his scolding if the bread or utensils weren’t present or if the fruit juices on the menu were bland. Lunch revived him. Three appointments awaited him that afternoon, after which he would return to the comfort of his home to watch the news, always consoled by learning of the misfortunes of others, even murders, so distant from his life that they could be erased with the push of a button on the remote control and a good night’s rest.
He treated himself to a silent pep talk about how his fortune would improve after lunch, but, when he realized he had lingered too long, he made a dash for the exit, hardly noticing the lady with whom he nearly collided at the door. While digesting his meal in that fleeting subway trip which took him from Colonia Moctezuma to Observatorio, the image of the pin suddenly flashed back from the depths of his memory before vanishing once again. The rattle of the subway drained out this fleeting association, and his thoughts wandered to more pressing matters.
His afternoon mirrored his morning. He ended up arguing with a secretary who banished him forever because he had refused to give her a paperweight with the company’s logo. It was one of those rare occasions when he found forced flattery and all such courtesies necessary for his job unbearable—and he simply exploded. But he also knew through experience that the misunderstanding would be resolved upon his next visit, when with feigned remorse bearing no correspondence to his true feelings, he would present her with the acrylic figure, and she, before allowing him to pass, would make a sardonic remark followed by a smile and forgiveness. This was a ritual he knew very well since he had married one such receptionist: the kind with fulsome, curly hair and tight-fitting skirts. His marriage ended six months later because she, as he so bluntly put it, didn’t measure up to him.
But he did not consider that a defeat. It was barely a bump on the road. Not for nothing was he responsible for the training of the company’s new employees, a task which he performed meticulously, having read all sorts of personal self-help books and expert guides on superior management practices. He knew what he wanted and—even better—how to get it. If success meant bringing down a colleague, especially one who interfered with his ambitions, he wouldn’t hesitate. In fact he had rid himself of several such individuals. Two or three of those whose agenda differed from his had fallen prey to his wiles. He was thinking of this and of his future with the company, when again he spotted the woman with the pin among the sea of people in transit.
The woman with the pin avoided him as if deliberately refusing to clarify his doubts, slipping through the crowd awaiting the train; but the man was more agile and caught her up just as the subway’s doors were opening before them. He reached for her shoulder with the firm intention of questioning her about the riddle of the pin. A human tide rushed over them, heaving them into the depths of the subway car and scattering them in opposite directions, but he held firm.
The person with the pin no longer was a woman but a man; moreover, a man bearing a striking resemblance to the chief of staff the pursuer had replaced just six months ago. By all accounts the former chief of staff, though physically distinct from his younger replacement, had been akin to him in spirit, ambition, egoism, and the persecution of his subordinates. Yet one day he mysteriously relinquished his post. His replacement proved to be so successful that within a few weeks on the job he had purchased a new car, leaving it parked near the subway station and using the subway to move between appointments because it was cheaper and faster.
According to what the new chief of staff had heard about his predecessor, he wasn’t the type to wear a pin on his lapel reading “Ask me about happiness.” Yet the resemblance between his predecessor and the man with the pin was undeniable. The younger man got off at the same stop as the man with the pin and tried again to reach him. Yet once again the man with the pin sought refuge in the crowd. The younger man (proud of his good physical condition, the product of regular use of his gym membership) was faster and managed to grasp the