Chapter 5: On Shaky Ground

Things continued to look good from Tom’s viewpoint. He and Iris continued to have their lunches by themselves, and after a few days even Walter Moran left them alone. He shot Tom nasty glances but that was a small price to pay for having a wife again. Hiram Gunderson was clearly tip-toeing around Tom as well, and for the first time in years Tom went to work without elevated adrenaline levels. Still, when word of mouth reached him that the Di Rosa consortium had closed the deal on the Palmer Street Plant for $52 million he began hoping for a phone call.

Peter Salieri had indeed quit his position and announced he would take over Certus Drugs Inc., the new company that owned the Palmer Street plant. Tom suspected that a name such as Di Rosa Drugs would have sounded just a bit awkward in this city. On his last workday at Villier, Peter dropped by at Tom’s office on the production floor.

“If you’re still interested in the job, the Old Man wants to meet you for dinner. Our treat,” he added with a grin.

“I still think I’ll fare better at another place. Hiram has been holding back, but I wonder for how long? Yes, I’d like to discuss this.”

“Okay. How about Thursday at seven? Do you know the Blue Grotto? Little family run place with the best pepperoni in town. Here’s their card. Can you make it?”

Tom sighed. “I’ll have to get Iris to be home for Cor. Let me talk to her. Can you give me your cell phone number? I’ll call to confirm or reschedule.”

“Sure thing. Does she know?”

“Nothing specific. I told her that I want to leave, though.”

“She hasn’t taken kindly to my leaving,” Peter sighed. “With you, it will be worse.”

“Let’s talk first. There’s no use to get her riled up before I know what I want,” Tom answered.

“Can you at least tell me what sort of meeting you’re having?” Iris demanded.

They were having breakfast, and it was Thursday. Tom had told her that he needed the evening free, and Iris had consented. That had been on Tuesday, though. Now, on Thursday, she could not get away in time. Tom sighed.

“I’m meeting people about an outside job,” he said, bracing for the storm.

She looked hurt. “I thought we were over that, Tom!” she said accusingly.

“Iris, I told you that I want to leave. What does it matter to us? I’m not working with you at all. We can still have our lunches.”

“Do you ever think of how this will make me look? My husband leaving the company? There’ll be rumors of divorce within days.”

“Oh shit, here we go again. Let them gossip. Besides, I can pick you up from work and for lunch. That should take care of the rumor mill.”

“So, who are you talking to?”

“Will you give it a rest, please? I mean, this is the first time in years that I’m having an evening on my own. Two days ago, it wasn’t a problem.”

“It’s not a problem. I mean, you having the evening on your own. But why can’t you tell me anything?”

“Look, this is just a first meeting. I may not even be interested. Tell you what: we can talk it over on the weekend. By then I’ll know whether it’s anything serious.”

“Why can’t you trust me, Tom?”

“Iris, you don’t tell me stuff either, I mean management level stuff. I respect that. Can you please do the same?”

“Fine, keep your secret. God, Tom, sometimes you’re really pissing me off.”

“So, can you be home for Cor?”

“Yes. I’ll blow off a meeting with my senior management so my husband can have a mystery meeting.”

“It’s not a mystery meeting. I’ll tell you abut it on Saturday at breakfast.”

“Oh, I can’t wait!”

The Blue Grotto was a family owned place and Tom felt immediately at home. They sat at a large round table. Tom knew only Felix Di Rosa and Peter Salieri. There were three more men at the table. One was a lawyer from a very old and prestigious Philadelphia firm. Then there was a college age youngster who bore a likeness to Felix Di Rosa. His name was Joseph, or Joey, Di Rosa. The fifth man was Vincent Di Rosa, reputedly a major crime figure, but outwardly the man who controlled the vast Di Rosa industrial empire.

Over antipasti, Tom was engaged in a lively discussion with young Joey Di Rosa. The kid was very bright and knowledgeable in all matters of biosciences, and they discussed recombinant DNA technologies with the other men looking on with amused smiles. Tom knew he was being grilled by a college kid but he shrugged it off. At least the kid knew his stuff and if he could not hold his own in a discussion with a sophomore then maybe he would have to look for other lines of work, such as gas station attendant.

Over the main course, Neapolitan meat balls, Peter developed his plans for the plant. Tom’s interest grew. The plans were exciting. Peter proposed to develop new production principles, involving gene technology and fermentation processes, but also to refine the chemical synthesis processes, and to produce for other companies with a lack of capacity or expertise. Of course, most companies farmed out their production to China or India these days, but the distance and different cultures sometimes created problems. It was a niche that could be profitable. Tom saw a possible difficulty.

“Peter, this all sounds exciting, but you know that would take some serious investment? I mean, we can do the basics with what we have there, but to be a technology leader we’ll need cutting edge equipment.”

“I read your reorganization plan, Tom,” Peter grinned. “We are willing to invest up to fifteen million Dollars in the next two years. We also need to identify those who can help us and weed out those who can’t or won’t pull their weight. I don’t have to tell you that profitability is our primary goal?”

“Yeah, well, I may have some socialist leanings but that does not mean I tolerate slackers,” Tom answered with a wry smile. “If we run a lean outfit, however, those running it must benefit from their efforts. I don’t do sweat shops.”

For the first time, Vincent Di Rosa weighed in. “It is understood that efforts must be rewarded. Satisfied employees are loyal employees in my experience. Let us just say that I expect loyalty in return.”

“Loyalty, as in...?” Tom asked warily.

“No skimming, no kick-backs, no leaking of company secrets, no illicit activities whatsoever. No drugs at work,” Felix Di Rosa explained with a grin. “Relax, Tom. This is a normal investment for us.”

“And it is understood that my family ties will not be exploited?”

“Of course,” Peter said quickly. “Given the way Villier is producing we’ll not even be competitors.”

“So, what will be the job?”

“Running production. And I mean running it. You call the shots, you have a budget for operations, you specify purchases. The money people only do the price negotiations and execute what you specify.”

“In return, you are responsible for your operation,” Felix Di Rosa added significantly. “In our companies, there is no muddling of responsibilities.”

“But you’ll have the last word in hirings and firings,” Peter cut in. “All within your budget, of course.”

“So I can hire fewer but better qualified personnel?” Tom asked.

“So long as you stay within the budget,” Peter confirmed. “The budget will be determined in turn by the gross earnings. That means if we sell a lot, your budget will increase accordingly.”

“The no-skimming-policy applies to the owners, too,” Felix Di Rosa grinned. “We like to see a profit, but we’re in this for the long haul. Meaning, we’re not interested in quarterlies.”