Chapter 12: Changes in the office

The new week brings important changes in the office.

After the night of the bachelor party, in addition to my anger at Matthew for the ‘traps’ he kept putting us in, I spent the whole weekend worrying about what would happen on Monday at the office. Mary had thoroughly disguised herself, and no one had seen her face. She hadn’t spoken either, and no one had seen her naked before, so in all probability no one could have recognised her. No one had said anything or made any comments, but that didn’t mean that there wasn’t someone who had recognised her in some way and kept quiet.

I think Mary was equally nervous. In her case, even if they hadn’t recognised her, she worried about how to deal with her partners after having to dance naked on their lap while they groped her and then give them a blow job. At least the groom, whom she had had to fuck, would not be present, as he had gone on a honeymoon, and she would not have to face his presence.

On Monday morning we made our way to the office with anxiety, which contrasted with Matthew’s calmness and satisfaction, happy with the success of the party he had organised. Before he left for the office, Matthew took Mary’s choker, put it on, and then handed me a new green stone to add, saying, “I forgot; we need to add another bead to the choker. That’s now, let me see, twelve green rocks and seven red ones; twelve guys have fucked your wife in the pussy and seven have fucked her in the ass. It’s a shame I didn’t count the blowjobs; at the party alone, that was eight new cocks, but at the rate she’s going, that would be too many beads, don’t you think?”

I attached the bead to the choker without saying anything.

As we entered the office and sat down at our desks, everything seemed normal. Throughout the morning, there was nothing out of the ordinary and we gradually became calmer. Several colleagues approached Matthew and commented to him about the party, congratulating him. When Mary had to approach a colleague’s table to talk, she seemed hesitant, but over the course of the day she regained her confidence.

As we went for coffee in the break room, a colleague commented to me, saying that I ‘had been a great success at the party’, clearly referring to the enthusiasm Mary had shown with me when she danced on my lap. Neither of us replied, and by the end of the day, our concern was fading.

The next day, I noticed that, one by one, all the members of the sales team were summoned to the sales director’s office, where they were talking for quite a while each. When the third one left the office, I became concerned that it might be something to do with the party and Mary’s striptease and decided to speak to one of them and ask him what was going on.

He replied that apparently the commercial director had decided to retire and was talking to each of them to say goodbye personally and also to discuss the future of the department and how to reorganise it. He added that he could not say more, as the director was asking for total discretion about what he was talking to each of them about until everything had been decided.

I was doubly happy about the news, not only because it had nothing to do with the party or Mary, but also because it had long been assumed by almost all the salespeople that I would be the new sales director. I was the most senior salesman in the company, and my background was a perfect fit. In fact, I had once taken over on an interim basis when the director was ill. It had been known for some time that the director would soon retire, but his departure had been brought forward.

Among the many unpleasant events that had occurred since Matthew appeared in our office, at last there was a positive one. I thought that maybe even from my new position I could get Matthew kicked out of the company with the excuse of a reorganisation or change, without him knowing that it was me who had caused it.

By the end of the day, there were only four of us left to meet: Kevin, who had returned from his weekend trip, very upset about the death of his grandmother, Matthew, Mary, and myself.

We were called by the director in that order. When Mary came out, the principal peeked in and called me, so I didn’t have a chance to ask her about the conversation.

I entered the office hopeful and in high spirits. The director greeted me very cordially, “Hello Charles, how’s everything?”

“Fine Roy. Everything is alright. I was sorry to hear that you are retiring, although I suppose you will be looking forward to having some time off and being able to rest. You will be greatly missed. The department, under your leadership, has grown and performed wonderfully. It will be very difficult to replace you.”

“I was planning to stay longer, but my daughter has had triplets, two boys and a girl, and my wife and I have decided that the best thing we can do is to enjoy them and help my daughter and son-in-law, who are going to have a lot more work than they anticipated. So I’ve decided to retire early.”

“I remember when I joined the company, your daughter was a child.”

“Yes, at that time the director was Michael.”

“I remember. He was very grumpy, yelling at us all day long. Big difference with you, Roy.”

We went on for a long time talking ‘about the old days’, recalling anecdotes, projects, clients, and colleagues who were no longer with the company. At one point I began to think that he was delaying talking about what would happen after he left; I didn’t know if it was because he was saddened by it, because it seemed inelegant, or for some other reason.

After talking for a while more about memories of the past, I began to get impatient, so I decided to steer the conversation back on track and asked him, “Well, Roy, what now? After you leave, how is the department going to be organised?”

“Last week I announced my departure to the general manager and owner, and I have been talking to him about it. I also wanted to get feedback from the team members, as well as to have a chat and say goodbye personally.”

“Yes, I saw that you spoke to each of them.”

“You know, Charles, I always thought you were the best person to replace me. You’re the longest-serving salesman in the company; you have a solid background and strategic vision.”

“Thank you for your opinion, Roy.”

‘That’s how I put it to the general manager. But he said he didn’t agree. He told me that ‘new blood’ was needed, with a different vision. He told me that his son Kevin had told him about a colleague who was fantastic: Matthew. He told me that he had reviewed the sales reports and that Matthew, despite being new, had sold more than anyone else.”

I interrupted him, “But those sales weren’t...” and went back to shutting up. I couldn’t tell him that most of them were not Matthew’s but Mary’s, because I would have had to explain the situation between Matthew, Mary, and myself, and the whole thing would have blown up.

“Yes? What did you want to comment on?” asked Roy.

“No, nothing.”

