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"You wanted to see me?"
"Yeah, I did. What went on during the Forlanie call?"
"I... I'm sorry, I don't understand the question."
His already small eyes narrowed alarmingly. "I've gotten two calls about you, one from a research analyst who says you cut him off, and the other from the assistant to the CEO wanting to know your name. So what went on?"
"The CEO dismissed that analyst, and Mr. Kingman told me to disconnect him and not to allow him back in queue, so nothing that happened there was my doing, sir," she said, trying to sound firm and unruffled. She wasn't sure she was succeeding, but she kept her chin up, and forced herself to look Mr. Kolin in the eye. The small, evil-looking eye.
"And the CEO wanting to know your name?"
"He already knew my name. He asked me before the call began. He said he liked to use the operator's name to make the company seem friendlier. I have no idea why anyone would call to ask. Did they say anything else?"
"No, but that was enough to raise a red flag." Clearly Kolin didn't like being questioned in return.
"A red flag for no reason?"
"Now look, Missy--"
"Mr. Kolin, I didn't do anything I wasn't told to do. You can listen to the recording of the call if you don't believe me. I was told to get rid of that analyst, and I don't know why the Forlanie people called here."
He glared at her and she thought, Swell, I'm going to get fired after a week. "Is there anything else?"
"I'll be watching you."
"Ye, of course, sir." She turned and walked out. Her knees wobbled a little out in the hallway, but she made it back to her cubicle without showing how rattled she was.
Melanie came by with her schedule for the week. "Hey, what's up?"
"What d'you mean?"
"The pig-man is fuming."
"It's nothing, just a misunderstanding. And don't be offensive to pigs."
"Well keep your head down. You've got a busy week, lots of calls."
Melanie was right. Amanda's schedule was full for the week. She hadn't expected to get this much work, but she supposed it helped that it was earnings call time. She began to look over the scripts she'd been given.
About an hour later, Melanie was back. She handed Amanda a new schedule, one with only six calls on it. "What is this?" she asked.
"Look, I'm sorry. He called me in and told me to give you this revised schedule. He wants the other one back."
"This isn't right."
Melanie avoided her eyes. "I can't-- I'm sorry, Amanda." She grabbed the first stack of papers and ran out the door.
Amanda stared at the schedule. Six calls. So unfair. She'd done a good job, and now she was being penalized for it.
But no, she wasn't being penalized for doing her job. When she started her training, Mr. Kolin had been very, very attentive. Too attentive for Amanda's liking, making her profoundly uncomfortable. She hadn't responded to him, and lately he'd pulled back, becoming more businesslike. She'd thought it was over, but she realized at that moment that he'd only been looking for some excuse to come at her a different way.
"Fine," she said, out loud. "Just. Fine." She grabbed the revised schedule and marched down to Kolin's office. Just as she got there, Mrs. Tonetti from accounts waylaid her.
"Amanda, you're just the person I wanted to see. I've had the nicest phone call from Bob McConnell. He seems to think you're just the best thing since sliced bread and he's made me swear to him that you will the operator for all the Forlanie calls from now on."
"I... didn't know you would do that."
"For an account like Forlanie, you bet we will. Unless you have a problem with that. Please tell me you don't have a problem with that."
