Screwed by Wall Street Pt. 01

Screwed by Wall Street - Part 1- Score: Wall Street 1, Joan 0

Chapter 1 - The End of the Line

Things were different six months ago. Bunkered down in a war room in Greenwich provided by a friendly hedge fund advisor, she had despondently watched the sudden end of the Calabrese family trucking enterprise. Chosen by her uncle, Anthony Calabrese, as his successor in the CEO slot, it was only after the hostile tender offer that she realized how naive she had been to assume her granduncle's family voting trust arrangement would ward off the vultures.

Over a period of weeks, she and her cousins and their lawyers had waged an all out counterattack. Ten million dollars later, everything had failed. She and other executors of the trust sat with their lawyers to hear the takeover terms.

She had said to the room, "We were dumb to think we could still have a family owned company, weren't we?"

No one responded, but their eyes told the story. They had been outmaneuvered the whole way by a group of experienced and determined raiders. Her cousin, Anthony Calabrese III, said, "Joan, you can't take this on your shoulders. We're all to blame. Even grandfather, who should have gotten better legal advice."

The new lawyers in the room didn't look happy, and wanted to get to the term sheet and its details.

The lead lawyer read off the bullets on the sheet before them. 50% cash, 50% in an interest bearing five year note. Twelve month's employment protection, except for Calabrese family members. First right of refusal to the family on any sales of any part of the company for five years. No sale or transfer of intellectual property without consent of the family for five years. Limits on debt ratio until the note is paid off. He droned on.

"I know it won't make you any happier, Joan, but these are very favorable terms for settlement of a hostile takeover. I didn't even bother to show you their first offer."

He continued, "I believe at first they were thinking of breakup value, but when they looked at how you have repositioned the company, especially in transmodal, and when they discovered your net is actually higher than you report, they've come around to seeing this as a going concern proposition. I suspect they conceded to our counteroffer to get the deal done and start pumping things up for a merger. That's something you might have ended up doing yourself."

There was a signature page for all five of the trustees. She stared at the finality of it. One piece of paper and her career, her ten years of hard work, her achievements in school, were all down the drain. She picked up the expensive pen, signed, and passed it to her cousin.

The papers were being stuffed into the lead's briefcase when he said, "They would like to invite you to be their guests at lunch."

She looked around the table. The others looked at her. She had just signed away her job.

"No."

He nodded and turned to leave.

"When do we have to be out of the building?"

"As soon as these papers are filed, you have twenty-four hours from that time."

Over. Just like that. She remembered how hard it had been not to cry as she went around the room, kissing and hugging her cousins. The tens of millions shortly to be in her bank account didn't measure up against her emotional attachment to the family, and to the hundreds of employees she had worked beside as she earned her uncle's trust and confidence.

Chapter 2 - At the Beach

She sat in her East Side apartment for days, letting the phone calls go on the machine. She had the maid stock the refrigerator and take a week off to visit her mother in Florida. She worked out in the bedroom she had converted to a gym. The computer and the television were off. One afternoon, she sat in the living room staring out her picture window at Central Park in the distance and told herself this would never do. She didn't take drugs, she didn't drink, she mostly didn't even have sex. She was a corporate workaholic. A toned, overly healthy workaholic who had to get reinvented somehow.

She picked up the phone and called her PA, who was temporarily still at the office overseeing the transition. "My, my," the reassuring voice of Patricia came back at her, "you are actually still alive. I was getting ready to go over there with my private key and find your overdosed body." The giggle had an edge to it.

"Damn it Pat, this sucks. There's something wrong with me that I can't even work up a deep depression and do myself in."

"Well, there's a bunch of people who are glad about that, including me! I don't suppose you have seen the papers lately?"

"No."

"You are famous. Here's a headline from yesterday's Journal. 'Highest ranking woman in trucking industry screwed by Wall Street.' "

"Wow."

"It's a damn good thing you and I kept that apartment completely under the radar. The press is all over me wanting to know where you are and when you will give an interview. By the way, the headhunters all want to talk to you too."

"How on earth are you handling the phone and getting us out of there at the same time?"

"You'll get a kick out of this. My sister and her roommate, who are starving Off Broadway, are here manning the phones. They are using their stage voices and making it up as they go along. Did you know that you have simultaneously gone on a vacation to Bali and an eco-tour to Antarctica and can't be reached under any conditions?"

