Elliot

Mira: Because she has a second job and can't afford a private tutor, so I offered to help.

Me: For free?

The concept makes no sense to me. Who works late at night on top of a full-time job solely to support someone else?

Mira: Of course. She needs the money more than I do, and I like helping out.

Me: But why does she need a second job? We have a free cafeteria, and they offer us low-cost housing.

I thought measures like those were implemented specifically to help lower the cost of living.

Mira: Not everyone can survive on the pathetic salary we get at Wondervale.

There is that heartburn again, gradually spreading through my chest.

Am I starting to care about other people or something?

I swallow uneasily.

Mira: But we manage.

I reply before I lose my nerve.

Me: If Wondervale employees were unhappy with their income, they would quit, wouldn't they?

Mira: They could. I wouldn't blame them.

Oh. Really? Our annual employee surveys always report high satisfaction rates.

Mira: But a lot of us love our jobs here. Many of us even have parents who work for Wondervale too.

Me: Like you.

Mira: Exactly!

Mira adds a heart to the message. That is new, and it makes me smile.

You're ridiculous for obsessing over little things like that.

Me: Hard to forget the ukulele-and-Elvis-obsessed family that works here.

Mira: It's nice that you remember the little details.

Me: Remembering that kind of information is normal, you know.

Mira: I'm not really sure what is and isn't normal anymore.

The burning sensation in my chest grows increasingly uncomfortable. I want to do something, but I do not know what. I see only one way to cheer her up: humor.

Me: Who hurt you? Do we need to find their IP address?

Mira: Ha ha, very funny. Are you planning to take up hacking?

Me: For you, I'd consider it.

And I truly mean it.

I have always taken pride in my ability to set my emotions aside when it comes to business. Developing that skill required a great deal of effort, and I have perfected it over the years. For example, I was the first to suggest laying off ten percent of Vale Company's staff when our business lost millions after two bad movies in a row. I am known for being demanding and cold: I make employees work on Christmas Eve just as readily as I alter our health-insurance plans to reduce expenses. Neither the employees' shouting nor their complaints could persuade me to change my mind.

Despite all that training, Mira got to me. The calm way she discussed her coworkers' finances genuinely affected me. Her words linger in the back of my mind whenever I meet with the park's employees.

Diane is the final straw.

"Why do you need to work at the bar?" I ask, staring her down. "Don't we pay you enough as a secretary?"

Her smile wavers along with her ankle, which desperately needs surgery.

"Yes, of course."

"Don't lie, Diane. I thought you and I had a connection."

I even let her go home early last week!

"Sir, our connection is weaker than the public library's Wi-Fi."

Good God. Does she go to the library to use the internet? That is almost as sad as the old sneakers she wears to commute before changing into her professional shoes once she reaches the office.

Her big toe poking through the hole in the front of her sneaker disgusts me.

"Why do you have a second job?"

Diane nibbles her lower lip, looking embarrassed.

"Don't make me repeat myself."

"My husband has a heart condition, and his monthly treatment costs more than a mortgage payment."

"Then why doesn't your insurance cover it?"

The glare she gives me turns my blood cold. She has always been respectful and gentle in my presence, but her eyes are shooting sparks. Luckily, I am tough.

"Under the company's health-insurance plan, our out-of-pocket costs are completely beyond our budget."

"You don't think your salary is high enough."

"No. Some months are harder than others. With the holidays coming..."

She trails off.

I picture Mira's tiny ice pick hammering at my frozen heart with the force of a jackhammer.

"Follow me."

I return to my office. Diane, meanwhile, limps slowly behind me as usual.

"Sit down."

I take my seat. Her eyes move back and forth between me and the large clock in the corner of the room.

"I don't mean to be rude, but I can't be late for my other job. Every hour matters to someone like me. I don't earn as much as the young people do."

That last comment ages her by a decade.

I heave a sigh, making my assistant grimace.

"Give me a little of your time. How long has your husband had this heart condition?"

"He was diagnosed when he was forty-five, after our grandchild died suddenly."

Good God. A grandchild?

"The stress overwhelmed him. Instead of attending our grandson's funeral, he was recovering in the hospital. He never got over it."

Tears fill her eyes, but she does not cry.

Diane works late at night on her fragile ankle because I do not pay her enough. I am not okay with that. It is my fault she cannot afford what she and her husband need.

Cutting company expenses isn't so satisfying now, is it?

It is suddenly very warm. Unable to think of anything but a temporary solution, I draft an email to Wondervale's chief financial officer asking him to award my secretary a bonus.

"What are you doing?" she whispers.

I turn the screen so she can read my email.

"Consider it your Christmas bonus."

"But it's October."

When she settles her glasses on her nose, Diane lets out a small cry of surprise... then faints.

Shit. This is why I never do anything generous.

After those conversations with Mira and Diane, I am eager to learn more about the park's hidden problems. As I consider my employees' everyday difficulties, I feel as though something is haunting me, making it hard to sleep at night. Health insurance, retirement funds, savings accounts... It is as though powerful waves keep striking me, and my guilt continues to rise until I can barely keep my head above water.

I think my grandfather would want me to explore these issues. He cared about his employees as though they were family, and even if I cannot understand that feeling, I can pretend for the sake of the vote.

So this morning, I decided to follow my instincts: I am going to tell Mira the truth. It is time to talk to her about my concerns, and I need to do it as Elliot, the man with the power to act, rather than Grant, the solitary idiot who has no influence in this company and does not particularly care about it anyway. If there is one person who will be honest with me about the employees, it is her.

As I approach her workspace, I discover she is absent. A heavy sigh immediately escapes me. Tessa's office is only a few steps away.

"Where is Mira?"

Seated in front of her computer, the creators' manager looks up at me.

"She's scouting. You know, out in the field."

"Oh, do we have a football team now?"

She gives me one of her rare smiles.

"She asked me for a slightly different kind of workday, and I'm intrigued to see what inspiration she draws from it."

"What kind of day?"

"She's exploring the park as a guest and taking notes."

"A guest," I repeat.

Her cheeks suddenly pink, Tessa studies me as though trying to predict my reaction.

"I think her idea is brilliant, and I plan to do it with the rest of the team too. Unfortunately, some of them are reluctant to sacrifice one of their unpaid days off."

Interesting... Why didn't I think of that? A fresh look at the park might well revive their creativity. I clear my throat.

"You can consider the exercise a paid day off, courtesy of the company."

"Really?" she asks in surprise. "We haven't had one of those in years."

Another thing you're responsible for! You really are a heartless bastard.

As I leave Tessa's office, I send Mira a personal message. I tell myself it is only for work, that I merely want to discuss salaries, health insurance, and the other problems I have only made worse over the years.

Except a small voice in my head whispers that I am only lying.