Three days passed before I received the first call.
The person introduced himself as a representative of the company's legal department.
His voice was polite.
Almost too polite.
He asked whether I would be willing to meet with the company's lawyers.
I told him I would.
He asked whether I could bring the original agreement.
I said I would bring it for inspection, provided it remained in my possession.
There was a short silence.
Then he agreed.
The meeting was arranged for the following week.
Jeremy offered to come with me.
I told him he didn't have to.
"I want to be there, Mom."
So I agreed.
The company's offices were larger than I remembered from the few photographs Jeremy had shown me.
Glass walls.
Modern furniture.
A reception desk with the company logo behind it.
The receptionist greeted us and asked us to wait.
Jeremy looked around.
He had spent years walking through those offices.
Now he was entering as someone who had been dismissed.
I noticed that he kept his hands in his coat pockets.
A few minutes later, a woman approached us.
She introduced herself as one of the company's lawyers.
Her name wasn't familiar to me.
She led us into a conference room.
Doug was already there.
He sat at the far end of the table.
His expensive watch was visible beneath his sleeve.
He looked different without the Christmas party crowd around him.
Less confident.
More careful.
"Thank you for coming," he said.
I nodded.
The lawyer opened a folder.
"We would like to review the historical agreement you presented at the Christmas event."
"That's fine."
I placed my leather folder on the table.
I removed the original pages one at a time.
The lawyer examined the signatures.
She checked the dates.
Then she read the ownership provision.
Doug remained silent.
After several minutes, she looked up.
"Do you have any other documents relating to this arrangement?"
I answered honestly.
"These are the documents I have kept."
"Was there ever an amendment?"
"Not one signed by me."
Doug shifted in his chair.
"That doesn't mean there weren't later arrangements."
I looked at him.
"Then perhaps you can show us one."
He didn't answer.
The lawyer continued examining the pages.
She asked questions about the original financing.
I answered what I remembered.
She asked whether I had received payments.
I explained that the arrangement was an ownership interest, not simply a personal loan.
Then she asked whether I had ever signed away my rights.
"No."
She wrote something down.
Doug leaned forward.
"This company has been operating for years. There must be a reason this hasn't come up before."
I looked at him.
"Not discussing something doesn't make it disappear."
The lawyer raised one hand.
"Let's keep the discussion focused on the documents."
I appreciated that.
I wasn't there to argue with Doug.
I was there to establish what had happened.
Jeremy sat beside me.
He hadn't said much.
But when the lawyer asked why he had been dismissed, he finally spoke.
"I was never given a written explanation."
Doug turned toward him.
"We already discussed your performance."
"No, you announced my dismissal at a party."
Doug's jaw tightened.
Jeremy continued.
"I asked what I had done wrong. You didn't give me an answer."
The lawyer looked at Doug.
"Was a written termination notice issued?"
Doug paused.
"That can be provided."
Jeremy looked down.
He didn't argue further.
I placed my hand beside his on the table.
The lawyer returned to the agreement.
She said the company would need to examine its historical records.
She also said she couldn't make a final determination during that meeting.
I agreed.
"That's why we're here."
Doug finally looked directly at me.
"What are you expecting from the company?"
I answered without hesitation.
"Recognition of the agreement."
"And beyond that?"
"An accurate accounting of the ownership arrangement."
He stared at me.
I continued.
"I don't want guesses. I don't want promises made in a conference room. I want the records examined."
The lawyer nodded.
"That is a reasonable request."
Before the meeting ended, she asked permission to make copies of the documents.
I allowed her to do so.
But I kept every original page.
When we left the building, Jeremy remained quiet until we reached the car.
Then he turned toward me.
"Do you think they believe you?"
I considered the question.
"I think they understand that the agreement is real."
"That's not the same thing."
"No, it isn't."
He opened the car door.
I knew he wanted an answer I couldn't give him.
The following afternoon, another call came.
This time, it was the lawyer.
She said the company was reviewing its historical records.
She also requested a second meeting after the initial review.
I agreed.
Then she added something that made me sit down.
"We have found references to the original financing in some older company records."
I held the phone more tightly.
"References?"
"Yes. We're still examining them."
I thanked her.
After the call ended, I looked toward the drawer where I had placed my leather folder.
The agreement had never been the only record of what happened.
And now the company was beginning to discover that for itself.
Click here to continue reading: PART 7: The Records From the Company’s Early Years Forced Doug to Face a History He Had Never Expected to Revisit
My Son Thought Losing His Job Was the Worst Thing That Could Happen That Night, Until I Asked One Question
Part 6 of 10
