A Man of Affairs Read Online Free Page A

as it isn’t one of those evening conferences. I despise them.”
    “By tomorrow night I’ve got to clean off the whole slate. It shouldn’t be too bad. I can dump a lot of stuff on Harry and Andy but I’ll have to leave them some poop on progress up to now.”
    “Even the union thing?”
    “That’s the only thing we’ll shelve until I get back.”
    “You were going to stay put this week. You had to stay put this week. You said so.”
    “I know. But I’m going to the Bahamas.” She goggled at me. I couldn’t resist saying in a whisper, “As a guest of Mike Dean.”
    It was interesting to watch her changes of expression. Doubt, alarm, suspicion that she was being kidded, and then resignation.
    “Don’t take it so hard, Alice.”
    “If I thought you’d sell horses in midstream, Sam Glidden…”
    I repented and told her why I felt it would be smart to go.
    She caught on immediately, and said, “Don’t expect to outsmart anybody down there. In that league you’re a country boy, too.”
    “I should take you along.”
    She ignored that. “How is the prez taking this?” she asked.
    “He doesn’t know yet. I’ll get a call as soon as he gets back to his office. Let’s see how many of those phone calls we can get out of the way before he gets back.”
    I had completed one and was in the middle of the second when Al Dolson came into my office and sat down. Al has the look and bearing of thirty years of commanding combat troops. But he hasn’t the assurance to go with it. I hung up and gave it to him between the eyes.
    “Mr. and Mrs. Warren Dodge and Mr. and Mrs. Tommy McGann leave Wednesday morning on a private plane to be house guests of Mike Dean in his Bahama hideaway, Al.”
    It took him a full ten seconds to take it in. He licked his lips and his forehead started to sweat. “But… Good God, we were all set. Burgeson has their proxies.”
    “Which won’t be worth a damn if they sign new ones.”
    “They can’t do that to us. They’ve got to be stopped!” His voice was getting shrill.
    “Listen, Al. We can’t stop them. I’ve talked to Louise. They’re going.”
    He looked ashen and I saw the signs of his starting to crumble, so I added quickly, “But I’m going along with them. By self-invitation. Dean couldn’t refuse because he knows how fishy that would look. I think I can spoil the party.”
    “Do you really think so?”
    “I talked to Louise for over an hour this morning. She’s ready to jump either way. Whichever way she jumps, Tommy will jump. I think when the chips are down, she’s still on our side.”
    I didn’t feel as confident as I sounded. “How… how long will you be gone?” he asked.
    “I don’t know. Four or five days, I’d guess.”
    “I thought we’d fought him to a standstill, Sam.”
    “Nothing has changed yet.”
    He took a deep breath and let it out. “Tommy doesn’t need it, of course; but having no dividends coming in pinches Louise. Tom used to make such a ceremony of giving them the checks himself. Sam, maybe at the June first meeting we could… plan to vote say fifty cents a share. You could let her know we plan to do that.”
    “Al, I think it would be dead wrong to try to buy her. She’d get twenty-five thousand and it would cost us two hundred and twenty thousand we can’t spare. If we can’t sell our planning on its merits, then it’s no damn good. And that two hundred and twenty thousand might be the difference between eventually getting healthy and never quite making it.”
    He sighed again. “You’re right. I know you’re right.” He looked at me with a savage expression. “That man is a devil, Sam. And he always gets just what he wants.”
    “Not every time, Al. He misses plenty of times. But his press agents don’t mention those times. They want him to be a symbol of infallibility, so the opposition feels licked before the first round starts. I’m not worried yet, Al.” I hoped my confident smile didn’t look too