Thirty-seven year old Bill Peck, a large texas man with a thick handlebar mustache, entered the nondescript corporate building with an air of authority that only a senior member could carry. As one of the twelve representatives who attended the infamously private merger meeting between his and a rival law firm, he had access to a special off-the-books resource intended to reduce high stress levels.
It had taken nearly six months to implement Alpha Paradiso, and Bill himself utilized it at least fifteen times since the service went live. His wife of twenty years was threatening divorce, claiming to be unhappy whilst withholding sex. Strangely enough, she's done a near one-eighty upon seeing how relaxed and satisfied her husband is upon returning home after work.
She suspects he may be cheating on her, an idea that makes Bill chuckle. He would do no such thing. He's just making honest use of legal company property.
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*Eight Months Earlier*
Kodiak Research Group had the greatest collection of the finest lawyers in the nation. The only other law firm that even came close was Coleman, Dugan & Edwards. Together, they would be unmatched. Founding and senior members of both firms filled the conference room, with only a single junior member in attendance: myself. All of these men were old enough to be either my father or my grandfather and anywhere in between. Nonetheless, I had been invited here to consult my immediate superiors during this secret meeting.
Once everyone was seated, a stocky man with sandy brown hair, one I hadn't yet noticed, stood up. This one was older than me as well, but scored more around the range of an older brother. He had a vaguely familiar face I couldn't quite place. This became somewhat alarming as he subtly winked at me before introducing himself to this elite group as Richard Maynard.
"Gentlemen, thank you for coming," Richard began. "For the last four months, our firms have gone back and forth trying to reach an amicable deal. Coming to an equally beneficial agreement has admittedly been quite difficult."
Richard narrowed hia gaze directly at me before continuing.
"However, with the help of our special consultant, I believe we can sweeten the pot for both sides."
I sat there, confused but smiling at the light applause aimed at me, trying to visually erase two, five, ten years from Richard's face. Then it hit me. I knew exactly who this was. Whatever he had planned couldn't be anything good. The conference room lights dimmed. Massive projectors spun up as I stood to excuse myself, casting footage from something I'd hoped to take to my grave upon the wall in front of everyone.