laugh, quickly joined by Thomas, then Mickaël. “If you’re in any doubt,” he went on, “look at the little box at the bottom of your pay slip, and you’ll realize that a charity wouldn’t pay you like that.”
A few people chuckled.
Larcher’s eyes narrowed as he zeroed in on me. “Now, Alan, you’re going to have to keep your nose to the grindstone to earn that salary. And it’s not by playing at being a social worker that you’re going to do it.”
“I earn the firm money,” I countered. “My salary is highly cost-effective, and therefore it’s deserved.”
Deathly silence in the room. All my colleagues were looking at their feet. The atmosphere was oppressive. Larcher was obviously very surprised by my reaction; that’s probably what disconcerted him the most.
“It’s not for you to judge,” he said finally, in an aggressive tone, no doubt convinced that it was vital to maintain his authority by having the last word. “It’s for us to fix your targets, not you. And so far, you haven’t met them.”
The meeting finished quickly. It was clear that Larcher was very annoyed by the direction it had taken, which had lessened the impact of his message. The one time I’d had the courage to disagree, I might have been better advised to keep quiet. And yet, I was happy to have expressed my convictions and not let my values be trampled on.
I left the meeting room and went back to my office, preferring not to see Larcher. I didn’t want to see anyone, in fact. I waited for everyone to go to lunch before leaving myself. I opened my door a crack. Silence. I walked down the corridor. Just as I passed Thomas’s office, his phone rang. The switchboard was closed. Someone must be calling his direct line.
I don’t know what came over me. It was neither my habit nor office procedure to answer someone else’s phone, but the ringing was so insistent that I decided to go ahead. I opened the door to his office. Everything was tidy. His files were in a neat pile, and his Mont Blanc pen was placed just so. A very slight perfume floated in the air. Perhaps his aftershave … I picked up the phone, a much more elegant model than we had in the rest of the department.
“Al …” I was going to say my name to let the caller know I was not Thomas, but he didn’t give me time, cutting me off and talking at top speed with a voice full of hatred. “What you’ve done is shitty. I clearly told you I hadn’t resigned yet and was counting on your total discretion. I know you called my boss to tell him his head of administration was going to resign and that you were offering to find his replacement.”
“Please, I’m not …”
“Shut up! I know it’s you because I haven’t sent my resumé anywhere else. You hear? Nowhere! It can only be you. It’s disgusting.”
10
I WAS COMING out of the building when Alice suddenly appeared. She had obviously been waiting for me since the end of the meeting.
“Are you going to lunch?” she asked.
She was smiling, but I detected some uneasiness. Was she afraid to be seen with me?
“Yes,” I told her.
She waited a second, as if she wished the idea would come from me, and then said, “Shall we have lunch together?”
“Yes, let’s.”
“I know a really nice restaurant that’s a bit out of the way. That way, we can talk freely.”
“What’s it called?”
“Le Repaire d’Arthus.”
“Never heard of it.”
“It’s rather … original. I won’t say any more about it. I’ll let you discover it for yourself.”
“As long as they don’t eat strange animals, it’ll be fine.”
“You Americans! You’re so squeamish.”
We walked down the Rue Molière and at the end ducked into a vaulted passageway connecting with the arcade that runs along the interior garden of the Palais Royal. What a haven of peace the garden is, in the midst of this busy district in the heart of Paris! Rows of chestnut trees, paths of packed earth, and the massive old building
A few people chuckled.
Larcher’s eyes narrowed as he zeroed in on me. “Now, Alan, you’re going to have to keep your nose to the grindstone to earn that salary. And it’s not by playing at being a social worker that you’re going to do it.”
“I earn the firm money,” I countered. “My salary is highly cost-effective, and therefore it’s deserved.”
Deathly silence in the room. All my colleagues were looking at their feet. The atmosphere was oppressive. Larcher was obviously very surprised by my reaction; that’s probably what disconcerted him the most.
“It’s not for you to judge,” he said finally, in an aggressive tone, no doubt convinced that it was vital to maintain his authority by having the last word. “It’s for us to fix your targets, not you. And so far, you haven’t met them.”
The meeting finished quickly. It was clear that Larcher was very annoyed by the direction it had taken, which had lessened the impact of his message. The one time I’d had the courage to disagree, I might have been better advised to keep quiet. And yet, I was happy to have expressed my convictions and not let my values be trampled on.
I left the meeting room and went back to my office, preferring not to see Larcher. I didn’t want to see anyone, in fact. I waited for everyone to go to lunch before leaving myself. I opened my door a crack. Silence. I walked down the corridor. Just as I passed Thomas’s office, his phone rang. The switchboard was closed. Someone must be calling his direct line.
I don’t know what came over me. It was neither my habit nor office procedure to answer someone else’s phone, but the ringing was so insistent that I decided to go ahead. I opened the door to his office. Everything was tidy. His files were in a neat pile, and his Mont Blanc pen was placed just so. A very slight perfume floated in the air. Perhaps his aftershave … I picked up the phone, a much more elegant model than we had in the rest of the department.
“Al …” I was going to say my name to let the caller know I was not Thomas, but he didn’t give me time, cutting me off and talking at top speed with a voice full of hatred. “What you’ve done is shitty. I clearly told you I hadn’t resigned yet and was counting on your total discretion. I know you called my boss to tell him his head of administration was going to resign and that you were offering to find his replacement.”
“Please, I’m not …”
“Shut up! I know it’s you because I haven’t sent my resumé anywhere else. You hear? Nowhere! It can only be you. It’s disgusting.”
10
I WAS COMING out of the building when Alice suddenly appeared. She had obviously been waiting for me since the end of the meeting.
“Are you going to lunch?” she asked.
She was smiling, but I detected some uneasiness. Was she afraid to be seen with me?
“Yes,” I told her.
She waited a second, as if she wished the idea would come from me, and then said, “Shall we have lunch together?”
“Yes, let’s.”
“I know a really nice restaurant that’s a bit out of the way. That way, we can talk freely.”
“What’s it called?”
“Le Repaire d’Arthus.”
“Never heard of it.”
“It’s rather … original. I won’t say any more about it. I’ll let you discover it for yourself.”
“As long as they don’t eat strange animals, it’ll be fine.”
“You Americans! You’re so squeamish.”
We walked down the Rue Molière and at the end ducked into a vaulted passageway connecting with the arcade that runs along the interior garden of the Palais Royal. What a haven of peace the garden is, in the midst of this busy district in the heart of Paris! Rows of chestnut trees, paths of packed earth, and the massive old building
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