Scott Winslow Legal Mysteries

Chapter 3-1

Marty took the elevator up two floors, turned left as he exited the hallway and walked towards the receptionist. “He"s waiting for you,” she said, only partially looking up from her monitor.

“Thanks,” Marty replied and opened the door behind her. He walked down the corridor to the corner office occupied by Sean Garner, the corporate security guru. He gave a knock next to the open door and Garner looked up from his desk. “Come in, Marty. Thanks for coming by.”

“Hi, Sean. What"s going on?” Marty asked, wanting to cut to the chase and figure out why he had been summoned here. Seldom did Marty see Garner outside senior management meetings.

“Take a seat, Marty. Do you want some coffee?”

“No, I"m good, thanks.” Marty was quiet. This was Garner"s party, so he could fill the silence when he was ready.

“Mr. Cook is a little concerned, Marty. He asked me to reach out to you.”

“Reach out? Does he believe that I am in some kind of trouble?”

Garner smiled. “In a manner of speaking, I suppose.”

“A little vague, Sean. What"s on his mind that required this meeting?”

“I think you know. There is some concern that you may be attempting to undermine the release of Delexane.”

Marty stared at him in disbelief. “Undermine?” he asked. “Is undermining the same thing as voicing concerns that the tests no longer support the information the company is releasing?”

Garner gave him a stern look. “Obviously, Mr. Cook doesn"t see it that way. He believes that the results you refer to are just an anomaly, and we are on the threshold of changing cancer treatment and the way the world looks at cancer. You must admit, that"s a pretty big moment.”

“That moment will be wonderful, Sean. We just aren"t there yet with this product.” He was quiet for a moment, feeling frustrated at the message not being communicated. “Is there something else that you want to tell me?” Marty asked.

“Only the obvious.”

“Which is?”

“You"ve been a part of corporate culture for a long time, Marty. You know that it is extremely important to be a team player at critical times.”

“I"ve always considered myself exactly that and I still do,” Marty replied. “That"s what I am when I"m working hard to test a product, when I"m singing a product"s praises, and when I"m raising concerns about a product not being everything that we hoped it would be.”

It was Garner"s turn to remain quiet. After a time, he said, “Mr. Cook just wanted to make sure you understood the importance of this product to the company and to the consumer,” Garner offered. He leaned forward in his chair. “This is revolutionary, Marty. So far, no other company is where we are in releasing such a product.”

“Sean, I"ve been dealing with this product since before testing. I know what it represents and what it can be for the company. I also understand how important it is to the public that we get it right.”

Garner offered a grin that was not particularly friendly and then said, “Thanks for coming by, Marty. I"m glad that we had this opportunity to talk.”

“Sure,” Marty replied. “Anytime.” When he reached the door, he turned back and said, “You know, Sean, I hope Mr. Cook understands that having concerns about the quality of the product we are about to turn loose on society doesn"t equate to disloyalty.”

Garner furrowed his brow. “It can be a concern when your actions appear to undermine the direction that the team is taking. I will relay our conversation and your position to Mr. Cook,” Garner replied, turning his attention back to his computer. Marty stood for a moment, wanting to find a way to further express his genuine concern. Garner never looked back at him, so he turned and walked out of the office.

When he arrived back at his office, Marty was shaking. He was nervous and he was angry at the way Cook was painting him. Marty grabbed his phone and punched in Justin"s number.

“Justin Palmer.”

“Justin, this is Marty. You won"t believe what just happened.”

“Yes, I will. My first guess is that you got a request to drop what you were doing and visit with Sean Garner.”

“You too?”

“Yeah, about an hour ago.”

“And?” Marty asked, “How did it affect your perspective?”

“I"m really not much for intimidation tactics. I"ve been pissed off ever since that meeting. I told him that I disagree with his assessment and I wanted to tell him and Cook to go f**k themselves.”

“We probably shouldn"t do that, but I can relate.” Marty paused and then asked, “So, do you want to move forward with the letter to Cook?”

“More than ever.”

“Okay, I finalized the letter. I"ve already signed it. Do you want to stop by my office and add your signature?”

“Yeah. Let"s deliver it first thing in the morning.”

“Consider it done.” Marty said. When he hung up, he stared out the window, considering what this game of chicken with his career might cause. Maybe Cook could be persuaded to see the significance of the new findings. Perhaps he would agree to further studies before the product was released. That would be a compromise that would work for everyone.

