Everyone in the office was glad to have me back. I thought it was because it was almost Christmas, but I had no idea how much they missed me until one Noelle had to ask me to spare some time with a computer programmer who was had been crying, begging to see me.
"Sir Ace," she sobbed the moment she entered my office. She desperately wiped the tears from her eyes, but they just kept on coming. I remembered her from my office party. She was the girl Bart stopped from eating, the same programmer who worked with Jacob in the Gutierrez application. Noelle stood motionless at the door, also unsure what she should do.
"Karen, would it be alright if Noelle sat with us? I'm not sure it's appropriate for it to be just the two of us when you're crying like I just got you pregnant," I kidded and handed her my handkerchief. She nodded and took my hanky. Noelle locked the door and sat across her.
"Okay. Whenever you're ready," I told her. She warily looked between Noelle and me. I could see the wheels in her head turning, no wait, the 0 and 1 codes coming in like in a DOS window. She was having an internal debate, but whatever it was, it was eating her up. She sniffed.
"Karen?"
"Sir, I quit." My eyebrows shot up but my mouth remained shut. I waited for her to tell me her reason, but she refused to look at my secretary or me. Instead, she fidgeted in her seat, the tears started flowing, and then she cried harder.
"All right, calm down a little. May I know why you're quitting when it seems you don't even want to?" Noelle leaned over and put a hand on Karen's knee, offering some physical comfort.
"I... I don't want to tell you. I can't," she shook her head.
"What's going on? Why can't you tell me?" The nervousness was creeping in. I haven't made my move yet, but whoever the enemy was, they or they are already a lot of steps ahead of me. I have to work out a plan, fast.
"Sir, I know I've been with your company for just a little over two years, but I swear I have been nothing but loyal. I would not sell you out. I would not do anything to compromise JAB. And I may not be your best programmer or the best asset of the firm, but I promise you, I'm not doing this out of personal jealousy. I mean, professional. Professional jealousy."
"Okay. What is it?" I braced myself for the worst. Personal jealousy. I knew she was going to say it. I could see it in her face. From the way her speech was going, I knew where this was going.
"But you have to let me go after I tell you."
"Why? If you're going to save my company, why should I let you go? That's no way to reward loyalty."
"Because if I stay, he will know it was me. And he's going to make my life worse than the hell it already has been."
"He will do no such thing if I will not let him," I said grimly. The sympathy in my voice disappeared, and it was clear that I knew who she was talking about. She quickly slapped both hands over her mouth, both eyes wide with fear. "But you will have to tell me."
♤
I hadn't accepted her verbal resignation. I told her to think about it and that I would take care of him and make sure he didn't throw his weight around. Still, she took a few days of leaves to 'think.'
The next few weeks went by in a blur. Jaxx had met with Mr. Montevideo while Bart did the proposal. My COO heeded my request to let Bart take the deal because Jacob had to deal with personal matters, and I did not want the project interrupted because of some petty shit he was going through.
Three weeks after the accident, I was off the arm sling, and the chest pain was seventy-five percent gone. Once I got a new phone, Brigs regularly checked on me. Thank god for cloud storage; I restored my phonebook and most of my important conversations and messages.
YOU ARE READING
Of Kings and Aces
RomanceWhat does it take to change the course of a person's life? One small, seemingly trivial decision. For Jacob, it was when he decided to play a game of poker in a new city he was supposed to call home for the next few years. But he was at the wrong...
