The Prodigal Son

Luke 15: 20-24:

"So he got up and went back to his father. While he was still a long way off, his father caught sight of him, and was filled with compassion. He ran to his son, embraced him and kissed him."

Spoiler alert: this story ends differently than the one in the bible!

*****************

John and Margaret Branson had an easy life. John's father, Axel, had started Branson Manufacturing LLC a specialty manufacturer of nozzles for any machinery that needed one including fossil fuel burners, commercial power wash systems, farm equipment, 3-D printers, liquid packaging, and national defense equipment. The company was successful and therefore Axel's only son John, who always worked at Branson Mfg. and took over running the business when he was forty years old, had the lifestyle befitting that of a wealthy man. While John certainly did not have the business acumen of Axel he was basically competent and when he took over the business sales and profits remained substantially the same.

John and Margaret had two children, both boys, Justin and Bradley.

The older boy, Justin, was handsome, tall, athletic, glib, and smart. However he was intellectually lazy and got by using his other attributes rather than his intelligence. He was the apple of Margaret's eye and she disguised that very poorly. John also favored Justin but had the decency to hide it as best he could.

The younger boy by about three years, Bradley, was reasonably good looking, not small but four inches shorter than Justin, not very athletic, but very intellectual. While his parents usually underestimated his intellect no one else did. He got two national science awards, and he skipped a grade so that when Justin was a senior in High School Bradley was a sophomore.

Justin was all about Justin; about as narcissistic as someone could be; and haughty. He was probably born that way, but certainly encouraged by the way that his parents treated him. Bradley, on the other hand, was humble (despite being the smartest student in any school he attended) and friendly to everyone.

The difference between how the parents dealt with their sons could not have been starker. One of dozens of examples occurred when Justin was a junior and Bradly a freshman, in High School. When Justin was the sixth man for the High School basketball team his parents never missed a game. When Bradley won an award as the top student in the freshman class his parents had "another commitment" and couldn't attend the ceremony, but they did make sure to tell him "That's real nice, Brad."

Justin always treated Bradley poorly. Bradley learned not to complain to his parents, however, since whenever he did -- no matter what Justin did -- it was either dismissed as "boys will be boys," or "you must have done something to provoke him." Things came to a head shortly after the start of the winter semester in High School when Justin was a senior and Bradley a sophomore.

Marci was a sophomore girl that Bradley liked. Since Bradley was respectful and friendly to everyone, virtually everybody in the school liked him. On a Monday he asked Marci to go with him to a dance on Saturday. She eagerly accepted.

Justin overheard Brad excitedly talking to one of his friends on the phone about his date with Marci. Up until that time Justin had shown no interest in Marci whatsoever, and almost always dated just juniors and seniors. However, to demonstrate to his brother how superior he was the next day he asked Marci to go to the dance with him. Awed by being asked by maybe the best looking boy in school, and a senior, Marci accepted.

The next day Brad found out not only why Marci broke her date with him but for whom. Enraged, at home he confronted Justin. Justin just laughed at him and pushed him. Brad didn't remember exactly what happened next, but he did know that he attacked Justin with a ferocity that he had never before exhibited.

After fifteen minutes of intense mayhem, where despite the fact that Bradley was in general getting the worst of it, he refused to quit even when Justin tried to placate him. Ultimately Justin got him in a rear naked choke hold and Bradley passed out. When the carnage was over, in addition to the broken furniture Bradley ended up overnight in the hospital with a concussion and bruises and welts over his entire body, and Justin had a broken nose and broken left hand. The broken left hand meant no basketball season for Justin even though he was going to be a starter.

Of course the parents blamed the younger son regardless of the circumstances and grounded him. Bradley could have cared less, however, since everyone at school found out about how Justin's injuries happened giving Bradley instant status. Shortly after Bradley got out of the hospital he told Justin "You ever fuck with me again and I'll kill you." Justin pretended that he wasn't afraid but actions speak louder than words -- he didn't fuck with Bradley again -- at least for a long time.

Marci ended up having no one take her to the dance.

