“So you’re not the decision-maker?” Vanessa started typing away.
“No, I’m one of the partners and I was the first one available for an interview, so here we are. But I didn’t interview any of the complainants. I didn’t even know one interviewed and I wasn’t aware of them at all, until the Complaint arrived at our offices the other day.”
“Okay, thank you very much.” Vanessa started typing away, but continued speaking. “Then we can explore hiring practices in general at your firm.”
“I’m happy to do that.”
Roger cleared his throat. “Vanessa, before we do, I’d like to discuss something with you, also informally. I know you have a mediation program here and settlement is favored by the Commission, where appropriate.”
“Yes, that’s quite right.” Vanessa stopped typing. “Is settlement something you want to explore, even before the interview?”
“Yes, as a matter of fact, it is. First, if I may, I’d like to clarify a few points.”
“Go ahead.” Vanessa leaned away from the laptop, linking her hands in front of her.
“I’ve reviewed the file, and correct me if I’m wrong, but Messrs. Battle, Madden, and McManus are currently employed. Is that correct?”
“Yes.” Vanessa nodded pleasantly.
“A typical defendant, in a matter like this, might look at a Complaint from plaintiffs in that posture as failing for lack of damages. By that I mean to say, even assuming that the Rosato & DiNunzio firm failed to hire them because of their gender, which we deny, they incurred no monetary damages as a result of that failure to hire.”
“That’s true.” Vanessa’s eyes narrowed. “However, we at the Commission would generally not deny investigation of a Complaint because it may not have resulted in monetary damages.”
“Of course, nor would I expect you to, as a citizen.” Roger spread his hands, palms up, his tone reasonable and calm.
“So why do you bring up the damages question, if you don’t think the Complaint should be denied because of its deficiency?”
“Because it makes this case unique.”
“That’s true too. The case is also unique for its allegations, since we don’t get many reverse-discrimination cases.”
“Quite right. I could find very few in my research.” Roger straightened in his chair. “But the damages question got us thinking about how we can settle this case. Settlement is typically a monetary amount, a compromise determined by what the plaintiff lost as a result of the unlawful act.”
“So what are you prepared to offer?” Vanessa turned to Mary. “Or what are you prepared to offer, as a principal of the firm? If you don’t mind answering directly.”
“In our view, since the plaintiffs haven’t incurred any financial damages, they don’t need to be made whole financially. We decided to make a wonderful settlement offer to these plaintiffs.”
“Which is?” Vanessa asked, impatient.
“We’d like to offer all three of them jobs at Rosato and DiNunzio.”
“What?” Vanessa’s eyes flared in surprise.
“We’d like to hire them, as associates. Their records are excellent, and we need to hire qualified associates. We don’t discriminate against men and we would like the opportunity to prove as much.”
“Really?” Vanessa shifted forward, cocking her head with interest.
“It’s a win-win situation,” Mary said, with conviction, since it had been her idea. She hadn’t turned Zen, but she had taken a page from the real Niccolò Machiavelli’s book. His most famous saying was, Keep your friends close and your enemies closer.
“So you would offer them a job, full-time?”
“Yes, absolutely. In addition, if they felt some minor sum was justified for legal fees they have paid, we would reimburse them, as a sweetener.” Mary masked her annoyance at having to pay Machiavelli’s legal fees, but if it did him in, it would be her pleasure. “Bottom line, we would love to have them work for us and we hope that will settle this case.”
“Well, this is certainly unorthodox.” Vanessa smiled, surprised. “Most defendants never want to set eyes on the Complainant who sued them, ever again. The last thing they want is them on the premises.”
“I’m sure, but that’s not how we operate. The Complaint wasn’t filed that long ago, so it’s not as if we accumulated bad will, and certainly, we have a better perspective on life, after the loss we suffered as a firm.”
“I can see how that would be so.” Vanessa’s expression brightened. “I must say, I didn’t expect this at all. I expected something on the order of righteous indignation.”
“Oh, I could do that,” Mary said, with a smile.
Roger laughed. “Believe me, she could.”
Vanessa smiled back. “My, my, this is a game-changer.”
“I would think so.” Mary wanted to hammer the point home. “After all, we pay associates extremely well, and it’s what these three men wanted when they applied. It’s more than reasonable as a settlement offer, don’t you agree?”
“I must say, it’s impressive.”
“Will you recommend that they settle?”
“I have to discuss that with them before I discuss it with you. Regardless of any recommendation of mine, they are free to make any decision they wish. But I will certainly discuss this with plaintiff’s counsel, and it will be up to them to decide what they want to do.”
“Of course.” Mary put on her game face, gambling that Machiavelli wouldn’t out-Machiavelli them and instruct the three plaintiffs to accept the job offer, since she didn’t think he would do that, or they would accede. What she gained was a possible settlement of the reverse-discrimination case, having called his bluff by their offer. If Machiavelli refused such a reasonable settlement offer, the Commission would never go his way. Plus Mary got the added benefit of not revealing she was onto Machiavelli, not only with respect to his manufacturing the reverse-discrimination suit, but his owning Home Hacks in the London Technologies case. Because what she really wanted was to get Machiavelli on murder.
Vanessa returned to her laptop. “Mary, let’s complete the interview, just in case.”
“Of course,” Mary said, but she was already thinking about stage two of their plan.
Which went into effect right now.
CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN
After the interview, Mary and Bennie went to the Roundhouse, having called for a meeting with Detectives Krakoff and Marks, who listened and took notes while the two women explained how the reverse-discrimination case was manufactured by Machiavelli in order to eliminate John on the London Technologies case, and ultimately, why they believed that Machiavelli was responsible for John’s murder, whether he had killed him himself or hired someone to do it. They had decided not to mention the surveillance videotape while Judy’s legal fate was still in jeopardy, and it wasn’t a clear enough image of Machiavelli anyway, so it wasn’t their strongest evidence.
Mary handed Detective Krakoff the corporate registration for Home Hacks, ending her argument. “So that’s it, in a nutshell. We think you need to investigate Machiavelli for this murder.”
Bennie straightened her chair. “So Detectives, what do you say?”
“Thanks for coming in, ladies.” Detective Krakoff closed his pad, sliding the pen in the spiral on one end.
Mary didn’t hide her impatience. “What does that mean? Are you going to investigate Machiavelli?”
“Mary, we’ve been through this. I’m not about to divulge police business to you.”
Bennie interjected, “Detective, we would keep this absolutely confidential.”
Detective Krakoff frowned, eyeing Bennie. “Excuse me, but you weren’t here the more recent time that your partner Mary came in. You were here only the first time, when she had those dreadful labor pains. I’m not going to ask you if you took her to the doctor—”
“What does that have to do with anything?” Bennie shot back. “This isn’t about us, it’s about John Foxman.”