He walked up to David Freeman’s old office and sighed with delight. As he stepped through the doorway, he felt an overwhelming sense of accomplishment. The furniture had already been replaced. He hadn’t wanted to sit in the same seat or use the same desk as that man. He hadn’t touched the other offices but this one would be his when he was working there and it needed to be comfortable.
He sat down in his chair and turned it toward the windows. The office wasn’t as nice as the one back at his main office but it would do. He’d already had a complete overhaul done on it so there was brand new cherry wood floors and expensive furniture. He had priceless pieces of art hung on the walls and a top of the line computer system. He liked surrounding himself with the finer things in life.
He enjoyed the view from the huge windows and his few minutes of peace, before he had to continue his day. It was going to be a very long one and he knew he’d be lucky to get out of there before midnight. People were never happy to be fired and he had a lot of people to let go. He sighed, as he turned back to the computer and started looking through files.
Chapter Three
Jasmine walked into the familiar building, having to fight back her tears. There were men outside, working on placing a new sign. It was more proof the company no longer belonged to her father. She’d been trying to reach him for days, to ask him what had happened. He hadn’t even told her the company was in jeopardy of being taken over.
He wasn’t answering his phone, or returning her calls. She’d been to his place several times and was told he wasn’t there. She tried again that morning but wasn’t able to get past the gates and found a real estate sign on his front lawn.
Jasmine was trying to understand what was going on and why her father wouldn’t speak to her. She knew the new owner of the company was scheduled to be there that day and she was determined to get some answers. She’d worked so hard throughout the years and had some day hoped to own the company she cared so much about, but those dreams were now gone.
She would’ve walked out the doors when the take-over had occurred but she didn’t only have herself to think about. Her anger drained a little bit as she thought about her beautiful son. He looked so much like his father it made her heart ache sometimes with missing the man. She had to remind herself his father wasn’t the same man he used to be.
She started to pass the security desk, when she was stopped. “Sorry Ms. Freeman but we have some new procedures now, can you step over here?” the new guard said to her.
“What’s going on Tim?” she asked, perplexed. She actually liked the man. In a stressful situation, he’d been kind and helpful. He didn’t try to bully people, like some of the old guards had done. She’d came close to filing a sexual harassment case on the last head of security but her father had talked her out of it, saying it would look bad for the company. She’d made sure to never be left alone in the building with the previous guard though because she hadn’t trusted him.
“We have a new security system being implemented,” he told her. He then looked through his computer screen until he found her name. He typed some things in the boxes and then handed her a new badge. “This is just a temporary one. The boss is doing a bunch of cuts and when everything is done, the remaining employee’s will be issued permanent badges,” he finished, looking sorry. She had a bad feeling she was one being let go. She had to suppress the tears one more time.
She got on the elevator and took a fortifying breath. If she was going down, she was certainly going to do it fighting, she thought with determination. This new boss sounded like a real piece of work.
She was currently the head of Personnel and loved her job. She loved working with people on a daily basis. She’d hired most of the factory workers and was more scared for them than anyone else. She fought her father many times to give them better wages and benefits but he had treated her like a child telling her she didn’t know how to successfully run a business.
That was a bit ironic now considering he’d lost his business. Why wouldn’t he talk to her and explain what was going on?
Jasmine walked into her office, to find several strangers there, looking through her computer and files. “What is going on in here?” she demanded.
“Who are you?” an extremely attractive blonde asked her in a snotty voice.
“I happen to be the Human Resources director and this is my office. Who the heck are you?” she replied.
“I’m Amy and we're the current HR team, working on who will be staying or going. The president asked us to escort you to his offices immediately, once you returned,” the snide woman said.