***************

After college Justin married the prom queen from High School, Alicia Masterson. Her father Boynton was the richest man in Charlotte, North Carolina, where they all lived. The wedding was ostentatious. Justin didn't ask Bradley to be one of the groomsman and the parents never said anything about it. While Bradley didn't give a shit because he didn't want to even attend the wedding even though he liked Alicia, with some snide remarks to his friends when his parents could hear he said things like "Gee, I'll bet that I'm the only brother in a two child family not to be included in his brother's wedding with eight groomsmen."

Justin and Alicia moved to Massachusetts where Justin got his MBA at Bentley University, the 134th ranked business school in the country. After that they moved to London where he provided his parents with rave reviews of his performance at a medium sized multinational corporation.

John and Margaret were disappointed that Justin didn't come to work at Branson Mfg. but realized that he was such a star that he had outgrown Charlotte so they didn't hold it against him.

Meanwhile Bradley was getting a mechanical engineering degree from MIT (often ranked as the best engineering school in the U. S.) in three years, and an MBA also from MIT (the 5th ranked business school in the country) in 18 months. While Bradley had many offers from other companies since John had just had a minor heart attack, and since both of his parents begged him to return to Charlotte to help with the business at least until John recovered, and this was the first time in his life that they were actually treating him like a valuable member of the family, Brad agreed.

While going to school at MIT Bradley had met Virginia Marin. Virginia was not a raving beauty like Alicia Branson nee Masterson, but she was agreeable looking, personable, and smart. She was neither fat nor thin with a pleasant though not beautiful face. Bradley and Virginia got married in Charlotte after Justin and Alicia had moved to England, and Justin was too busy conquering the business world to return for the nuptials. Actually, Bradley could give a shit, but he did rub it in to his parents, who once again defended Justin.

****************

When Bradley started at Branson Mfg. he was presented by Branson's attorney with a "standard" packet of papers to sign. He looked them over carefully and saw that one document was a non-compete agreement. He ripped it up and threw it in a recycling bin. Either Branson's attorney had the same lack of attention to detail as John, or had been told by John not to rock the boat, because no one questioned Brad about the lack of a signed non-compete agreement. Had they Bradley would have told them that if that was a condition of employment he'd accept another job offer.

Despite Bradley's young age he did an excellent job of running Branson Mfg. while John was recovering from his heart attack. He did this not just because he implemented some new techniques that he learned at MIT, but because he treated all employees as valuable, better than they had ever been treated before. He raised the salaries of the management employees who deserved it, implemented profit sharing for the production and sales employees, and increased morale significantly. He fired his father's battleaxe old secretary who was the source of most of the gossip in the company and was highly unproductive, and hired Jeanette, a young married woman only a couple of years out of High School who was industrious, efficient, and discrete (and cute).

When John returned as CEO he tried to reverse the changes that Bradley had made. However, Bradley had prepared for that by providing employment agreements and since he had complete power of attorney during John's absence there was nothing that John could do about it but steam; however, John was able to cancel the profit sharing for the production employees. Bradley made sure that all the production employees knew that he would do everything he could to increase their pay sometime in the future.

When John returned Bradley became VP of production. Six months after John returned the company was more profitable than it had been since John took over and even John had to admit that it was because of the increased morale and the changes to procedure that Bradley had implemented. Bradley then insisted on a $2/hour increase for all of the production employees assuring that he would forgo any bonus if that didn't result in a 7% increase in production efficiency. John reluctantly agreed, and Bradley had the loyalty of every production employee.

Over the next year Branson Mfg. did become more profitable, and production efficiency did increase by 9%. By this time, however, Bradley had recognized that the only reason for Branson Mfg.'s success was because of their most popular product called the ZX-3 nozzle. It was responsible for 80% of the profits. However, the patent on the ZX-3 would expire in less than two years and when it did competitors would flood the market.

