Good People Read Online Free PDF

pondering things, but in the end, after Thomas managed to contact Fiske, who had meanwhile returned to head office in New York, his plan got the go-ahead. A magnificent period ensued, the best in his career. Every morning, he would piece the clouds together to redraw the map of Milton Europe, and the changing skies would urge him to conquer Europe. He travelled toRome, Warsaw, London and Paris, familiarised himself with different societies and cultures, each of which demanded a different set of assumptions. When Carlson commented at a meeting, ‘I see that we’ve raised a miniature Alexander the Great in our company,’ Thomas answered, determined to avoid any personal conflict, ‘Don’t be afraid of challenges, my friend. We’ll set up a pan-European network, which, at first glance, might seem uniform, but which will accommodate local patterns of thought wherever it is implemented.’
    He met dozens of people, some of whom inspired him with exciting ideas, and all of these encounters kindled his restless ambition. He planned that by the end of 1940 there would be ten branches of Milton in Europe. At night, in trains, he envisioned a Milton Train reserved for its employees; he dreamed of an American giant who extended his hand to him, and together they soared over the Atlantic, conquering the continent in one splendid move. Then the Far East, the British Empire—Australia, India—wasn’t the world grand?
    Thomas looked up. A man wearing glasses entered the boardroom. He was not tall, and his thick arms were sheathed in the pressed suit of a government official, and there was a gold pin on his lapel. The man nodded to Thomas and limped lightly to the chair opposite him.
    ‘A ski accident in Cortina.’ He pointed at his leg. ‘My poor wife broke her collarbone.’
    Thomas was not interested. This was one of those petty bureaucrats making between 250 and 1000 Reichsmark a month who had filled the streets in recent years. He had probably been sent to deliver some kind of message to Carlson, who maintained close connections with all sorts of government offices.
    The man sat down and looked at Thomas again, pointed at the door and said softly, ‘Close it, please.’
    Obeying the order, Thomas was disturbed by a number of things: it was 7.15 p.m. Where was Carlson? Where were the Daimler-Benz people? Aside from that, he despised meetings not arranged through the ordinary channels, and for which he wasn’t thoroughly prepared.Mainly he gathered that the man sitting opposite him had no doubts about the seniority of his own position, and probably with good reason.
    ‘The American Milton Company and German Consumer Psychology. An elaborate name,’ the man said.
    ‘The gentleman appears to be interested in the subject, otherwise he wouldn’t have favoured us with a visit.’ Thomas stretched his body, emphasising its flexibility. His anxiety had faded. In moments of uncertainty, he believed, his superiority to others would be apparent. Never give people the feeling you aren’t worthy of the position you occupy, or that anything they do might surprise you. ‘It would be a privilege if the kind sir would allow me to tell him a little about our company.’
    ‘Georg Weller,’ the man said. Thomas had the impression that this casual introduction was calculated.
    ‘My name is Thomas Heiselberg, and I manage the company along with Herr Mailer.’
    ‘Of course, of course,’ he said with a hint of mockery. ‘I was so overwhelmed by Milton’s impressive offices that I forgot my manners. It is my honour to work in the Foreign Office as senior adviser to Dr Karl Schnurre. By chance I was nearby, and remembered that Herr Mailer, whom I was privileged to meet recently, had invited me to visit him here.’
    ‘Dr Schnurre’s name arouses admiration in many circles!’ Thomas said. ‘Just last week, Herr Mailer, my colleague, told me that he had taken part in a meeting to discuss the expected challenges to the Foreign Office,