Page 6 of Mountain Freedom
“You won’t get away with this,” I said. Tears spilled uncontrollably, just like I had been afraid they would—only instead of anxiety about public speaking, I was facing a different fear entirely.
“I have, and I will,” he said, leaning forward as his face took on a hardness I’d never seen before. “You’ve got the rest of the day to decide. You want the job? It’s yours. You can come back here and start earning it any time you want.” His eyes raked over my body. “Look at that get-up. Pencil skirt and heels? That silk button-down just begging to be ripped open? You knew what you were coming here for.”
He grinned again, relaxing. “Play the part of righteous indignation first, if your conscience demands it. But be aware, I won’t wait long. As I said, I have a long list of candidates.” He glanced at his watch. “You have until six to decide. My receptionist will let you back in whenever you’re ready. Until then, I have things to do. Unless you’ve made your decision?” He raised his eyebrows suggestively.
“Oh, I’ve made my decision alright.” I grabbed my bag and strode out the door with the echo of his laughter ringing in my ears.
His receptionist gave me a look of empathy as I stormed out and headed straight for the elevator I’d come in on. I pushed the button for the ground floor and let out a sob when the door finally closed, leaving me alone to process what had just happened.
I couldn’t believe it. It was the story of my life. No matter how hard I worked or what I did, one man could always take every bit of it away from me.
I walkedinto the townhouse I shared with three roommates, dropped my bag, and kicked off my heels. I leaned against the door, then slid straight down onto the floor, pulling out my cell phone to call my boyfriend, Mike.
“Are congratulations in order?” His deep voice instantly comforted me.
“No. Not at all.” My voice broke again.
“What happened?” His tone became clipped.
“The interview didn’t go well,” I said before breaking out into a bitter laugh. “To say the least.”
“Ah.”
Silence echoed through the lines. I closed my eyes, wondering how on earth I could possibly explain to him what had just happened. I was so ashamed, even though I had done nothing wrong.
He cleared his throat and spoke again. “I’m sorry you had a rough time of it. But you got it over with and he’ll probably leave you alone now. From what I’ve heard, it’s just the once, and then he moves on. He has an endless supply of fresh meat.”
My eyes popped open. “Wait. What? Youknew?”
“Everyone knows.” He sounded incredulous.
“I didn’t,” I said, shaking my head. “I had no idea what I was walking into.”
“What did you think everyone was talking about when they said you had to jump through hoops to get a job from him?” He seemed genuinely dumbfounded.
“Tough interview questions?” I answered, feeling stupid.
He chuckled. “Oh, Allison. You’re so innocent. Well, at least it’s over now, right? Just try to forget about it. Focus on your future.”
“Oh, it’s over. I said no, Mike. I didn’t get the job.”
His voice dropped to an angry whisper. “You said no? Nobody says no to Dr. Barkley. He can ruin your future—ourfuture.”
“Yes, he made that clear,” I said as new tears filled my eyes. How on earth could Mike have thought I would do something like that? How could he havewantedme to? “I threatened to report him and he said he would make me unhireable if I did.”
“You made a mistake.”
“A mistake?” My voice rose. “How can you even say that? Forget the fact that I’m yourgirlfriend. What he wanted is wrong. Offensive. Unethical.Illegal. Should I keep going?”
“Allison, all it takes is one phone call and you won’t work in this city. What kind of future are we going to have if we can’t even get jobs in the same place? Why not call him back? It’s just one afternoon. Think of it as one last hurdle to jump through, like boards but less stressful. Maybe even a little fun, right?”
I wanted to throw the phone across the room. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”
“I’m just saying, if you’re worried about the fact that we’re dating, don’t. I understand. We all have to do what we have to do, right?”
“It’s not right,” I said, shaking my head. “We deserve jobs because of who we are and the work we’ve done. Not because of what we’re willing to do. This is wrong on a thousand levels. Surely you know that.”
“Of course I know that.” His voice was cold. “But this is the way it is. If you don’t play the game, someone else will.”
