Gang Ties II: Domonic's Heart

Witness

"Cole and Damon refuse to renegotiate the pay, your salary remains."

I rested my forehead in my glove-covered hands, the smooth leather on my skin eased my nerves.

"Adri, there are too many 0's."

Adri looked up from the stack of papers sitting on the mahogany table in front of us, she crossed her legs and leaned into her executive chair.

"You're complaining about getting paid too much?  Do you realize the state of our economy?"

"I just replayed it in my head, I hear how privileged it sounds now," I raised my head, Adri nodded her own and flipped the contract open again.

Domonic asked me to take care of their finances a while ago, I recently hit the halfway mark in my master's coursework, so we decided I could start punching their numbers now.

Adri worked on a contractual agreement for the brothers, while her most trusted legal partner wrote a simplified version for me. I don't doubt that she trusts the work of her partner, she chose to go over the terms with me again for my security.

I only need two years of experience, I'm free to stay with Braxton Enterprises or leave after that period.

The contract states that I'd receive their bank statements, business trends, and other financial documents at the end of every month, I'd secure the accuracy of the records, offer advice, and handle financial-risk management among other things.

Of course, I'm grateful that the pay will leave me highly satisfied, but there's a level of guilt that hangs within it.  There are people losing their homes and job every day, while I'm comfortably sitting in a penthouse.

I couldn't ignore that if I tried.

"Besides, you can donate the funds you deem excessive," Adri flipped to the last highlighted, unofficial page and tapped her pen on the first word at the very top. 

"Yeah, I just feel like I'm getting a lot handed to me, you know?"

"You are and you will take it, Eva," Adri took her glasses off and looked towards me. "Right now, I'm your cousin, not a lawyer reviewing a contract with you."

"You deserve this, Eva.  You have busted your ass to get through school, now you're choosing to work while earning your masters, that's not easy," I nodded, slightly spinning my chair. "Yes, things are coming easier for you than they do for others, but you'll do good by it and you're going to continue to work your ass off."

Adri slid her glasses back on and picked up her Montblanc pen.

"Whether you hustle your whole life, or get handouts, things will go wrong, but women like you and me know how to get shit done.  You will continue to work and get shit done because for everything that gets handed to you, comes another chore to prove yourself to people with ignorant heads."

I rolled Adri's chair closer to me, wrapped my arm around her, and sighed.

"I know you're right, Adri."

Adri is one of two women in her firm, she's been experiencing problems with ignorance since middle school when she wanted to be captain of the debate team.  

There will always be constructs surrounding certain people that privilege can't erase.

"Of course, now, Adrianna LL.M is back.  Let's review the last page before they arrive."

Domonic and Damon watched me sign on the bold lines with Adri's fancy pen, it felt way too expensive to be in my hands.