All of a sudden, the Chief Security Officer uploaded the video of Richard, Robinson, and 'Madam Hotel Room' as directed by the Purple Tag Chairman.
Now, Jeff halted the Zoom Meeting, and he began to monitor the attendance at the meeting to see if anyone would exit but to his delight, no one left. They seemed to be interested in watching a free porn while waiting for the meeting to continue. Meanwhile, the video showed the conversations between Richard and Robinson against the General Manager at the stadium and the show of disrespect when everyone was standing. Their plan to deal with 'madam hotel room'. They discussed to abduct the General Manager and how they hoped to request the Lamborghini as a ransom. The visit of the contractors where Richard was jerked off his swivel chair. The video where Robinson grabbed the Security guard was also played.
Now, the bewildered Mr. Morris could not believe that he was not in a Dreamland. He cast a glance at Jeff who was focused on his system and returned to his system without uttering a word.
Now, since Jeff knew when the video would end he paused it, returned to the meeting room, and carried on with the meeting as though he was not aware of the magnitude of what happened.
“Sorry for that technical mishap. As I was saying, it was a great and successful outing. All our guests have returned to their respective bases successfully. The only casualty that we recorded was not beyond our control. However, this event would not have been successful without the support of all of you. I appreciate you all most, especially the General Manager and his team. Thank you all, and best regards.”
Then, the Zoom Meeting came to a close.
Now, the three main characters in the video were as good as dead. Likewise, the General Manager was as composed as he could be because he was alone in his office, so it was easy to manage his emotions. Nevertheless, tears were already gathering in his eyes. Apart from his wife, whom he did not want to get involved in that ugly incident, the only person he would cry on his shoulder currently was the Vice Chairman.
However, he got into the bathroom, made water, washed his face with cold water, and then returned to his office. When he was satisfied with his level of comportment, he set out for the Vice Chairman's office.
At the Chairman's Office.
After the Zoom Meeting, the first thing Mr. Morris could say was, "Get me a cup of coffee.”
Jeff who was confident that the two icons in his life would reprove him if he was mistaken, proceeded to get the coffee. Now, Mr. Morris did not comment on the Zoom Meeting, and he may never. Jeff, on the other hand, was not expecting any appraisal from him either. He searched his face for any expression, but he got none.
'After all, the video came up by error,' he defended himself. Now, he got two cups of coffee, one for Mr. Morris and one for himself, for doing a good job. The dicey thing about the video was that Jeff did not play it officially, it was a coincidence. So, nobody knew how to react, not even the Chairman and the Vice Chairman. That was why the Chairman was unwilling to react. Then, they had their coffee in silence, while he stole a glance at him from time to time.
At the Security Office
Now, Ahmed and the CSO who were part of the game plan gave a triumphant smile, “This boy is too smart.”
“Yes, and he used his age to his advantage,” Ahmed pointed out. They were aware that it was not a coincidence but were not aware that he had the plan to use it during the Zoom meeting.
'If the parties involved feel offended, they can take a move and lay their complaints to the appropriate quarters,' Ahmed thought and only played along.
At The Vice Chairman's Office
Meanwhile, the Chairman was more relaxed than the Vice Chairman because he was aware that Jeff did not come to the office directly in the morning. He might have gone to the CSO's office to plan that. He ignored him and continued with his work and sipped his tea from time to time.
Nevertheless, the Vice Chairman kept staring at his phone after the meeting, and so many thoughts were on his mind. Meanwhile, he was unaware of what to believe.
'Was the Video played in error because Jeff was too young to handle a Zoom Meeting and as such an error occurred?'
'How did he lay hands on the video?'
All the same, he needed to keep an eye on the stock market and decided to take his mind off the video and the Zoom Meeting and concentrate on the report submitted by the General Manager. Just then, his door opened.
“The General Manager is here, boss,” announced his clerk, Drake Rowland.
“Let him in,” the Vice Chairman answered without looking up, and the clerk ushered the General Manager in.
“Thank you, Drake,” Gabriel appreciated and walked in. His appearance could not depict his mood because he was controlling it but as soon as he got into the Vice Chairman's office, he lost control, and could not hold back. Then, the Vice Chairman quickly locked the automatic door through the remote control that was on his table because he had understood his reason for coming.
Meanwhile, the General Manager stood in the middle of the office and allowed his tears to pour out uncontrollably. When the Vice Chairman saw his mood, he got out of his swivel chair and ushered him to the couch. They walked to the couch in silence and after they took their seats, Ken waited for him to speak, but he could not. He was just mopping into the space as tears flowed freely down his cheek. At last, the Vice Chairman spoke, “Don't you think you are victorious?”
“How? When my job and life are at stake?”
“No. It's their lives and jobs that should be at stake because they have been exposed. As a matter of fact, this is for your good. Did you not listen to the confession they made?”
“What confession, please?”
(… You know that he does the Cherry Fields' work as if it is his. If not that we influenced him, do you think he would have allowed us to make all the money we made so far from the company, especially now that he works closely with that stingy Chief Accountant.)
“Can't you see that they dug their graves, and they have exonerated you from their misdeeds.”
Nevertheless, the General Manager did not see it from that perspective. Then, he breathed in and out heavily, and dried his tears.
“What would the Chairman think about me with this revelation?”
The Vice Chairman smiled softly and explained, “The Chairman knew more than this. He was waiting for the Independent Anniversary Celebration to be over before he would discuss that with you.”
Now, Gabriel remembered that the Chairman had not discussed the issue of the sacked management staff with him, and was distraught. Then, he inquired, “Knew more than this? Discuss what with me, please?”
At the moment, the General Manager was battling to regain his composure. Then, he turned to face the Vice Chairman with his red eyes, and he explained, “Yes, many things. Do you remember the internet posts about you that led to the deployment of many security personnel to your house?”
“Yes. Unfortunately, I did not see the post. I only heard about it. But I saw the post of the video conference by the Commissioner of Police.”
“You got it. As a matter of fact, the Independent Anniversary Celebration was to redeem your dented image and to control the damage the post had on you and the organization.”
Now, the General Manager was speechless for a while and gazed into the space again. After a while, he spoke, “I can't believe this. Did you mean all this was just because of me? Can we see the Chairman now?”
The Vice Chairman looked at the wall clock before he responded.
“Can we make it by 1 pm? He must be getting ready for his lunch, and may not give you the audience you desire now.”
“It's all right. I will come back by 1 p.m., so we can see him together.”
“It's all right.”