“Apart from the CEO’s insistence and the sales data, when I’ve asked the team members, almost all of them have expressed a very high opinion of him. They’ve said that you’re a great professional but that he knows how to win people’s trust.”

‘Yes, he certainly knows how to win people’s trust and deceive them,’ I thought.

Roy continued, “So in the end, Matthew will take over my position. I wanted to announce it to you first. I felt I owed it to you. I’m sorry, Charles, but I couldn’t do anything else. I realise he’s not as experienced as you, but...”

“Don’t worry, Roy, I understand. Thank you very much for your confidence. When will the change be effective?”

“Tomorrow I’ll announce it publicly; during these days I’ll talk to Matthew, and I’ll pass on everything necessary, and next Monday he’ll take up this position.”

“All right, thank you. I’ll be leaving now,” I said, getting up.

Roy shook my hand warmly and said, “Please tell Matthew to come in. I have to announce it to him.”

I left the office in a state of shock. The job I had taken for granted was going to Matthew. I felt totally crushed.

I know that compared to everything that son of a bitch was doing to us: invading our home, fucking my wife, humiliating me, taking Mary’s work and effort, a simple job promotion was a piece of cake. I don’t know if it affected me more because I had gotten my hopes up that there would finally be some good news or if it was because this was the last straw in Matthew’s destruction of our life, but the fact is that I was devastated.

I told Matthew to go to Roy’s office, then I told Mary that I was going for a stroll and I would go home on my own, and for her to wait for Roy to come out, as we had come in one car. I grabbed my jacket and headed for the exit. Mary started to follow me, but I told her I needed to be alone.

I wandered around the street for several hours, trying to think, although I couldn’t concentrate on anything.

I finally arrived home, where Mary and Matthew were waiting for me. She ran to me and hugged me as I walked in the door. She pulled me into her arms and said, “I’m so sorry, Charley. I’ve been so worried about you; I’ve been calling and texting you.”

In truth, I hadn’t even heard any of the phone alerts.

For his part, Matthew was smiling and very pleased. He greeted me by saying, “Well, Charley, say hello to your new director.”

I ignored him and went to sit on the couch, but he said, “Remember, this area is for Mary and me. You can go to the kitchen.”

Without speaking, I walked into the kitchen and sat there.

Mary had made dinner and left a plate for me, but I didn’t feel like eating anything. I went to the bedroom to go to bed and heard Matthew say to Mary, “Well, I don’t need that stupid Kevin anymore. Next date you have to break up with him.”

Mary replied, “But how can I? He’s so in love with me. And now that his grandmother’s dead.”

“That’s your problem. Tell him Charles suspects something, or that you’re tired of him or whatever you want. I don’t want to go on about it. It’s been fun, and it’s allowed me to move up and get a position in the company, but it doesn’t do anything for me anymore.”

“You’re a bastard, Matthew. You use people no matter what damage you do.”

“That’s possible. But I get what I want.”

The next day, the director called us all together in the meeting room and announced that Matthew would be the new director as of Monday.

Mary met Kevin for lunch and told him that although she loved him very much, she couldn’t stay with him because I suspected something.

Kevin told her that, now that his grandmother had died, if he wasn’t going to stay with Mary, he would leave the company. Apparently he had never wanted to work for the company, so he didn’t take the slightest interest. He wanted to be a painter. More than for his father, he had been working in the company for his grandmother and grandfather, who were the ones who had started the business years ago with a small shop that his father had later turned into a company. He was very fond of them both, and now that they were both dead, he did not feel obliged to continue working.

When Mary told me all this after her meeting with Kevin, I began to understand him better.

Indeed, the next day at the office, Kevin announced that he was leaving and that he was going to start his career as a painter. He showed us pictures of some of the paintings he had done, and they looked good.

Kevin said goodbye to everyone and hugged Mary with particular intensity. I certainly can’t say I was sorry to see a man who was fucking my wife go, even if it was all Matthew’s plot, but I felt a certain pity for him—an innocent and naïve person, pressured by his family circumstances and his father’s wishes, and easily handled by unscrupulous scoundrels like Matthew. I sincerely wished him well.

I was sad, silent, and distracted all day, and in the evening, I walked home again, wandering all over the city. Matthew had taken everything from me: home, wife, career, and I couldn’t find a way to escape. If I thought about Mary, I told myself that she was bearing the brunt of it, being fucked by Matthew every night, and humiliated in front of colleagues and new clients, that it was selfish of me to be sorry; but that only made me feel much worse, like the man who couldn’t stand up for his wife, a pushover with his cock locked in a cage whose key was held by the man who fucked his wife in front of him.

During the afternoon, Mary sent me some messages that I didn’t read until I got home.

The next day was the same, and again, after spending the day like a zombie, I walked home. This time, however, I did hear a single message from Mary.

When I looked at my mobile, it was an audio file with a comment: “Take heart! We’ll get out of this! I need you strong by my side! I love you!”

I started listening to the audio. The impressive voice of Frank Sinatra, ‘The Voice’, flooded my ears. It was the song ‘That’s Life’, a song that Mary and I loved and that had cheered us up in dark times in our early days, when we had no money and were struggling to get by in life.

“...

I said that’s life (that’s life) And as funny as it may seem Some people get their kicks Stomping on a dream But I don’t let it, let it get me down ‘Cause this fine old world, it keeps spinnin’ around ... And I know one thing Each time I find myself Flat on my face I pick myself up and get Back in the race...”

I listened to the song over and over again, and I started to cheer up. I remembered very bad times we had gone through, where we had no stable job, barely enough to eat, and some months we thought we wouldn’t be able to pay the rent and would end up on the street.