The lights dimmed, and smoke snaked its way from under the heavy black curtains that lined the back of the stage. The crowd that filled the theater around Kelly dipped to a hush, and dueling colored spotlights knifed through the fog as a pulsating dance beat floated across the excited throng.

Kelly turned to Jasmine, her best friend and only friend at Rubicon Pharma. “Do we have to do this every time there’s an announcement?”

“Come on, it’s all part of the show. It’s exciting! You loved it when you first started here.” Jasmine leaned toward the stage, her eyes glued to the performance.

A middle-aged man, suit jacketed over a black T-shirt and jeans, bounced across the stage, pumping the air with his fists. The crowd of two hundred rose as one with a giant cheer for their leader. Kelly joined them on reluctant feet.

“Welcome! Welcome!” CEO Tarquin Gascon seemed to be relishing inciting the crowd to praise. Their cheers ebbed and flowed, played like the orchestra they were.

Jasmine whooped and hollered as Kelly put enough energy into her applause to be unnoticed.

“Who is the number one pharmaceutical brand in the world?” Gascon threw a hand behind his ear theatrically so his team’s volume could hit 110 percent, the only number acceptable in the corridors of Rubicon Pharma.

“We are!” the crowd roared as Kelly grimaced, embarrassed at the memory of her own first days at the company when she had bought into this cult of personality.

“Friends, friends, take a seat.” The crowd hushed as they settled back into their seats and Gascon steepled his fingers in front of him, strolling across the stage until he had absolute quiet.

“Two team updates for you today.” He faced the throng. “First, I would like to present to you our new staff. They’ll be joining our family here at Rubicon, and nothing is more important to me than team.”

The commandments about teamwork hung in Kelly’s cubicle, in the lunchroom, in the restrooms, and in the elevator.

Gascon ushered a lineup of what looked to be supermodels onto the stage. Young men with chiseled jaws and hair that cost a fortune to look like it cost nothing. Young women with pristine white blouses and skirts that could have passed as large belts.

Kelly pointed at the young blond woman on the end of the lineup and elbowed Jasmine. “The one on the left looks like Daniel’s receptionist.” Tall, thin, and fifteen years away from the battle Kelly was fighting with gravity.

“Wow, no wonder you’re worried.”

Gascon wandered along the line like a judge inspecting pageant contestants. “I want to introduce you to the bright young go-getters who are our executives of tomorrow. If you see them around the building, welcome them to the Rubicon family. But keep an eye on your rearview mirror, because they’ll be coming up behind you.”