Downfall of a Manager

Synopsis

Sacking the head of her design department leads to the loss of her own job

Downfall of a Manager

by obohobo

Warnings

Please take note!

The text in this story contains erotic material and is expressly written for adults only.

MF minimal sex

If you are underage or offended by such material, or if viewing this file is illegal in your locality, then leave, close or delete this file-story now.

This is a work of fiction, any resemblance to persons living, dead or otherwise is purely coincidental. The ideas and thoughts that follow are pure fantasies. In real life, at the very least they would be unpleasant and probably illegal. Fantasies are like that; daydreams where we can contemplate and imagine the sensations without suffering or inflicting the pain, despair or humiliation.

“Roberts! I want that preliminary list of materials for the Galdwin Annex on my desk before you leave.”

“But Ms Coulter, it’s Friday and I have a date tonight…”

“Cancel it or find another job.”

“That list won’t be wanted for another week and will probably change when the design is finalised,” I interrupted.

“You think I don’t know that?” She turned her attention to me, “That’s why I asked for a PRELIMINARY list. Sometimes I wonder how you ever made it to head the design department, Pearson.”

“At least I made it on merit and not because I was related to someone with influence.” The rest of the design department stopped and stared. I’d had a gutful of the young woman who’d been appointed as our manager a little over a month previously without my having any say in the matter. Since then she’d been trying to make a name for herself with the hierarchy by sending them frequent reports and being totally authoritative with us and doing so in the most objectionable way. Morale in the department dropped dramatically and several of my staff talked about leaving. I’d thought about it but decided to give it a little longer. I liked what I did and got on well with the rest of my design team but the bitch in the office delighted in making things difficult for us, and particularly for me.

Jennifer Coulter’s face flushed red with anger but to save face she retorted, “Let me have a progress report on the total development before you leave today Pearson. I don’t care if you do have to work after five to get it done.” Abruptly she turned and went into her office.

“God, what’s got her knickers in a twist? She’s in a worse mood than usual and that’s saying something.” Kate McIntyre and I had worked together for many years and were good friends. I’d even thought of courting her now her divorce was final but wondered if it would devalue our friendship. “You going to do a report Tom?”

“Of course. Must do what our manager tells us.” I grinned but continued with the design work until 4:50 and then emailed my report to Kate while I put the printed version in a smart folder.

Kate gave me the thumbs up sign when I took the report through and placed it on Ms Coulter’s desk and beat a hasty retreat. Quickly I shut my computer down, tidied my desk and reached for my coat. “Pearson! My office now!” My hoped for two minutes delay didn’t materialise. Without speaking I continued to put on my coat and made ready to leave. “Pearson! Didn’t I make myself clear! My office NOW!”

“If you wish to see me Ms Coulter, it will have to be in at 8 o’clock Monday morning. I am leaving now.”

“You’re fired. Leave the premises and don’t come back. We’ll forward any wages due.” Fist clenched, her face red with anger, she turned to go back into her office, I presumed to inform Personnel.

“Ms Coulter, please call security. I have the statutory right to take my personal possessions from my desk but security has to check I do not take any company stuff.” My reply took her aback. She obviously thought I would plead to keep my job but I was pretty sure that with my reputation, I could get another or start up on my own.

“You’re going through with this?” Kate asked. I nodded.

“What will happen to the department? Will it be disbanded? Who will take your place?” John Roberts asked a series of questions I couldn’t answer. As a young man, I knew he worried about getting another job that paid as well.

Even the security guy expressed his shock at my being sacked. I bade sad farewells to my colleagues and went home, in many ways relieved the stress and tension of leading a department and having a bitch for a boss, was over.

7:30 the doorbell rang. I cursed silently. Mandy, my nearly four-year-old daughter, sat on my lap waiting for me to read a story before I put her to bed. With Mandy hugging her arms around my neck, I answered the door. My ex-manager stood on the doorstep. “Come in Jenny…”

“Ms Coulter to you.”