"Can I ask you a personal question?"

"Sure, go ahead."

"My work life has depended on you for three years. How can I make sure you land where you would like to go next?"

"Funny you would ask. Roy wants to know the same thing. I have an idea. Why don't Roy and I kidnap you out of there and we'll go to his family place at Cape May for a long weekend. We can run on the beach and talk. Meg and Carol will hold the fort and cover for us."

"You're on. I'll talk to Tony the doorman about an exit. What if you are at the service entrance at 9 pm? By the way, what are you doing for money? Aren't all of our accounts frozen?"

"You won't believe this. The new CFO, whose name is Alex, came in the first day and stuffed a big roll of hundred dollar bills in my hand and said, 'Let me know if you need more while your new banking is established. Your boss is a wonderful woman.' "

"Oh my god. How am I going to keep hating those people?"

"Joan, there's a whole world of M&A that does takeovers every day. This is his third this year. You may feel like a victim, but this is just business to him."

"Oh, I don't want to hear that. I need to wallow in my loathing for takeover vultures."

"Go ahead. Scream. Shout. Go do 100 pushups. Just be ready for some party time by nine tonight."

"I don't have any booze, but I'll bring great snacks from here."

I called Tony after Pat hung up. He said, "It's nice to hear your voice. I was getting worried."

I said, "You remember that time you took me to the gym for boxing?"


"Sure do. My friends said they couldn't believe that was your first time."

"I need some punching exercise. Do you suppose you could bring the gloves and get loose for an hour this afternoon? We can't go to the gym, but I think there's enough space in my exercise room up here."

"Sure thing, I'll see you at three."

Tony was prompt. I had gotten into my workout clothes, and had on my padded bra that he had procured for me when we went boxing before. I had an impressive front when I answered the door.

"Lookin' good, Ms. Middleton." He smiled, reaching out and squeezing my breast. "Those pads are pretty nice. Just wish you were my girl and that was all you under there."

I glared at him and said, "Smartass. On top of the other things I've got on you, I'm adding sexual harassment." I smiled and hugged him. His father had been a semipro boxer and Tony knew the business from top to bottom. Before his dad could get his brain scrambled boxing, his mother had found him a job as a policeman, where he had almost enough years for early retirement. Tony was aiming higher and doing this doorman job as part of working his way through Columbia grad school.

We got along fine. He flirted with me continuously, telling me it wasn't right for a beautiful woman like me not to have a boyfriend. One day he said to me, "You aren't into girl-girl sex are you? I mean, it's none of my business, but if you like girls, then I shouldn't fun you about guys."

We stared at each other, then I walked over, put my arms around his neck and gave him a hard kiss on the mouth. "Tony, I haven't tried girl sex, but I don't think I'm into it. You want to have Gloria give me some advice?"

"No ma'am!" Tony's girlfriend and classmate was smart as a whip and modeled in her spare time.

"She told me once that the thing she didn't like about modeling was all the girls hitting on her."

In addition to her other charms, Gloria was a triathlete and a boxer. In fact, they had met at a gym.

Tony changed in the bathroom while I got my gloves on and spread the mats around. This was going to be fun.

Tony came in while I was bent over fixing the mat. He walked over and patted my butt. I straightened up, "Maybe I need to call Gloria to come over. Think you could handle the two of us, especially if we were administering punishment for your wandering hands?"

He put his hands in front of his face as he was pulling on the gloves. "No, no, save me from the Valkyries!"

"All right, here's the deal on this boxing. You know I got fired this week. I'm out of a job. I'm full of anger. I need some serious punching to get this out of my system. Pat and Roy are taking me away tonight to the beach and I need to be all cooled down by then."

Without waiting for me to finish, he landed a sharp jab on my shoulder and followed it up with another in my belly.

"No holds barred, lady?" he taunted me.

I charged him, hollering "You no good bastard, I'm going to clean your clock."

He dodged and landed a quick one to my kidneys that hurt. Then kicked my right leg out from under me and I went down hard. I came tearing up out of that and head butted him in the groin. Now he was on his ass on the mat.

