Alter Ego

He knew the man staring back at him in the mirror better than anyone else could ever know him. He was Barnabas, a leader of men, a purveyor of knowledge, a pillar of strength. If he could see these attributes, which the man in the mirror so abundantly projected, why was it no one else could? Things must change. The man in the mirror insisted on it, and that change would happen today. Infused with a newfound self-assurance, Barnabas strode confidently from his one-room hovel, ready to take on the world.

“Oh look, it’s little Barney! About time you showed up for work. You can start by flushing out the porta potties, then come see me when you’re done.”

“Flush the shit boxes, you’re joking, right, Gordo? I’m the office help, not your yard crew.”

“You’re whatever I say you are and since I’m one man short today, you’re the new shit box cleaner. You got a problem with that little Barney?”

The man in the mirror cringed with disgust as he heard his alter ego’s answer. “No, whatever you say, boss.”

“That’s what I thought. Now get to it, little Barney!”

Barnabas met Gordo in first grade. Even back then, Gordo was big for his age and quickly established himself as the class bully. He enjoyed picking on the other kids, especially Barnabas since he was the class runt. Throughout school, Gordo was the bane of Barnabas’s existence. Should anyone try to challenge Gordo, they would get a severe beat down. The two took different paths after graduating. Barnabas earned a degree in accounting while Gordo went to work at his father’s construction company. After ten years of living and working as a financial advisor for a large organization headquartered in the big city, Barnabas moved back to his little hometown and found the only job available in his field, working for Gordo’s company.

The primary reason Gordo kept his employees was that he paid well. Also, many were just as crass as their boss and fed off the constant incivility. People with less aggressive personalities never stayed very long. It was better for them to travel out of town for work than to put up with constant abuse. Unfortunately, Barnabas had to care for his elderly parents, one of two reasons he moved back to the town he despised. The other reason he would keep to himself for now.

Three months of abuse had passed when Gordo barged into little Barney’s cubbyhole office and demanded his full attention.

“Barney, I just found out about a large project an out-of-town developer is proposing for our town and I want in on it. I need $50 million as a buy-in. You’re my finance guy. Where can I get that kind of cash on short notice?”

“I know where you might get that much money, but you would need to put up your company, plus your personal holdings as collateral. You would be taking an enormous risk and possibly lose everything. Are you sure you want to do this?”

“Of course I’m sure! My family’s company built every important building in this town. I will not let some out-of-towner take over. So, tell me, how does a wimp like you have access to that much cash?”

“Organizing large money transfers and loans is what I did for my previous employer. I made several people very wealthy before coming back here. I’m warning you, Gordo, make sure you want to do this before I call my contacts. You could lose it all if the development deal falls apart.”

“Would you look at that, little Barney is warning me! Make the damn calls!”

6 months later

“Excuse me, sir. My name is Jack Johnson from The Times and I’d like to write an article about the way you’ve transformed this company from a local entity into a major corporation in such a short time.”

“I’d be happy to talk with you, Jack, but honestly, it wasn’t that difficult. With the help of the right backers, I took over from the old owner, and everything else was a matter of proper planning. My secretary’s office is over there. Tell her Barnabas would like her to schedule a meeting. Here’s a scoop for you, Jack. Tomorrow the company’s name is changing to Alter Ego.”