Read Terminated for Free Online Page B

human value is more important to me. There’s no way I’m going to allow the tragedy in Baltimore to happen here.”
    That note ended the meeting. Ingram and Deborah both gave their reassurances she was in safe hands before Deborah left her in Ingram’s care.
    “Not much fun discovering you’re a dollar figure,” he said, after Deborah stepped out.
    “No, not really.”
    He smiled. “Look at it this way, you’re not as easy to replace as a computer or a centrifuge.”
    Gwen smiled back and followed him into his office. The sun was going down over the city. The falling sun struck the city’s buildings in all the right places, casting elegant shadows over the streets. She wanted to drink the moment in. It felt good to be alive, which was a stark contrast from the night before.
    “Just a couple of things before yougo, Mrs. Farris.”
    “Call me Gwen.”
    He nodded and handed her a card with a number on it where he could be reached twenty-four hours a day. “Don’t hesitate calling me. Day or night.”
    “What do I do if Stephen asks about his evaluation?”
    “Play along. Tell him you did as he asked.”
    “That’s a diplomatic answer considering he held a knife against my throat.”
    Ingram smiled politely. “Call me as soon as he makes contact. I want it on record.”
    He escorted Gwen to the door. His people had all departed, leaving just the two of them.
    “Be smart. Don’t put yourself in any compromising positions and don’t antagonize Mr. Tarbell if possible. Break up your routine.” He handed her a fact sheet. “That will give you some pointers on how to stay safe.”
    “What if he’s waiting outside to follow me home?”
    Ingram pulled out his cell, dialed a number and spoke to someone briefly before hanging up. “He’s still at the office. You’ve got nothing to worry about.”

    Idiots , Tarbell thought. “They think they’re so smart, so clever,” he said, unable to keep from verbalizing his disgust. “They don’t know shit. I’m sick and tired of these morons. It’s always me who has to clean up their mess.”
    He stopped suddenly, realizing he’d spoken out loud. Luckily, it didn’t matter. He was the only one in the building working at this time of night—as usual. The management at this place was a joke. They didn’t recognize his superior skills. No, they had put Gwen Farris in charge. It was all politics. Managers. What the hell were they, after all? Finger pointers. Big picture people. They directed traffic while people like him didthe work and earned the money that put the bonuses in their pockets. He guessed he should view his lack of advancement as a compliment. If corporations couldn’t fire you, they promoted you. They were keeping him down because he was more valuable to them where he was.
    Screw being held down , he thought. He was sick of it. Someone always had their boot on his neck. First, it was in school. When it wasn’t in school, it was his friends. When it wasn’t his friends, it was his dad. That son of a bitch had practically waved a white flag of surrender over his childhood house, giving the go-ahead to bullies everywhere to kick the crap out of Stephen David Tarbell. Well, no more.
    “It ends right now,” he snarled and slammed his pen down. It bounced off his desk and landed on the floor. He picked it up and tried to get back into his work but gave up. He’d done enough for today.
    He pushed himself away from his desk and got to his feet. He was buzzing. This always happened when his blood was up. His body vibrated with the current coursing through him. He couldn’t drive home like this. He’d get into it with someone, and he didn’t want to deal with road rage at the moment. Gwen was his focus. Not anyone else.
    He wandered through the offices, checking the work on people’s desks. He did this routinely. He liked to see what his coworkers were up to. Coworkers , he thought, is a quaint term for fuckups . He couldn’t count the number of