The assistant producer returned the greeting as he slowed his pace, reaching his office door and unlocking it with the short jingle of a key. Holding the door open, he motioned for both women to come inside without any unnecessary ceremony. Fiona stepped in first while Kendra followed a pace behind her. The office bared the expected mixture of paperwork, production schedules, and framed memorabilia along the walls with any extra space occupied by filing cabinets. Gordon’s office was spacious and well-organized but not quite as “flamboyant” as Kendra had expected. The fanciest piece of decorum in the room was a well-crafted metal statuette of two wrestlers sitting next to a wooden cigar box on a nearby ornamental shelf. Gordon crossed behind his white oak desk only briefly before gesturing toward the pair of leather armchairs across from him. He offered each of the women a seat with a courteous nod and a smile despite the fact that they obviously had just come from training.

Once his two guests were comfortable Gordon took his own seat. The atmosphere carried the familiar tension that always seemed to surround meetings. Even so everything remained outwardly calm and businesslike. Without wasting any time, the heavyset NMW executive shifted into the polished routine he had clearly delivered countless times befire when meeting talent to discuss upcoming bookings or other events. His expression settled into that plastic carefully rehearsed smile that never quite reached his eyes. He offered Fiona a round of congratulations for her recent accomplishments within the company. Every word came across with the smooth precision of something memorized an hour before. 

Kendra remained silent beside her partner, listening without interruption. Her attention never wandered from the producer as he continued through the practiced remarks though her shoulders stiffened almost imperceptibly as the congratulations concluded. A flicker of irritation crossed her features before she managed to stop it.

“Now then,” Gordon said, scratching at his right cheek with four meaty fingers, “we are here to discuss what’s next for you. Both of you.”