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The Audience:
Thomas walked into his office, which used to be his father's but, as with the company, now belongs to him. It was a strange feeling coming in here not to see him that still was a weird feeling, he took a look around surveying the room, the pictures his father had left up were moved back to his home in L.A., the desk which had endured for what will now be three generations sat at the end of the room, he walked over and set the items he got from his old office next to a console controlling the rooms Holo display, He noticed the wood looked restored.
The chair was also reupholstered for him, and since he was a little bit taller than his father, the height was adjusted for him as well. Two chairs sat across from the desk, and the small table between them looked like the desk had also been restored. He saw a few other things had been removed, and he imagined it was by Emmett's choice; some things you can hold on to, but to move forward, you need a little bit of a clean slate. On the console, he saw a light flashing. He walked over to it and synced up his PD to it. Once it recognized him, he was noted to be giving a message, but it was strange, as it was audio only. He hit the button, and suddenly the speakers in the room came to life.
"Thomas," a voice said. This made him tense up. It was an older, softer voice, not one of demand, not one of advice, but warm and also with concern. "I'm sorry to have to do this to you, son, but I also felt at the same time something needed to be said to mark this moment."
He stumbled back a bit into the chair, but got his bearings. He heard a voice he thought he would not hear again; it was that of his father. Quickly pausing the recording, Thomas felt the familiar rush of panic flood him. The new CEO was overwhelmed with feelings of guilt recently and had to slow his breathing to try to combat the feeling. After a bit, he got himself together, but it was not easy for him. Knowing he had to get through this, he hesitantly put his finger near the button to resume. At this point, the young man was trying everything to hold back tears. After composing himself, he finally hit the button to continue.
"I'm recording this when you're twenty-five. I wish I could say I knew why I was now, but something in me was saying I needed to do this." He continued, noticing the voice was filled with more youth than at the end, the confidence carrying his voice forward as it always had.
"If you are hearing this, I'm gone. It was something sudden and also something we had no way of stopping. At this point, you should now be preparing to take over the company." He continued, "One of the instructions I had was to make the room empty except for a few things. You will have to carry a lot of burden, and you also may have quite a task ahead of you."
Thomas took a look around the room, noticing more things gone than he had first observed. Also, looking down, he saw a picture of himself and his parents when he was young. He was still able to keep himself together, but he was not sure how much longer he could.
"Emmett has been instructed to help you in any way you see fit. I also know Tam is probably securely in her office in R&D. Tony, no doubt, when you open the door, will also be waiting." This made Thomas smile a little; he knew all of them so well that even when gone, he could call the beats of action. "You right now may feel alone; I will no longer be there, but you will still have people around you, lean on them, and let them help you. A leader is only as good as the people he goes to for advice, and you have some of the best in your corner."
He nodded at that, still listening intently. "The store is yours now; run it as you see fit, but remember that the store does not exist if the people are not coming to shop. Take care of your customers, and they will, in turn, take care of you. Also, take care of those who are not, cause they may one day be customers." He continued, "Make the world better than I found it, Thomas." These were the last words of his father as the audio turned off. Thomas sat for a moment and replayed it twice before finally coming out, Tony sitting on the desk in his jacket, his shades down, eyes focused totally on him.
"No, this is not happening," Tony said and slid off the desk. Thomas knew what he was saying.
"Am I not supposed to meet with people I may be doing business with?" Thomas responded as he walked by, Tony getting in lockstep.
"With the Reigns? Fuck, I knew I shouldn't have left you alone last night." Was the response, "What could you possibly do with those people that makes sense for you to go to CNY?"
"They asked me to hear them out on something; also, I am not going alone, Tam is coming with." Suddenly, he felt a grip on his arm, which made him stop. He turned back to see Tony's eyes now burning with rage. Thomas was strong, but Tony had a way of making you stop moving if he so wanted to by simply stopping all gravity around him, it seemed.
"WHAT!?" Was all he could get out, his voice echoing; people in office areas stopped and looked, and Tony collected himself and let go of his arm, also dusting off the prints of his gloves as well. "No, this is not happening." He continued.
"I want you to go ahead and secure our route, landing, cars, and yes, a route to ReignOrg. If it makes you feel better, you can stay at the Brooklyn field with the plane and run security." Thomas explained as they entered an elevator, and he could see the anger in his shoulders trying to cool down. The ride down was silent, but he also knew the outcome.
Tony sighed, and as they walked out of the elevator to the private entrance, he seemed to have relented. "Fine, but if there is a sign of any problems, I'm extracting you both, and no questions!" He compromised. Thomas nodded in agreement, and Tony put his sunglasses up to cover his eyes again and adjusted his coat as they walked with Thomas to the entrance of R&D. "This is not gonna happen all the time because you're the boss, you know!" He scolded Thomas as he opened the door.
"You're just mad because you know it's going to be safe since ReignOrg wants me there. If it weren’t for that, I wouldn't even be discussing this," he countered, and Tony slammed the door in anger. When he turned back, he could visibly see Tony screaming his frustration out by the elevator as he got back in. He was not upset; his father was right to lean on those you need to at the times you need. Right now, that just happens to be Tam. He settled in as the car took him over to the airport.
Next Chapter: CNY State of Mind
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