for beer-butt chicken... None of that seemed appropriate. “Who you are,” she finished lamely.
“Yeah?” Her voice spiked. “Well, he told me who you are, too, so we’re even.” She seemed to reconsider her tone. “What I mean is—”
“I know what you mean,” Tara said, cutting her off in an effort to smooth the moment. Instead she’d sounded rude.
“Perfect,” Candee snapped. “If you’ll excuse me.” She stalked away.
Miriam politely didn’t ask what that was about. Tara had stepped in it again, her people skills in tatters in this town.
Miriam led Tara along a catwalk overlooking the factory floor, which seemed to sparkle with cleanliness. Fluorescent lights made the white cement floor gleam. Ventilators roared, pulling the highly flammable aluminum dust from the air, according to Miriam.
The section of the factory where the battery cells were built contained glassed-in machines like giant tollbooths lined in rows, control panels flashing colored lights. Workers there wore white suits, hairnets, paper slippers and gloves to keep down static.
In the assembly area, robotic arms and hydraulic lifts made rhythmic whoosh and clunk sounds as they put together cells, then loaded boxes of batteries onto a conveyor belt to be prepared for distribution. Workers here wore golf shirts and jeans or khakis, and she spotted Carl Goodman, minus coat and tie, talking to a technician. He’d abandoned the meeting for more important duties, she assumed.
Miriam rattled off stats on the size of the operation, units produced, the specifics of the new Wharton battery, which used nanotechnology and complicated chemicals to make lighter, faster-charging and more powerful batteries.
After that, they looked in on the R&D lab, the cafeteria and the loading dock, ending up on the tarmac waiting for a technician from the testing area—the last stop on the tour—to pick them up in an electric cart.
“I’m very impressed,” Tara said.
“I know. So am I. At our price point, we’re poised to sweep the market. If everything comes together as we hope.” There was tension in her voice.
“I’m sure losing my father and Faye has made people uneasy. The managers seemed pretty wired.”
“That was Joseph’s first time running the meeting,” she said diplomatically. “I’m sure that’s what you picked up.”
“It was more than that, I think,” she said. “I understand there have been rumors of another layoff. I was told you lost a few engineers, too.”
Miriam gave her a wary look. “There are always personnel shifts during a transition.”
“You don’t have to hold back, Miriam. I’m on your side. I want Wharton Electronics to succeed.” Tara liked her and hoped she’d be an ally. “The truth is that Faye contacted me a few weeks ago about doing some consulting here.”
“She did?” Miriam blew out a breath. “That’s great. Joseph means well, but I’m afraid he’s a bit over his head.”
“That was my impression. I need him to hire me, so I wanted to lay some groundwork, if I could, with key people, especially those whose opinion he respects. I wondered about Davis Mann...?”
“Davis is great, very big picture in his thinking. Managers pay attention to what he says. The trouble is he intimidates Joseph.”
“I see.”
“Joseph listens to Evan Moore. You met him. He’s the Research & Development VP. You might want to spend some time with him. Squeeze in some observations between his lectures on the projects they’re working on. Just caring enough to listen will make him love you.”
“I’ll do that. Anyone else?”
“Our general counsel, Marvin Levy. His office is next to Faye’s. Legal stuff scares Joseph, so he listens to Marvin with both ears. Marvin’s smart, practical and thoughtful.”
“I’ll talk to him.”
“I sound like I’m scheming against Joseph, but I’m not. He’s good at his job. He’s just not equipped to run Wharton. This is a good company. I don’t want to see it fail.”
“Neither do I, believe me.”
Miriam studied Tara, then seemed to make a decision. “If Faye wanted you to work for us, then so do I. I’ll talk to the other managers on your behalf.”
“I appreciate that.” Assuming she made good impressions on the attorney and the research VP, Miriam’s help could set her up well for turning Joseph around. That filled her with energy and hope, something she’d been missing since she arrived.
A cart pulled up and Miriam introduced her to the driver—Matt Sutherland, assistant testing manager—a handsome man in his early thirties who colored when Tara smiled at him.
As they drove toward the testing area, which looked like a cross between an airplane hangar and a giant auto shop, Matt rattled