calmly. ‘It is absolutely possible for you to have Mr Edwards’ job this time next year, I’ll be very glad to help you towards that if you like. I have a little experience in this sort of thing.’
Sara stared at her, not knowing what to say.
‘Miss Gray, I’m going for my lunch now, but can I suggest you do something while I’m gone? Can you telephone one or two of the people on the list of references I gave you? You will notice they are all women; I’ve never worked for men. Ask any one of them whether she thinks it’s a good idea to trust me to help. Then perhaps you might add that you will keep all this very much in confidence . . .’
‘Eve,’ interrupted Sara, her good-natured face looking puzzled, ‘Eve, honestly, this sounds like the mafia or something. I’m not into power struggles, and office back-stabbing . . . I’m just delighted to have someone as bright and helpful as you in the office . . . I don’t want to start a war.’
‘Who said anything about a war, Miss Gray? It’s very subtle, and very gradual and – honestly the best thing is to telephone anyone on that list, it’s there in the file marked Personal.’
‘But won’t they think it rather odd. I mean, I can’t ring up and ask them what do they think of Evetrying to knock Mr Edwards sideways so that I can get his job.’ Sara sounded very distressed.
‘Miss Gray, I have worked in five jobs, for five women, I chose them, they thought they chose me. At the very beginning I told them how a good assistant could help them get where they wanted. Not one of them believed me, I managed in a conversation like this to convince them to let me.’
‘And . . . what happened?’ asked Sara.
‘Ask them, Miss Gray,’ replied Eve, gathering her gloves and bag.
They won’t think I’m er . . .’
‘No, all of them – except the first one, of course – rang someone else to check things out too.’ Eve was gone.
Sara wondered.
You often heard of women becoming a bit strange, perhaps Eve was a bit odd. Far too young to be menopausal or anything, heavens Eve wasn’t even thirty, but it did seem an odd sort of thing to suggest after two days.
Was there a wild possibility that she might have had a secret vendetta for years against Garry Edwards, the plausible head of promotions, who indeed did not deserve his job, his title, his salary or his influence, since all of these had been made possible only by Sara’s devoted work?
Sara reached for the phone.
‘Sure I know Eve,’ said the pleasant Americanwoman in the big banking group. ‘You are so lucky, Sara, to have her. I offered her any money to stay but she wouldn’t hear of it. She said her job was done. She acts a bit like Superman or the Lone Ranger, she comes in and solves a problem and then sort of zooms off. A really incredible woman.’
‘Can I . . . er . . . ask you what problem she . . . er . . .’ Sara felt very embarrassed.
‘Sure. I wanted to be loans manager, they didn’t take me seriously. Eve showed me how they would, and they did, and now I’m loans manager.’
‘Heavens,’ said Sara. ‘It’s a teeny bit like that here.’
‘Well naturally it is, otherwise Eve wouldn’t have picked you,’ said the loans manager of a distant bank.
‘And how did she . . . um . . . do it?’ persisted Sara.
‘Now this is where I become a little vague,’ the pleasant voice said. ‘It’s simply impossible to explain. In my case there was a whole lot of stuff about my not getting to meet the right people in the bank. Eve noticed that, she got me to play golf.’
‘
Golf?
’ screamed Sara.
‘I know, I know, I guess I shouldn’t even have told you that much . . . listen, the point is that Eve can see with uncanny vision where women hold themselves back, and work within the system without playing the system properly so – she kinda points out where the system could work for us, and honestly honey, it worked for me, and it sure as hell worked for the woman who
Sara stared at her, not knowing what to say.
‘Miss Gray, I’m going for my lunch now, but can I suggest you do something while I’m gone? Can you telephone one or two of the people on the list of references I gave you? You will notice they are all women; I’ve never worked for men. Ask any one of them whether she thinks it’s a good idea to trust me to help. Then perhaps you might add that you will keep all this very much in confidence . . .’
‘Eve,’ interrupted Sara, her good-natured face looking puzzled, ‘Eve, honestly, this sounds like the mafia or something. I’m not into power struggles, and office back-stabbing . . . I’m just delighted to have someone as bright and helpful as you in the office . . . I don’t want to start a war.’
‘Who said anything about a war, Miss Gray? It’s very subtle, and very gradual and – honestly the best thing is to telephone anyone on that list, it’s there in the file marked Personal.’
‘But won’t they think it rather odd. I mean, I can’t ring up and ask them what do they think of Evetrying to knock Mr Edwards sideways so that I can get his job.’ Sara sounded very distressed.
‘Miss Gray, I have worked in five jobs, for five women, I chose them, they thought they chose me. At the very beginning I told them how a good assistant could help them get where they wanted. Not one of them believed me, I managed in a conversation like this to convince them to let me.’
‘And . . . what happened?’ asked Sara.
‘Ask them, Miss Gray,’ replied Eve, gathering her gloves and bag.
They won’t think I’m er . . .’
‘No, all of them – except the first one, of course – rang someone else to check things out too.’ Eve was gone.
Sara wondered.
You often heard of women becoming a bit strange, perhaps Eve was a bit odd. Far too young to be menopausal or anything, heavens Eve wasn’t even thirty, but it did seem an odd sort of thing to suggest after two days.
Was there a wild possibility that she might have had a secret vendetta for years against Garry Edwards, the plausible head of promotions, who indeed did not deserve his job, his title, his salary or his influence, since all of these had been made possible only by Sara’s devoted work?
Sara reached for the phone.
‘Sure I know Eve,’ said the pleasant Americanwoman in the big banking group. ‘You are so lucky, Sara, to have her. I offered her any money to stay but she wouldn’t hear of it. She said her job was done. She acts a bit like Superman or the Lone Ranger, she comes in and solves a problem and then sort of zooms off. A really incredible woman.’
‘Can I . . . er . . . ask you what problem she . . . er . . .’ Sara felt very embarrassed.
‘Sure. I wanted to be loans manager, they didn’t take me seriously. Eve showed me how they would, and they did, and now I’m loans manager.’
‘Heavens,’ said Sara. ‘It’s a teeny bit like that here.’
‘Well naturally it is, otherwise Eve wouldn’t have picked you,’ said the loans manager of a distant bank.
‘And how did she . . . um . . . do it?’ persisted Sara.
‘Now this is where I become a little vague,’ the pleasant voice said. ‘It’s simply impossible to explain. In my case there was a whole lot of stuff about my not getting to meet the right people in the bank. Eve noticed that, she got me to play golf.’
‘
Golf?
’ screamed Sara.
‘I know, I know, I guess I shouldn’t even have told you that much . . . listen, the point is that Eve can see with uncanny vision where women hold themselves back, and work within the system without playing the system properly so – she kinda points out where the system could work for us, and honestly honey, it worked for me, and it sure as hell worked for the woman who
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