“At work, maybe, but not in my home and not when I’m not an employee. Come in, this ones not dressed for being outside.” Mandy shyly looked at the visitor and I semi-formally introduced one to the other. “Come in and sit down. Would you like tea or coffee?”

“Coffee. Something stronger would be preferable or perhaps we can get straight down to why I’ve come?”

“There’s no booze in this house, not since the drunk driver killed my wife. And we won’t be able to do much talking until I’ve put my daughter to bed.”

“You hav’ta read’a story before I go’ta bed,” Mandy spoke for the first time.

“I’ll make Jenny’s coffee first.”

“Can she read f’r me?”

“Yes, I expect she can but you have to ask if she will read to you.”

“Jenny will’ya read me a story please?” As soon as Jenny nodded her agreement, Mandy climbed on to her lap and thrust the book in her face. I couldn’t help grinning at the twenty-something woman in a business suit struggling to control a squirming young girl trying to get comfortable against her. The situation made her uncomfortable and embarrassed but that amused me further. “Do her good to have a couple of kids of her own,” I thought.

“You don’t read very well, what stage are you up to?” I couldn’t help laughing at Mandy’s comment but I knew what she meant. Jenny read in monotone, with none of the emphasis or change in character voices I tried to use. I took over while Jenny sipped her coffee.

“Will you come to the zoo with us tomorrow, Jenny?” Mandy asked, stopping me in mid sentence.

“No, I don’t go to those smelly places.”

“They’re not smelly – ’cept when the effalants do a big poo,” Mandy hotly retorted, “You can see all the nice animals and they let you stroke some.”

Eventually I got her to bed and Jenny started. “Mark Chattiswick our MD asked me to see you and apologise and ask you to consider returning to work for us. He would like to see you first thing Monday morning.” I wasn’t unduly surprised by the request and had considered it a possibility on the drive home, but I was surprised that she came around personally to deliver it but a later remark indicated that Mark had ordered her to do so. I knew too that a lot of design time would be wasted getting things back on track even if one of the present team took over. The actual job was an interesting one and we’d worked well enough without the need for a department manager until a shareholder in one of the top bosses pockets, decided we needed someone to co-ordinate between them and us. Jennifer Coulter knew nothing about design work, although she had a business degree, but her communication skills were lacking to say the least.

“And are you going to?” My question startled her.

“What?”

“Apologise.”

“Yes, I’m sorry I lost my temper with you this afternoon and hope that you will consider returning.”

It didn’t sound sincere but I let that go and decided to tease her a little more and see how she reacted when not in her workplace environment, when not being my overlord. “Yes, I’ll consider it but no promises, and only if you agree to accompany us to the zoo tomorrow. We want to leave about eight o’clock so we can get there soon after it opens at nine. It’s about 45 miles but it usually takes an hour because the Brightchester by-pass is usually choc-a-block.”

“You’re blackmailing me to accompany you? Why?”

“Thought you might enjoy a day out in a family situation and perhaps work out some of our animosity to each other.”

What a disaster! First she arrived late and then I had to transfer Mandy’s car seat from my car to hers because she wouldn’t travel in my old Ford. Fortunately, that only took minutes but it was still ten o’clock before we arrived and the crowds had thickened and car park spaces were at a premium. All morning she showed her dislike of the zoo and complained about the smells, the people there and how appalling it was to keep animals under such conditions. After lunch I bought Mandy a chocolate ice cream and gave it to her to hold while I paid the vendor. Momentarily out of my grasp, Mandy tottered towards Jenny, tripped and splattered chocolate ice cream down Jenny’s light fawn coloured trousers.

“You stupid little brat,” she screamed getting everyone’s attention, “Now look what you’ve done.” Just as Mandy managed to get to her feet, Jenny slapped her face hard and knocked her to the ground. She hit her head on the gravel and grazed her cheeks making them bleed profusely. “Find your own way home, I didn’t want to come here in the first place.” Jenny headed towards the car park.

