My hands began shaking in anxiety as I first opened, and then began to read through, the letter on my desk. If it was what I thought it was, it would be the fourth letter of resignation from my staff today. They’d all come in protest of Melissa’s firings of Charlotte and Carol, and they were all upsetting. I don’t have a huge practice, the business is relatively small. Losing this many people in one day was traumatic…but for sure this newest one would be the most devastating. And that’s exactly what it was, it was what I feared. Oh Hilda, no, why you?“Dear Doctor - Please accept this as notice of my resignation from my position as Accounting Supervisor from Far Horizons Medical Associates, effective immediately.”Hilda had been, oh my god, my rock for as long as I can remember. Managing the accounting office year in and year out, dutiful to a fault, I wouldn’t be overstating in saying she was my most valuable of employees…and probably the most irreplaceable. She understood the intricacies of coding, billing, dealing with the different health plans better than anyone. The accounting office is the lifeblood of the practice, and I relied on her heavily. That’s why this letter, in her perfect, catholic school cursive, was so damaging. I just prayed it didn’t become, as I read on, as humiliating as the others. “I have had a long history here in the office and seen it - and you - go through a lot. I have always remained steadfast and loyal and have respected your leadership. Recent changes, though, have me questioning that leadership and frankly it’s become too much.”Beyond her work ethos, beyond how useful and indispensable she was to the practice, Hilda was always an ear for me, a confidante. I’d considered her a friend. Yes, I knew I’d lost some of her respect through my dalliances with the staff in the past, but I always felt I could…well…I guess I was wrong. At least, I thought to myself as I read, this letter wasn’t as aggressive and insulting as the others, from earlier, from Shoshanna, Pauline and Ava. They were scathing, full of insults and bad jokes at both my and Melissa’s expense; I’m just glad they came across my desk, and not hers. Hilda, at least, was remaining professional in her…oh wait…“I feel I cannot continue in the current environment. Management, in my opinion, has become too top-heavy.”Ugh. There it is. And as I read on, I felt my blood chill in shame. “I was also disappointed to hear that when the new Office Manager fired Carol and Charlotte, both valuable employees, you just sat there and didn’t say a word.”It was true, it was all too true. I had arrived into the office that morning and was almost immediately asked by Melissa to sit in on a meeting between she, Carol and Charlotte. I knew right away what was going to happen, but to my discredit questioned nothing and merely followed her down the hall, in tow behind the of her heels and the confident sway of her generous rear. I could not help but notice that her choice in shoes today made her a good bit taller than me today; her posture even taller still. The tight black dress she wore I’d seen before - it seemed if anything even tighter today, especially in the shoulders and hips. It certainly left no curve to the imagination, and her legs, bare below mid-thigh, looked powerful. As we stepped into the small meeting room, I greeted Carol and Charlotte, who had been waiting for us but gave nothing back to me but icy stares. Melissa gestured to a chair for me, smaller than the one into which she was about to sit, and when I was finally settled I felt head and shoulders smaller than the tall brunette now to my left. I’ve been in situations like this before, I thought, as I watched Melissa organize the small pile of papers on the table in front of her. I’ve had to fire people, I’ve had to let them go, and it was always a miserable, difficult task. I couldn’t help but think, though, that I saw something in Melissa’s face that told me she was feeling otherwise. From the moment I first saw her this morning there’d been a look of…anticipation in her eyes. Like she was looking forward to this. I couldn’t imagine anyone getting a thrill out of such an uncomfortable moment, but even now she seemed ripe with a barely contained, expectant energy. I squirm now thinking about how passive I was being, as Melissa began to speak. I wince as I remember her describing the girls’ situation, aptly quoting from our employee manual, setting the scene…with me not saying anything. I shudder as I remember Melissa’s powerfully seductive perfume as it began to fill the room, not knowing then what I do now about its effects. How it kept me quiet, how it kept me passive. How it was slowly making me the beta. Finally, though, as Melissa had nearly finished speaking her peace, outlining the details of both Charlotte and Carol’s dismissal, Carol spoke up. Her gaze, shooting daggers, was now aimed directly at me. “Dr. J., Charlotte and I are some of your oldest employees. Are you seriously going to let the mega milk bimbo fire us?!? Just like that?!?” “Yeah!” shot Charlotte, “Are you not going to say anything?!?”My blood froze, my jaw dropped. I knew, I knew I needed to speak up. But before I could gather my voice, Melissa spoke in my place.“We’ve discussed this,” she said, her voice still calm but assertive, “He wants me to be the boss…”. At that she looked at me. “…don’t you, Dr. J?" My heartbeat echoed through my head, and though I knew so many things hung in the balance, I could find myself saying only one thing. Under her gaze and the fragrant blanket of her perfume I replied “I…I think that’s best…”To that, Charlotte huffed, turning away from me in disgust. Carol, though, did not hold her tongue. “You spineless turd,” she spat, “You weak little…baby.”Oh my god. My face flushed. Flashbacks of Rina, and her explosion on her last day. “U-uhhhh…”Seeing my reaction, grinning crookedly and knowing she’d hit a nerve, Carol bore onwards.“Just going to let mommy handle all the hard stuff huh? Standing up to the big, mean girls?” she sneered, “Too shy and weak and afraid to do it yourself??” Feeling, among a hot steaming pile of other things, ashamed and embarrassed, I looked over at Melissa, who was already smiling a funny smile back at me….…“Thank you for the opportunities in the past,” Hilda’s letter concluded.How am I going to do this?!?===========================Cred to fetish3d for the original render for the Melissssy silhouette, and my posse for the random/i.e. best bits of dialogue. -- source link
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