Bradley had a solution for the problem, however. He re-designed the nozzle, which re-design he called the ZX-4, so that it would be more efficient by about 25%. He also identified a machine for its manufacture that could produce it for only 10% more than the ZX-3. However, to do that Branson Mfg. would have to purchase a new type of CNC machine that had just come out on the market for $1,800,000. John nixed the idea completely, including even for applying for a patent on the ZX-4 and refused to let Bradley apply for one on his own.

Bradley didn't like it, but since he was well compensated and had been virtually promised the CEO position once John retired in a few years, he lumped it. Then came the cataclysmic event that's responsible for the title of this tome.

******************

Justin, the prodigal son, returned to Charlotte. According to his story he and Alicia simply missed the US, and despite his outstanding success in England, he wanted to reconnect with his roots. In actuality the division of the company that he was VP of in England went bankrupt due to his mismanagement and he was fired, but he was able to negotiate a deal that allowed him to resign by forfeiting a significant part of his severance.

John and Margaret were thrilled by Justin's return. John immediately made him CEO of Branson Mfg. and took the role of Chairman of the Board. When Bradley objected John deflected it with "He's more experienced than you are and had an outstanding success in England."

Having done his homework, Bradley responded "The division he managed went bankrupt, how's that an outstanding success?"

"Well there were many things beyond his control, it had nothing to do with him," John responded.

Against his better judgment Bradley decided to stay on. Once Justin was ensconced in his new luxury office Bradley made the same proposals to him as he had to John about the ZX-4, a patent, and a new machine. Justin replied "In my informed opinion we can still beat the competition in the production of the ZX-3 even after the patent expires so it's a waste of money, and you should just forget it."

It was then that Bradley decided to plan for the future. Since he knew that Branson Mfg. would not file for a patent on the ZX-4 and that he didn't have permission from the company to do so on his own, he did the next best thing. Brad contacted a friend of his from MIT engineering days who was a Nigerian national and working on water treatment facilities in Abuja. Using a courier service so that there was no electronic trail he forwarded hand drawings and a description of the ZX-4 (both of which differed slightly from what he had shown to John and Justin) to his friend and asked him to have it translated into Yoruba and published in a newspaper in Abuja under his friend's name. That would preclude anyone in the world from getting a patent on the ZX-4.

************

Lots happened in the next three years.

.Virginia met Justin for the first time. Bradley did not like how "giggly" she was around Justin. He considered Virginia an intelligent woman, who was doing well in her real estate business. He made it clear to her that Justin was an asshole -- he wasn't sure that it took.

Bradley and Virginia had a baby boy, who they named Kyle. For some reason the Branson family was more affectionate toward Kyle than they ever had been toward Bradley, but he tried to not once again resent the way that he was treated in his youth.

When at a conference at the local Four Seasons hotel, when the conference broke for lunch Bradley saw Justin and Sylvia (the sexy single secretary that he hired, Jeanette having been demoted to being Bradley's secretary), getting into the elevator arm in arm and smiling. They were alone in the elevator and it didn't stop at any floor with a communal space -- it stopped on the eighth floor where there were only hotel rooms.

Both because he hated Justin and liked Alicia, Bradley got on the phone and called her immediately. After getting her solemn agreement that he would not be identified as the source, he reported what he just saw to her and suggested that she and a PI come to the hotel immediately.

Based upon the disruption in the lobby about two o'clock, loud enough to disturb the conference, it was apparent that Alicia caught Justin red-handed (or was it red-dicked and red-faced). Brad heard through the grapevine, being gentlemanly enough not to ask Alicia herself, that when Alicia and her PI opened the door to Justin's 8th floor room that Justin and Sylvia were imitating Dobermans and that Alicia did significant bodily harm to both of them.

Showing how poor his judgment and character were, in an attempt to reconcile with, and lie to, Alicia, Justin fired Sylvia and blamed it on her. That made her a witness for Alicia in the divorce proceedings, and resulted in a sexual harassment lawsuit against Branson Mfg. which John quickly and quietly settled by paying Sylvia $500,000. Despite the scandal Justin was still John and Margaret's fair haired boy.

