“When will I be asked to do this?”
“Ralph, this is all a bit bewildering. Information is doled out to you. It is doled out for a reason and while it is uncomfortable to go through, as you are asked to do various things, I will assure you that you will never be asked to do anything that gives you pause.”
“Bob, I am worried. A man came to my apartment…”
“Ralph, I want you to hold that thought. One of the things which is absolutely necessary in our process is anonymity. You must never share with anyone any part of this process. Let me offer this. You have a concern that you will be asked to do something that is outside of your own moral code. I cannot guarantee you won’t be asked, but I can guarantee you will never have to do anything you are not comfortable doing.
“Oh, here. The presentation is about to start.”
A man stood, walked to the front of the room, and announced, “Hi everyone, my name is Mike.”
Everyone responded, “Hi! Mike.”
“I want to tell you my story. I am 46 years old. I was married for 24 years. Just before our 25th wedding anniversary, I came home and found my wife and my brother in bed together. They had been lovers for years. We had three children, the oldest and youngest were mine, the middle child was my brother’s.
“We had a family business. It is still run by my father. My father always favored my brother. I told the family I would no longer be a part of any business which included my brother. I was basically told not to let the door hit me in the ass as I left.
“I am now trying to build a business struggling against my own family. My brother is sabotaging me for his own entertainment. My former wife and brother are going to marry. My children are being turned against me.”
Mike stopped talking and took a sip from a water bottle. Then, resumed, “What I wish is my father could be persuaded to listen to what is really happening. I wish he could force himself to see my brother’s treachery, bleeding his business.
“I thank you all for listening.”
The whole thing was less than five minutes. As soon as he seated himself, the room was abuzz with people talking in pairs. In my case, Bob talked to me.
“What did you hear, if I might ask?”
“Mike mentioned no names. He spoke of a business, but nothing that would tell me what the business was. He was totally vague.”
“Good. At least partially good.” Bob was looking at me, thinking about his next statement. “Did Mike ask for anything?”
It hit me. “No. He asked for nothing. He did say he wished his father would listen and would find out what is going on.”
“Would you call his wish vague?”
“No, it was quite specific.”
“Do you think it called for any violence or illegal activity?”
I just smiled. An answer was not called for. I decided to offer, “It was also a wish, not a request. Mike has asked no one for anything.”
“There is a meeting in two weeks and another in a month. Could you be ready to present at one of those?”
I thought about the PI and his report. I would get that in a week. Depending on what it contained, I’d need to figure out what I should wish for. “Bob, it would be safer to ask for a month. What if I am not ready in that month?”