We circled each other looking for an opening. He dropped his arms and I relaxed only to get his glove hard against the side of my head. Ouch. I went after him swinging wildly. We both knew he was letting me get as many punches in as he was landing on me. I was feeling good, sweating like a pig, swearing like a street woman, bouncing and jiving around.

He raised the level, landing harder, pushing me around the square of the mats. Another punch to the belly that I really felt. Then all of a sudden, he was all over me, punches everywhere, and I went down.

"Stupid cunt, think you can make it in a man's world, then get up here and fight!"

I flinched from that. Maybe he was right. I was in over my head. I got up and circled defensively. I tried to think like a fighter. He was smiling at me, waiting for a reaction to his putdown. Pow! I landed a good one right in his solar plexus and then another to his jaw that snapped his head back.

This wasn't fun. It was real boxing. I wanted a grudge match and he was giving it to me. I was going to be sore tomorrow, real sore.

"Five more minutes," he said. "You better give me your best."

I tried, I punched as fast and as hard as I could. He kept batting me away and counterpunching. I was stumbling and not keeping up. My eyes were full of sweat and finally I collapsed in his arms, sobbing.

After a minute, from behind me, a musical voice said, "Goddam, that was good work, Joan."

Standing in the doorway, gorgeous in a dark blue wool dress, was Gloria, a big smile on her face.

Tony whispered, "I figured she might be helpful when you told me you needed to get some shit out of your system."

"Hey, you two, in the shower." She herded us into my high tech shower and stripped everyone down, including herself. She even knew how to get the steam and four showerheads going at once.

I hugged her, "Oh my god, you are so nice to come around when I'm messed up like this."

She hugged me back, her soapy tits rubbing on mine. Tony was behind her, his cock nestled in the crack of her muscular ass. She reached behind and squeezed him until he yelped. "Owww."

"Tony tells me you're curious about girl sex. Are you ready for a lesson?" She kissed me and plunged her fingers into my pussy.

"Oh damn, that feels nice. I was only kidding around with Tony, but please don't stop that."

I couldn't say anything more because Gloria was frenching me fiercely. Her fingers were dancing around inside and outside my sex, and I was panting. In the middle of this, Gloria shook and let out a major grunt. She said in my ear, "I didn't tell him he could do me in here, but you know how men get."

Tony was pushing her shoulders down so he could get a better angle. Her mouth ended up next to my breast and she latched on. Tony was muttering, "Oh man, oh man, I'm gonna come."

I reached around and cradled her tits in my hands, kneading and pinching two glorious globes that pointed floorward from their owner's chest. She was shaking and then shouting as Tony climaxed in her.

Her fingers still beat a tattoo on my clit and I came too, shuddering and howling.

I reached out and brought the steam and firehoses to an end. The three of us hugged each other, smiling and panting.

I asked, "Do you finish every workout like this?"

Gloria stuck her finger in my mouth and said, "Don't I wish."

She turned around and asked Tony, "Honey, why didn't you tell me you were so needy?"

Her sarcasm wasn't hidden. He replied, "If you hadn't been diddling Joan, and the two of you going at it, maybe I could have held back."

I hugged him and rubbed fronts with him. "Hey," said Gloria, "He has a rule, no fucking the tenants or I'm out of here!" She smiled at me and pinched my nipple hard.

We wrapped towels around ourselves and went into the kitchen. I pointed Tony to the fridge and told him there was wine and beer in it. I had a sudden idea and picked up the phone. Pat answered on the first ring and I asked, "Is there room in your car for Tony and Gloria?"

After a moment, she came back to the phone and said, "It will be tight, but sure, they'd be welcome."

I said, "OK, let me arrange things here and confirm with you in a few minutes."

Turning to my showermates, I said, "I'd like to talk to the four of you about something that's just forming in my poor addled brain. Can you get away for the weekend to come down to Cape May with Pat and Roy and me?"

Gloria turned to Tony, "Maybe your brother will take your shifts on Saturday and Sunday. I can take my Econ homework with me."

I opened my purse lying on the counter and extracted two hundred dollar bills. "See if this will give him some incentive. He's a starving actor, right?"

Tony was already on the phone and nodded. "Hey bro, something's come up and I need you to stand in for me. There's a couple hundred extra on top of the wages for you."

I gave them the keys to my SUV in the garage so they could collect some things and get back by nine.

