concise, sharp, and insightful. I couldn’t stop reading. After half an hour, I finally reached the last page. The analysis was signed: “Internal controlling associate, Mia Petrov MSc.” I can’t explain why my blood started pumping faster. I couldn’t believe it. There it was. A perfect peace of documentation I’ve been waiting for the past six months. And she was the one who did it. Of course, she handed it over to one of her supervisors who had no idea about the importance of this paper, and she probably thinks that her work is unnoticed and unappreciated. But she did it. And perfectly. Her words echoed in my head “A chance is all I need.” This girl is a player. And a hell of a good one. I believe that she is not even aware of how good she actually was. Well, tomorrow things are going to fly around. I will sort this fucking thing out, at whatever cost.

               

It was already 9 p.m. when I finished. Not exactly the unusual time for me to be in the office. I wanted to call her and tell her how good job she’d done. But I couldn’t. It was late. She would get a wrong impression. Better not. Instead, I picked up the phone and called Claire.

 

Mrs. Claire:        “Mr. Griffin, is everything okay?”

 

Griffin:              “Yes. I just called to inform you that Miss Petrov will be attending the meeting tomorrow. Please inform her as soon as she gets in the office.” – She hesitated for a while, but she knew better that to ask stupid questions.

 

Mrs. Claire:        “Would that be all Sir?”

 

Griffin:              “Yes. For now.”

               

I decided to walk home. I was still under impression. This girl has something that I admire deeply. I took her paper with me, and read it a couple of times more. Every time I’d read it again, I noticed more details, but all of them connected in a way they form a perfect string of events and conclusions. Well, James, you might as well wait until tomorrow.

Chapter Five

 

As usual, I was early in the company, so I entered the meeting room, and waited for other board members. Claire was preparing material, and printed the files. We didn’t talk much. I guess she was still hurt from last night, but it’s only job. She shouldn’t take it so personally. I know that somehow she sees me as her son, because she never had children of her own. But still, work