Branson Mfg. was still doing well but only because Bradley had production humming along. Bradley was a savant when it came to logistics and quality control therefore even after the patent on ZX-3 expired Branson Mfg. was still able to beat the competition head-to-head in most situations. However, the morale in all other aspects of the business was declining since Justin became CEO.

During Justin and Alicia's divorce for some reason Virginia was acting somewhat distant from Bradley and her real estate commissions decreased for the first time since she started working in the business. That was not a monetary problem since Bradley made good money -- although not one tenth of what he should have.

It was then that the next cataclysmic event, after the return of the prodigal son, happened.

*************

Since Virginia had been distant lately, shortly after Justin's divorce was concluded Bradley did not object when on a Monday she suggested that she take Kyle to Amelia Island, Florida, near Jacksonville, for the week. Bradley could not get away because of an important and time-sensitive production run, but he thought that it might do her some good, so he gave her his blessing. She was going to fly out early Tuesday morning in the grossly cost-ineffective (as far as Bradley was concerned, but his views fell on deaf ears) Branson Mfg. small private jet.

Early afternoon on Tuesday, as the production run was going smoothly, Bradley almost literally ran into Scott Toro, the co-pilot of the Branson Mfg. jet. Scott was sweet on one of the secretaries in sales and was going to chat her up. Bradley and Scott exchanged small talk and then quite innocently Scott said "So Justin and your Mom and Dad get to go to Amelia Island for the week while you have to slave here?"

"What?" Bradley gulped.

"Yeah, I just got back from taking them to the Jacksonville airport and they got a limo to Amelia Island."

"Was my wife along?"

"Uh...I don't know what your wife looks like, Brad, I've never met her. But there was a young woman and a little boy with them -- I thought that it might be Justin's girlfriend."

"Scott, is Jack around?" (Jack being the normal pilot of the Branson Mfg. jet).

"No, when we got back he took off for a small vacation since we don't need to use the jet again until we pick them up on Friday."

"Can you pilot the plane and get a substitute co-pilot? Tell him or her $2500, and a bonus that size for you too."

"Yeah, sure...I can have the plane ready in an hour."

"Meet you at the private terminal in 90 minutes," Bradley replied.

It took every ounce of willpower that Bradley had to remain calm as he went to the production floor, gathered together the foreman and all of the CNC machine operators, and told them that he had an emergency and had to leave. "Joe," he said to the foreman, "I really need you and the machine operators to come through for me. We need the ZX-3 order completed and shipped out by 5:00 p. m. tomorrow. Can I count on all of you?"

"Fuck yeah!" they chimed almost in unison. As Joe shook his hand goodbye he said "We'll work overtime without reporting it if necessary -- we'd do fucking anything for you, Brad."

"It pays to treat people right," Brad chuckled to himself, and then remembered why he was leaving and steam came out of his ears.

*************

Scott and the female co-pilot were all gassed up and ready to go when Brad got to the plane 80 minutes after he talked to Scott. Everything went smoothly on the way down, and Scott had a limo waiting for Brad when they parked at the private terminal. "This won't take too long," Brad told Scott. "Wait here. If anything changes I'll call."

The limo driver made the 36 minute trip to the Omni Resort on Amelia Island in 30 minutes flat. Brad told her to wait in the limo lot -- he expected to be back within 30 minutes, but if things changed he would call.

Brad tried the resort's family pool first. There, Virginia was sitting on a pool lounge chair with her hand on Justin's knee, he in an adjacent lounge chair, and Kyle on his lap. John and Margaret were on the other

side of Virginia from Justin. Brad adjusted his lapel camera so that it would catch all the action and sound.

Brad walked up to Virginia and Justin and lifted Kyle off of Justin's lap. After getting a hug from Kyle and exchanging a few happy words with him he put him down on the pool deck and said "go over by grandma and grandpa for a minute, I need to talk to mommy and Uncle Justin."

After Kyle scurried away Brad looked down on his wife and brother both of who had shocked looks on their faces.

"Brad,,,uh...what...are...you doing here?" Virginia stammered.

"I'll answer your question after you answer mine. How long have you and Justin been having sex?"