Dressing, I wondered if my scheme would work. You may be unemployed, I said to myself, but you need your best negotiating skills for this new idea.

Right at nine, Tony waved Roy into the back alley, where Gloria had me hiding in the service door alcove while she kept an eye out for any unnecessary attention.

In an hour, with Roy at the limit on the southbound Garden State Parkway, I was relaxed and sleepy, leaning on Gloria's shoulder in the back seat with duffels stacked around us. "I don't suppose you're going to tell us what this is about?" she asked.

"Hmmm. Tomorrow." And put my head in her lap. Lots of muscles were complaining about the boxing but I slept anyway.

I was only partly awake when Pat took me to the back bedroom in the cottage, which was right on the beach. "Guess what, you're going to sleep in a double bed with Roy and me. Go pee and come back."

I heard and felt nothing until the sun was in my face and the smell of fresh coffee was in the air.

I tried to turn over, but everything hurt. "Owww, I can't move."

Tony and Gloria were sipping their coffee and looking down at me. Gloria said, "Tony's sore too. He couldn't give me his usual wakeup treatment this morning." She smiled and giggled. "Did you get the poison out?" She pulled down the covers and exposed my breasts. "For a white girl, you've sure got nice tits." She pointed to a pink place on my left breast and said to Tony, "Look, you bruised the poor thing."

I groaned. "I'd punch you if I could."

Tony hollered, "Hey Roy, we're gonna have an all girl boxing match."

Roy and Pat came in, both in running clothes. She said, "Up and at 'em, babe. No lying around in self-pity at this location." She had a sinister grin as she reached over and yanked me out of bed.

"Damn, that really hurts. Maybe I was stupid to start that fight."

Right in front of the men, Gloria and Pat peeled down my briefs and helped me into a pair of Pat's shorts. Then my sneakers. Then a sports bra. Big on me, must be Gloria's. Then fixed my hair into a ponytail and put it in a baseball cap. With another yank, I stumbled out the door onto the sand between them.

They waved at the guys, "Go on down there aways, we're going to stay with the invalid."

That got me peeved. I tossed my hair and said, "Invalid my ass, let's go."

After a few hundred yards, I was enjoying the sun and the ocean lapping at the sand. Shore birds were doing their thing all around us. I would live after all. The girls were by my side with lots of little encouragements.

"How far?" asked Gloria.

"We usually do thirty minutes out and thirty back. That lets us deserve French toast with fresh bread from the bakery. "

At twenty-nine minutes, we had the guys back with us and turned around. I was weak and sore, but determined. Roy said, looking at my trim form, "Not bad for an ex-CEO."

Tony added, "Yeah, an ex-CEO with dreams of a boxing title."

"Look out," I said, "I can still kick and you've got something worth kicking there between your thighs."

Approving noises from Gloria and Pat. "Beast. Brute."

Everyone laughed and we ran it in with a brief stop at the bakery, which understood about runners paying later.

Stuffed with French toast and topped up coffee mugs, we wandered out to the porch. I sat down carefully. I looked at Pat and said, "You're super nice to your former boss to bring me down here."

Knowing me as she did, Pat replied, "And you, Joan, are looking entirely too happy for someone who was in the depths of despair yesterday morning. That brain of yours has been up to no good, I'm sure."

I smiled at her, "You know me too well. Yes, I have some ideas I'd like to bounce off the four of you. Before we start, I want to say two things; one, you have been kind to me when I didn't deserve it for years. Second, if what I say seems crazy, and you would rather not be involved, just say so. We'll still be friends. I can be as foolish as the next person, but maybe some of what I'm going to say you can relate to.

"First, let's talk about me. I'm a notorious workaholic that has given her life so far, since I was a little kid, to the family trucking business. That's all over. I'm not going to cry over spilt milk. There has to be a new me. Given how narrow my existence has been, it's sort of a total makeover."

The others were staring at me. I needed to lighten up. I stood and twirled, looking down at myself. "A total makeover." I smiled and they laughed.

"Total makeovers take money, so let's talk money. Pat, what am I worth, in round numbers?"

'Well, you get twenty percent of the company buyout, which is about two hundred million after taxes. Half now, and half over five years. And there's about another fifty million in deferred comp, retirement, and investments."