* * *

The cars remaining on the third floor of the parking structure were a scattered few as Marty walked towards his, where Justin waited, leaning on the driver"s door with a concerned expression. “Did you send the letter?” he asked.

“As a matter of fact, I delivered it to Cook"s personal assistant just before 9:00 a.m.”

“No response?”

“Not a word from anyone all day. I kept staring at the phone, expecting to be summoned.”

“How do we know that he read it yet?” Justin asked.

“I guess we don"t, but it seems like he would give it his immediate attention, not knowing how soon we planned to go to the FDA. My guess is that he read it and he is considering his options.”

Justin was quiet for a moment, and then replied. “I guess we are committed now, wherever this leads.”

Marty nodded slowly, sharing the uncomfortable realization that sides had been chosen. “We have crossed a line and I am not sure there is any way back. I have an uncomfortable foreboding about what lies ahead, my friend.”

* * *

The lights of the executive suite far above city streets were still burning. Roland Cook poured two glasses of bourbon at the bar near his desk and walked over to the conversation area on the far side of the office with sleeves rolled up and tie loosened around his neck. He handed his visitor one of the glasses.

“Thank you,” Sean Garner replied, taking a sip of the bourbon. He studied Cook for a moment without speaking. He had seen those eyes angry before. This meeting was not going to be about good news. “What"s happening, boss?” he asked as Cook sat down in one of the armchairs.

“Read that,” Cook replied, pointing to the letter he had received from Marty Cardenas and Justin Palmer earlier in the day.

Garner took a few minutes to read the letter demanding that Cook make corrections to the published data concerning the trials of Delexane, referring to the lower positive results of the phase three study and the newly discovered side effects. “What are you going to do?” Garner asked with concern.

He narrowed his eyes as he said, “No one blackmails me, Sean. These guys have forgotten who they are. They do not get to decide what happens with our new discoveries,” he said angrily. He paused and then added, “We have a revolutionary d**g on the immediate horizon. Something that will change the way people look at cancer forever. I will not let disloyal employees cast doubt on the product or substitute their judgment for mine.”

“I understand, sir.” Garner said, nodding. He waited to see if Cook would add more. When he said nothing further Garner asked, “What would you like me to do?”

“They will each get a written response from me in the morning, telling them that their input is appreciated and will be given full consideration.” He savored a sip of the bourbon and then added, “Both are in the same meeting at 8:30 a.m. When they return to their offices, my letter will be waiting for them. It will make it hard for them to claim that we are not considering their position.”

“Yes, sir. I understand.”

“They will no longer have data and email access in the morning. As soon as they return from their meeting, they will be asked to meet with me at 11:00 a.m. and 11:15 a.m., when they will be terminated. I want you to personally walk them out of the building to make sure that they don"t take or access anything that belongs to the Company.”

Sean Garner nodded, swirling the ice in his glass. He was a little shocked at how fast the decision had been made to fire them, but he wasn"t about to make his reaction known. He took a drink and then said, “I"ll also check around after they leave and make sure nothing has been disturbed.”

“Good. That will be fine, Sean.” After a moment, Cook added, “I appreciate you coming by tonight.”

Garner realized that he had just heard the signal that the meeting was over. He took one more sip and said, “Good bourbon,” as he stood to leave.

Cook nodded. “I"m glad you have an appreciation for the good stuff; I see more of it in your future, Sean. Have a good evening.”

* * *

Justin carried a box to the elevator. Co-workers tried not to be seen watching him being escorted out of the building with desk and wall pictures, two coffee mugs, a light jacket and a couple of souvenir paperweights — everything that had converted a generic office into his home away from home. Years of belonging to a company and a purpose, undone in an instant. As they reached the elevator, Sean Garner looked at him and said, “I"m sorry I had to walk you out, Justin. No hard feelings.” Justin gave him a nod as they boarded the elevator without any further discussion. This was really it, he told himself as the elevator moved towards the ground floor. He felt anger growing inside him. There would be an announcement that the National Sales Manager is "no longer with us" and his staff would wonder what had happened for a few days. Then he would be replaced and forgotten, just like that.

As Justin stepped from the elevator in the lobby, the words that Cook had spoken echoed in his head. “Justin, it"s not working out and we have decided to go in a different leadership direction.” Just like that. It was the end of a career in a matter of seconds. He turned to Sean Garner and asked, “Are we okay here or do you plan on seeing me all the way home?”