afternoon at the office taking care of administrative chores he had been ignoring over the past few weeks.
At 3:15 he readied for his 4:00 meeting at Biovonix with Dr. Banik. After refueling at the coffee machine, he hopped onto the Decarie Expressway and headed north until it emptied out onto Route 40 westbound. About fifteen minutes later, he arrived at Biovonix, a medium sized campus of buildings off Route 40 in an area known as the West Island.
Elliot asked for Dr. Banik at reception and was almost immediately greeted by an escort to take him to Banik’s office. The escort was a stocky fellow, and due to an apparent love affair with his Bowflex, his head seemed to rest directly on his shoulders as if he had no neck at all. His laser straight posture and short cropped hair immediately made him think of someone with a military background. The escort seemed completely out of place in his surroundings and looked as comfortable in his suit as your grandfather might look in drag.
With a minimum of protocol, he motioned Elliot to follow through a warren of hallways that eventually led them to Banik’s second-floor office. Outside the office in a spacious foyer was an admin assistant, whom he assumed to be the one he spoke to on the phone.
“Good afternoon. I’m here to see Dr. Banik.”
“Good afternoon, Mr. Forsman. My name is Emily, and if you wait right here, I will see if Dr. Banik is ready to see you.”
On the other side of the open area was a desk with another suited pretender propped up behind it. This man also clearly came from a military background, the same close cropped hair, the same straight posture, the same humorless demeanor. The only obvious difference was a cheesy moustache that dripped down off the sides of his mouth like a '70s porn star might have. The man across the office reminded Elliot of someone, someone he knew. Moustache looked up to see Elliot eyeing him and stared right back as if a challenge had been thrown. Elliot continued to stare back because he was sure that he knew that man, or at least had met him at some point in the recent past, but he couldn’t recall where or when. Elliot looked away when Emily came back and ushered him into Banik’s office.
Banik’s office was impressive. A huge square area bounded by glass on three sides and mahogany and stainless steel on the entry wall. The lighting, furniture, and décor were flawlessly executed, and Elliot knew immediately that this office was a showpiece for the entire company. A tall, distinguished man he presumed to be Dr. Banik met him inside the door and introduced himself.
“Mr. Forsman, please come in,” the man said as he offered his hand.
“Dr. Banik. Thank you for seeing me today on such short notice, and please, call me Elliot,” he said as he looked around in awe. “This is quite an office.”
“It is. Let me give you the tour before we get started,” Banik replied as he walked over to the glass wall on the right with the expectation that Elliot would follow. He did.
Their small talk was interrupted when they reached a windowed wall that looked out over a roofed area that was open to the outdoors. The area below was filled with tables, chairs, and benches. Elliot saw that there was already a number of staff eating and relaxing.
“This is an area where the staff can eat, have a coffee, relax and socialize. On Friday afternoons, we serve cold refreshments like beer and wine, all complimentary, of course. We believe strongly that our staff is our most valuable asset, and this is one of the many ways we express that belief.”
Elliot nodded in appreciation, not knowing what else to say. They continued walking over to the far wall that looked south over the Biovonix property toward Highway 40. “You’ll notice that our current campus only occupies a small portion of the Biovonix property,” said Banik as he swept his arm across a considerable mown area that fronted and surrounded the existing campus.
“We
At 3:15 he readied for his 4:00 meeting at Biovonix with Dr. Banik. After refueling at the coffee machine, he hopped onto the Decarie Expressway and headed north until it emptied out onto Route 40 westbound. About fifteen minutes later, he arrived at Biovonix, a medium sized campus of buildings off Route 40 in an area known as the West Island.
Elliot asked for Dr. Banik at reception and was almost immediately greeted by an escort to take him to Banik’s office. The escort was a stocky fellow, and due to an apparent love affair with his Bowflex, his head seemed to rest directly on his shoulders as if he had no neck at all. His laser straight posture and short cropped hair immediately made him think of someone with a military background. The escort seemed completely out of place in his surroundings and looked as comfortable in his suit as your grandfather might look in drag.
With a minimum of protocol, he motioned Elliot to follow through a warren of hallways that eventually led them to Banik’s second-floor office. Outside the office in a spacious foyer was an admin assistant, whom he assumed to be the one he spoke to on the phone.
“Good afternoon. I’m here to see Dr. Banik.”
“Good afternoon, Mr. Forsman. My name is Emily, and if you wait right here, I will see if Dr. Banik is ready to see you.”
On the other side of the open area was a desk with another suited pretender propped up behind it. This man also clearly came from a military background, the same close cropped hair, the same straight posture, the same humorless demeanor. The only obvious difference was a cheesy moustache that dripped down off the sides of his mouth like a '70s porn star might have. The man across the office reminded Elliot of someone, someone he knew. Moustache looked up to see Elliot eyeing him and stared right back as if a challenge had been thrown. Elliot continued to stare back because he was sure that he knew that man, or at least had met him at some point in the recent past, but he couldn’t recall where or when. Elliot looked away when Emily came back and ushered him into Banik’s office.
Banik’s office was impressive. A huge square area bounded by glass on three sides and mahogany and stainless steel on the entry wall. The lighting, furniture, and décor were flawlessly executed, and Elliot knew immediately that this office was a showpiece for the entire company. A tall, distinguished man he presumed to be Dr. Banik met him inside the door and introduced himself.
“Mr. Forsman, please come in,” the man said as he offered his hand.
“Dr. Banik. Thank you for seeing me today on such short notice, and please, call me Elliot,” he said as he looked around in awe. “This is quite an office.”
“It is. Let me give you the tour before we get started,” Banik replied as he walked over to the glass wall on the right with the expectation that Elliot would follow. He did.
Their small talk was interrupted when they reached a windowed wall that looked out over a roofed area that was open to the outdoors. The area below was filled with tables, chairs, and benches. Elliot saw that there was already a number of staff eating and relaxing.
“This is an area where the staff can eat, have a coffee, relax and socialize. On Friday afternoons, we serve cold refreshments like beer and wine, all complimentary, of course. We believe strongly that our staff is our most valuable asset, and this is one of the many ways we express that belief.”
Elliot nodded in appreciation, not knowing what else to say. They continued walking over to the far wall that looked south over the Biovonix property toward Highway 40. “You’ll notice that our current campus only occupies a small portion of the Biovonix property,” said Banik as he swept his arm across a considerable mown area that fronted and surrounded the existing campus.
“We
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