Chapter 5: Posting

Derek went into the office on Monday in a daze. No matter what he tried to do, he could not concentrate.

One of the older women came over to his desk and said, "Come with me."

Blindly he followed her out of the building and in to the coffee shop opposite. She motioned for him to sit down, and then ordered coffees for both of them.

"Bob does that," she said quietly.

"Does what?" asked Derek.

"Picks one of the new trainees and takes her. He likes to take one who has formed a relationship with another junior. It makes him feel powerful. He'll lend her to the other seniors and use her himself until he's tired of her, then he'll discard her. The man he's stolen her from rarely takes her back."

"How do you know?"

"I'm his long term mistress. He'll dump her and want me back full time in about six weeks, if he runs true to form," she told the astonished junior, "Will you want her back?"

Derek thought for a minute.

"No," he said slowly, "No, I don't think so."

"My advice would be to move to another office, or even another company. Otherwise he'll treat you like dirt as well."

"Why?"

"Because it amuses him, and he feels you haven't stood up to him. He's the Alpha Male and he's proved it. Of course if you make a fuss in the office he'll fire you."

They drank their coffee in silence, then she spoke again.

"And in case you were going to ask, no, I won't take her place in your bed."

"I wasn't going to ... That is you are very attractive but..."

He broke off, embarrassed.

"Don't worry. I didn't expect you to," she comforted him, "It's just that it has happened, and I didn't want you to get the wrong idea."

"Have you been with him long?" asked Derek.

"Five years, and in that time he has done this seven times," she replied.

"Why do you stay?"

"I have no idea, but I always go back to his bed. If I were you I would spend the rest of today looking at the vacancies, internal and external."

"Surely one of the female juniors complains?" Derek persisted, "It's sexual harassment."

"Her first duty this weekend was to serve drinks to a group of visitors at a barbecue. She was naked when she served them, and they were free to maul her as they please. Several of them fucked her. Among the group were several Senior Partners, and Julie, the female Counsellor from HR, was be there as well. That's the woman she would complain to about his harassment, and Helen was made to suck her off while one of the Senior Partners was actually fucking Helen's arse and another was in Julie's mouth," explained his companion, "I know. That's how I started, and I watched on Saturday evening from my own position behind the bar. Only one of them fucked me. I want to keep my job, and in any case there were no other witnesses and the people there would all deny it. It would be her word against any number of others, and the impression given would be of a brown nose who failed and was being spiteful."

Back in the office, Derek thought, 'I must pull myself together. She's right. I have to move.'

Derek's parents had both been diplomats, and they had ensured that although Derek spent most of his time in England, at a boarding school of venerable foundation and high reputation, he spent the holidays wherever one or other of them was posted, and that languages were an important part of his education. Fortunately he had an aptitude for them and by the time he went up to university he was fluent in the more important ones, Mandarin, Arabic, German, Swahili, and could get by in half a dozen more. He had an impressive range of swear words in more languages than he could remember, but that is just the vocabulary that growing boys acquire.

The vacancy which most caught his eye was an internal THMA one to work on a Foreign Office assignment in one of the Gulf Emirates. He had studied accountancy at University because he had shrewdly assessed the toll the Diplomatic Service had taken on his parents, and especially the strain it put on their marriage. Nine to five, five days a week in an office would suit him nicely. A house with a garden, an expensive car, a suitable wife, and two point four children sounded like heaven, but now the chance of achieving that dream with Helen was shattered by Bob's treatment of him and he just wanted to get away from England for a while.

He telephoned the Human Resources department and explained his interest, and that he thought his languages would be useful. He guessed from their enthusiastic response that this was not a popular posting, and that his Arabic made him a prime candidate. They arranged an interview the next day, in London, with James Henriques, the Partner in THMA who was in charge of the project.

The next afternoon it quickly became apparent that he had already got the posting, if he wanted it.

"Have you been out there? To Kobekistan? What is it like? Any tips?" asked Derek, excited by the prospect.

"Calm down, young man, calm down," said James with a smile, "Yes, I went out there. It is hot, but everywhere is air-conditioned. Life feels odd; it is ... sedate is the word, I think. Everything is very orderly, but at the same time it is not regimented. If you do get this posting the one man to be very wary of is Hajji Darwish Dosmukhamedov, who is sort of Economics Minister. He is very old; he must be well into his seventies, but his mind is as sharp as they come. He will bumble into a meeting like a senile old sheep, but don't be fooled."

"Anyone else I should watch out for?"

"The Emir, of course; His Magnificence, the Emir Mahmoud Abdullah, may he live for ever, to give him his full honorific, but it's unlikely that you will ever see him, much less speak to him. Now go and find out all you can about Kobekistan and come back here when you know whether you want to go there."

It was in a travel guide for businessmen that the only description of Kobekistan was to be found, and that was very florid indeed. What Derek read was: