meeting with my team in twenty minutes for the new CEO's arrival on Tuesday. I cannot have
this room smelling like a Seattle roastery. Get the carpet cleaner, get the stain out, and then empty
the trashes. They’re overflowing."
He spoke to her not just as an inferior, but as an annoyance—someone barely worthy of his
breath. The sheer arrogance was staggering.
"I see," Maya replied quietly. "I'll take care of it."
"Make it quick," Richard barked, turning his back on her and pulling out his phone. "And don't
interrupt us when we get in here."
aya walked to the nearby maintenance closet, which she had noticed near the elevators.
Fortunately, it was unlocked. She found a heavy-duty carpet spray and a stack of clean
microfiber towels. Returning to the conference room, she got on her hands and knees
and began scrubbing the coffee stain.
While she worked, Richard's team began to filter in. Three junior executives, all echoing
Richard's smug demeanor. They ignored Maya completely, stepping around her as if she were a
piece of furniture.
"Can you believe this new CEO?" one of them, a young man named Todd, snickered. "A diversity
hire, obviously. The board is just trying to score ESG points."
"She won't last six months," Richard scoffed, leaning back in his leather chair. "These corporate
saviors never understand the grind. We run this company. We bring in the margins. We just have
to nod, smile, and keep doing things our way."
Maya scrubbed harder, memorizing every word, every name, every face. They were practically
writing their own termination letters.
s the meeting progressed, Maya finished the carpet and moved to the trash cans,
deliberately taking her time. She listened as Richard berated a junior female analyst who
had dialed in remotely. His tone was condescending, peppered with thinly veiled insults
about her intelligence.