Page 2 of The Hacker
Alice obediently lay down on the foam mat, and Dawn gently pushed her friend’s bent knee across her body. Alice made a little groaning sound before she asked, “Who’s the new trainer over at the ellipticals?”
Dawn glanced up at the muscle-bound blond man in his late twenties. He was berating a sweaty, middle-aged client with a paunch to leave it all on the gym floor. “That’s Chad, the former high school quarterback and new favorite of all the ex-jocks and wannabe ex-jocks. He’s got that whole ‘no pain, no gain’ vibe going.”
“You’re not a fan,” Alice said.
In fact, Dawn had turned down several invitations to go out for drinks with the new trainer. The man couldn’t take no for an answer, so now she actively avoided him. “I prefer to find other ways to motivate my clients to work harder.”
“Like reminding them they will be wearing a wedding dress in six months.”
“You pushed out those last five reps like a champion, didn’t you?” Dawn moved to Alice’s other side. “Why are you even looking at other guys with a fiancé like yours?”
“I’m not looking at themthatway. I’m interested in the people you work with because you’re my friend.”
Dawn grunted, but the happy warmth returned to her chest. Alice was good about showing her that friendship went both ways. Dawn struggled to remember that sometimes.
“Which reminds me ... I wasn’t kidding about Leland.”
Dawn pressed her friend’s shoulder to the floor. “I’m pretty sure the gym’s tech budget isn’t up to paying KRG Consulting’s fees.”
“He’ll do it for free,” Alice said. “Don’t you remember that’s how I first contacted Derek? He started their Small Business Initiative, KRG’s program that offers complimentary assistance to businesspeople like me and Ramón who don’t have the extra resources to solve problems. I was trying to figure out what was wrong with the accounting software my clients were using.”
“I’d forgotten the part about it being free.” Dawn hated to ask for help from anyone, but this wasn’t for herself. It was for Ramón. He had pulled her back from the brink. “Yeah, maybe ask Leland if he has someone who could look into it.” Because she couldn’t imagine the gym’s issue needed the kind of genius Leland was.
“As soon as you’re done tormenting me,” Alice said with a grin.
Two hours later, Dawn stood at her kitchen counter, eating organic Greek yogurt, when an email from KRG Consulting popped up on her phone. “That was fast,” she muttered, putting down her spoon to swipe into the message.
“Shit!” she said when she glanced at the signature.
It was from Leland Rockwell himself. She glanced at the display on her microwave: 9:35 p.m. Alice had said something about the man being a workaholic, but Dawn’s problem wasn’t exactly a high priority for KRG.
Dear Ms. Galioto,
I understand the gym where you are employed is suffering from issues with Wi-Fi performance. I would be happy to help. Perhaps it would be easiest to put me in touch with the person responsible for the computer systems. I will, of course, keep you in the loop as to my progress on the project.
Regards,
Leland Rockwell
Should she answer him tonight? She supposed it wouldn’t hurt since he could always read it in the morning if he’d sent it right as he was leaving.
She plunked down on a wooden barstool and frowned at her phone. What kind of response should she make to the founding partner of an international consulting firm? Brief, so she wouldn’t betray the fact that she wasn’t accustomed to business correspondence at such a high level.
Dear Mr. Rockwell,
I will speak with Mr. Ramón Vazquez, the owner of Work It Out, tomorrow and let him know of your kind offer. Thank you very much for your assistance.
Sincerely,
Dawn Galioto
She read it over half a dozen times, debating whether her wording was too stiff, too obsequious, not appreciative enough, or too vague. Finally she hit “send.” When his return email dinged into her phone, she took a deep breath before she swiped it open.
Dear Ms. Galioto,
I look forward to hearing from you.
Regards,
