Chapter 6
Sure enough, as soon as he sets foot into his office the next morning, his admin bombards him with dozens of phone calls he has to return. So far, no one is waiting for him in his outer office which gives him a little breathing room, but he knows that will quickly change. As the morning progresses, he will be gasping for air as he tries to answer all of the accusatory questions that will be coming at him from all angles. He is going to be inundated with queries from investigative reporters seeking the truth as well as scandal sheet piranha looking for blood and a juicy story and the truth be damned. “Driving a hack in Chicago is getting to look better and better”.
The day turns out to be the stuff nightmares are made of. When the reporters were finished with him and he arranged to have all of the irate customer calls handled by a live answering service, he thought he might get a respite from the pressure. No such luck. As soon as he began to take a breather, Wayne Worthington called to tell him that the board of directors was up in arms over the bad publicity and an emergency meeting was being held at 10:00 a.m. tomorrow morning and he was going to have to jump through hoops to keep heads from rolling, his and Red’s. Then Curtis Crowley showed up at his office, demanding to see Red immediately. To say that meeting didn’t go well would be putting it mildly.
The Commissioner stormed into Red’s office bellowing, “I demand that you tender your resignation immediately. Your incompetence in managing a casino is overwhelming. You can’t maintain appropriate security measures to keep cheaters off the premises and you engage in behavior that is not only damaging to the Palladian Palace, but also puts the Mississippi Valley Gaming Commission in an extremely bad light. I’m sure you will be found to be in violation of numerous Commission regulations, some of which are punishable by fine or imprisonment, when our investigation proves that the rumors flying around are true. If you don’t resign, I will do everything in my power to see that you are fired.”
The Commissioner doesn’t realize it, but he has done something very stupid. He has hit Red’s hot button, not once, but several times. First, he accused Red of being incompetent. Second, he implied that Red was insensitive to the effect his actions have on the gaming industry in the area. Third, he has accused Red of being dishonest. This is a very bad combination and Red acts accordingly. Hell, he explodes.
“How did a moron like you ever get to be Commissioner? You come in here throwing around all kinds of insinuations, making all kinds of threats without a shred of evidence that I have done anything wrong. Your power is limited to seeing that the regulations of the Mississippi Valley Gaming Commission are being implemented. That’s it. Only the senior management of the Palladian Palace or the courts if I have done something illegal can remove me from my position as manager of the Palladian Palace. You can ‘demand’ nothing of me. You got that? Now get your ass out of my office before I throw you out!”
The Commissioner’s eyes bulge, his face turns a deep crimson, he begins to sputter with nothing intelligent coming out and then he turns and storms out of the office without even closing the door. As the Commissioner makes his exit, Red’s thinking, “Maybe I should call my old boss now and see if he needs any drivers. I certainly didn’t mend any bridges today.”