A man and a woman from zoo security arrived on the scene quickly and while I tried to comfort my screaming daughter, one radioed for the police and the other took names of the witnesses. A policewoman arrived, took one look at Mandy and said, “I’m taking her to the hospital. The grazes need cleaning and she’s going to have a black eye.” Turning to the security guy she asked if he had witness details. He hadn’t finished but she took his name and said she’d be in touch and handed him her card. “What is the woman’s name that assaulted your daughter?” she asked as we got into the patrol car. I told her and gave the car’s make and registration number. She was vain enough to have a memorable custom one, CEO 100. Perhaps she thought she’d get to be CEO one day. Jacqueline, our policewoman, radioed the information, started the blue lights and sirens and we made the twenty miles into Brightchester faster that I would have done. Mandy cried the whole way.

At the hospital, at Jacqueline’s insistence that this was an assault case, photos were taken before they cleaned and treated her wounds. Afterwards, with my permission, they gave her a drink that would ease her pain. “She should be fine in a few days,” the doctor informed me, “She’ll have a black eye for longer and scabs on the scratches but they’ll all disappear without scarring.” That she’d not be scarred for life, was a relief.

Our policewoman drove us to the police station; I noticed Jenny’s car parked outside. Jacqueline quickly took a statement from me and agreed to get someone to remove my baby chair from Jenny’s car so that I could have a friend pick us up and take us home.

“Thanks for coming Kate,” I whispered as I fitted the seat in her car while she cradled the sleeping girl.

“We’ll stop at my place and put this one to bed for a bit and get you something to eat. You look exhausted. You can tell me the details then and I’ll fill you in on what happened after you’d left.” Kate lived in Pixton about halfway between Brightchester and Klopton where I lived and we worked. I carried Mandy in and settled her in the spare bedroom. She hardly woke so I guessed the pain killing medicine contained a sedative.

Over a hastily improvised meal, I related my tale. Kate expressed her view that I was stupid to expect a family outing to change Jenny and I had to agree with her. “What happened after I left then Kate?”

“Jennifer was in her office so I typed out a resignation notice, photocopied it and we all filled one in. Just a simple note saying we wished to resign without giving reasons. We all trouped down to Personnel but they’d gone home so we went to see Mark Chattiswick. His secretary informed him we wanted to talk with him to hand in our resignations. Of course he was astute enough to know the whole of the design department didn’t really want to leave so he invited us into a boardroom and we, or mainly I, explained the situation. Believe it or not he took it very seriously and phoned Jennifer and told her to see him in fifteen minutes. We left our resignation notices with him and we have to see him on Monday and discus whether or not he should tear them up. He also said he’d contact you and ask you to come in as well.”

“When she came to see me yesterday evening, Jenny didn’t mention your involvement,” I commented, “I thought Mark heard from Personnel that I’d left although I hadn’t actually informed them as I had been sacked and it should have been Jenny’s job to do that. She came at Mandy’s bedtime so I made her wait and read her a story and when Mandy suggested the zoo visit, I thought it might help to improve our relationship.”

“I came to your house that evening to talk it over with you and saw her car there and thought you might be trying to improve your relationship in other ways!” We both laughed at what now seemed a ludicrous idea. “I came again this morning and you were just leaving in her car, so what was I to think? I should have known better.”

Mandy woke irritably but ate a little food although she complained her face hurt. Kate cuddled her while I did the washing-up and shortly after we were able to get her ready for bed again. She’d slept there on a number of occasions when I’d had to go away. I never had, mainly because Kate insisted she didn’t want to jeopardise her divorce. That was finalised several months ago but our relationship was still that of friends. Neither of us wanted to go further; me because of memories of Sally, her because she didn’t want to go through the trauma of another failed marriage. “Looks like you’ll be sleeping here as well tonight. Mandy will want you on hand if she wakes in the night and I’m pretty sure she will,” Kate commented and grinned. That grin could only mean one thing; I would share her bed.

