No More Tomorrows

Chapter 25: Payouts and Departures

Flashback to Friday afternoon prior to Grant confronting Emily in the parking garage on Sunday night

As expected after my initial meeting with Charlotte I'd been called back into her office late that afternoon to come face to face with not just Charlotte, but Simon, Mr Brockman and a man who introduced himself as Mr Benton, Legal Counsel for the firm. I knew by the look on their faces that I was going to be sent packing so I decided that I'd make sure I walked away with as much money as possible. Financial gain had been the reason I'd fucked up my life so I was determined to still get what I was owed.

"Thank you for joining us Grant. As discussed this morning I have been investigating your claims of misconduct within the firm and spoken to all the members of your team, including your direct  Supervisor Simon. After much consideration it has been decided that it's not suitable for you to continue working under Simon's management. 

I kept my eyes on Charlotte as I felt the three men in the room staring at me with various degrees of hostility.

"What does that mean for me?"

"Well obviously due to your unfounded allegations Simon is no longer willing to have someone he can't trust in his Executive Team. Mr Brockman has decided that even though your allegations were unfounded that your record of work with both the Kingston and Flinders account show you have promise. Perhaps we pushed you too hard too fast. So we can now offer you a position in one of the junior teams with a drop in salary. Or if that doesn't suit your career aspirations you can choose to walk away with a glowing reference from the company. The decision is yours."

I pretended to think about it for a moment before answering. I could feel Simon's hatred pouring off him across the table.

"Couple of things. The allegations weren't unfounded and I provided you with more than enough proof to validate my claims. I'm guessing your investigation only included Simon and his minions. Believe me I know that they won't speak up. These men are either willing participants in his world of debauchery or are terrified of him. I bet you didn't check any of the email chains I provided or bothered to speak with the Manager down at Club Rouge that your staff frequent multiple times per week."

Charlotte was now looking at me with the same hostility on her face as the three men. 

"I did a thorough investigation as required in this situation. And ultimately it is a situation of your word against that of a long respected Manager with the firm and half a dozen of your colleagues. We are not of the mind to believe you and think that perhaps you regret some of your personal decisions and are now trying to take them out on the firm. I understand your girlfriend has moved out of your apartment..."

"Do not mention my fucking girlfriend!" I could feel my blood start to boil at the mention of Emily in this room and Simon's smug expression wasn't helping my temper. 

"Keep your voice down and do not use foul language in my presence. It's unsavoury."Mr Brockman gave me a nasty look. "I thought you had such promise when I saw your CV come across my desk Grant and I'm very disappointed in you." His hands were now folded on the table as he leaned towards me to make it very clear how unhappy he was with me.

"My work here has been exemplary Mr Brockman. I've had the highest numbers every single month and received multiple accolades from clients. I also have personal references from our two biggest accounts. Both Kingston and Flinders were kind enough to provide me with copies to my personal email when I mentioned I might be moving on." I couldn't help the smirk on my face when Simon blanched at my statement.

"You've been speaking with our clients when I specifically asked you not to! That is unprofessional and in breach of your contract."

Charlotte was looking across the table to Mr Benton looking for him to back her up on her claim.

"I actually haven't broken any of the terms of my employment. I made sure I followed the letter of the law after our meeting this morning as I had a feeling you were going to circle the wagons and cover up Simon's shitty behaviour."

Mr Benton was giving me an assessing look before he spoke. The other three sat quietly. 

"What is it you want here? How do we handle this in a quiet and professional manner?"

"I want the bonuses owed to me for both accounts and if I have to walk away from a six figure job due to no fault of my own, I want a settlement to tide me over until I find something else. We all know this industry runs on reputation as much as performance and rumours like these could ruin your company."

I sat back and folded my arms. Waiting to see which way they'd proceed.  

Mr Benton whispered with Mr Brockman for a brief time and then opened a folder that was on the table in front of him and slid a cheque and two sets of paperwork across the table to me. 

"This is the only monetary offer the firm will make. You will sign the NDA included with the cheque and then you can be on your way. The other sheet is your reference and as promised HR will provide a glowing reference if we are called regarding your time at Kent and Brockman. Do not think to play hardball with me for more money young man. I'm not in the mood."

I took my time to reach for them. Waiting to see if he'd finished speaking. Looking at the cheque I had to work very hard to keep my face neutral. It was more money than I'd ever seen in my life. I put the cheque aside and read through the three page NDA. Paying particular attention to the clauses regarding who I could and couldn't discuss my time with the firm with. Because even though I was taking this cheque and walking away I had definite plans to ruin some people's lives. 

I signed on the dotted line of both the NDA and my resignation letter they'd kindly drafted for me and unclipped the cheque from the top. They didn't know that I'd been recording the entire meeting on my phone so if they tried to stop payment on my cheque then I'd be seeking legal counsel. 

"I want a photocopy of that letter and the NDA before I leave this room. Just to ensure I'm clear on exactly what I signed." I gave Mr Benton a smile that he did not return and he nodded to Charlotte  who grabbed the paperwork and hustled out of the room. I made no effort to fill the silence and just sat staring out the window.

"I can't believe you're throwing all this away for a girl. You were on the rise to the very top and you blew it. Nobody was getting hurt by what we were doing and you had to open your big mouth..."

"Simon that's enough." Mr Brockman barked out as he adjusted his cufflinks and sat quietly in his chair.

Charlotte returned promptly and handed me photocopies of the paperwork.

"I'll need your security pass and parking swipe card before you leave. My assistant has packed up your personal belongings and they're waiting on her desk outside this door for you to collect. I think we're done here." 

I took my time standing up and reached into my wallet, removing both my security pass and parking garage entry card. I placed them one by one on the meeting room table and walked out the door without another word. 

Now to cause some havoc for these bastards and convince my girl to give us a second chance.