Kiss the Girls and Make Them Cry(26)
He tried unsuccessfully to focus on the article he was reading. At 11:57 he got up, went outside, and walked slowly toward a lone Mercedes. He was about ten feet away when the driver’s-side window rolled down.
“Carter?” Richard Sherman asked.
“Yes, Mr. Sherman. I—”
“Get in,” he said, waving him around the car.
31
Michael Carter walked around the car and climbed into the passenger’s front seat. He closed the door behind him and put his briefcase between his legs. Sherman was wearing a dark blue sweat suit and gray running shoes. The CEO was known for taking pride in his physical condition. He’s probably on his way to or from his trainer, Carter thought.
He was unsure what to do next. Despite all his preparation, he was extremely nervous. Should he let Sherman begin the conversation or should he take the initiative? Sherman did nothing but stare at him, glare at him was probably more accurate.
Carter cleared his throat and extended his hand as he said, “Mr. Sherman, I appreciate your agreeing to meet me on such short notice.”
Sherman made no move to shake his hand.
“All right,” Carter began, trying to make his voice sound more confident than he felt, “at about five o’clock last night an associate producer named Lauren Pomerantz came to my office. She told me about an encounter she had behind closed doors in Brad Matthews’s office.”
Sherman listened intently as Carter recounted Pomerantz’s story. The CEO’s reaction was predictable. “It’s just a ‘he said, she said,’?” Sherman growled.
“That was exactly my reaction, Mr. Sherman,” Carter replied as he pulled out his cell phone and began swiping and tapping it, “until I heard this.”
Carter held the phone in the air between them. Neither man said a word until the recording ended.
“Good God,” was Sherman’s first reaction. It was followed by “What do we know about Pomerantz?”
Carter pulled a file from the briefcase that was now open on his lap. He savored that he was now part of the we. “Unfortunately for us she’s a model employee. She’s been with the company for three and a half years. All of her annual evaluations have been excellent and resulted in raises. She’s had two promotions.”
Sherman snapped, “You’re a lawyer. This business of taping people in their office without their knowing it. Isn’t that illegal?”
“Good point, sir. I researched that last night. Although Pomerantz may have technically violated REL News policy as laid out in the Employee Handbook, that won’t help us very much. Arguably, she could be fired for that, but I got the clear impression she’s planning to leave the company anyway.”
“Good riddance.”
“There’s another defense or justification she could offer. REL is a news gathering organization. The fact that the anchor and editor in chief of the country’s highest-rated newscast was abusing an employee in his chain of command certainly qualifies as news. She was doing what any reporter would have done while pursuing a story.”
Sherman punched his fist on the steering wheel, a reaction Carter noticed with delight.
“If I can be so bold, sir. Lawyers could wrangle hours over whether or not the tape was admissible in a jury trial,” he began.
“Kennedy and Edelman would have a field day with it,” Sherman pointed out, referring to the popular REL News program that featured two attorneys debating opposite sides of legal cases.
“You bet. But if it ever gets to that point, the damage to the company will have been done.” Carter paused for a moment, then continued, “Unless, of course, the situation can be contained.”
Sherman looked at him. For the first time his tone of voice was respectful. “Is there any way we can keep word of this from getting out?”
“There is because we caught this so early. As far as I can determine, no trail exists. No emails about Matthews have been sent. I’ve been working on a plan since Pomerantz left my office last night. The only thing it requires is your approval to put it in motion.”
“What is it?”
“Outside of this car, as best I can determine, only four people for certain know about Matthews’s behavior: Matthews himself, Pomerantz, and whoever tipped Pomerantz to record what happened in Matthews’s office.”
“And the fourth?”
“Pomerantz told me she brought the Matthews matter to the attention of Frederick Carlyle, Jr., immediately after the incident happened.”
“Daddy’s little Freddie, the village idiot,” Sherman said. “Did he do anything about it?”
“According to Pomerantz, no. He reminded her that she was lucky to have a job at REL and advised her to get back to work.”
A long silence followed. Carter waited for Sherman to break it. “Will Pomerantz keep quiet?”
“I’m confident she will if we give her what she’s looking for.”
“Money, right?”
“That, too. Do you know your counterparts from CNN and Fox and the other broadcast networks?”
“That’s a stupid question.”
“Sorry. After she leaves REL News, Pomerantz wants to stay in the industry. Maybe in New York, maybe in Houston, where she’s from. A phone call from you could make that happen?”