Clara’s manager, a perpetually stressed man named Julian, hurried over, his face pale with alarm. “Mr. Sterling, I do apologize, but Clara has other tables.” “I will cover her entire night’s wages and tips,” Richard said. “Double it.” He snapped it without even bothering to look at him. “She works for me now. Do you have a problem with that?” he asked, his voice low and dangerous, directed at Clara. For the first time, a flicker of something, defiance, amusement, crossed Clara’s face. She looked at Ami, who gave the slightest, almost invisible nod of encouragement. In that silent exchange, an alliance was forged. “No, sir,” Clara said, her voice perfectly even. “I do not have a problem with that. Where shall we begin?”
The shift was as immediate as it was surreal. One moment, Clara was a server. The next, she was a central figure in a high-stakes corporate drama. Julian, the manager, scurried away, wringing his hands, but not daring to argue with a patron who spent more on wine in a month than he earned in a year. Clara did not sit. She stood a few feet behind Ami’s chair, a silent, observant sentinel. Richard Sterling clearly intended for her to be a human dictionary, a tool to be picked up and discarded. But both Clara and Ami had other ideas.
“All right,” Richard began, leaning back in his chair and steepling his fingers. He looked at Ami. “Let’s talk about the Tanaka Art Foundation. Our analysts project its liquidation value at approximately two hundred million. A respectable sum, but it’s a dead asset. Our plan is to divest and reinvest the capital into R&D.” Before Ami could respond, he added, “Explain that to her,” with a nod toward Clara, as if Ami herself could not possibly grasp the concept. It was a deliberate, petty jab meant to put her back in her place.
Clara stepped forward slightly. “Mr. Sterling,” she said, her voice calm and measured, “Ms. Tanaka-Hayes understands English perfectly. Perhaps the issue is not one of language, but of context.” Madeline Vance scoffed. “Context? It’s a simple balance-sheet calculation. The asset is underperforming.” “With respect, ma’am,” Clara continued, her gaze unwavering, “you are referring to a collection that includes three scrolls from the Kamakura period, believed to be the only surviving works of the monk Kenshin. You are referring to a collection of Edo-period ceramics that redefined the art of kintsugi. You call it a dead asset. The Japanese Ministry of Culture calls it a national treasure.”