For the first time in three years, I made love to a woman. Kate was in a similar situation and willingly opened herself to me and for an hour we kissed, cuddled and fucked until a cry from the other room and the patter of tiny feet made us pull apart. Mandy tottered into our room. If she was surprised at our being together and naked, she didn’t show it but climbed into bed and snuggled down between us.

We planned that Kate would spend Sunday with us at my place but the phone kept ringing with reporters and others wanting details of the attack, so we returned to Kate’s and spent the afternoon and the night there.

Mandy again had a restless night and I was concerned that her face appeared more swollen and the rainbow colours of the bruising showed vividly. I decided to take her back to the hospital but the doctor said it was all pretty normal and the swelling should soon start to go down. He gave me two prescriptions to ease her pain; the one for night use would make her sleep.

Kate phoned the pre-school for me to say she wouldn’t be there but they’d already heard of the incident and didn’t expect her. From the hospital I went directly to see the MD, taking Mandy with me, as I hadn’t been able to make other arrangements for her at short notice. In any case, officially I wasn’t an employee or actually I was because my sacking hadn’t been authorised although I considered myself ‘free’.

I’ve known Mark for many years, ever since I joined the firm. Both of us had risen through the ranks of the company although we’d taken different paths. He’d a family and young grandchildren so speaking with Mandy didn’t faze him at all and after I’d introduced them, he didn’t remark on her face but treated her as a normal child. I could see though, he was disgusted with her injury, or more accurately, the cause of her injury.

For a while we discussed work problems until Mandy became restless. Picking up the phone, he dialled the design department and got Kate. I guessed Jenny wasn’t in. “Kate, can you organise all the staff in your department to be in Boardroom 3 at two o’clock please. And bring some paper and crayons with you.”

In the canteen we were the centre of attention and everyone knew of Mandy’s attack. The front page of the local paper had a picture of her taken before she’d been cleaned up so I guessed someone at the zoo used his/her camera. Not surprising when most adults at a zoo carry them. The ladies fussed over her and gave her an ice cream to replace the one she missed on Saturday but I made sure she was sitting down before I gave it to her.

Kate joined us and asked what the meeting was about but I had no real idea. “He asked about the running of the department and why we were behind schedule and questioned me about my policy of not working after 5 p.m. I told him that tired designers make expensive mistakes and long hours makes for less productive work. I’m not sure that he agreed but he didn’t openly disagree. What happened when you all went to see him this earlier?”

“He just said that Jenny wouldn’t be coming back and asked to be allowed to tear up our resignations. We agreed. The others went back to work but he kept me for a while longer asking about the running of the department, about you, about the schedule and the accuracy of your note to Jenny.”

The outcome of the boardroom meeting was greatly in our favour. I would continue to be in charge of the design project with Kate as my assistant. I would be able to employ another designer, the cost being offset by not having a manager. It would mean my having to deal directly with Mark like the managers of other departments did and as I’d done previously and I’d still be responsible for the overall design. It worked well.

In the following months, the relationship between Kate and myself developed and we spent most of our time together. So much so, that Mandy started calling her Mummy Kate instead of Auntie Kate. Four months later she moved in to our house permanently but we’ve yet to get married. That is still a big hurdle for both of us.

Jenny pleaded guilty at her trial but her clever lawyer pleaded mitigating circumstances and got her off a prison sentence but she had to do 100 hours community service. We bumped into her at a supermarket about a year later. Mandy immediately cringed behind us but Jenny actually came and spoke calmly when I asked how she was doing. “As you know, they sent me for psychiatric treatment and reports before passing sentence and they said I was under too much stress and that much of it was of my own making. They wouldn’t let me work with vulnerable people because I was considered violent so I had to join the ‘gardening gang’. They were a pretty rough lot but one of them helped me a good deal and gave me some protection from the others although I had to put up with their comments on the way I spoke and they seemed to take delight in using the coarsest language in front of me. The fact that I didn’t have to make any decisions helped my rehab. Now I have a job in the stores of an engineering firm. It’s more responsibility than the gardening job but I only have to keep the stock up to date.”

I wished her well.

Finis